I really enjoyed this audiobook and I thought the narrator was well-suited for the book. I found the characters very captivating and the story had me puzzling out in my head just what was going on. Christmas Presents was engaging throughout the entire story.

A decade ago, Madeline Martin was attacked and her best friend was murdered. On the same night two other local high school girls went missing and have yet to be found. Evan Handy, Maddie’s boyfriend is serving time for the murder of Stephanie and the attack on Maddie, he is also a suspect in the missing girls case, but claims he’s innocent. Every Christmas things focus around the missing girls as their mom hold a candlelight vigil every Christmas Eve. Maddie is marked by the trauma and what little she can remember of that night is not helpful. When an author and true crime podcaster comes to town, Maddie has no desire to talk with him about the case, but when another girl goes missing under similar circumstances, the stakes are suddenly higher. Maddie’s dad, the town sheriff, has always suspected that Evan had someone working with him, and has never given up the search, but when he’s sidelined by a stroke, he becomes agitated. He seems to know something about the case that he is unable to articulate. This is one Lisa Unger book that just didn’t pack its usual punch. Written more as a novella than a full fledged novel took away from the development of the story and characters. The podcast portion didn’t really fit as well as it could have and added little to the overall storyline. In the end it was just OK. This was a dual read/listen for me and at first I was unsure about the narrator, but as I became engrossed in the story she became easier to listen to. Thank you to Mysterious Press, HighBridge Audio and NetGalley for an ARC and ALC of this book.

Reading Between the Wines book review #128/115(met goal in Sept!) for 2023:
Rating: 3 🍷 🍷 🍷
Book: Christmas Presents
Author: Lisa Unger
Available Now!!

Sipping thoughts: Christmas is supposed to be a fun, family oriented, holiday filled with love and spirit. Instead for Madeline, it was filled of tragedy, a near death experience, and lifelong memories of fear and uncertainty. She was almost killed by her boyfriend who did kill her best friend. The same night, two sisters went missing. They were never found. And even though the killer was put behind bars, another girl goes missing so did he have an accomplice or is there a copycat?

Cheers and thank you to @HighBridgeAudio and @Netgalley for an advanced copy of @ChristmasPresents.

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Ms. Unger is always a thrill to listen to or read and this was no exception.

The basic premise is the fact that details in situations may be overlooked: emotion, being naive,
traumatic events, all skew what was perfectly evident retrospectively.
A horrific event 10 years prior has devastated a town and several families: young girls gone missing, one murdered and a solitary physically scarred victim whose memory of the night haunts her. Yes, one young man is behind bars but there is a new claim that he did not /could not have functioned alone. Is he still out there?
When an unscrupulous podcaster comes to town, buys the home of the murder victims and starts digging into the events of that night for his show, he discovers there were other local young women gone missing as well and the scab comes off the old wound. Reexamination of the old files and new eyes seem to arouse new ideas.
It’s a slow evolution to discover what has been missed by everyone involved. Some of the twists were detected early by the listener but it did not detract from the final exciting scenario.

This was a good Christmas thriller novella. I enjoyed the dual stories, the podcast aspect, and didn’t pick the killer right away. The audio was great! Thanks for the chance to listen.

I hadn't read a Lisa Unger book before. I do have lots of her books on my tbr list though! This had all the things I love in a good mystery/thriller. I enjoyed it but guessed the ending early on. It wasn't a favorite I've read this year but I would like to read more books by this author.

At 5-1/2 hours this audiobook is binge-worthy. It has a fantastic book store and a true crime component. What's not to like? The narrator did a great job, however I did have some confusion at the start of the book keeping Maddie and Lolly separate. Once I got their voices down I was fully involved in the story, which took a few turns I didn't expect, one being that I found I didn't care for Harley Granger. The Christmas holiday timing gave the book a very realistic feel. This could be because I lost my Dad just before Christmas and I know that tragedy doesn't make the world stop - the holidays still go on, people still buy presents and make plans. The same is true in this book. As much as I liked peeling back the layers on the cold case to find Lolly, I loved the interactions and conversations that happened at the book store even more and I wanted to stop time to peruse the aisles to find the right holiday read. But alas, Lolly is missing and she must be found! Not wanting to give anything away I will say I was pleasantly surprised by how the book wound up for all of the characters. This book is a great transition read between the spooky tales of October and the cozy holiday reads of December.

Thank you NetGalley and HighBridge Audio for the audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Madeline Martin is a survivor. Harley Granger is a true crime podcaster bringing up past memories that Madeline would rather forget. This was a dark and compelling story and I really enjoyed listening to it on audiobook.

Christmas + true crime podcast + cold case? Obviously, I am going to devour it! Unger delivers another great story with interesting characters and multiple suspects. The boyfriend, Evan, in this give some serious Billy Loomas vibes which I really appreciated. This didn’t feel like a novella in terms of the depth of the characters but I did blow through it. If you are looking for a bingeable Christmas thriller then definitely get your hands on this one!

Madeline Martin had a tragic childhood, but has built herself up and now owns a bookshop. Harley Granger, true crime podcaster shows up at her shop asking questions causing Madeline to remember things she wanted to leave in the past, but when she finds out more people have went missing she sets out to try to find some answers.

It’s been a while since I’ve read a book by Lisa Unger and I’m definitely going to have to check out a few more of her books! I enjoyed this one quite a bit! Many of the suspenseful moments had me on edge; I had a hard time putting this book down! I liked how the story hopped between different character narratives and slowly revealed clues along the way. A few times the story went a different direction than I thought it was going to go and had me wondering who to trust which kept me engaged in the story and biting my nails. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a fast paced suspense novel or who enjoy reading authors like John Marrs or Ruth Ware.

Thank you NetGalley for the electronic version of this book in exchange for an honest review.

We love a Christmas thriller, even if it's just a short story! I love cozy holiday novels, and there are too few thrillers set around Christmastime.

This novella was the perfect length. Unger did a really good job of introducing characters and their backstories in the limited amount of time she had. I loved the setting of the creepy small town, and was immediately drawn in to the cold case.

I keep my reviews for novellas short, but this is a great one to pick up to transfer from spooky season reads into holiday books. I'd love to see more full-length Christmastime thrillers in the future!

The audio version of this book was such a quick and easy listen. I flew through it on a train ride and really enjoyed the listen!

Madeline Martin has a past she wishes to forget.....she is now the owner of a successful small book store and has left her past behind her. Until Harley Granger comes into her bookstore just before Christmas. Harley is a novelist turned true crime podcast creator. He wants Madeline to go back to the worst time of her life and relive it so Harley can do a podcast on it. When Maddy was just a teenager, Evan Handy moved into town and swept her off her feet. Although Maddy's police chief father warned her to stay away from Evan, Maddy fell hard and fast. After a horrific night, Maddy's best friend is dead and two girls are missing. Was Evan responsible for everything that happened that night? Harley wants to dig up all the details and determine what really happened that night.

At the same time as Harley is looking to dig up the past, another girl goes missing. All of this causes Maddy to have to relive that awful time of her life. Could she help uncover what is happening with the most recent missing girl? Could it all be related somehow?

This book will grab you right away. The story is told from two points of view and takes a little bit of time to determine who is who while listening to the audiobook. The narrator, Jennifer Pickens, did a great job, but two narrators might have made it more clear as to whose point of view we were hearing. This is another great read by Lisa Unger. You won't want to put it down! Thank you to NetGalley, Penzler Publishers, and Mysterious Press for the ARC of this book.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the audio book publisher for an E-ALC.

The mystery and thriller genres are desperately in need of a yearly November overhaul. While the romance genre spills out holiday stories with descriptions of hot cocoa, cookie making and love in the air we’re left with lakeside campsites and October vibes that just don’t fit the December murder bill.

Lisa Unger’s new novel, Christmas Presents was a really, pleasant surprise. I welcomed this novel which had great descriptions of snow, meals and gift giving. The biggest mystery of this novel is the abduction of stripper, Lolly Morris in the present. We’re also introduced to our main character Madeline Martin, a bookstore owner who experienced the killing of her friends in high school. Podcaster, Harley Granger is in town and wants to interview Madeline and her friends to finally solve the case that’s been on the back burner.

I listened to in tandem with a physical copy of the book. The narrator, Jennifer Pickens has a very pleasant voice. I liked that she dropped her voice into a lower vocal range when reading the dialogue of men. I do feel that the publisher did a disservice to the book. I really wish that this novel had a full cast of voice actors. We switch perspectives from stripper, Lolly Morris to bookstore owner, Madeline Martin. I wish the audio publisher had hired two female narrators with very distinctive voices. The book publisher also should’ve had the name of each woman at the start of each chapter. The audio narrator would start reading and it was only after 3-4 sentences that I’d realize which character’s perspective we were in. I’m glad I had a physical copy of the book. Audio book listeners will need to focus intently to note which character’s chapter we’re on. A few sections of the book also cover podcaster, Harley Granger. We could’ve had a male narrator in these few chapters too. All of this would’ve added so much more to the overall production.

The overall plot was enjoyable but a very predictable twist. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Publishers take note. Mystery and thriller readers are ready for holiday reads. We’re due.

This was an entertaining listen (I listened to the Audiobook). It wasn’t particularly twisty, as the who dun it, wasn’t that surprising. There weren’t a lot of red herrings thrown in there, so it was more of just who out of 2 or 3 people.

The documentary part of this wasn’t a lot. Not a whole lot of it was mentioned. It was more of a murder mystery as opposed to a thriller. This wasn’t very thrilling.

Either way, it was entertaining and worth a listen.

A Chilling Holiday Novella!
🌟🌟🌟🌟
It’s too early to think about Christmas! But not too early to read one of Lisa Unger’s addictive stories centering around a festive holiday! She’s one of my favorite authors when it comes to spookily eerie fiction.

Grab any of her books if you’re looking for unusual and creepy. They are perfect for October. She’s wonderful at developing complex characters in great detail. Even in a short story. She gets right down to the meat and bones in this one!

I recommend this to anyone who enjoys disturbing thrillers!

Sincere thanks to HighBridge Audio for this complimentary audio ARC provided through NetGalley. As always, all opinions are my own and are left voluntarily.

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I love how short this book was. Lisa Unger gets right into the story right away and we are taken on a twisty, wintery ride. Managed to read this book before the first snow fell, now it is time to read more winter themed books because I am not going outside for 5 months. :)

Jennifer Pickens did a great job narrating this novel and I will definitely look for more of Jennifer's books in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and HighBridge Audio for the advance copy of this book. I’ve wanted to read one of this author’s book for a while, and this was a good introduction to her work. This was a solid 4.5 stars for me; atmospheric and cozy, while keeping the suspense high enough to keep me intrigued. It was an easy, enjoyable read, though it did not have a completely shocking conclusion.

The narrator’s voice, at first, kind of irritated me - but within about thirty minutes I got used to it and it didn’t detract from the story. The switching of points-of-view and flashbacks could have been a little more obvious as the cadence of the narrator didn’t change between characters and it wasn’t noted at the beginning of each change.

I thoroughly enjoyed this and plan to add more of this author’s work to my tbr shelf.

Another twisty, fast-paced mystery from the always reliable Lisa Unger. This one focuses on the owner of a bookshop who, as a teen, was a victim of one of the most highly publicized crimes in the area. But was the right man arrested for the crime or could there be an accomplice still out there stalking women?

Unger does a fabulous job of characterization, building suspense, and well-placed red herrings until the surprising ending. I love that Unger always has feisty heroines who fight back and who you always want to root for. This book has two such women and the ending is a great payoff. Looking forward to the next suspense thriller by this always fast-paced and fun author.

I usually like Unger, but I didn't like the sort of Christmas/horror mash-up. It just felt unnecessary, and not clever.


Review copy provided by publisher.