Holiday Spirit by John DeGuire is a delightful twist on the holiday genre, mixing classic horror with festive cheer in the small town of Killington, Vermont. The story begins with a Halloween prank gone disastrously wrong, leaving a vengeful witch named Bridgett Bishop set on making the holidays a nightmare. With children vanishing and supernatural creatures causing chaos, Killington’s residents find themselves plunged into fear as Christmas approaches.

But, as it turns out, not all monsters are villains. DeGuire introduces an unconventional group of heroes led by Count Dracula and his fierce werewolf wife, Aoife. Joining them is Saul, a patched-together EMS captain in the spirit of Frankenstein, and Dr. Ralph Ellison, the invisible man who lurks in shadows. Together, they must face off against Bishop’s dark forces, rescue the town’s missing children, and attempt to restore holiday spirit.

DeGuire does a brilliant job bringing these classic characters to life in a modern setting, offering both action and humor. The book’s blend of monster romance, supernatural suspense, and holiday charm makes it a perfectly unexpected holiday read. Holiday Spirit is the ideal choice for kicking off the season with a fun, spooky twist!

This is a unique DNF for me; the book bounces between different characters each chapter to show different view points and to introduce new characters. I appreciate the use of Halloween typed characters - Dracula, a witch, a werewolf, the Invisible Man, Frankenstein, etc - and I started to read the book as an intro into fall/spooky season.

However; with my current concussion issue this book is extremely confusing as it bounces between different people after three-four pages. I tried to multiple times to sit through and try the book, but I'm getting lost easily. There's also some cringy moments within the book at make me shrink back and re-consider pushing through.

Despite all of this, the book it's decently written. I WILL be attempting this book again once I'm healed more to see if it's just my current state or whether the book is genuinely confusing me. I did enjoy what I was able to read and understand, and hope that later down the line I can fully appreciate the book.

Attempt 1 in 2024 was a DNF @ 30%.
Attempt 2 in 2025? Hoping to finish and update my review!

This is quirky, fun and darkly entertaining. This is inventive and gives such a fun perspective on monsters in their free time.

John DeGuire's Holiday Spirit is a genre-defying modern fairy tale that alternately charms and chills. Featuring a greatest hits of horror icons from Frankenstein to the Creature from the Black Lagoon, this adventure is neither totally whimsical nor convincingly scary. Chapters are extremely short, which contributes to the storybook tone, but also renders more lyrical passages into mediocre poetry. A strong start gives readers the origin story of a real-life witch who is viciously harassed by neighborhood children on an idyllic Halloween night. We're then introduced to a cast of characters including, but not limited to Dracula, a werewolf and the Mummy. As the narrative progresses, unfortunately, the silliness of the plot bleeds into the story's presentation and makes what might otherwise be a uniquely humorous horror adventure into a cartoon. This wasn't for me, but it might be fun for the right audience.

Thanks to NetGalley and the author for the ARC.

Holiday Spirit starts out with a bang and encompasses many of the beloved Halloween staples. A witch, a werewolf, a vampire, the frankstein monster, mummies, lagoon creatures, and a curse. All set near…Christmas? If that sounds strange, then keep in mind the invasion of monster madness follows a particularly cruel and nasty incident of prancing on Halloween by some thoughtless children against and elderly woman, who is, all be it, a practitioner of the dark arts. A witch with a grudge who is making children vanish. All this mixes together surprisingly well and cries out for a screen adaption. Great characters, compelling writing with plenty of emotion and heart behind it. Greatly enjoyable by all accounts.

This book was hard for me to get into. It starts out strong but loses steam pretty fast. Unfortunately because of that I DNF.

This book was really hard to get into. Every time I thought I got attached to a character, everything changed. It felt very inconsistent, and almost as if they were all separate stories forced to somehow make sense together, which, to me, it didn't.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a free ebook copy in exchange for an honest review.

Okay, so the premise to this book is a lot of fun. And there was definitely some technicality to the writing that was to be admired. (Some of the villain's POV was entirely in rhyme). I have some issues with this that I really feel like could have been fixed with a hard edit. There was definitely an onslaught of information at times that wasn't entirely needed for the plot... it just felt like what the author learned after reading some Wiki articles. Some of the descriptions were repetitive (I refuse to believe that so many people's fear response is to crap themselves... some, yes. But as many times as it gets mentioned in this book? No.) I honestly think this book would have benefited from being split right down the middle into two short novels or novellas. New characters are almost continuously introduced, and the problem spoken of in the blurb is solved right exactly at the halfway mark. Then, the problem presents itself again but in a new way. This would have made sense as a book 1, book 2 scenario... but as one complete novel? It kind of made it drag toward the end.

*Review posted at Goodreads, link provided

Thank you to NetGalley to providing me with this ARC. This was a DNF as I found that the story lacked a consistent plot. It felt more like a string of short stories thrown together that had been inspired by other famous horror stories. The author is very good at setting an unsettling scene they did struggle with dialogue. I found a lot of the conversations between characters to be corny and unrealistic.

This was a fun and unique spin on a holiday horror. I found the story engaging and easy to get into, though the pacing was a bit off at times and the writing style was not my usual brand. I liked the characters and the bits of information strewn in the story.

I loved the concept of this book! It was such an interesting concept and gave NOS4A2 vibes. I feel like books where kids are involved are always so much darker, and this didn't disappoint. However, the pacing of the book was a struggle for me. It was hard to stay engaged when the slower parts were an incredible slow burn. Overall though, I think this is such a great book for Halloween!

When the children in town start to go missing, the concerned adults are quick to point fingers at the most likely culprits: the monsters. However, the monsters are not willing to take the blame for a crime they didn't commit and are desperate to bring justice to the town and to themselves.

What did I like about this book? The heart. The concept! I love love love any book where monsters are the main characters and this didn't disappoint! Count Dracula and his beloved werewolf wife and their band of well known monsters were a team filled with so much heart. I loved them all and I loved each of their backgrounds, classic enough to be familiar but with new additions to add a unique flair. The villans were also good! Believe it or not, there was heart there as well! I honestly just loved the idea of monsters trying to save themselves from a crime they had no part in.

I loved that so much of the content held subtle nods to so much spooky media throughout history. The hidden double meanings behind age old nursey rhymes, the introduction and explanation of phobias and terrors of all kinds, common and uncommon. It was a bundle of spooky fun that left me eager to turn every page.

My biggest complaint was, unfortunately, the pacing. I have found, though, that sometimes I just simply struggle with the pacing of horror novels so I wouldn't say that the pacing makes or breaks it. I personally would have just preferred to have the character motives and backgrounds be given out slowly and bit by bit. I felt like there were times when there was a little too much information being thrown at me at once, especially in the beginning. Longer chapters with a little more uncertainty would have been more my speed. However, aside from the pacing, this really was a fun and unique story. Definitely something I may want to reread when Halloween rolls around!

This is a book filled with ideas that aren’t quite supported by the writing. An old woman unjustly hurt by neighborhood children, who pelt her with rocks and eggs one Halloween night, decides to get revenge. As children go missing, people turn the blame on monsters — because who else could it be — which causes the monsters themselves to take notice.

The writing is very much a telling as events are given through exposition, so much so I felt I was reading a cliff-notes version of the book. This isn’t helped with the constant trivia interjections. For example, when Dracula gives a ring to Aoife, the werewolf, it’s a single sentence in a paragraph stating that it happened, only then to list when Alexandrite — the stone — was discovered, and who it was named after. Mummies come into the story and several paragraphs go on to mention how mummies were made and with what tools. A character’s introduction involves the history of his college, when it was founded and by whom, and how many acres the campus covers.

In many ways it reads as though it’s intended for a younger audience with the way it’s written, especially in the ways it tries to interject history and science lessons. The characters all had similar personalities and ways of speaking, and while there were some good moments of banter here and there … overall this book isn’t to my personal taste.

So so so good! Loved this book so much! This author is such a bop! Need to discover more books from John DeGuire.

I’m a big fan of all the classic monster stories so I enjoyed this take on them for the most part! I kept thinking that it would definitely make a neat movie. My only real complaint is that is sort of drones on and on. I found myself constantly checking to see how much I had left instead of being engrossed in the story.

It’s very unique and kudos to the author for managing so many characters and blending them into a plot. It’s quite impressive!

Netgalley ARC- 2.5

The first part of this book is a solid 4 stars. The last half is a two

This book includes all your favorite horror characters-and makes them have a little more heart. Minus the witch and her goon squad.

This book is a little long. Lots of extra information thrown in that can definitely be edited out.
The concept is very interesting…. But the story goes no where with it. Strong start but seems the ending was not thought out.

Book was very hard to follow in terms of setting
Lots of animal cruelty/killing added for no reason.

Original and entertaining, an horror story set at Christmas time. Well plotted, gripping, it kept me on the edge.
I appreciated the world building and the storytelling.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

A fresh, heartfelt take on classic horror staples. The relationship between Dracula and Aoife was a highlight. I couldn't help but compare the plot of "monsters clearing their names in the eyes of humans" to Hotel Transylvania, as on a basic level they share a lot in common. So if you're looking for a more mature and horror-esque upgrade of that film, this would be a great fit.

This was a strange sounding book after reading the summary and I requested it because it really piqued my interest. What I didn't expect was a heartfelt story of friends, family, and understanding differences. I really liked it, and it was an entertaining book. I'm glad I came across it and requested it because I enjoy this read.

In John DeGuire's debut novel, "Holiday Spirit," the quaint town of Killington, Vermont, is gripped by a chilling its children are vanishing. It all starts with a Halloween prank gone horribly wrong and an enraged witch.
As Christmas approaches, strange and unexplainable events plague the town. Ancient mummies, sinister lagoon creatures, and malevolent phantoms threaten the very essence of the holidays.
When the children disappear, panic spreads, and the townsfolk point fingers at the lurking monsters. But not all monsters are what they seem. Meet Saul, Frankenstein's patchwork EMS captain, created by his scientist father. Dr. Ralph Ellison, the invisible man, who blends into the shadows.
Aoife, a heroic werewolf who embraces her lycanthropy, and her husband, Count Dracula, a vampire with centuries of wisdom and a thirst for justice, not innocent blood.
As the witch Bridgett Bishop gathers her dark forces, this unlikely band of heroes must rise to the occasion. "Holiday Spirit" is a gripping werewolf romance, holiday baggage, and holiday murder mystery all rolled into one thrilling novel.
Can these monsters save the children and rescue the holiday season, or will darkness prevail?
Join them in a heart-pounding battle for the most magical time of the year and discover that love truly never dies, not even for Dracula.

You know exactly what you're getting in this book. A fun, goofy and campy werewolf horror novel set during Christmas. If you like these type of goofy horror movies then I think you'll like this one. I personally like a more serious tone of narrative, but I still had a lot of fun with this one:)