Once again, the holidays have rolled around in Book 5 of Jacqueline Frost’s Christmas Tree Farm mystery series. Holly Gray, looking forward to her first anniversary with sheriff Evan Gray, is trying to come up with the perfect gift. Evan is a magical gift giver while Holly is not as imaginative. She is helping her folks with the Reindeer games which this year have the added adventure of her Mom trying to set a Guinness world record for the largest gingerbread man. The founding family of the town, the Snows, have been invited to attend and Mother and adult son show up at the Inn. They are not the friendliest pair that Holly has checked in, but she does her best to be welcoming. Sadly, the next day, Holly’s Mom’s plans are ruined when Mr. Snow turns up dead in the gingerbread. While Holly promises to stay out of the investigation, she cannot help herself. The usual cast of characters are in town to help her, so we get to visit with Cookie Cutter and her goats as well as Holly’s grumpy cat, Cindy Lou Who. This is another well written adventure that keeps you guessing until the end. I was given an advanced copy by NetGalley but the opinion is my own.

I love this Christmas series and hope for a new one every year.
Exactly what you think of when your craving a Christmas cozy .

I've been a fan of this series from the beginning and have looked forward to each new book. I'll Be Home for Mischief was no exception. However, for me, this was not my favorite book in the series. I love the characters and the setting of this series. The story premise had promise. Holly's mom attempts to divert focus away from the murders that have occurred at the Christmas Tree farm each year for the past five years by trying to break a record for baking the largest gingerbread cookie. Sadly, the attempt to divert attention is thwarted when another murder takes place on the farm. This time around, I felt like the story was much more relationship driven than mystery driven. While I love cozy mysteries because they are character driven, I prefer the romance to be secondary to the mystery. It felt like in this one the script was switched. I enjoy the series and so I will be back for future books.

I'll Be Home for Mischief, the 5th and newest in Jacqueline Frost's A Christmas Tree Farm Mystery, surrounds the reader in the wonderful Christmas feeling that this series always brings, even as Holly works to solve the 5th murder on the farm in 5 years. That record is a tough one for a Christmas tree farm that works to draw in tourists especially during the holidays. Concerns for their reputation is part of the reason that Holly's mom decided to set a new and much happier record by creating the world's largest gingerbread man. Unfortunately, the bad record destroys any hopes of setting a new one when a body turn up in the batter for the giant gingerbread man cookie.
Among the excitement on the farm and within the community is a 1st anniversary celebration, attempts by the community to break world records since the cookie dreams were dashed, and a visit from Christopher's wife and a friend...Jackie. In case you don't remember Christopher, or you are new to the series, many of the people who visit the tree farm think that he might be Santa Claus, aka Kris Kringle. The gift collection is going so well that Holly thinks she might have to add a second wrapping party, until they all disappear. along with over 1000 gingerbread cookies! Unusually cold and windy weather can't keep Holly down and she tries to figure out who killed on of her guests.
Thank NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for allowing me to enjoy this perfect holiday delight, perfect for a mystery lover that is. I can't wait to share my enjoyment of I'll Be Home for Mischief, a true winter winner.
#NetGAlley #CrookedLaneBooks #I'llBeHomeforMischief #AChristmasTreeFarmMystery #JacquelineFrost

Loved reading this book and series. If you haven't read it yet I highly recommend her and her series of books. It hard putting this 1 down

I love this series so much. I look forward to reading a new one every winter!
We follow Holly who lives in a small town called mistletoe. As you can tell by the title of the town, they love Christmas. Every year Holly’s family at their Christmas tree farm run a big celebration called reindeer games!
It’s a cozy mystery series so of course someone dies in every book. And Holly who is not a cop or detective always inserts herself into the investigation.
Each books gets better and better and this town is just so cute. I want to live there.
I loved this book just as much as the others.

This one is my favorite thus far! And that speaks volumes for the series and the author given this is book #5. Lots of series start off with a bang and continue to be good but lose some of their luster as the series progresses. The Christmas Tree Farm books seem to keep getting better with each new book! I absolutely love all the characters including Cindy Lou Who the cat and Theodore the goat. And the location is magical. The author draws you in and you can easily picture the Reindeer Games as they happen and get immersed in the close knit community, shopkeepers, and friends. A trip to Mistletoe, Maine would most definitely be on my bucket list. I have both ebooks and hardcover editions and I can't wait to add this one to my library shelves. Please keep them coming and the sooner the better!

This was not my favorite book in this series. There was a lot of time spent on relationships, particularly the one between Holly and Evan. The death was just a side story. Although there was a lot of interesting things happening among different people, details and continuity seem to be forgotten between the beginning and the end of the book.

A fun sweet read! Highly recommend.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for my ARC.

I loved the first four books in this series, and was so excited to get an ARC of the next one! It was so great to revisit the town of Mistletoe and see these characters again. I really enjoyed this mystery and trying to figure out who did it, this one was more difficult to figure out than the others which was great! I'll Be Home for Mischief also really made me laugh as Holly tried so hard to remove herself from the murder investigation, but just couldn't help herself. Overall, Jacqueline Frost has written a really fantastic Christmas themed cozy mystery book.

This was a fast-paced cozy mystery — bringing back all this series characters — book 5 - centers around the heritage protected town of mistletoe— trying to get the world record for largest gingerbread man- when during the event someone is murdered— Holly our main protagonist along with her sherif husband must solve who did it before the wrong person is jailed. I think if you’ve never read the series you’d be ok starting with any book as the overall arch is romanced based but stable - the possible murders were easy to assume and I did guess correctly . I always enjoy Holly as a character and some of the eccentric towns folk — this will be a fun Christmas read for the holiday season !
Thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for this ARC . This is my honest review .

Could this be the Christmas without murder? Everyone hopes as the excitement is building around gingerbread men. I love Christopher’s wife and friend. Such fun characters. And Mr. M…. So interesting. Great story. I loved the ending.

#IllBeHomeforMischief #NetGalley featuring Holly White Gray is a wonderful holiday cozy mystery sure to keep you guessing.
The town of Mistletoe is celebrating their 150th anniversary and everyone is going out of their way to make it special.
Their jubilation quickly turns to shock when a dead body is discovered and Holly must act fast to put the clues together and discover whodunit.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for selecting me to read an advanced copy of this book.

The Christmas Tree Farm Mysteries: Gingerdead Man is a delightful yet suspenseful addition to Jacqueline Frost’s series. Holly White is a charming protagonist, though I found it challenging to connect with her at times. The festive setting in Mistletoe, Maine, complete with a giant gingerbread man and a mysterious murder, makes for an engaging holiday read. The plot is filled with twists and turns, keeping the reader guessing who the real culprit is. Despite some minor reservations, the intriguing premise and festive atmosphere make it a worthwhile read. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

For the fifth Christmas in a row, Mistletoe is the scene of a gruesome murder. Holly White Gray decides to investigate, despite the concerns of her husband, parents, and friends. To further complicate matters, true crime podcasters have decided to make Holly the focus of their latest investigation. While I enjoyed the other characters, I struggled to connect with Holly. Despite this, I liked the premise of the book and the mystery was interesting.