Maggie Chase hates Christmas. Every bad thing that happened to her has happened over Christmas, and this year is no exception. It's the first Christmas since she caught her (now ex) husband having an affair with her best, and only, friend. Rather than spending the holiday alone writing her next cozy mystery novel, she accepts an invitation from a reclusive fan for an all-expense paid trip to the English countryside. The only problem? Her literary nemesis, Ethan Wyatt, a high-octane thriller writer, was also invited for the holidays. When Maggie discovers that the reclusive fan is none other than her favorite author and critically acclaimed mystery novelist Eleanor Ashley, she's willing to set aside her disdain for Ethan. Not that it would matter since a brutal snowstorm has them sequestered at Eleanor's estate. They're joined by Eleanor's closest family and friends. But on their first night, Eleanor disappears from a locked room without a trace, leaving Maggie trapped with someone who may or may not have tried to kill Eleanor. Maggie is forced to work with Ethan to solve the mystery of what happened to Eleanor.

As soon as I read the dedication page of this book, I knew I was going to love it. It was such a fun read - I binged it in a single sitting. The banter between Maggie and Ethan was great and reminded me of Kat and Hale from Carter's Heist Society books. I loved Maggie's emotional journey of learning to trust herself and her judgment again after years of her ex-husband gaslighting her (he is the smallest man who ever lived). I also enjoyed the Agatha Christie and Knives Out vibes. Overall, it was a little cheesy at times but a fun, enjoyable read nonetheless. It's great for someone looking for a holiday romantic suspense novel.

A few tropes include forced proximity, only one bed, who did this to you, he falls first, and touch her and die. There sort of is a rivals-to-lovers setup, but it's more like she hates him and views him as a rival and he enjoys teasing her.

My biggest gripe with the book is there were a couple of instances where Ethan infantilized Maggie. It wasn't as prominent as in The Blonde Identity, which I appreciated, but it didn't fit Ethan's character or his dynamic with Maggie. Maggie's ex-husband belittled and gaslit her for years to the point where she stopped trusting herself. But Maggie is smart, perceptive, and talented. For the most part, he was great at getting her to see this. I loved that Ethan admired her for having these qualities and how he was never intimidated by her success (as opposed to her egotistically fragile ex). Because of that, the moments when he infantilized her retracted from this and didn't fit his character. They were small moments--he referred to her as "young lady," told her "good girl," and a couple of other similar instances. These moments made it seem like Ethan viewed her as less capable, even though he spent a big chunk of the book trying to get her to trust and believe in herself (no one knows Eleanor Ashley's mind as a writer better than Maggie, equipping her to be the best person to solve the case). Men who infantilize women tend to be the same men who gaslight women. Both are mechanisms of tearing a woman down. While these were more isolated instances and less prominent than The Blonde Identity, they were unnecessary and contradictory Ethan's character.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon books for giving me an ARC. All thoughts are my own.

This was cozy, cute, thrilling and a little spicy 😉. I completely loved this book. It was the perfect combination of holiday cheer and who done it! A five star festive read!

The book starts off great. There is a lot of banter between the two main characters and a clearly painted picture of Christmas/holiday season. The main female character felt instantly sympathetic and relatable once we saw her perspective. The short chapters made the book fly by. However, much of the woman's narration felt juvenile. I would not expect a grown woman and divorcée to go weak at the sight of a sliver of a man's ab.

Maggie Chase is a cozy mystery writer. She refers to Ethan Wyatt as the leather jacket guy. He writes action thrillers and always seems to be the life of the party. Maggie has a way of blending into the background. When both are summoned to spend Christmas on an estate in England they have no idea what is about to happen to change their world.

When their hostess disappears from a locked room Maggie and Ethan join forces to try and find her with the hope that she is still alive and one of her guests didn't do her in. At first Maggie has nothing but disdain for Ethan, but as the mystery unfolds she finds more and more that she truly never knew who Ethan really is. Yet much to her dismay there is an attraction that draws her to him throughout their time together.

I truly enjoyed this story from author Ally Carter! I loved the back and forth between Maggie and Ethan. I loved how he was able to help Maggie find out who she truly is. I enjoyed how each of their stories was told through past recollections and how they were able to open up to each other and find safety in being vulnerable. The "who-done-it" was kind of obvious to me, but not the why, so that was surprising. There were a lot of red-herrings along the way to get to the final reveal which made for some exciting moments. I enjoyed the romance between Maggie and Ethan as well. There was a bit of sexual tension, but nothing graphic which made this reader happy. I think I have pretty much read everything that Ally Carter has written and have enjoyed all of her works. This one did not disappoint!

I think if the author wanted to rename this book, it could be: "It Happened in the Elevator."

A locked-room mystery about an eighty-one-year-old crime queen’s mysterious disappearance in the middle of a blizzard from her own study without leaving a trace, pointing to some perpetrator who has been threatening her life for a long time, meets an enemies-to-lovers and rival authors' mystery: yes, sign me up!

I already rounded up my four and a half stars to give it a full five. It's an entertaining, trapped-in-a-mansion scenario where everyone has a motive to be the killer—a perfect crime of the year!

Yes, Christmas came early for me as soon as I started reading this book! The twisty murder mystery is smart and riveting. The characterization reminds you of the movie “Clue”! Maggie (not Marcie) and Ethan’s chemistry hits the roof, making you hyperventilate, even though it takes place in the freezing wintertime in England! Ethan reminded me of the mischievous, playful, flirty Richard Castle, including his relationship with his dad! (Who can resist reading a book when the hero is as charming as Nathan Fillion?) Maggie’s traumatic past is heartbreaking. Her self-deprecation and suspicions about people’s motives are understandable, but her wounds make her one of the best crime writers.

I loved the recurring themes in the book. Especially when I found out the reason why Ethan keeps calling Maggie by the wrong name, I made a loud “awww” sound, forgetting I was reading this book in a cafe. Everyone gathered around me to ask what I was reading, was it really good, and I told them it was not good, it was perfect!

I also adored the Tucson chapter. It made my eyes blurry!

The only thing I didn’t like, which made me cut half a star, were the repetitive lines like Maggie telling everyone she and Ethan hate each other and Ethan repeatedly saying he has to protect her as if he’s a superhero from MCU movies, stuck with a cheesy line the worst screenwriters put on paper, dooming the entire movie to flop at the box office.

Instead of those lines, I loved how the romance bloomed between Ethan and Maggie. They are afraid of coming clean about their feelings, hiding behind harsh banter (from Maggie’s side) and flirty teasing (from Ethan’s coping mechanism). I loved how they teamed up to solve the mystery of the missing author and the perpetrator who threatens Maggie's life, leading to a satisfying resolution.

I hope the authors bring these two characters back to crack another mystery! So far, I’ve had an amazing time! I highly recommend you go in blind and jump into this book if you’re a die-hard fan of the enemies-to-lovers trope and, of course, an intelligently written locked-room mystery with riveting pacing. Luckily, this book blends thriller and romance in a smart style that guarantees so much fun!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for sharing this highly enjoyable Christmas romance mystery’s digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

What could have been a fun Christmas mystery set at an English country house was totally overwhelmed by a insipid romance that beggared belief.

What could be better than an enemies to lovers, attempted murder, snowed in + CHRISTMAS?!? Maggie is an author whose life drastically changed a year ago and she has been dealing with the effects of that every since. Ethan is a hot shot(literally) author who appears to be a charming persona and nothing more. They both get invited to a mysterious person's house for Christmas and the host goes missing. Maggie and Ethan must work together to try to find out who might be attempting to murder the host before someone gets killed!

This book was a BLAST to read! Thank you Harper Voyager/Avon for this ARC!
For fans of romance and mystery this book has it all! The tension and chemistry between Maggie and Ethan is off the charts despite Maggie's best efforts. The supporting cast of characters amplifies the suspense in a wonderful way!

I loved this book and highly recommend!!!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4.5 stars

This was a super duper fun read! It hit all the right notes of rom-com + murder/mystery with the added bonus of the holiday stuff! I had a blast reading this and can easily see myself revisiting this story and awesome characters during the holiday season.

I really can’t wait to get my needy greedy paws on a physical copy!

I liked the change of pace this book gave me compared to the usual Christmas books I have read. It had a good writing style, and the setting had a slightly spooky vibe. I think this will be a fun book for a group of writers to read during the holidays. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

The prose is easy and accessible, the set up feels dynamic, and it feels like a 3-4 star read for the target audience, 5 for the right readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for the ARC.