Tis the season to be jolly, right? No, more like SLEIGHED. SLEIGHED INDEED.

My name’s Ernest Cunningham. I used to be a fan of reading Golden Age murder mysteries, until I found myself with a haphazard career getting stuck in the middle of real-life ones. I’d hoped, this Christmas, that any self-respecting murderer would kick their feet up and take it easy over the holidays. I was wrong.

Told through first-person narration where Ernest speaks directly to the reader, I felt like I was a part of the drama from the very first page. Ernest is backstage at Rylan Blaze, a very world-famous magician's, show whenever a benefactor gets murdered and now he has a list of suspects. There's 7 suspects total...so who could it be? The clues are devised in an advent calendar, which also adds to the Christmas spirit!

For those who like their holidays with a side of violence, Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret makes for a merry and not so bright---fun time. While this is the third in the series, it could easily be read as a stand-alone as well. I haven't read the first two, but thoroughly enjoyed this, along with the 'Christmas' spirit that was added to it. This is jam-packed full of seemingly impossible crimes and I enjoyed trying to work out the who in this mystery "whodunnit" before it was revealed in ALL of its glory....alas, I fell short as I normally do. This was well-executed and I enjoyed the mystery part of it SO much.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for a copy of this digital ARC. All of these are my honest opinions.

Ernest is back with a holiday special to show off his sleuthing skills. In true Ernest fashion, he basically tells you everything as he learns it and talks to you as well, which I love! Even though you learn about it with him, you are still blown away by his deductions and don’t connect a lot of it yourself. I did figure out one thing, but not even fully. This is the third installment of this series and I will definitely continue to read Ernest in all his sleuthing adventures.

Thanks to NetGalley and Mariner books for this arc! I did receive it in October, but had to wait until closer to Christmas to read it for the ambiance!

Another great Ernest Cunningham mystery! Stevenson’s writing is full of humor, and it was fun to read a Christmas story that takes place in the middle of summer.

I love this series, and this was a fun holiday entrant to it! It was interesting that it was a hot Christmas since they are in Australia and December is summer for them. It didn’t make it feel super Christmas-y/festive to this American girl, but the author did a great job incorporating Christmas elements into the crime. I can’t wait for the next one!

Thank you to the publisher - I received a complimentary eARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A quick little holiday novella with my favorite, Ernest Cunningham.

This time we get murders, magic, and Christmas.

I hate to say this was my least favorite of the three. It was enjoyable, but nothing will ever beat book one in my eyes. I felt that this one moved a bit slower and it took me a bit to get into it. With a novella, I hope to get hooked early on.

From the halfway point I was locked in because wtheck 😅 Ernest didn’t let us down and we get a fabulous reveal as always.

Everyone This Christmas Has A Secret by Benjamin Stevenson, was one of my anticipated reads. I love the series and this novella was not a disappointment. We’re reunited with our favorite amateur detective Ernest thrust into his very own holiday (murder) special. This time around Erin is highly suspected of offing her new beau and as the evidence against is her is pretty damning, I think we all know, all is not what it seems. As things escalate and body counts increase, can Ernest figure it all out before Christmas?I love me a good mystery, especially those that make me think. My theory was way off and I did not figure this one out. I love Benjamin’s writing style with these novels and look forward to more mysteries with Ernest and fam. Definitely need to add this along with the others to my collection.

Thanks to NetGalley and Mariner books for providing me with this in exchange for an honest review.

When this series was launched a few years ago, it was fantastic, but I wondered how it could keep up given the writing style and that it wasn't a cozy where you kinda just accept so many murders in a single town. But Stevenson found ways to keep the authenticity of the narrator and the plausibility of the mysteries. Loved the progression thru Christie's original books, though it's not really a connection... just concepts. Great twist here, but I did miss some of the fave characters from books in the past. Can't wait for the 4th one to come out!

While not quite as strong as the first two books in the series, Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret is still a fun and festive mystery romp. Ernest Cunningham—our detective, narrator, and mystery author—sets the tone right from the start, describing this 'case' as a holiday special. True to that spirit, it’s a short, breezy read you can finish in a couple of days. There’s even a playful suggestion to treat it like an advent calendar: read one chapter a day starting December 1 and wrap up by Christmas.

This time, Ernest is called in by his ex-wife, who’s been jailed on suspicion of murdering her wealthy boyfriend, the head of a foundation for addicts. The colorful cast of characters includes a magician, a hypnotist, twins, a journalist, an executive, and more. Ernest frequently breaks the fourth wall to chat with readers, adding to the book’s charm, and the final reveal is absolutely wild. If you’re in the mood for a light and quirky holiday mystery, give this one a try.

Just like the previous two books in this series, Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret is an enjoyable murder-mystery. The twist in this book is the Christmas setting, which allows the clues to unfurl like an advent calendar. This series is so much fun. Is comedic murder-mystery a genre? It should be. If you liked the previous two books, you’ll love this one. If you’ve not read them, you’ll probably want to as there is a little crossover info, however it’s not totally necessary.

I really enjoyed this "who done it" Christmas mystery! I very much like this unique writing style from Benjamin Stevenson. I'll keep reading whatever book he puts out next!

Another fun entry in the Ernest Cunningham series, and at 175 pages it’s either a long novella or a short novel. If you haven’t read the first two books, Ernest is an amateur detective who always seems to end up solving murders taking place around him, and also a snarky narrator who breaks the fourth wall to talk to the reader and discuss the rules of golden age mysteries.

In this book, which he describes as a combo mystery/holiday special, a few days before Christmas Ernest gets a call from his ex-wife Erin who is in jail because her fiance is dead and the police think she did it since she was found with blood all over her. Snd Ernest starts interviewing people and slowly figures out what happened, all the while dropping clues for the reader, with each chapter styled like an advent calendar with each clue being the prize for that day. A good mystery and a fun read.

He strikes again! I love all his books and I think they are so fun and clever. He is a great murder mystery author and I love the characters he uses. I have read all his books in this series and I keep being pleased!

Oftentimes, the "Christmas special" can feel like a dissatisfying addition that is clearly written for a chance at sales. However, "Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret" brought so much of the charm of the previous books that it was just as fun of a read. Ernest's meta-criticism of the Christmas special genre is quite amusing and I appreciated the call outs of similar works in the genre.

My one criticism would be that the mystery itself definitely felt a bit simpler than the previous books and I felt that I was able to work it out fairly early in the book. However, it still contains multiple compelling twists that kept me wanting to read and I was eager to see how it would conclude.

I would definitely recommend this book to fans of the previous novels or those looking for a fun seasonal mystery that is well-written and enjoyable.

Murder, humor and an advent calendar approach make this a perfect holiday mystery. Ernest Cunningham is in the process of planning a wedding with Juliette when his ex-wife sends him a message saying that she needs him. Under the cover of checking out a magician for their wedding entertainment, Ern sets out to find out why. He finds his ex at a police station, accused of murdering Lyle, her boyfriend. She was alone with him in the house and covered in his blood. Rylan Blaze, the magician, is performing for a charity run by Lyle. This gives Ern an opportunity to interview Lyle’s staff, learn more about the foundation and catch the magician’s performance. He receives the keys to the facility from Lyle’s assistant and is given free rein as everyone prepares for the evening performance. While interviewing Blaze he discovers that Lyle was planning to sell the foundation’s properties to Blaze, which his assistant opposed. During Blaze’s performance Ern realizes that something is wrong and another death occurs on stage. Blaze’s assistant, the hypnotist who opened for him, the technician, Lyle’s assistant and the foundation’s counselor are all hiding secrets.

Benjamin Stevenson presents his chapters as an advent calendar, with a clue hidden behind each door. Ern talks to the readers as he investigates, making them feel a part of the investigation. He approaches each situation with humor, making the story a delight t read. Ern gathers the suspects in the end to reveal the murderer. As he explains each of the clues that led him to his conclusion he gives you a true aha moment. As a fan of Stevenson’s mysteries I can not wait to see Ern return. I would like to thank NetGalley and Mariner Books or providing this book.

Stevenson’s Ernest Cunningham series is quickly becoming one of my absolute favorites!

As with the previous two installments of this series, Ernest is genuine to his quirky and entertaining amateur detective skills while finding himself in interesting and murdery situations. I loved the premise of this latest story, however, I did find myself having to suspend belief a bit with some of the events and explanations. Regardless, Stevenson was able to keep me on the edge of my seat wanting to know more.

This Christmas-themed book is on the shorter side, but somehow manages to pack a lot of great details into the sparse pages. Despite being book three in the series, Stevenson has written this book in a way that doesn’t give too much away from the plot of the previous books. Better yet, as Ernest points out, this story doesn’t impact the main continuous story connections from the earlier books, so series readers could skip it or save it if they want to wait for a seasonally appropriate time to read it and not be worried about missing details for the series.

I can’t wait to see what book four brings!

This is the first book in this series that I have read, but that doesn't really matter,.. It works well as a stand alone. It took me a little while to get used to the detective narrator speaking directly to the reader, but once I did, I felt it was effective.
I was looking for a quick read with a Christmas theme, and this fit the bill perfectly. Lots of clues, but only a fictional detective could possibly put it all together. Altogether, a fun and entertaining read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was my first Benjamin Stevenson book and it was a cheeky, clever, Christmas whodunit. The story is told like an advent calendar and involves an ex-wife, a former Hollywood hunk, and a Secret Santa exchange. I enjoyed the breaking of the 4th wall to include the reader in the narrator's plans and observations. I will add the first two books to my TBR.

Thank you to Mariner Books and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. #EveryoneThisChristmasHasaSecret #NetGalley

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for the advanced copy of Everyone this Christmas has a secret! This is the 3rd instalment of the Ernest Cunningham mysteries.

This was a quick and pleasant read. If you are looking for a whodunit and involving Christmas, this is the book to read this holiday season!

Thank you once again!

I love all the books in this series, and this one was such a fun little Christmas treat. I'm only sad it wasn't longer so I could enjoy more of it.

Everyone this Christmas Has a Secret is a cheeky holiday murder mystery with everyone’s favorite amateur sleuth Ernest Cunningham.

Just like the previous books, Ernest takes us on a sitcom style narrative while he attempts to solve a murder during the most wonderful time of the year.

Ernest has he finds himself stuck in the middle of solving the murder of Lyle Pearse, an actor turned benefactor who has touched the lives of many with his kindness and generosity.

The suspects include: the magician and his assistant, the executive, the hypnotist, identical, twins, the counselor, and the technician. Who has the motive to kill Lyle?

Ernest must use his sleuthing skills to deduce who the killer is, and fast. Since this is the third installment, Ernest obviously gets his nemesis, giving a comical Sherlock + Moriarty vibe. It’s only fair.

A big fan of Benjamin Stevenson, and this light hearted quirky Christmas mystery was a treat.

This was my very first ARC experience, so I’m grateful to have been given this opportunity.
#everyonethischristmashasasecret #netgalley