Can being Santa Claus and his Mr. Clause save a troubled marriage? Absolutely! In the delightful Christmas all-inclusive rom-com The Merriest Misters, we get a perfect blend of holiday magic and real-life family pressures.

The story beautifully captures the enchanting atmosphere of Santa's North Pole workshop while exploring the relatable relationship challenges faced by Quin and Patrick. As they navigate their issues amidst the joy of Christmas, the humor and warmth of the narrative truly shine.

I thoroughly enjoyed this sweet story—it’s a perfect reminder that love can work wonders during the holiday season!

This book had wonderful narration and I thank NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this book.

The narrators for this book were good and made listening easy and smooth. That was the best thing I have about it. The blurb about taking over for Santa intrigued me as The Santa Clause is one of my favorite movies and it’s a nice change to read about established relationships going through real life issues. But something about it didn’t keep my attention. I found it to be a bit boring and slow going. I do like more chaos, snark, and action in my books so this might be more my issue and the book just wasn’t a good fit for me.

In a Nutshell: A Christmas MM romance-drama with a married gay couple at the centre of attention. Fabulous inclusivity, a plot with some atypical writing choices (especially considering the genre), shallow main characters, somewhat YA/NA in tone. Might work better for you if you like NA romances.

Plot Preview:
Patrick and Quinn have been married for not even a year and the cracks have already begun showing up. Patrick is very work-obsessed, which leaves Quinn feeling neglected and frustrated at having to handle the domestic chores alone.
When Patrick ends up hitting a “burglar” with a frying pan on Christmas Eve, they both are stunned that they’ve knocked Santa Claus unconscious. Santa’s flustered assistant, an elf named Hobart, insists that one of the two men take over Santa duties to save Christmas. Little do they realise that their duties weren’t meant to last only till Christmas morning. Will their struggling marriage be able to handle this added pressure?
The story comes to us in the alternating first-person perspectives of Patrick and Quinn, from two timelines.


This is my first proper M/M romance novel. For some reason, I have never found M/M blurbs appealing, though I have read and enjoyed plenty of F/F love stories. This book’s blurb reminded me of Tim Allen’s ‘The Santa Clause’ movies, which I had really enjoyed back in the day. Though the book didn’t entirely satisfy me, it is partly due to my reading preferences, and I hope I have a better experience with the next M/M story I pick up any time.

Bookish Yays:
🌈 A “romance” where the couple is already married and their relationship is somewhat fragile – quite unusual for this genre. It was refreshing to see a young couple struggling with the requirements of domestic living.
🌈 This might be a negative for some readers, but I truly appreciated how the plot shows one of them being dominant in the relationship without even realising how it affects the other one. Fictional gay relationships are always depicted as 100% positive. This book shows that they are as normal and as problematic as any straight relationship.
🌈 Every time there’s a white character in the book, the writing introduces them as such: “a white man”. I have rarely seen books introduce any white characters by referencing their skin colour, so kudos to the author! Let’s hope this becomes the norm. The default character colour in Western books shouldn’t be assumed to be white.
🌈 The rep is outstanding: a gay couple, a lesbian couple, a trans character, an ace character… At times, it did feel like there was a checklist being ticked off, but on the whole, it was a big positive.
🌈 Some chapters are termed “memories”, and these offer a flashback glimpse at how Patrick and Quinn first met and came together. These were well-written, and quite important in understanding their present difficulties.
🌈 A minor thread focusses on the issues faced by public school teachers (as Quinn is one) due to fund cuts – too short to be a major arc in the plot, but an important topic nonetheless.
🌈 Quinn has a "camp sensibility", a feminine side that he secretly acknowledges but struggles to show openly. I loved this writing choice! This portrayal is usually avoided in fiction as it is considered stereotypical or offensive. But Quinn's character development is very positive, showing him slowly embracing his "feminine side" without fear of rejection.


Bookish Mixed Bags:
⛅ I'm not a big fan of the whole “Christmas is RUINED without Santa and presents” trope. The book focusses only on the commercial aspects of Christmas such as gifts and lavish lunches and decoration. But given the premise of the book, I was kinda prepared for it.
⛅ While the Christmas setting does add some holiday spirit to the plot, the main storyline isn’t about Christmas but about the couple. The holiday vibes hence felt somewhat subdued, even in the location where everything should have felt most Christmassy.
⛅ The steam level is lukewarm – plenty of references to sex, no open-door action. This is good for me as I don’t enjoy steam in any romance books, regardless of the gender of the couple. But there are some corny references connected to the libido that made me cringe.

Bookish Nays:
🌧️ Patrick and Quinn are just twenty-six, which means they are new adults in their approach towards everything, including each other. This might be fine for readers in that age group, but much-older-moi found their actions tedious and their behaviour juvenile most times. It felt like they had much growing up to do individually and as a couple.
🌧️ Way too much anatomical focus in the writing! Almost every scene involves some mention of lips or eyes or hands or legs or whatever, along with various adjectives to describe them. (The word ‘eye(s)’, for instance, pops up a whopping 142 times in the book, with about a third of those references having descriptive adjectives.) Such writing makes me feel like the relationship is based primarily on physical attraction than on genuine feelings. Not my cup of tea at all. Might not be an issue for other readers.
🌧️ Way too much miscommunication between the lead pair! Also a lot of overreactions nd hyperdrama - annoying after a point.
🌧️ Broad daylight in the North Pole in December? Bruh!

🎧 The Audiobook Experience:
The audiobook, clocking at a little over ten hours, is narrated by Mark Sanderlin and Zach Barela. The narrator who voices Quinn didn’t have my preferred kind of voice. He was a bit too high-pitched, which ended up making Quinn sound even whinier than he was. Patrick’s narrator was much better for my ears. Regardless, I appreciate that the two have voices so different from each other’s, especially because both narratives were in first person. The distinct timbre of the voices helped me keep track of the two perspectives easily.


All in all, this was a good first experience of a M/M romance, but I do wish the characters had behaved more maturely and the Christmas setting had been put to better use. At the same time, the nays are because of my personal reading preferences. The right reader ought to like this work better.

Recommended to M/M romance readers looking for a story more focussed on repairing love than on new love.

3.25 stars.

Patrick and Quinn are a feuding about Christmas as they have to host an extravagant Christmas in their new home after just getting fired. After hitting Santa, the only way to save Christmas is by becoming the new Santa and delivering all the gifts to the rest of the children. What started as a rocky Christmas might just turn things around.
The book discusses topics like starting a marriage while dealing with family expectations. Although the storyline is good I just couldn't get into the characters. Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fun Christmas themed romance about a marriage in trouble. Maybe a way to save their marriage is to become Santa Claus? I thought this book was hilarious and I really enjoyed it.

Absolutely loved this fun, magical holiday romance! I RARELY give five stars, especially not to rom-come, but I just couldn’t find any flaws with this one. Patrick and Quinn have been in a career and marriage trouble zone for awhile, and as the pressures of extended family and outside expectations build around the holidays, things seem ready to fall apart completely. That is, until Christmas Eve arrives with a magical opportunity for a big change for tonight and the coming year, maybe even forever! Highly recommend adding this to your holiday TBR list!.

4 stars!

I just love Timothy Janovsky's books so, so much, and "The Merriest Misters" is no exception! It's basically a more modernized version of "The Santa Clause," with a second-chance "save our marriage" plot attached to it. Janovsky's bouncy writing style fits this holiday romp. "The Merriest Misters" is absolutely adorable and deceptively deep. It captures the Christmas spirit in a tremendous, joyful way. I really liked the main characters, a married couple named Quinn and Patrick, who are going through a bit of a rough patch in their young marriage. Though they love each other, they are each unhappy at work and in life, and they find themselves slowly drifting apart. On Christmas Eve, an accident happens. One thing leads to another, and Patrick is presented with the opportunity to become Santa Claus. Hoping to rekindle their crumbling marriage, Quinn decides to uproot himself, too, to go with Patrick to the North Pole. While I fully admit that this book can be cheesy at times, it's the right kind of cheesy, the kind you want to feel during the holidays, the kind that warms your insides and makes you believe in magic. There's so much jollyness here that I found myself smiling the entire time I was reading it. It's well-paced and flows well. There is a lot of miscommunication in this book, but it didn't bother me as much as it usually does. Maybe it's because I liked these characters and their journey. I loved Mark Sanderlin and Zach BarelaI's voiceover narration of the audiobook. They bring these characters to life in majestic, whimsical ways! had fun reading this one and highly recommend you add it to your holiday TBR!

Thank you to NetGalley, Timothy Janovsky, and Macmillan Audio for the complimentary ALC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

This delightful and slightly spicy holiday story offers all the heartwarming emotions one expects from such a tale. The inclusion of an LGBTQIA+ couple is refreshing, and it addresses important issues like acceptance and job challenges. However, the most significant aspect is the transformation of their relationship.

The Merriest Misters by Timothy Janovsky
Holiday diverse M-M paranormal romance. Dual POV.
Patrick Hargrave and Quinn Muller have been married for less than a year and with a cumbersome mortgage and jobs neither are fully happy with, their relationship is suffering. Their lives are Interrupted when Patrick knocks out Santa with a frying pan and has to step into the role to save Christmas. They agree to stay at the North Pole for a year and become busy with making the toys and all the tasks needed for the job. Their relationship doesn’t take thrive which puts the magic in jeopardy. Will Christmas survive? Will they?

🎧 I alternated between an ebook and an audiobook. The recording was performed by Mark Sanderlin and Zach Barela who each takes on one of the POV’s. I did speed up the playback to 1.5 to better match reading speed and conversational comfort. The audiobook was easy to follow even when it switched to a memory as chapter changes and time changes were announced.
Because of the memories and flashbacks, the print version may be easier to read for some.

The story was sentimental with adult issues. I expected it to be happier simply because of the premise of Christmas and the North Pole and the cartoonish cover. It is not a comedy at all. It is a romance so hea, but I shed some tears as they both recognized their own needs as adults and living life. Romance hea.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley and publisher Macmillan Audio.

Not wholly original; a queer-retelling of The Santa Clause. I didn't care for the jumping around of time periods but other than that the story was enjoyable. I wish Christmas books came out closer to Christmas; it's tough to get involved in a Christmas story before Halloween.

I was really enjoying the beginning, but I didn't know this was magical realism and I don't really enjoy that. So when that started I really tuned out and I couldn't continue. I had to DNF this one unfortunately.

Very cute story that makes you believe in the power of Christmas and love. It is a heart warming story of how love looks different for each couple. A great representation of LGBTQIA+ and a couple you cannot help but root for. Christmas now has a different, endearing meaning! Quinn and Patrick make you get invested and make you root for them.

For lovers of The Santa Clause and Hallmark movies, The Merriest Misters is the perfect holiday read for you. It's light hearted, festively fun second chance romance that will smack you right in the feels!

Mark Sanderlin and Zach Barela did an absolutely fantastic job of bringing Quinn & Patrick's story to life. I'm a sucker for second chance romances, and I loved every minute of this sweet but emotional romance!

Also, a BIG thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC!

I’m a big Timothy Janovsky fan… but this is his second Christmas book that I haven’t enjoyed. Maybe it’s the time of year, the seasonal stories of his that don’t mesh for me? His other books (I’ve read all but Never Been Kissed now, so I have basically the whole catalogue to draw experience from) are some of my very favorite ones out there! I just haven’t clicked with his two Christmas books, Matthew Prince and Merriest Misters.

I was looking very much forward to this specific storyline, hoping for a redemption to recover from his last Christmas novel that I just did not get on with (Prince was extremely juvenile); however, it is a marriage in crisis plot and my hopes of Christmas redemption from an author I wanted to give me a book with that disliked trope I could finally enjoy - but it didn’t happen. I generally can’t get into this trope, and even with the Christmas and Santa magic, and what should have been a lovely male couple remembering why they fell in love, and all the other seasonal trimmings? Nah, sorry. I had such a hard time getting through.

This one will probably have a huge following and many fans out there, since the idea of the storyline is interesting. Many romance readers will love the gay marriage in crisis plot as well, since it’s always straight couples who are written about with this trope. I couldn’t get into it, but I know many others are going to love it and eat it up this Christmas season! Don’t pass it by because this wasn’t for me - give it a try! Janovsky is a great author, and I’ve loved nearly all his other books!! It does have some great parts, but just wasn’t for me.

The audiobook was narrated by Mark Sanderlin and Zach Barela, both new voices to me (still always such a surprise as a dozen + year listener! so many new ones popping up). I enjoyed both of their performances, but it still didn’t bring up my overall impression of the whole experience.

I received an advance read and listen copy from NetGalley, St. Martin's Press (St. Martin's Griffin), and Macmillan Audio, and this is my honest feedback.

The Merriest Misters
Timothy Janovsky
Pub 10/1 (available now)
3.5-4☆

The Santa Clause meets Husband Material.

Overall I enjoyed this queer, marriage-in-trouble, holiday romance. It was a nice mix of cute banter, sweet romance and a splash of magic. Patrick and Quinn were both likeable and although the communication struggles frustrated me, I ultimately couldn't help but root for their HEA.

This was my first read by Janovsky and I look forward to more.

I alternatined between digital and audio copies and loved the mix though I think the audio was my preferred format. Mark Sanderlin and Zach Barela’s narration is well done and entertaining to listen to.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for my gifted copy.

It’s Christmas in October!

Timothy Janovsky delivers a fun and magical holiday romance with today’s release of The Merriest Misters!

Patrick and Quinn are coming up on their one year anniversary and finding that the magic that brought them together is starting to wane- that is until Patrick knocks out a mysterious burglar on Christmas Eve…

They discover that it’s not a burglar, but the current rendition of Santa Claus doing his yearly rounds! With Santa incapacitated, Patrick and Quinn need to step up to ensure Christmas isn’t ruined!

After successful round of present deliveries, they find out is not a one time gig! Patrick is asked to come to the North Pole and Santa Claus. Quinn is expected to follow along and be the Mrs. Claus to his Santa, The Merriest Mister!

Can their relationship handle having their lives be put on hold? Can Patrick balance his Santa Claus expectations and his relationship? Can Quinn find happiness in Santa’s shadow in the North Pole?

I really enjoyed Patrick and Quinn’s journey in this story. Not only is this a fun holiday romance, both characters put in the work to fix their marriage and become closer and more actualized in the end. Sometimes marriage and trouble is a hard one for me to enjoy, but with such loving and good hearted characters it was easy to root for both Patrick and Quinn to find a way back to each other’s hearts.

I listen to the audiobook narrated by Mark Sanderlin & Zach Barela and found the dual narration fit Patrick and Quinn to a tee! Both narrator captured their characters essence and did a great job differentiating the opposite MC and side characters. They did a great job bringing the story to life!

I haven’t watched the movie the Santa Claus with Tim Allen, but I guess this is a bit of a parody on that story. I found the Christmas magic and the Santa Claus story depicted to be a lot of fun! This is an extremely enjoyable romp! The perfect start to my holiday reading this year!

Thanks to SMP romance for the review copy and McMillan audio for the audiobook copy.

A Delightfully Queer Holiday Romance

The Merriest Misters by Timothy Janovsky is a delightful and refreshing holiday read that brings a unique twist to a familiar premise. Similar to The Santa Clause, the story revolves around Patrick and Quinn, but as with any Janovsky novel, the narrative soon veers into its own charming queer romance with a happily-ever-after ending. I loved how the book explored various thought-provoking issues and incorporated LGBTQIA+ representation, all wrapped up in a neatly packaged Christmas tale filled with warmth and joy.

Janovsky’s storytelling is elevated by his vibrant side characters and the way he gently tackles complex topics without ever losing the festive spirit of the novel. It’s what makes his books not only fun and easy to read but also distinctively engaging.

The audiobook, narrated by Mark Sanderlin and Zach Barela, was an excellent choice. Both narrators brought Patrick and Quinn to life with a chemistry that felt genuine and heartfelt. The ideal listening speed for this one is 1.75x, where their voices perfectly complement the pacing and emotional tone of the story. Overall, The Merriest Misters is a fantastic addition to Janovsky’s collection and a wonderful queer holiday romance.

Thank you Macmillan Audio, NetGalley, and Timothy Janovsky for this eARC!

A couple whose marriage is on the rocks gets surprised by a special someone with a unique proposal that might make or break their relationship. They must save Christmas, deal with bad behavior from family AND repair their relationship?!

This was such a fun holiday book! I really enjoyed the story and thought there were some amazing moments between characters. I loved that it focused heavily on Christmas and real issues that so many people struggle with when it comes to self worth and family. I really felt for Patrick and Quinn at certain times even though some toxic behavior was passed off as typical. Overall, this was a cute story with great representation that will put anyone in the holiday spirit!

This audiobook was narrated by Mark Sanderlin and Zach Barela. They were so fun to listen to!

Thank you so much to Netgalley, Timothy Janovsky, and Macmillan Audio for providing this free ARC. This is my honest review. This publishes today on October 1st!

I have posted my review on Goodreads, my Facebook book club, and will make a TikTok to post before the pub date raving about this book!

The winter holiday reading season has officially begun! I was expecting a totally fluffy holiday romance. I got some of that . . . and more depth.

I wasn't a fan of the frequent flashbacks on top of the alternating points of view between chapters. While there is a great deal of humor—of which I always seek more and appreciate greatly—it's not all smooth sailing for Patrick (an architect) and Quinn (a teacher), who have a lot of growing and maturing to do, individually and collectively. [They are in their late twenties.] I loved the couple's professions—what they are, and how they feel about them. Both are dedicated and are trying to find their way to the best application of their talents and skills. Quinn helps a young elf gain confidence and develop. Patrick's family (especially his parents) provide some tension to the storyline.

There is gay, lesbian, and asexual representation. This is especially powerful in the ways that Patrick's and Quinn’s successes influence rules revisions for the current Santa Claus and partner, as well as for the North Pole community.

Bonus points are always awarded for a character named Milo—in this case, a shelter dog. [Background for those who are new to my party: I proposed the name for our babies and was denied. So, years later I named my animal companion—an adorable and fun ball python—after the main character in The Phantom Tollbooth.]

Janovsky is a new-to-me author. I'm definitely open to reading more of his work. Narrators Mark Sanderlin and Zach Barela did a great job of bringing all the characters to life.

Overall, The Merriest Misters was a fun, light Christmas romance/fantasy read!

The Merriest Misters by Timothy Janovsky is a cozy queer Christmas read. If you're a fan of The Santa Clause movies with Tim Allen, you’ll love this — but take away the kid and make it gay!

The story follows Patrick and Quinn, a newlywed couple struggling under the pressures of work, their mortgage, and the day-to-day realities of domestic life. On Christmas Eve, things take a hilarious and unexpected turn when Patrick knocks out an intruder with a frying pan—only to discover that the intruder is Santa Claus himself.

Santa’s had enough and quits on the spot, leaving Patrick and Quinn with the impossible task of saving Christmas. After a whirlwind night of delivering presents, the sleigh whisks them away to the North Pole, where they learn they’re the new Santa and “Merriest Mister” (instead of Mrs. Claus). They commit to the role for a year, and in the process, their relationship begins to heal. But the big question remains: Can they truly grow together as a couple, or will the challenges of their new life drive them apart once again?

This novel is a closed-door romance, but I loved how the book embraced queer representation in a way that felt like a Hallmark Christmas movie but, you know, gayer. I’m giving it 4 stars!

Big thanks to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and St. Martin’s Griffin for the ARC audiobook.