This book certainly owns up to the Knives Out vibe it promises in the description along with a Christmasy twist. As someone who is a bit iffy on the romance genre I was reluctant to read this but the mystery element made it easier to look past the parts of a romance book I normally don’t like. 

I wasn’t in love with Ethan’s character at the start and then he grew on me by the middle only to start to annoy me again by the end. He never lost that “just a tough guy” exterior to me and I wish he had been forced to open up a bit more in this book. I had a similar issue with the suspects in this book. They were all essentially suspects because they wanted Eleanor Ashley’s money and we never got to know the suspects on a deeper level aside from the pretense that they were spoiled brats. 

Despite not liking Ethan and the suspects characterization, Eleanor Ashley’s character stole the show. I absolutely loved her character and by the end she felt like a real person to me and I’m sad I can’t read a book written by her because she’s not real. 

I really enjoyed the main character Margaret Chase particularly at the beginning when we learned a lot about what she had went through in the past. I don’t like that this book essentially brought Ethan into her life and took all that sadness she was carrying away. Yes her experience solving the mystery certainly helped her heal from her past but I still have a hard time that all her stress and anxiety disappeared overnight thanks to his presence. 

Overall this was pretty good for a Christmas holiday read that doesn’t feel too much like stereotypical one. I definitely would recommend this to anyone who is looking for a festive read (even if the holiday season is over at the time of me writing this).