I am a sucker for a good mystery and a sporting romance, and this book is both of those rolled into a delightful non-stop adventure that also explores self-esteem and the ugliness of people who need to belittle others (perhaps to make themselves feel good?) One item of note is the cover art. The two images, of Maggie Chase and Ethan Wyatt, are simply not how I picture either of them (and that is satisfying as it means my imagination was not corrupted by an artist's conception. :-))

Ally Carter has typically written for young adults and, from what I gather, this is her second book for adults. It is a holiday rom-com in the purest sense, with a hefty sprinkling of murder and mystery tossed into the mix. All this is thanks to the machinations of Eleanor Ashley, the world's best selling mystery writer who has written just shy of 100 mysteries and then, of all things, disappears from her rather large mansion and many-acred estate in the midst of a snowstorm while the guests she has invited for Christmas all plod about wondering where is Eleanor and what may have happened to her.

Well, all are plodding about except for Maggie and Ethan, an unlikely pair because Maggie hates Ethan, though it's fairly obvious to this reader that Ethan does not hate Maggie. (Never fear, before the final 293rd page she will have come to her senses, and that is not a spoiler because this is, you know, a rom-com!)

Definitely read the acknowledgments at the end, either before or after you read the book, although if you are a mystery fan than perhaps the final paragraph might not be such a surprise in terms of impetus for conjuring this story.