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A review by lolasreviews
Twelve Slays of Christmas by Jacqueline Frost
4.0
I was tempted to request this book when I first saw it on Netgalley, as it sounded so fun, eventually I decided not to request it as I wasn't sure if I could read it on time. Then when I got into audiobooks I realized this was on audio and Storytel had this one, I figured I would get it on audio instead. We were having some grey weather here and I figured what could be better than an uplifting Christmas mystery and started this book.
Twelve Slays of Christmas follows the story of Holly White who returns to her hometown of Mistletoe after her fiancé cheats on her weeks before their wedding. Hurt and in need of comfort she packs everything and goes back home. Where she lands in the middle of a murder mystery. After being seen arguing with multiple town member Margaret Fenwick, a member of the historical society for the town, gets murdered and Holly's father is the main suspect. Holly is determined to get the attention away from her parents and their business and tries to figure out who has killed Margaret Fenwick.
The mystery was a solid one, although for a long time I wasn't fully invested in it. For some reason none of the suspects seemed solid and the mystery moved a bit slowly at times. There seem a lot of people who didn't like Maragaret Fenwick, but it was interesting to learn a bit more about her throughout the investigation. And while there is enough focus on the mystery, there is just as much other things going on. The murderer starts with threats quite quickly and I had the feeling they should be much closer to figuring out who did it, but by then it still takes a while. It does has a bit of that creepy vibe with the murderer seeming to keep a close eye on Holly. In the end who is the murderer made sense, but there was a clue you only figure out at the end and without that I think it's quite hard to figure out. I did like how things progressed and how Holly got involved in the mystery as it did feel quite natural.
I liked Holly, she return home and is a bit lost, but here in her hometown she finally feels home again. She slowly figures out some things about herself. She also has a adorable cat. I also liked the close bond she has with her parents. And Cookie was a great friend too. As well as some others she meets along the way. I thought Holly was sensible and likable and while she tried to help solve the mystery, she didn't put herself in unnecessary danger. I am looking forward to see what will be going on with her in future books.
While there is a mystery to solve, there also is a lot of focus on Holly finding her way again in town and also on the Twelve days of Christmas celebration of reindeer games, which her parents run. There are also some interesting side characters. It was a lot of fun to read this book and it made for a perfect Christmas themed mystery. The Christmas feel is really present and I really could picture the small historical town of Mistletoe well and feel the Christmas vibe.
There also is a bit of romance and a hint of a love a possible love triangle, although with the way things end I am hoping it won't turn into a love triangle after all. I was firmly in the team for the Sheriff Gray as it felt like he and Holly had the best chemistry. I really liked them together. There are some great scenes with the two of them and I was happy with how the romance plot line got some attention and felt like it was worked out enough and at the same time didn't overshadow the plot.
The narrator did a great job with this. I easily got used to her style and I liked the way she did most of the voices. I especially liked Cookie's voice. She also did both the female and male voices pretty well and made each person sound just a bit different from others.
To summarize: all in all this was a great Christmas themes mystery read. I enjoyed reading about this small town before Christmas. The mystery didn't fully grip me, but was still interesting enough. The mystery progressed a bit slowly, but that worked well as there's enough other things going on. I liked reading about the Christmas celebrations and Holly finding her place now that she's back home. There also are some great side characters and a well done romance. I liked the Christmas vibe and reading about the twelve days of Christmas celebrations that were going on. if you're looking for a Christmas themed cozy mystery I would definitely recommend this one.
Twelve Slays of Christmas follows the story of Holly White who returns to her hometown of Mistletoe after her fiancé cheats on her weeks before their wedding. Hurt and in need of comfort she packs everything and goes back home. Where she lands in the middle of a murder mystery. After being seen arguing with multiple town member Margaret Fenwick, a member of the historical society for the town, gets murdered and Holly's father is the main suspect. Holly is determined to get the attention away from her parents and their business and tries to figure out who has killed Margaret Fenwick.
The mystery was a solid one, although for a long time I wasn't fully invested in it. For some reason none of the suspects seemed solid and the mystery moved a bit slowly at times. There seem a lot of people who didn't like Maragaret Fenwick, but it was interesting to learn a bit more about her throughout the investigation. And while there is enough focus on the mystery, there is just as much other things going on. The murderer starts with threats quite quickly and I had the feeling they should be much closer to figuring out who did it, but by then it still takes a while. It does has a bit of that creepy vibe with the murderer seeming to keep a close eye on Holly. In the end who is the murderer made sense, but there was a clue you only figure out at the end and without that I think it's quite hard to figure out. I did like how things progressed and how Holly got involved in the mystery as it did feel quite natural.
I liked Holly, she return home and is a bit lost, but here in her hometown she finally feels home again. She slowly figures out some things about herself. She also has a adorable cat. I also liked the close bond she has with her parents. And Cookie was a great friend too. As well as some others she meets along the way. I thought Holly was sensible and likable and while she tried to help solve the mystery, she didn't put herself in unnecessary danger. I am looking forward to see what will be going on with her in future books.
While there is a mystery to solve, there also is a lot of focus on Holly finding her way again in town and also on the Twelve days of Christmas celebration of reindeer games, which her parents run. There are also some interesting side characters. It was a lot of fun to read this book and it made for a perfect Christmas themed mystery. The Christmas feel is really present and I really could picture the small historical town of Mistletoe well and feel the Christmas vibe.
There also is a bit of romance and a hint of a love a possible love triangle, although with the way things end I am hoping it won't turn into a love triangle after all. I was firmly in the team for the Sheriff Gray as it felt like he and Holly had the best chemistry. I really liked them together. There are some great scenes with the two of them and I was happy with how the romance plot line got some attention and felt like it was worked out enough and at the same time didn't overshadow the plot.
The narrator did a great job with this. I easily got used to her style and I liked the way she did most of the voices. I especially liked Cookie's voice. She also did both the female and male voices pretty well and made each person sound just a bit different from others.
To summarize: all in all this was a great Christmas themes mystery read. I enjoyed reading about this small town before Christmas. The mystery didn't fully grip me, but was still interesting enough. The mystery progressed a bit slowly, but that worked well as there's enough other things going on. I liked reading about the Christmas celebrations and Holly finding her place now that she's back home. There also are some great side characters and a well done romance. I liked the Christmas vibe and reading about the twelve days of Christmas celebrations that were going on. if you're looking for a Christmas themed cozy mystery I would definitely recommend this one.