How the Finch Stole Christmas is a delightful cozy mystery for the Christmas season. Best enjoyed with your favorite hot beverage in a comfortable chair because you can read it in an afternoon.

Christmas time has come to Ruby Lake,
North Carolina.
However, a Scrooge has bought the Kinley’s
Christmas House Village. This man has fired
most of the long time employees. He has
renamed the Christmas House Village to his
family name Finch’s Christmas House Village.
Franklin Finch has plans to demolish the
Village and replace it with a hotel chain.
Then Mr Finch is found hanging from the
rafters!!! Suicide or something sinister afoot??
Amy Simms who owns the Birds and Bees
becomes involved when her best friend, Kim
Christy discovers the body.
Disgruntled employees, anger demonstrators.
sabotage, secret negotiations are combined
with Christmas time festivities as buying and
decorating trees, make bird seed ornaments,
friendships and joyous surprising outcomes.
A well plotted adventure with many twists and
turns.
Colorful, vivid, straightforward, quirky characters.
The supporting characters are all well described
adding their own traits to the mix.
This is Book # 6 in the Bird Lover’s Mystery series.
It can be read as a stand alone. This is the first
book in the series that I have read. The author
mixes enough of the past and present together
effortlessly.
I volunteered to read How the Finch Stole Christmas.
Thanks to Lyrical Underground, a division of
Kensington Publishing via Net Gallery for the
opportunity. My opinion Is my own and voluntarily
written.

This is the 6th book in the series. Amy has decorated her shop for the Christmas season and very surprised when the new owner of the town Christmas village is disliked by the town. When he is found dead Amy is determined to find out why. The townspeople are not sharing and her sleuth proves difficult.
This series is delightful and I highly recommend each in the series. For bird lovers and non bird lovers this series is always a fun read.

Kim Christy is the real estate agent who helped broker the deal for the sale of Kinley's Christmas House Village, a popular favorite of the local townspeople. Unfortunately, Franklin Finch, the new owner, is only concerned about his bottom line. Finch fires many employees and upsets the whole town.

Enter Amy Simms, Kim's best friend, who owns the store, Birds and Bees. Amy is also an amateur detective. When Mr. Finch is found swinging from the rafters of his own loft, Amy senses foul play. She works tirelessly and sometimes recklessly to find the killer.

This was the first book I had read by this author, but I will probably go back to the beginning and try to catch up. Nicely enough, this book was enjoyable without any previous background.

More thoughts on this book: It has just enough smiles and snarkiness to make it a great cozy. I enjoyed the relationship between Amy and Kim and also liked seeing how Amy and her mother interacted. Derek's secretary is a total pain, yet makes me smile. The ending came without my guessing the correct villain, and I totally laughed out loud at the final resolution.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. I am freely leaving a review. The opinions herein are solely my own. I recommend Donna Andrews's (aka JR Ripley)book, How the Finch Stole Christmas.

How the Finch Stole Christmas by J.R. Ripley is the sixth book in the Bird Lover's Mystery series. Christmas is fast approaching in the small town of Ruby Lake. Amy, owner of Birds & Bees, finds that very few residents are in the holiday spirit once Franklin Finch takes over Christmas House Village and starts making changes. She never believed that anyone would go so far as to murder him though. I enjoy this series, and this book was just as good as the previous ones. It does stand on its own, but I high recommend the entire series. The characters mix well together, and the mystery kept me interested until the end.

“Christmas was a time for joy and giving, not mayhem—that was what after-Christmas sales were for .”
~ Amy


This is book 6 in the A Bird Lover’s Mystery series. I did not read the other 5 books, so I can honestly say that this works well as a standalone; although, I enjoyed this book so much, I wish I had read the other books that came before this.

There are a lot of interesting (and suspicious) people in this book. The main character, Amy, is determined to find out who killed Mr. Finch., Was it one of the disgruntled employees who were given a choice of immediately losing their job or staying for 30 days to train their replacements? Or could it have been the security guard, who was acting suspicious and hanging out with some of the upset workers? Or possibly one of the Ruby Lake residents who were upset to see the name of the Christmas Village changed? With so many suspects it’s difficult to tell who is guilty. While the culprit was one of the many I was suspicious of, I never knew for sure until the end.

Besides being a well-written story with a fascinating cast of characters, the author did not skimp on the holiday details. Often these Christmas themed books don’t have a lot to do with actual occasion they are about. If you are looking for a good cozy mystery for this time of year, I highly recommend this book.

This is the first mystery I have read by J.R. Ripley. When I picked it up, I had no idea that it was sixth in a series. The book starts with relationships in place but, for the most part, it was very easy to pick up those relationship (though without history, of course) and let the logically written plot run its course.

The whodunnit was something I figured out during the course of the book because of a few hints; however, there were the red herrings left that steered me off course from time to time.

I enjoyed the characters, the nature of the mystery and the setting of the Christmas as the backdrop. The only thing that seemed a bit odd to me was the enthusiasm with which the sleuth Amy Simms (owner of Birds and Bees, a birding enthusiasts store) jumped into solving the crime. Once I understood that it was the sixth in the series, I realized that the history for that jumping off was to be expected based on what happened in the earlier books.

Definitely a fun read and an author I will be happy to go back to in the future. Must check into the back list of works as well, though I had no problems with it stand-alone for a fun Christmas whodunnit.

I was provided a digital advance reader copy of this book by the publisher via Netgalley.

Amy Simms owns a shop for bird lovers, Birds & Bees, in Ruby Lake, NC. It's Christmas season in Ruby Lake. Amy and her boyfriend, Derek are busily decking the halls in his apartment when they notice a commotion out on the street at Kinley's Christmas House Village. The holiday themed business has been a tradition in Ruby Lake for decades. It turns out that the Christmas village has been sold to Franklin Finch. His name might as well be Grinch because he immediately fires everyone. Finch doesn't care about holiday tradition. He only cares about the bottom line. He has invested a lot of money in the Christmas village and will do whatever it takes to make a profit. Needless to say, he is very unpopular around Ruby Lake. But it still comes as a surprise when his body is found hanging from the ceiling beam of one of the Christmas Village houses. Local police think he committed suicide, but Amy disagrees. With many possible suspects, Amy starts investigating to discover who murdered Franklin Finch.

I enjoyed the holiday theme of this newest installment in the Bird Lover's Mystery series. My favorite character is still the curmudgeonly Esther Pilaster, a renter that Amy got stuck with when she purchased the Birds & Bees building. Esther gets some much needed, and unexpected, character developement in this book. I loved it! Amy's strained relationship with the Ruby Lake Chief of Police continues in this book. I don't think the two characters will see eye to eye when Amy seems to always seems to be one step ahead of him in investigating murder cases. Amy is a delightful main character. She's intelligent and witty, plus very observant. Makes for a great amateur sleuth! I also like the background theme of birds and bird watching. There is a lot less discussion of bird watching in this book, but still a lot of detail about different breeds of bird.

How the Finch Stole Christmas is the 6th book in the Bird Lover's Mystery series. The 7th book, Fowl of the House of Usher, will be out soon.

J.R. Ripley is a pen-name used by author Glen Meganck. For more information on the author and his books, check out his website: http://www.glennmeganck.com/

**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Kensington via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

How the Finch Stole Christmas is the sixth book in J. R. Ripley's Bird Lovers Mystery series. Owner of the Birds and Bees store in Ruby Lake, North Carolina, Amy Simms becomes embroiled in the mystery of who killed Mr. Finch when her best friend Kim calls hysterically begging Amy to come right away. Mr. Finch recently purchased Kinley's Christmas House Village. He no sooner took possession than he began making sweeping changes, from the name of the business to replacing the long time employees with inexpensive kids. Residents were in an uproar, picketing the tourist attraction daily. Mr. Finch was not interested in working with the community, but would rather do things his way with no one spared.

When the one not spared turns out to be Mr. Finch, fingers are pointed and Amy becomes entangled in the investigation, much to Chief Kennedy's chagrin. With Kim feeling awful about finding the body and having been one of the realtors involved in the sale, Amy is also looking for ways to pull her out of her funk, which just happen to be pulling Kim into the investigation.

As the mystery unravels, the person behind the plot for Mr. Finch's murder has also plotted the demise of the Christmas House Village. Until the very end it is not apparent who that person is or why. A fast and enjoyable read, I do recommend this book.

This book can be read as a standalone. You do not need to know the history behind the characters to understand what
This is a holiday cozy that is sure to please. The Christmas House has been sold and the town folk are not happy. The new owner, Mr Finch is concerned about holiday spirit or his employees. His only concern is the bottom line. The new buyer winds up dead and Amy Simms and crew try to find out who did it and why. Amy does not get along with the police chief. There are many suspects even though the police chief must be convinced it’s a murder and not a suicide.
It is well written, good plot, quirky but delightful characters. This is the first in the series that I have read ,and I was not lost in the story. This book stands alone. I look forward to the other books in this series.
I want to thank Netgalley and Lyrical Underground for allowing me to read this.

A fun holiday cozy mystery. Love the Birds and Bees shop. I think I cared more about the basic characters and the happenings in their lives than I did the murder mystery. I did suspect the culprit of some shenanigans, but not the ultimate one. This may not have been a favorite in the series since I don't celebrate Christmas. I skipped over many of the holiday details.

This is the sixth book in A Bird Lover's Mystery series featuring Amy Simms and her store Birds and Bees. Selling all things bird and bee related while poking her little nose in the occasional murder.

It's Christmas time in Ruby Lake, North Carolina and Kinley's Christmas House Village is always abuzz with shoppers. Only this year they seem to be protesting more than shopping. When the village is sold to a Mr. Finch, things turn down right foul. He is not a likable person and the town is up in arms over the changes. But was someone upset enough to murder?

It's not long before Amy is in the thick of things trying to unravel this mystery. And not just for one murder. 

With every new installment of this series the characters get better. Ripley peels back another layer on characters we thought we knew but oh how we did not! A great stocking stuffer for the bird lover in your family as well as the cozy mystery fan.

Well Done!

Netgalley/Kensington/Lyrical Underground  November 14, 2017

This is a fun cozy series featuring Amy, the intrepid amateur who owns the Birds and Bees store in Ruby Lake. This time around, the Finch is a grinch like man who is trying to tear down part of the town so that he can built a shiny new hotel- a move which has big economic impact. Amy finds him hanging and despite all of this, she is determined to prove to the town and to Police Chief Kennedy that he was murdered. There are some twists but it's not too complicated. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. You could read this as a standalone. I'm looking forward to the next book!

an easy read which includes Christmas, humour and murder, a good stocking filler.

Amy Simms is a struggling shopkeeper, but two weeks before Christmas she's ignoring her store and investigating a murder for no discernible reason, to the irritation of the police and endangerment of her friends and family. If you can get past that, this is a fun, cozy mystery filled with holiday details and warm, fuzzy moments.

The action centers around a historic village which was turned into a Christmas-themed shopping center decades before the story begins. It has become a central part of life in Ruby Lake, the small town where Amy lives over her bird-themed shop. The descriptions of the shop and the people who work there are filled with charming details.

But the people who work at the Christmas House Village are up in arms over the sale of the complex to an outside investor. When the bad feelings erupt in violence, Amy gets involved. It's never clear why she does this, and a lot of other points that arise are never resolved, but there's plenty of hot chocolate, fruitcake, and feelings.

Readers who haven't read earlier books in the series might want to catch up before reading this one-- it's just right for reading by the fire, but it has enough loose ends to make it a bad choice for a starting point in the series. If you already know and love Amy and the denizens of Ruby Lake, you'll enjoy this next adventure.

How the Finch Stole Christmas is the sixth installment in the A Bird Lover's Mystery series featuring Amy Simms, owner of Birds and Bees located in Ruby Lake, NC. With Christmas right around the corner, Amy is looking forward to her first holiday with beau Derek Harlan and his daughter Maeve.

Unfortunately, the town's iconic Kinley's Christmas House Village has been sold to Franklin Finch, and the nasty man has fired most of the long time employees and has plans to knock down the Victorian village and put up a hotel chain, the Cozy Towne Inn. To make matters worse, Amy's best friend and realtor Kim Christy is the one who unwittingly arranged the sale and half the town is ready to kill her. Kim gets into a disagreement with Finch and when she goes to try to smooth things over finds him hanging in his apartment. Of course the police immediately suspect Kim and Amy finds herself having to hunt down a killer and keep her best friend out of jail.

Things aren't all snowflakes and candy canes at the Christmas Village as Amy soon discovers. Her investigation uncovers that someone is purposely sabotaging the displays and buildings at the village, a host of suspects for Finch's murder include mostly ex employees, and Amy learns that her boyfriend has been keeping a big secret.

A fast paced storyline with the return of all the series main characters. Esther "the Pester" is still up to her old tricks that will have you laughing aloud. Another plot twist at the conclusion will have readers tuning in for the next in the series.

I received an advanced copy of How the Finch Stole Christmas from NetGalley via Lyrical Underground, a division of Kensington Publishing. While not required to write a review I am more than happy to offer my honest opinion.

He's not a nice man. He took over the Christmas Village, changed it to his name, let the staff go, and is not honoring the contract signed for Christmas ornaments that Amy has. No one in town likes him. But when he's found hanging in the attic, Amy is sure it's not suicide...

Kensington Books and Net Galley allowed me to read this book for review (thank you). It will be published November 14th.

Amy knows her girlfriend didn't kill him. She's not sure who did though. He had too many enemies to randomly pick one out. Then she finds out the person whom the property had been willed to had also hung herself, she begins to think this was a long-term plan. After all, the lady had arthritis so badly she couldn't have hung herself.

She and the Police Chief are clashing again. He wants to mark them suicide and go on but he can't. He resents her sticking her nose in it. She keeps nosing...

The only sour note for me was a fight between Amy and her boyfriend. Amy should have been more reasonable. I'm sure things will get straightened out in the next book but they had a sweet romance and I didn't want any bumps in the road.

When Santa almost kills Amy, she knows she's too close to the truth...

Residents of Ruby Lake Are In An Uproar!
How the Finch Stole Christmas is the sixth book in J. R. Ripley’s Bird Lover’s Mysteries series. This is a fun cozy, with a good plot, well-developed, quirky characters, and some humorous situations. The story flows at a steady pace, with red herrings and twists and turns thrown in, and no shortage of suspects to keep the reader guessing until the surprising final reveal. There isn’t as much birding information in this book compared to the previous installments. I recommend this series to readers who enjoy reading well-crafted cozy mysteries. I’m looking forward to reading future installments in this series.

It’s Christmas time, and the residents of Ruby Lake, North Carolina are up in arms and some are jobless because Franklin Finch purchased Kinley’s Christmas House Village, the oldest and most popular Ruby Lake attraction, and renamed it Finch’s Christmas House Village. Amy Simms, owner of Birds & Bees, hopes to change Mr. Finch’s mind about letting the employees go, but instead of that happening, she learns that he won’t be honoring the order placed by the previous owners for Birds & Bees’ birdseed ornaments. While on a date night with her boyfriend, Derek Harlan, Amy receives a frantic call from her good friend and business partner, Kim Christy, begging her to come to Mr. Finch’s attic apartment in Elf House at Christmas House Village. Amy won’t share why, but when Amy arrives, she learns that Kim has discovered Mr. Finch hanging from a ceiling beam. Jerry Kennedy, the Chief of Police, and his team ruled Mr. Finch’s death a suicide, but Amy refuses to believe he killed himself. Much to his chagrin, Amy points out oddities in this death and another recent death and Police Chief Kennedy is compelled to conduct formal investigations. Amy can’t sit back waiting for the police investigation and begins to make inquiries and identifies a multitude of potential culprits.

I received an Advance Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley and voluntarily reviewed it.

Christmas House Village has been SOLD!
One of the best attractions in the tiny town of Ruby lake has been sold to Franklin Finch, who should be known as The Grinch. Firing long time employees and dishonoring contracts are only a couple of the shady things Finch is doing.
Finch is disrupting Ruby Lake's holiday spirit, pitting the townsfolk against each other and casting a black cloud over the holiday season.

Amy Simms, owner of Birds and Bees, hopes to change Finch's mind, but only ends up losing a contract to supply the store with birdseed ornaments.


Feeling the anger of the residents doesn't sit well with Amy's friend and partner who works for the real estate agency that handled the sale. When Amy and Kim make one more attempt to try and change Finch's mind, they find him dangling from the ceiling, and it is more than the pair can stand.
Amy refuses to believe that Finch killed himself and soon begins to make some inquiries, much to the chagrin of Police Chief Kennedy.
Fans of this series will not be disaapointed with this colorful cast of characters including my favorite, Esther Pilaster, also known as Esther the Pest.

I voluntarily read an ARC of this book provided by NetGalley and Kensington Books.

This book is well written and humorous. It has a solid plot and a good cast of characters.
I was left guessing til the end about the identity of the culprit but, unfortunately it was the first one I read in this series and I think some nuances and some backgrounds went missing.
I will try to catch up reading some other books
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher.