Maggie Chase, a cozy mystery writer, would like nothing better than to shut herself up in her apartment for the holiday. She has lost her husband to her best friend and has lost confidence in herself. The one thing that she is sure of is that she hates Ethan Wyatt. Ethan is a leather jacket type who writes thrillers. The women swarm around him. When Maggie is invited to the English mansion of her biggest fan she is horrified to find Ethan on the plane with her. They have both been invited to the home of a famous mystery writer to celebrate Christmas. With two days to go before the holiday, their host disappears from her locked office. Maggie believes that this is a test to crown her successor, but there have been several attempts to murder her. Maggie and Ethan must work together to .discover who is responsible and the fate of their host.

In an enemies to lovers story, Ally Carter uses flashbacks to explain the animosity that Maggie feels toward Ethan. As annoying as she finds him to be, she is also aware that she is feeling an attraction to him. Ethan has been in love with Maggie from the moment he first met her. She was married at the time to the man who betrayed her. As they now work together, he is determined to show her that he can be trusted. From the very first pages I fell in love with these characters. Their witty banter had me laughing at times. Carter also gives you a house full of suspects and a final reveal that is reminiscent of Agatha Christie’s final gatherings of suspects. Treat yourself to a holiday gift with The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year. I would like to thank NetGalley and Avon/Harper Voyager for providing this book.

This book was very refreshing to read as a romance/mystery novel and took a new light onto the genre. My specific rating is 3.75 because the beginning and middle very so strong but the ending felt lacking to me.

I did love the connection between the FMC and MMC and how their "relationship" was shown between different timelines, and that their past was told in detail instead of alluding to things that are never explained.

I really loved that they were both involved in the writing/publishing world because it added so much to how they work and view situations.

overall I would recommend as a good holiday read!

Maggie tugged on every heartstring. Ethan is the misunderstood hero we’ve been waiting for. Their teamwork and chemistry builds and builds and builds. Excellent super fun read. My favorite Christmas book of 2024

I really wanted to enjoy this book, but I struggled to even make it to the 50% mark before deciding to put it down. While I’m usually a fan of enemies-to-lovers, I couldn’t connect with any of the main characters, which made it hard for me to get invested in their story. The mystery aspect didn’t feel particularly unique or gripping either, so this one just wasn’t for me. Unfortunately, it ended up being a DNF.

This was my first book by Ally Carter and I think she did a great job of writing an atmospheric Christmas rom com! It was a bit cheesy of course, but that's what most of us are looking for with holiday reads most of the time. The cover was a driving factor in me reading this book as well.

4.5⭐
Absolutely delightful mashup of a locked room mystery and an enemies-to-lovers rom-com. Christmas is coming, but Maggie Chase hasn't had the best year. Even though she's a successful mystery author, she's lost her husband, her best friend and her money. What she has gotten is a mysterious invitation to an Christmas at an English estate along with her nemesis, Ethan Wyatt. Puzzling and totally fair.

A famous mystery author invites a group of people to her home for Christmas only to disappear from a locked room. The premise of this book definitely sparked my interest! I am a sucker for a good holiday rom-com but I loved the mystery elements that were added to the equation in this book. I really enjoyed the banter between the two main characters and the overall enemies-to-lovers trope throughout the book. I also really liked that within the cozy mystery atmosphere there was also traumatic backstory. One of my major qualms with holiday books is that sometimes the characters can fall flat but I think the backstories of these characters prevented that from happening.
One thing I wish this book had done better was pacing. Near the middle of the book, I felt like the main characters were just exploring the house at times when I would have liked to see more dialogue and interactions with the other guests in the house
Overall, I think this was a fun and entertaining holiday read, which is exactly what I picked it up for!
*3.5 stars rounded up*
*I received a free reviewer's copy of this book. All opinions are my own.*

Honestly this was refreshing. I know i know it is the same old thriller-mystery. But, honestly the flow of the story was weaved in a way that catches my attention every single sentence.

What a fun holiday romp! I had just read Blonde Identity by Ally Carter a few weeks ago and couldn't wait to read this Christmas tale! I love a cozy, snowed in murder mystery especially set around the holidays. While I think this leaned more towards romantic suspense with a dash of murder, it was still a fun escape to get into the holiday spirit. I'd love to see more of the characters' adventures, This would be a great holiday gift or a light hearted read for yourself!

A super-solid holiday mystery-romance! This snowed-in/locked-in mystery about an eighty-something crime queen's mysterious disappearance is an honest 4.5 star read. It felt very Knives Out meets Agatha Christie with a bit of an Archer kind of vibe thrown in to keep things interesting. The two main characters, Maggie and Ethan, were extremely well fleshed out from past to present and we truly see why they disliked each other and then grew to really bond and ultimately treat each other with respect. I admire a book that acknowledges "But we've only been back on speaking terms for 24 hours!" Yes, but I've thought about you since (bla bla bla). And to close this out I will just say that I almost NEVER re-read mysteries but this one....I might just pick this one back up in another Christmas or two. It really was so much fun to read!

Christmas romance? Check. Cozy mystery? Check. Enemies to lovers? Check. I didn't really know what to expect from a Christmas romance/mystery, but I absolutely loved this. Maggie was a great character - full of sass and self-doubt, and reeling from her marriage ending. Ethan is her nemesis, on top of the world with seemingly everything going for him. I loved the setting - a snowy English countryside, and the disappearance of a beloved author, which set the scene for our mystery. The dual POV's of Maggie and Ethan really made the story move quickly, and the reader really got to know with characters and what makes them who they are. This is one of my favorite Christmas/holiday reads and if you're looking for a holiday read that's a little different, but still very good, this is definitely a great choice!

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this one in exchange for an honest review!

This book follows Maggie, a mystery writer who is having a tough time. She gets invited to a mysterious Christmas event with her enemy and things quickly turn dark and they have to figure out what’s going on.

I was not a huge fan of this book. Unfortunately, I just really didn’t like Maggie and it was hard for me to care about the story because of that. I’m not a big fan of enemies to lovers so I think that’s a part of it too.

I also didn’t care much for the mystery. I just didn’t care for the book unfortunately.

I hope others love it!

Thank you to Avon and NetGalley for the ARC of The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year!

4.5 rounded up to 5.

This is such a classic closed circle mystery story, reminiscent of an Agatha Christie or Clue. The twists and turns were twisting and turning in the best way possible. And the best part, the secondary romance plot stayed secondary and never overshadowed the mystery. It stay focused on the crime the majority of the time.

All three of the main characters, Maggie, Ethan and Eleanor were dynamic and fun in their own ways and each brought their own unique personality to make the story even better. Maggie is working her way past a terrible relationship and trying to find her self-confidence after the worst of betrayals. Ethan is overcoming a life altering accident. Eleanor is in a period of life that makes her question family loyalty. Together, these three create and solve the most wonderful crime of the year.

Ethan and Maggie's enemy to lovers story is fun and sweet. Ethan is the stuff dream book boyfriends are made of. Their relationship arc and witty banter was so charming. There are so many Ethan lines throughout the book worth quoting.

This is definitely a perfect Christmas/holiday cozy mystery that will be well worth your time!

From the very first page, I knew I would love this! I love that Maggie is the grumpy introvert, and Ethan is the guy who can make everyone love him with a wink and a saucy remark. I loved watching both of them work together to figure out what happened to Eleanor. With secret passageways and a murder plot afoot, and a budding romance, I was entertained from beginning to end and read it in one sitting.
The banter and mystery were top-notch, as were the pacing and romance. My favorite part was the police interviews with Ethan and Maggie interspersed throughout!
This is a book I'll definitely be getting a physical copy of this to add to my collection.

A fun, easy, enemies to lovers romance/mystery where the romance overrides the mystery. The mystery moves the story along, but theromance is the bulk of the plot.
Maggie is a successful, recently divorced mystery best-selling author whose ex takes everything. Ethan is also a best-selling mystery writer who Maggie loathes due to his mysterious, carefree persona. The two get invited to spend Christmas at Eleanor Ashley's (who both Maggie and Ethan adore) estate. Only for the Most Wonderful Crime of the Year to take place.
The romance, being the bulk of the story, really fell flat for me with Ethan drastically shifting from mysterious to swoony in the matter of pages. The mystery part of the story, however, was fantastic and kept me guessing!

I have love Ally Carter since I was a young girl. That being said I was so excited to get a Christmas book from her; however I may get coal for this review.

The bridge is out. The phones are down. And the most famous mystery writer in the world just disappeared out of a locked room two days before Christmas.

I love locked room mysteries but this one just took way too long to get to the action. I think the author was trying too hard to bring an enemies to lovers scenario into the storyline that it took away from the actual meat of the plot. While I did enjoy the two MC’s there were alot of side characters to keep track of which also slowed the pacing at times. In all honesty this book was just plain boring, I slugged through it and the ending was fine; but I shouldn’t have to read over 50% before I got *slightly* entertained.

I love ya Ally, but stick to what you write best next time. Also; there’s tons of five stars for this book so read it if you want, don’t go by my opinion!

What fun! Perfect for holiday lovers who want a good mystery with a dash of romance. I had a great time reading!

I don’t normally read mysteries, though I do read romances, and since this was supposed to be a rom-com sort of romance, I figured what the heck. The story revolves around Maggies, who is a mystery writer and Ethan, who she loathe, whom she calls the leather jacket guy, because that is how his author picture looks.


So, it is a surprise when they are both invited to the home of their favorite author, Eleanor Ashley. Think Agatha Christie vibes. She is who Maggie always wanted to be, so she is thrilled to get the invitation, even if she has to share it with Ethan.


And then Eleanor disappears, and someone is trying to kill Maggie.


Is it a test? Or what? And why does Ethan bug the heck out of her.


So, despite it being a mystery, it was fun watching Maggie, and then Ethan, try to figure out what actually happened, and who of the other guests, should be the suspect.


Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review. This book is out now, just in time for the holidays.

I loved this book!!! I grew up reading Ally Carter and was so excited to read this book and it did not disappoint! I loved the unusual pairing of Christmas and crime. The mystery was so fun and I didn’t see the ending coming!

This locked-room holiday romance is such a quick and fun read. Maggie and Ethan are not friends, though Ethan is not quite sure why Maggie hates him so much. They're competing authors in the same genre and have been invited by a mysterious benefactor to spend the holidays on an English estate. When their hostess goes missing, it's up to the two of them to find out what truly happened. This is a great enemies to lovers romance that's a quick and festive read.

Many thanks to Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.