
Member Reviews

This is such a cute and cozy read! Maggie and Ethan are rival authors who are summoned on a secret holiday trip by Eleanor Ashley, one of the most prolific and esteemed authors in the genre. When their hostess vanishes from a locked room shortly after their arrival, Maggie and Ethan join forces to solve the mystery. But they just might find love while they’re trying to find Eleanor!
This book is part locked room cozy mystery, part romance, and all clever and adorable! The setting is perfect for a cozy – a remote British estate, complete with a hedge maze, during a snowstorm – and the mystery is very well-crafted, but it’s the dynamic between Maggie and Ethan that really makes this such a great story. I love the enemies-to-lovers romance between them, full of snarky witty banter and swoony chemistry. Such a charming, feel-good, Christmas read!
Many thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books for providing me an advance copy of this book.

Ally Carter is the perfect author for fun mystery romances. I love her perfect balance of mystery, without being too gory or graphic, with romance, but still maintaining suspense. I wasn’t able to guess the who-done-it (and the bonus twists thrown in) and was surprised by a cute bonus revelation in the epilogue! I didn’t want to put this down! The mystery had me want to keep reading because the pacing was pure perfection but the romance also had me swooning. Maggie and Ethan were complex on their own but then there was small time jumps that revealed parts of their backstories with perfect timing. Their dynamic was a perfect push and pull and the chemistry was palpable from Maggie’s initial illusion of hate. Their romance felt like its own mystery and it added a nice depth to the story. There was such a perfect balance between the mystery and romance and I’m convinced only Ally Carter can pull that off. I can’t wait until her next book release already! 5⭐️, 2🌶

I really, really enjoyed this book! I loved that this could have been branded as a mystery or a romance (is there a romance-mystery word equivalent to romcom?), and found myself thoroughly invested in both sides of the plot. I kiiiiind of saw the ending coming, but was too into the MMC to focus on any flaws in the storytelling. He alone was worth reading the book.
Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for the copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC of this book!
I love all things mystery and I love a little romance in my mysteries. This book checked both of those boxes!
I would say if you enjoy a cozy mystery or you love Agatha Christie this is right up your alley. I happened to be reading an Agatha Christie novel simultaneously and it gave me ALL of the Agatha vibes while reading it.
I read between 20-50 cozy mysteries a year but also read a fair amount of romance, and I can say that this book hit both of those loves for me. I loved the enemies (but not really enemies) to lovers vibes as well as the tenderness that Ethan had for Maggie. I wish I got more of their backstories because they both had such sad backgrounds, but I love that they found each other! Them solving the mystery together was adorable, though I almost lost it when some miscommunication snuck in there!
There were 2 things that made this a 4 instead of 5 star read for me and one of those was the romance. While I'm all in for a quick romance with some flashbacks to give it depth, there just seemed to be something missing with this one. I didn't swoon over Ethan's "touch her and I'll kill you" lines as much as I wanted to, but his golden retriever energy was to die for! The other item I didn't absolutely love was the set up of the mansion in the book. The whole book I had the hardest time picturing the setup of the mansion.
Overall, this was such a fun read and would be perfect for someone trying out the mystery genre for the first time!

This was such a fun mystery novel. Who invited 2 writers with such a past to spend Christmas in your home, and why? When their host dies, which of the guests did it? Did the host a well known writer, write of her own death? It's up to Maggie and Ethan to put their differences aside and find out. A bridge out and phones down, a locked room, will hinder their investigation.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🔥
Quick Breakdown
Christmas Romance
Rivals to Lovers
Bookish Book
Rom Com x Cozy Mystery
Black Cat x Golden Retriever
Forced Proximity
Snowed In
He Falls First
Dual POV
Closed Door - Fade to Black
Rival writers Maggie & Ethan are sent cryptic invitations to a Christmas getaway in England & later learn that their host is famed mystery writer, Eleanor Ashley. In a strange twist of events, Eleanor disappears from her locked office. As the Christmas guests search for her, they learn there have been multiple attempts on Eleanor’s life recently, leaving Maggie & Ethan scrambling to figure out which of the other snowed in party guests is a wannabe murder.
What a way to start off my Christmas reading! I loved this original take on a holiday romance. Ethan was a fan-fluffing-tastic MMC with him falling first & his golden retriever ways. A great pair to Maggie’s occasionally gruff exterior. The banter this pulled from them had me smiling throughout my read.
The cozy mystery aspect kept me thoroughly entertained as well. I loved finding the breadcrumbs Eleanor left right along with Maggie & was quite surprised when the villain was unmasked. The English countryside setting was the perfect backdrop for a Christmas romance that I felt wasn’t overtly in your face with the holiday.

First, thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for honest review! I liked this cozy mystery rom-com! I think if you want a cozy christmasy romantic comedy, it will be perfect for this holiday season. My personal preference is a little more spice and less rom-com, so for me personally this one was just okay. I give this book 2.5 stars and would recommend it to readers who love cozy seasonal reads!

📣 a cozy-ish mystery in the English countryside with two bantering, opposites attract leads
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the complimentary ARC; all opinions provided are my own.
📖 how would your phone complete this title: The Most Wonderful…
This book is too cute.
Set in the English countryside, The Most Wonderful Crime of All features a reserved author at a crossroads (Maggie), a charmer lead who no one else notices is all persona (Ethan), & the mysterious disappearance of a beloved author.
The banter between Maggie & Ethan is fantastic, as is how the narration reveals the many, many ways Ethan has been/is currently crushing on Maggie. He supports her so hard & the gesture he makes at the end left me with the biggest heart-smile. Honestly, it was so cute.
I’m ALL about these two recent adult releases of Ally Carter’s & definitely feel like I missed out by not reading her earlier. They’re so smartly & amusingly written—the interaction between the characters jumps off the page.
Have you read this one or The Blonde Identity yet? Add them to your TBR if not!
CWs: attempted murder.
[ID: Jess holds the ebook in front of yellow sunflowers.]

I didn't expect to love this, so it's a fun surprise.
Maggie's an author who hates Christmas due to past tragic encounters. She also hated her work rival, Ethan, another author who's the star of the party. She was pushed to go on a secret trip by her publisher and Ethan was also invited. They stayed in a manor owned by Maggie's favorite author. One night, the author disappeared and so Maggie and Ethan teamed up to solve the mystery.
It's really easy to read. I would call it cozy mystery, due to the fact that the setting is in a manor with a snowstorm while they were fighting for their life. It's action-packed and page-turner. I love the banter between our main characters. I love that we saw a whole differenet side of Ethan throughout the story, and how Maggie was slowly unlearning her traumas.
Very fun, very cutesy and very good story overall. I wished I read it closer to Christmas but I want to read all of my ARCs TBR so here we go!

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC publication for an honest review.
This book was such a lovely, cozy murder mystery with emotional depth, witty banter, perfect "rivals to lovers" with such a great backstory that slowly unfolds! Gahhhh!! This hit all the marks for an enjoyable story. I adored Maggie and Ethan and all the different facets of their relationship. The unraveling of their history and perspectives from both characters was so good. The moment the light went on that Maggie's initial judgment was so wrong about Ethan after hearing his side of the same story changed everything. There was so much more to both our main characters!
The cast of suspects, the suspenseful moments, the detective work and final reveal...who knew murder could be so much fun! The addition of the "interrogation" was such a nice touch to the book. I hope we see more of Maggie and Ethan! This would be a great movie/TV series.
5 stars

THIS WAS SUCH A CUTE COZY READ!!!!! If you are looking for a cozy mystery for this holiday season then look no further!
This is about two authors who are invited to fly overseas to join a mystery stranger for Christmas. When they arrive they are bombarded with the mystery of a lifetime. You join them as they try and figure out what happened and if they have a murderer amongst them. Did I mention the authors are rivals and that the tension between them is hot 😌.
If you enjoyed the movie Knives out or grew up obsessed with the game Clue then run to add to your holiday tbr asap.

I adored Ally Carter growing up so seeing this and reading it felt like a blast from the past and I absolutely LIVED for this.

This was kind of all over the place for me. I liked it, then it annoyed me, then I liked it again. I skimmed through parts because it started to get repetitive and a little too corny for me. I always struggle with third person POV too so that didn't help.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book! This was a cute who done it mystery! 2 rival mystery authors are asked to go on a Christmas trip to their biggest fan. That fan ends up being mystery book author royalty Elenor! Shortly after arriving Elenor goes missing now it’s up to Maggie & Ethan to figure out what happened! This book gives vibes from clue the movie. I enjoyed this book. There are a lot of characters to learn but she did a great job writing this!

I discovered Ally Carter about a decade ago, with her Gallagher Girls series, and I was so excited to stumble upon The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year! Maggie and Ethan are rivals (it's a bit of a one-sided rivalry) and are invited to celebrate Christmas in England when their hostess goes missing from a locked room. The situation grows series, with Maggie and Ethan fearing for their lives... and their hearts. Ally's contribution to the Christmas romance genre is a smart mystery, and I can't wait to read what she writes next.

*slow clap*
WHAT A FUN BOOK. Not to sound too elementary in a review but this book was fun and cute and it’s just what I needed.
A mystery, a love story, quick chapters, fun characters, heartwarming dialogue. This book had it all.
Ethan and Maggie, both authors who don’t like each other (spoiler alert one of them doesn’t like the other the other is in love) are both invited by a famous mystery author’s home for Christmas. It’s not long before a mystery begins. Can they work together to solve it?
A delightful cozy Christmas read.
Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC.

I am LOVING Ally Carter's forays out of YA. This book was delightful- a great mystery, interesting characters, and a swoony romance. Highly recommend!

Ally Carter never misses! The Most Wonder Crime of the Year is her latest masterpiece and it was so good. This book was fast-paced and action packed with swoony romance. The atmosphere was perfectly cozy in the English manor in a snowstorm. The cast of characters was pitch perfect and everyone added something to the story.
Carter mastefully sprinkled pieces of information that all came together perfectly in the end. She is also the queen of perfect excuses for not being able to call for help- and honestly what's a better excuse than a snowstorm knocking out the power? The big reveal, then twist was so good and I didn't see it coming. Honestly, everyone was sus, which meant everyone had motive for murder.
I don't really care what they are doing, I want more of Maggie and Ethan!

I loved this entertaining popcorn romantic mystery. This reminded me of an Only Murders meets Knives Out meets your favorite romcom. This also seemed inspired by favorite Agatha Christie locked room mysteries. Interestingly I thought this may have been inspired by Agatha Christie’s disappearance itself although this novel is set during our contemporary times. A satisfying mystery that was somewhat cozy and a cute romance.

This book was funny and I loved every minute! Great writing! I enjoyed the story and plot, It kept me completely involved in the story and I couldn’t put it down!