What a cute little holiday romantic mystery! I have loved Aly’s writing since The Gallagher Girls and enjoyed The Blonde Identity. I loved the enemies to lovers, but were they ever really enemies? Also throw in a locked room mystery and it’s a recipe for success. I will definitely be recommending this to anyone who wants to read a quick holiday story.

Maggie and Ethan were both such strong characters and I enjoyed getting to reading in both their POVs. Maggie is a mystery writer who is a bit self conscious and a bit down on herself. Ethan on the other hand is very much self confident and extroverted. Their personalities instinctively clashed and they were actually pretty similar.

I loved the little flashbacks to when they first met and how their acquaintanceship developed. Also their bickering was on point. I really enjoyed how their relationship developed because it was pretty cute! I also enjoyed the whole is this a contest or is it real life. And the fact that Maggie and Ethan could work together despite their differences was perfect.

The mystery itself kept my attention and I couldn’t put it down until I finished it. Eleanor was such a funky character and I loved how her story turns out. I loved how the clues were in each of her books that held special meanings to both Maggie and Ethan. I totally didn’t guess how it turned out. I did predict who but not their motive.

What a delight! A little bit cozy ensemble mystery a la Clue or Knives Out where everyone is a little guilty, a little bit witty banter-broken people-rivals to lovers romance where they are meant to be, a little bit English countryside at Christmas - what’s not to love?

Eleanor Ashley, the most famous mystery writer in the world is gone. Disappeared? Kidnapped? Murdered? Nobody knows.

Yet.

But just before the fated event occurs, a group of relatives she’s invited to her mansion in England, along with rival writers and sworn enemies Maggie Chase and Ethan Wyatt, arrive ready to celebrate. Instead of eggnog and presents, they find poisonous plants and trapdoors.

When a storm takes out the bridge and power lines, everybody…acts like it’s no big deal? So Maggie and Ethan grudgingly join forces to figure out what’s happened to their favorite author.

What’s great about this book is that it’s surprising - and I don’t mean the mystery.

In fact the mystery at time feels a bit secondary. What feels front and center is the slow unraveling of the story of a woman who was gaslit by the only two people she had left in her life as she learns to trust herself again, along with an unexpected story about a seemingly charismatic, self confident man with scars both literal and figurative. Together they help the other find ways to embrace life again. And the romance is sweet to boot!

It’s full of banter, clues, and a wide cast of characters set against a holiday backdrop. And I found I couldn’t put it down!

It’s the last Wednesday of September, so it’s time for our regularly scheduled book review! I don’t know why, but September seems to be when a crap ton of Christmas themed books come out, so I gave in and decided to go festive. It’s still a cozy mystery, though. The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter came out yesterday (the 24th) from Avon Books. As usual, I must thank them and NetGalley for access to an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. Let’s do it!

The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year follows Maggie and Ethan, mystery writers at the same publishing house who can’t seem to get along. Maggie despises Ethan and Ethan is seemingly too cool to care. When they both end up invited on a mystery Christmas trip to an estate in England, they’re thrust together to solve a locked door mystery. Is it a murder? A test? A little of both? No one seems to know. But the situation forces both of them to face feelings and inner truths they’d rather avoid.

The plot. The mystery part of the plot was pretty straightforward. Locked room mystery turns into someone actively trying to murder people. The red herrings are other popular murder mystery tropes (someone embezzling from a little old lady, fake relative trying to get in the will, the butler who turns out to be much more, etc.). This book is basically every expected mystery storyline jammed into one story, but somehow it still works. It’s weird, but I liked it. I do see how some people could miss the clues to the actual baddie, though. A lot is happening, so if you’re a skimmer or a speed reader, you’re going to miss things. This is a book you really need to read word-for-word. The same can be said for the romance subplot. A lot is happening there too. It’s adorable, but also super creepy (I’ll get into that after I talk about the characters). Just plan to pay attention if you read this book.

The characters. I liked Maggie. Her growth and how she reconnects to herself is actually the best part of this book. She comes from a screwed up past and emotionally abusive relationship that has recently ended. She’s meek and unsure of herself, but by the end she is learning what kind of person she really is and she’s taking control of her life. Or trying to. The book doesn’t portray the process as easy and done within a few days. But it shows her working on it. Ethan has his own revelations, but he doesn’t really grow much from them. The other characters are fairly stereotypical with a few quirks thrown in. Some of them change, but they don’t get enough time on the page to become proper characters. They’re entertaining enough though, so that’s fine.

The creepiness. This was my only issue with the book. Ethan is fecking creepy. I know his intense love is supposed to be sweet and charming and endearing, but it’s really possessive and stalker-ish and covered in red flags. Especially when we start seeing things from his point of view. He’d die for her. He’d kill for her. Like, calm yourself, bro. You haven’t even kissed her yet. This poor woman has finally escaped a gaslighting, cheating, thieving narcissist and now she’s ending up with a possessive stalker? It doesn’t help that he gives off those vibes of “if I can’t have her, no one can,” so when she leaves him, there’s a 99% chance of a murder-suicide happening. So, yeah. I would say I’m just jaded, but I read enough creepy stuff to know the signs. I really enjoy the creepy stuff. But I prefer my creepy stuff to acknowledge that it’s gross, not to wrap it up in a thin veneer of “hey, this is what healthy relationships look like!” It’s really not. Remember kids… we want a Morticia and Gomez romance, not a Harley and Joker one.

The writing was good. It made for a quick and easy read despite the jam-packed plot. I didn’t have trouble putting the book down, but I also wanted to pick it back up again when I was supposed to be reading.

Ultimately, I enjoyed The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year. It’s one of the better books I’ve read this year. Maybe even in the last couple of years. I’ll keep an eye out for more books by Ally Carter.

Overall, I gave it 4 out of 5 stars. If it weren’t for the creepy relationship stuff, I probably would’ve gone for 5 stars because I had fun with it. I still definitely recommend checking it out if you’re looking for a cute, Christmas-y cozy.

Mini Review

Just Three Words “Ethan Freaking Wyatt’. The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter is a standalone. If you're looking for a mix between mystery, romance, and comedy this is the perfect book for you. Ethan might be one of my favorite MMC ever. I absolutely loved Ethan and Maggie's interactions. Once I started reading I didn’t want to stop and I was constantly laughing out loud. I haven’t seen knives out but the book description says if you like the movie you will love this book. I really loved the old movie Clue and this book gives me all those vibes but with a romance. I really couldn’t figure out who the culprit was & I had a lot of fun trying to figure it out along with the main characters. Some things I loved with this one Ethan Freaking Wyatt, the mystery, the butler, the unexpected plot twists, the perfect crime & the touch her and die scene!!! Some tropes included in this one are rivals to lovers, he falls first, an England setting, a holiday read, protective MMC, and a feisty MMF. Ally has written a lot of books but this one is written for adults. This book is what some might call closed-door. Some might call it low spice or fade-to-black.

The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year proved to be The Most Wonderful Gem of the Year for me!

This cozy mystery was everything I needed to break my reading slump so far! I mean, the blend of suspense and enemies-to-lovers romance could never go wrong, in my opinion. After reading this, I henceforth declare a new and possibly my favorite trope, "wanna make out?"

When writers Maggie & Ethan Freaking Wyatt are invited to England by Eleanor Ashley, the most powerful author of all times, all hell begins to get loose.

God, the romance here was everything. It was quirky, playful, sarcastic, romantic, swoony, protective, caring... and well, you get the point. Maggie & Ethan's backstories were drastic & traumatic in their own ways, and I loved they found each other when they needed each other the most. The flashbacks of their past encounters were very short-lived but so so so crucial to shape their lives in the present. Ethan was a huge green flag & everything he did or said made me fall for him even more. The romance felt giddy & safe & celebratory.

Not only the romance but the whodunit aspect was clever & entertaining as hell. As those twists & and turns, especially the ending... hello? I hope we get more of Maggie & Ethan cause I'm so not over them & won't be anytime soon.

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

When mystery writers Maggie Chase and Ethan Wyatt find themselves trapped in a house over Christmas with a missing woman and too many suspects, they don't expect to find love as well.

This is hands down my favorite read of the year!
Here's what I loved:

The romance with the mystery: Anything that combines these two things for me is a winner! Carter does this so well. You can tell there is a backstory with Maggie and Ethan from the get go and you really want to find out more about them. Their chemistry just works here.

The mystery: This is very Agatha Christie/Knives Out. You get a whole cast of characters who all seem to have some kind of motive. But at the same time, they are a bit over the top which leads to some good comedy moments. I loved locked door thrillers and this one is perfect. It's a mansion in the secluded English countryside with lots of secrets all snowed in.

Maggie: I adore her. She has such a tragic backstory that I wanted to cry for her a lot of the time. I also wanted to go after her ex and her ex-best friend. They are garbage.

Ethan: He cracked me up the entire time. I genuinely enjoyed his banter and silly one lines. Even when I knew they were coming.

All in all, this was a really great romcom mystery!

Thank you to the author and publisher for the gifted copy!

The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year is a perfect Christmas cozy mystery. The cover is amazing and was the first thing that caught my eye. I think it really fits the story, at least for me. As for the story, I really loved it. It is definitely fast paced and I couldn't put it down. There is a romance subplot which I enjoyed a lot. It was so much fun to read Maggie and Ethan's work together to solve the mystery. The banter between them was spot on. This book is definitely the perfect holiday mystery book. I highly recommend it. Thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a fast read for me. The short chapters kept the story moving at such a fast clip, which is terrific for a whodunnit! I don’t read a lot of mystery, but I really enjoyed this one. I love that it was a holiday romance, but had so many other elements to it as well.

Totally recommend it!

🎄 The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year 🎄

“There’s no way, no universe, no reality in which you aren’t the brightest star in the whole damn sky”

Oh my heart, THIS BOOK! I laughed, I sleuthed, I swooned. Ally Carter absolutely knocked this murder mystery adventure of a romcom out of the park.

Set at Christmas time in England, Maggie is meeting her biggest author crush, Eleanor Ashley. The only thing ruining the moment is the presence of her annoyingly charming and good looking author nemesis, Ethan. With a hodgepodge of characters present for Christmas at Eleanor’s remote mansion, Maggie sets out to solve the mystery of an 81 year old author going missing from a locked room while almost getting killed at every turn. Thankfully, Ethan is always there to make sure she is not actually killed and adds heat to the snowed in quest, if you know what I mean 😏

I highly recommend this quick, Christmas-y read!

Give it a read for:
🎄 Rivals to lovers
🎄 Murder mystery
🎄 “Who did this to you?”
🎄 “It was always you.”
🎄 Only one bed
🎄 A hilarious cast of characters and endless witty commentary

Thank you to Avon for this ARC! The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year is on shelves September 24, 2024! My opinions are my own.

This was such a fun Christmas cozy mystery! This is a perfect read for a gloomy or snowy day while wrapped in a fluffy blanket.

It’s light-hearted which is refreshing with all of the mysteries and thrillers I read. Sometimes it’s just what I need! I enjoyed the mystery, it felt like Clue or an Agatha Christie novel with all the characters being stuck in the mansion. The romance was fun, there’s some humor and the mystery kept me guessing! I absolutely recommend it to anyone looking for a cozy read or a light mystery during the holiday season.

I took one star off because her self-doubts started to feel repetitive and because his nickname for her is ‘sweetheart’, I think I made a face every time I read it. It just didn’t fit or feel cute to me.

I was a huge fan of the Gallagher Girls series when I was younger and I’ve been so happy to see Ally Carter has started to write adult fiction as well.

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was one part romance, two parts mystery, and I loved every single piece of it! It reads like a game of Clue, and was such a fun experience!

When you're introduced to the heroine you see an author that has been doing well professionally, but not so much in her personal life. She's freshly divorced, and is just trying to do what she can to get along. Out of nowhere she is invited to attend a Christmas event in the home of a famous author of mystery books, who happens to be her favorite author ever! You're also introduced to the hero of the book as he is an enemy of the heroine. You don't quite know why, but the heroine just can't stand to be in the same room as him. Slowly as you learn more about how their professional lives and personal lives have mixed over the years, you get a better picture.

The last person she wants to be stuck with on a holiday is this man, but he's invited to the same event she is. They bicker back and forth, and he seems to love teasing her without mercy. As they meet this famous author, and her surrounding family and friends, they learned that her life isn't as perfect as they would assume. The next thing you know, the hero and heroine are left trying to figure out one of the greatest mysteries: where has this famous author disappeared to, with so many guests in her house?

I absolutely love how this author commingled both sides of this book. I read primarily romance books, and I'm always happy when the genres mix like this. While this book is heavy on the mystery at first, once the romantic elements start to mix in, I loved it even more! It gives just enough insight into their growing relationship to have me rooting for these two fated characters. The hero slowly shows his protective side of the heroine, and all his brave, protective tendencies, left me eager for more. He just couldn't help himself around her, and eventually gave in to what his heart was feeling. Likewise, their forced proximity helps ease the way for her mind to get out of the way and eat her heart take over.

I highly recommend this one to any mystery and romance lover.

If you are going to read one new Christmas-themed book this year, I suggest it be this one. While there is a nice romance element to it, the bookish and mystery part of the story is central and I thought it was charming, engaging, and just a lot of fun to read. While it is set at Christmas, and there are references to Christmases in the past, it is not heavily "holiday" themed, and it didn't feel horribly weird to be reading it in September.

I’ve been an Ally Carter fan for about 15 years now, and I don’t think that’ll change at all, ever in my life. I will read each book by midnight on the day it releases and immediately buy the signed copy. So when I say this, I knew I’d love The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year before I even started it, I knew I’d love the characters, the plot, and everything once the blurb was revealed.

Ally Carter does romantic suspense so well, she has the ability to leave you dying to finish the book from the moment you pick it up. This book was no different, the similarity to Knives Out, and how much I loved Chris Evans in that sweater, made this book an instant hit. But what really sealed the deal, was the attention to detail in the mystery plot, it was the perfection in the characters and how every one of them have a reason to kill Eleanor. I was guessing the whole time, and loved when the who did it plot came out!

Finally, the romance of this book was *chef’s kiss*. I loved Ethan and Maggie, the depth of their lore, how Maggie hated him, but Ethan has always had feelings. The crumbs of Ethan’s past and his POV made it so special. I utterly loved them together and I loved seeing their relationship go from rivals to lovers all while solving a mystery! I can’t wait to see what comes next from Ally Carter!

Who doesn't love a great locked door (house) mystery on the cusp of Christmas, especially at a stranger's house with their weird family?

I first read Ally Carter's Blonde Identity and fell in love with her writing style and her humor. Though this is not an accidental spy novel, this is more of an accidental mystery solving adventure and I am here for it.

Imagine you were invited to the house of Agatha Christie for Christmas. Well Maggie has just received a mysterious invitation to her "biggest fan's" for the holidays and even though her author rival, Ethan Wyatt, is also invited, her jaw drops when she realizes it's HER favorite author, Eleanor Ashley. However, Eleanor vanishes in a locked door situation and Maggie feels it is a "test" to see who may be able to take up the mantle of Eleanor Ashley if she retires from the writing world.

This book is so fun and there are so many quirky characters. I am not sure I am completely sold on the rivals to lovers trope because it is really over done (for my personal taste) but, it's pretty cute since Ethan seems kind of smitten and Maggie is hell bent for a good portion of the book on holding her grudge.

Ally Carter has given us the perfect locked room mystery inside a rom-com. You are going to love this one! Highly recommended for all readers. #TheMostWinderfulCriimeOfTheYear #NetGalley #SaltMarshAuthorSeries

What a fun read!! I loved the blend of cozy mystery, whodunnit, rivals to lovers.

While I liked The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year overall, I had a hard time connecting to Maggie or Ethan. Neither of them were honest with the other or themselves, and it was just hard to like either one.

I think I would’ve liked this better as an audiobook!

What can I say? I honestly found this absolutely delightful- a mix of many different elements I love and all that I loved about Ally Carter’s YA books but for adults 😊🩵

The book is at once a holiday read and a cozy, who dun-nit mystery and an enemies to lovers romance.

Two rival-ish American mystery authors are extended a mysterious invitation for the holidays, that turns out to be a stay at an old English mansion- home to one of the most well known mystery writers in the business, Eleanor Ashley. It appears they’ve been invited to ring in the holidays with Ms Ashley and a odd group of her family, friends, and acquaintances - until Eleanor disappears from a locked room and murderous intent seems to be around each corner…

This was such a fun story, I loved the dual pov and short chapters. It made the pacing of the story feel quick and kept me flipping the pages eager to unravel the mystery and the who’s right along with our mains. I enjoyed both mains and the nice pacing of the story. I adore a cozy mystery and add in a good romance and I was just so happy. I don’t want give anything away but I was personally quite pleased with the solve and the ending.

This is my kind of holiday romance read and I only wish there were more like it. I honestly can’t wait to see what Ms Carter writes next and can only hope we get another of this type from her in the near future. 😊

For fans of Ally Carter (obviously), Knives Out and The Inheritance Games type watches / reads.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Harper Voyager for the opportunity to read an early copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own and freely offered.

The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year was a delightful blend of romance and mystery that actually did kind of give Knives Out vibes as advertised. At least in terms of an eclectic mix of characters. I read the first quarter of this book in one go and was absolutely obsessed with it and in the end, I did still really enjoy it! Let me tell you a bit more about it.

Maggie is recently (a year) divorced and her ex-husband left her for her (ex) best friend. Absolutely wretched. Anyway, she is persuaded to go on this trip to England at the behest of her "biggest fan" (Maggie is a mystery author) and who should also be invited along? Her arch-nemesis, Ethan. The dynamic between the two of them is utterly delightful and I enjoyed the book so very much. Ultimately, for me, the hijinks in the book both worked well for me and at the same time, took me out of the story a bit. I think this is a book to reread when I can devour it again in one sitting.

That said, Ally Carter's writing and plotting is pretty much always a win for me so it was nice to return to her style of writing and engage with it. I look forward to more from Carter in the future!

Thank you to HarperCollins Publishers for the ARC. I kept this one on the shelf for a while because the cover put me off. Boy was I wrong. Once I started, I couldn't put it down.

Maggie and nemesis Ethan are both invited to a secret Christmas getaway that happens to be at her favorite authors home, Mistletoe Mansion. When they arrive at the home, there's a handful of other guests (and 4 children) all with motive to want the famous author, Eleanor Ashley, dead.

Maggie and Ethan team up to find who is trying to murder Eleanor and fall in love along the way.

Definitely grab this one as soon as you can. It was amazing.

#TheMostWonderfulCrimeoftheYear #NetGalley

This book was a total blast. I love a rival to lovers story and this one really hit. Maggie and Ethan had sizzling chemistry out of the gate with excellent banter. I loved getting flashes back to previous interactions that they had leading up to their current relationship. The dual POV was handled really well. I enjoyed that we did not start getting Ethan's pot until the middle of the book. I loved the snowy English countryside setting. The mystery was top notch. There are ample suspects and an interesting house with hidden passages. The story was fast paced and kept me on the edge of my seat. I have already preordered the audiobook because I am so excited to do a reread. I have hopes that this might be a series because I would love to get more of these two solving mysteries together. I have never been let down by an Ally Carter book and can't wait to see what she comes out with next.

Thank you to Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.