This was my last holiday book of the season and while I wanted to love it, it was unfortunately only a so-so read for me.

To be clear, if you’re a massive fan of this series, you’ll likely enjoy getting to spend more time with these characters and the new mystery they’re working to solve. However, if you’re a more casual fan, this book may be a miss.

I could’ve just been burnt out on holiday titles, but I really struggled with this one. I found the mystery to be a bit convoluted in a way that didn’t pay off in the end. It felt a bit too ambitious for a novella, and might have been better suited for a full length format. I also struggled with the main purpose of the story. Usually these types of books help expand on a smaller moment or character within a series to build a bridge to the next installment, but this gave off the vibe of writing a Christmas story just to write a Christmas story.

In the end, even though this wasn’t my favorite, I’m not mad I read it and would definitely encourage fans of the series to check this one out. Thanks to Mariner and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This fun little novella starts off with a bang (literally) when Ernest’s ex-wife Erin is arrested for murdering her boyfriend. The problem is, Erin doesn’t remember anything after waking up covered in her boyfriend's blood, and she needs Ernest’s help to find out what really happened. I really enjoyed this one, as I have with the first two installments in the series! It’s written in the same style, where the protagonist is the “author” and speaks directly to his readers throughout the murder mystery. And of course, with it being a holiday novella, it’s treated as an advent calendar, with one clue being revealed each “day,” which was so fun! I also enjoyed the monologue reveal at the end, and I didn’t guess what actually happened (even though all the clues are there for readers to discover). I can’t wait for more in this series!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Mariner Books for the opportunity to read this book! ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

More like the first book for me. What irked me was that Ernest didn't tell Juliette that he was going to help Erin- it's not like she would've objected. Either than that it was a typical Ernest Cunningham read.

Ernie Cunningham finds himself drawn into another murder investigation when his ex-wife Erin is arrested for the murder of her boyfriend in the days leading up to Christmas. A fun, clever, quick read - I enjoyed the first book, less so the second but this one has me back looking forward to the next.

This is a fun Christmas mystery set up a bit like an advent calendar so everything is wrapped up in time for Christmas morning (or if you a bit delayed by holiday happenings New Year's Day for sure). Ernest is once again caught up in murder when his ex asks for his help when she is the prime suspect when her present significant other ends up dead. While he just happens to be in the area to look at a magician as possible entertainment for his wedding reception coming up--don't ask, it could only happen to him--another death happens.

This has everything that you want in a Christmas mystery: There are holiday decorations, some dress up, lots of appearance of series favorites (even if only in cameos), fair play, and the detective finds the real meaning of the holiday spirit. What more could you ask for? It is clever and even on the shortish side so it won't take too long away from the frantic events of your own holidays.

Enjoy. I did.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

This is the third (and final!) holiday novella I read this month, and it was my favorite. 

It wasn't as Christmas-y as other holiday stories I've read this year, but the mystery was sharp and clever, and I was highly entertained. 

I will definitely be continuing this series!

The Ernest Cunningham series is one of my favorite mystery series in recent years. I love the narrative structure and the breaking of the fourth wall. I love the coziness of it all, so I was excited to enter the crime fighting author's Christmas Era." Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret did not disappoint, and I liked this mystery more than the mystery presented in Everyone On This Train is a Suspect. It was over-the-top and quirky, but it added to the festiveness of the holiday. You'll likely find this entry enjoyable if you liked the first two in the series.

Thank you to Mariner Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Ernest Cunningham solves it again! I have to say that I absolutely LOVED the idea of an "advent" book! Each day a new chapter is such a brilliant concept. With the story being a novella it was a quick read. It took me a bit to figure out all the characters but I really enjoyed the plot! I'm super excited for the next mystery!

Love it. Just like all the others. I love how these pieces for together and how he explains it at the end. It's always a fun read

I’ve really had fun with Benjamin Stevenson’s Ernest Cunningham mysteries, so I wasn’t going to miss this little Christmas-edition entry in the series. Ernest, a mystery writer, references the mysteries he’s personally been involved with (the previous two books, Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone and Everyone on This Train Is a Suspect) and the generally accepted rules of writing mysteries.

Here, Ernest shares all the tidbits about the generally accepted ways holiday editions are crafted, such as that not all the regular cast are present and what happens in the holiday mysteries doesn’t have an impact on the lore. (You could choose not to read the holiday story and you won’t miss anything important.) I guess I have read at least a couple holiday mysteries in series, such as the Flavia de Luce Christmas installment, I Am Half-Sick of Shadows.

Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret is a short book, just a quick and easy read to get in in between shopping, cooking, wrapping, etc. A tasty tidbit. Heartwarming? No. A bit bloody? Yes. Made me chuckle? Yes again.

Ernest here is planning his wedding, but he gets a call and text from his ex-wife that he feels he must heed. Erin is in dire need of his help, as it turns out: she’s been charged with murder in the death of her boyfriend. So Ernest makes a quick trip up to the mountains where she lives and where the late boyfriend’s charity foundation is about to put on a big fundraiser.

Big-time magician Rylan Blaze is the headliner at the event, and Ernest gets to not just meet him and see his show but explore behind the scenes beforehand. He knows (pretty much?) that Erin has to be innocent, but it’s taking some time to figure out how to prove it.

The book has a number of Christmas references and each chapter is crafted as a “door” of an advent calendar.

If you already have read other Ernest Cunningham books, I recommend Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret. Otherwise, start with the first.

This was another fun installment in the Earnest Cunningham series! While this wasn't my favorite book of the series, it was a fun Christmassy mystery. I will say this series isn't for everyone due to Stevenson's writing style of first-person and fourth-wall-breaking, but I think it's unique and is one of the reasons I enjoy this series. These books are always fun who-dun-its that have you solving the mystery alongside Earnest and this book was no different! I'm looking forward to the next book in the series!

I had not read the previous books in the series before I read this one. So I didn’t know much about the characters going in. It still worked for me. I was given a copy of this book as an ARC. About halfway through reading it, though my hold came up on Libby so I switched to the audiobook. I enjoyed this book but was hoping for more Christmas flavor. The Australian setting prohibited a lot of the snowy atmosphere that I associate with Christmas. So it has nothing to do with the writing or the storyline.. It was just the locale for the setting of the book.

I loved the narrator’s snarky comments.… I smiled a lot during his narrative. This is not a cozy mystery… It’s fun, it’s snarky, it’s even tongue in cheek at times. Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review!

It's almost Christmas, and Ernest Cunningham had hoped to have a quiet holiday with no murders to solve. But then his ex-wife calls after waking up covered in blood, her boyfriend dead beside her, and the joy leaves Ernest's world. Ernest's investigation gets even bloodier when he attends a magic show where a trick goes fatally awry...on purpose. Can Ernest solve these murders in time to be home for Christmas? He's bringing us along for the (sleigh) ride, of course, and dropping lots of clues, if we pay close enough attention to catch them.

Three books into this series, and I remain in awe of Benjamin Stevenson's ability to construct clever, complex metafictional mysteries. He truly does give readers all of the information we need to solve each mystery ourselves, but he does it so brilliantly that it's still nearly impossible to guess the whodunnit. Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret presents the clues like a fun holiday Advent calendar and, like the books before it, has a long list of viable suspects. And like the books before it, I was clueless despite having all the clues. I had a lot of fun with this one, and setting the story in the world of magicians added an extra zing that I enjoyed.

As outlined in Ernest Cunningham's 7 Commandments of Holiday Specials, which appear at the end of this novella, a holiday special is not required reading, so no series-long plot arcs may be introduced or resolved. Because this Christmas novella is pretty lean and mean, I think it would be a good introduction to the series for a reader who isn't sure if this particular flavor of mystery is for them; it offers just enough of a taste to let you decide.

I definitely missed the character development and nuanced investigations featured in Ernest's full-length novel adventures, but Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret was still a fun festive foray back into Ernest's world. Thank you to Mariner Books for the complimentary reading opportunity. 3.5 stars rounded up.

3.75⭐
Breezy modern take on a golden age mystery. The level of snarkiness and breaking of the fourth wall was a tad over the top for me. Clues in the mystery were fair though.

Third, in the Ernest Cunningham series, we find Ernest Cunningham investigating, not one but two murders. This story is set at the holidays, and Ernest's ex-wife has been arrested for the murder of her new partner. She calls Ernest for his help in finding out what really happened.

I read number one in the series but hadn't yet read number two. I decided to skip for now so that I could read the Christmas one, and you definitely don't need to have read number two first. Although, I think you'd need to have read number one at least.

I enjoyed this one, but I wasn't as invested in it as number one. It was a short one at less than 200 pages, which was a perfect length for this story. Anything more would have dragged.

The mystery was interesting. It involved an illusionist, which added an interesting element to the case. I didn't guess the twists or who the perpetrator was. The story was told in that same style, where Ernest was talking to us the reader directly, which I find unique. It kept the story interesting.

I really enjoy Benjamin Stevenson's Ernest books. They're quick witted. I enjoy how Ernest breaks the fourth wall and talks directly to the reader. The books always have an Agatha Christie twist and the resolution is satisfying to me.

Since this was a novella I thought it was insightful that Stevenson kept the number of suspects down to about 6 people. Keeping track of 10-12 suspects in such a short amount of pages would've been awful. The book also had a cool set up where the reader could read one chapter per day throughout the month of December with the resolution coming on December 25th. An advent book read anyone? There weren't a ton of Christmas foods, decorations or caroling references but I didn't care. This isn't a Christmas cozy. It's a full on Christmas mystery. I thought it was also interesting to hear December being described as being incredibly hot. (They're in Australia.)

A well written who-done-it. I highly recommend this as a holiday Christmas read.

Everyone This Christmas Has A Secret was such a fun and enjoyable little Christmas novella that was a great time from start to finish! This entire series is such a great murder mystery series and this novella was no different. If you’re looking for a quick little Christmas themed novella to read for the holiday season, definitely consider picking this one up!

Thank you to Mariner Books and NetGalley for a copy of this book!

I ended up DNFing this book. I couldn't connect with the narrator and the way he told the story.

I think if you have read other books with this character it would be a great addition to that. It just wasn't for me.

This novella is a short Christmas themed murder mystery and the third book set in the Ernest Cunningham series.
As it was a novella, I did not have too many takeaways other than that I enjoyed it and that the writing was as good as his other novels as well.
Due to the nature of Australian Christmas being the peak of their Summer season, it wasn't necessarily as festive as I would have wanted, but the secret santa aspect of the mystery was fun nonetheless.
I always enjoy the Ernest Cunningham novels and this was no different.

I received this eARC from NetGalley and the publisher in return for an honest review.

The story begins with the murder already committed and Ernest’s journey begins expecting to solve a mystery instead of it being a disruption to family reunion or crime writing festival as in the first two novels. The mystery and clues are clever–the cleverness adapted to an advent calendar–and Ernest’s voice remains quirky and self-deprecating, just as in the first books. On the other hand, the shorter length provides less opportunity to get to know the suspects. With the faster pace, it all in all worked.