Isn't It Romantic?

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The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter
Published by Avon on September 24, 2024
Age/Genres: Adult, Mystery, Romance

Goodreads

Knives Out gets a holiday rom-com twist in this rivals-to-lovers romance-mystery from New York Times bestselling author Ally Carter.

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

Meet Maggie Chase and Ethan Wyatt:

She’s the new Queen of the Cozy Mystery.

He’s Mr. Big-time Thriller Guy.

She hates his guts.

He thinks her name is Marcie (no matter how many times she’s told him otherwise.)

But when they both accept a cryptic invitation to attend a Christmas house party at the English estate of a reclusive fan, neither is expecting their host to be the most powerful author in the world: Eleanor Ashley, the Duchess of Death herself.

That night, the weather turns, and the next morning Eleanor is gone.

She vanished from a locked room, and Maggie has to wonder: Is Eleanor in danger? Or is it all some kind of test? Is Ethan the competition? Or is he the only person in that snowbound mansion she can trust?

As the snow gets deeper and the stakes get higher, every clue will bring Maggie and Ethan closer to the truth—and each other. Because, this Christmas, these two rivals are going to have to become allies (and maybe more) if they have any hope of saving Eleanor.

Assuming they don’t kill each other first.

The holidays were never easy for Maggie, as only bad things seem to befall her during this season. When she receives an anonymous invitation to a fan's home for the holidays, she accepts only to find her arch nemesis, Ethan, is also on the guest list. When the fan, renown mystery author Eleanor Ashley, goes missing, Ethan and Maggie must join forces to solve the mystery of the missing author.

This book was so much fun! Seriously! I had the best time watching this mystery unravel along side Ethan and Maggie, and I simply adored everything about this tale.

Maggie and Ethan were fantastic! I felt very sympathetic towards Maggie and wanted to protect her given all that she had suffered. Losing her loved ones and then betrayed by the two people she held dear had to have been horrible. It was no wonder she was leery of Ethan. As her professional nemesis, Ethan was a popular and well-loved author who was stiff competition for Maggie. Their paths had crossed over the years, and it was thrill to read about those meetings via flashbacks. These episodes really helped me understand their dynamic and gave me so much hope for their budding romance.

I want everyone to pay special attention to Ethan because he was something special. He came off a bit full of himself, but that swagger was hiding the "real" things about him. As the story wore on, more and more was revealed about Ethan. The man had layers, and he really won my heart via all those small, sweet things he said or did. Loved him!

I am not a huge mystery reader, but I had a great time watching this one unfold. The story had twists and turns, and lots of action which kept the it building with the right kind of intensity. A locked-room, a storm, no road out - so many great mystery tropes were employed to make this a good one.

Overall, The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year was a delightful mystery that was filled with witty banter, a wonderful romance, and a great reveal. Since this was a holiday book, I will consider that epilogue to be my gift because it was the icing on the cake for me. All I can say is I was left with miles of smiles.

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The Book Swap by Tessa Bickers
Published by Graydon House on September 3, 2024
Age/Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Fiction

Goodreads

A story of second chances and new beginnings, this is a love letter to books—and a love letter to life

Still reeling from a recent tragedy, Erin Connolly knows she needs to start living, but has no idea how. When she accidentally donates her favorite book—a heavily annotated copy of To Kill a Mockingbird containing a memento she can’t be without—to a local little community library, she’s devastated. But then the book turns up a week later, back in the library with fresh notes in the margins, along with an invitation in a copy of Great Expectations to meet her newfound pen pal.

A life-changing conversation, written only in the margins of beloved classic books, begins between Erin and her Mystery Man. Following each other through the pages of their favorite novels as the book exchange continues, they both begin to open up, falling into a friendship…and maybe something more.

But Erin and her pen pal have a shared history that neither of them has guessed. Faced with painful reminders of the past—and the one person she swore never to forgive—Erin finds herself at a crossroads. One that could change her life forever.

Erin had been mourning the death of her best friend for the past few years. Feeling a bit adrift, she decides to clean house and accidentally donates a beloved book holding a postcard from her friend to a free little library. When she tracks down her book, she finds that someone had responded to her margin notes. As they continue to swap books, their relationship grows, but this mystery man is no stranger to Erin. He was once a good friend who she vowed never to speak with again. When all is revealed, will Erin be able to forgive her former friend for what happened in the past?

I loved the idea of the book swap. The way Erin and Mystery Man met in the margins of so many wonderful books. These comments went beyond the books and allowed them to reveal pieces of themselves. And what a blessing it was for them both.

Erin was not only grieving the death of her friend, she was wracked with guilt and also grappling with forgiving her mother for what happened many years ago. At the same time, Erin was sort of going through the motions and not really living. She stayed in living situations she did not like, in a job she did not like, and in a hook up she did not like. Thank goodness she found Mystery Man because she really needed something to push her out of this limbo she was stuck in. Mystery Man also had a lot to deal with his in life and in his past, and it brought me great joy that they were able to find each other.

Both of the book swappers have fabulous story arcs. They embark on finding and chasing their passion while also making positive changes in the present and come to terms with their pasts. Both were definitely in a better place post book swap than they were before, and I was left feeling happy and hopeful for them.

Overall, this was an emotional and touching story of love, friendship, forgiveness, and second chances. It was about opening your heart after it's been broken, showing grace, and the power of books.

*ARCS PROVIDED BY THE PUBLISHER

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