A Holiday Homicide by Ellie Alexander - Book Review

Series: A Secret Bookcase Mystery #4

Publication Date: 20th Nov 2024

Genre: Small Town Cozy Mystery 

3.5 Stars 

One Liner: A quick little mystery 

When local bakery owner, Sugar, asks Annie to host a gingerbread competition at the Secret Bookcase Shop, everyone is excited. A famous influencer baker, Lily Hawthorne, is the guest and is supposed to promote their small town, Redwood Grove. 

However, things take a different turn when there’s a death on the site and everything indicates it was a murder. Can Annie, with help from friends, solve the case and save the day for her town? 

The story comes in Annie’s first-person POV. 

My Thoughts: 

I didn’t realize this had an influencer (the official blurb is rather vague). While it’s not my favorite topic, the book tackles the theme well. We see the real and fake sides of social media fame, as well as the threats that come with it. 

Set during the Holidays, the book brings the Christmas vibe alive with gingerbread, spiced teas, seasonal flavored coffees, cakes, cupcakes, and more! The weather is cold, which adds to the atmosphere. 

The pacing is fast just like the previous books in the series. We get enough backstory about the characters and the overarching subplot for this work as a standalone. Though, note that you’ll find it repetitive if you’ve read the previous books. 

Annie makes some major decisions and is excited about the future after a long time. While I like her love story with Liam, she tends to go off-tagent and daydream like a teenager. That doesn’t always work. 

The main mystery was easy enough to guess though there are a few suspects to consider. There is a little progress on the Scarlet track. I wish it would start to pick up pace and become a central mystery in one of the upcoming books. 

The recurring side characters like Priya, Fletcher, and Hal are adorable as always. I like how they are so supportive and care for Annie. Their thoughtfulness gives the story a warm cozy vibe. Too bad we get to meet Professor Plum only once. 

To summarize, A Holiday Homicide is a light mystery with some likable and unlikeable characters. Though it doesn’t have any dark vibes, it does talk about the grief of losing a loved one. 

Thank you, NetGalley and Storm Publishing, for eARC. 

#NetGalley #AHolidayHomicide