Part of Bookstore Cafe Mystery, book 5
First published 2017
Krissy Hancock wanted a peaceful Christmas break from running her bookstore cafe in Pine Hills, Ohio. When the town's holiday musical loses an elf to illness, Krissy reluctantly steps into the costume. The production seethes with backstage drama. A domineering director battles gossipy cast members. Two performers fight over the starring role. Then someone commits murder and the show stops cold. Police zero in on Krissy's ex-boyfriend, who also plays an elf in the production. Krissy knows they have the wrong person. The actor playing Santa becomes another suspect as hidden motives surface throughout the theater. Krissy starts digging for answers on her own, but her investigation puts her life at risk. She dreams of making it safely to Christmas dinner, but she cannot walk away until she exposes the real killer lurking among the holiday performers.
Genres: mystery, crime, contemporary, adult-fiction, cozy-mystery
Vibes: cozy, fast-paced, suspenseful, theatrical
Tropes: amateur-detective, small-town-sleuth, wrongly-accused-love-interest
Setting: Pine Hills, Ohio
Period: Christmas
295 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Kensington
Content warnings: murder