Incredible. I was so stressed while reading this book, I was heavily invested and hooked immediately!! After reading T. Kingfisher’s A Defensive Guide and Hemlock & Silver, I appreciated the dual perspectives of the adult & child in this one instead of only one. I could easily see myself recommending this to others, especially historical romance readers since this felt like one with magic.

A great Christmas/ winter read! Especially for those in the southern hemisphere where Christmas is hot! I loved the set up of the chapters as an advent calendar, really fun & clever. The mystery was great I got the big who but not the why and there was plenty of surprises! Technically, I think Benjamin Stevenson’s books are a smidge too gorey to fit the “cozy mystery” that people want but I think they are exactly what I need when I want a “cozy mystery”! They are complex, interesting, and a unique detective voice. I’m not rating it higher because it is a novella, so there’s some depth & intrigue that is missing compared to his other books.