"The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year" brings "Knives Out" vibes to the holiday season

One of the things I truly love about Ally Carter is she has never done me wrong. In high school, the Gallagher Girls series was such a favorite I continue to share it with my students to this day. The Embassy Row books made me fall in love with political intrigue as a genre. The Blonde Identity took everything I loved from her YA books and brought it to an adult audience. To this day, she is the only author I know for sure I own all of their books, and I have zero regrets about this. If Ally Carter only has one fan, it is me. If she has zero fans, I have tragically passed away.

So when I found out about The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year, I freaked out. My favorite author writing a murder mystery set around my favorite holiday? Life truly could not get better than this. And I am so excited to say this book was everything I had hoped to be and more - it's full of romance, comfy sweaters, murder, and heart.

Maggie is coming off the worst year of her life, and about to head into her least favorite season: Christmas. In fact, it seems like the worst things in her life seem to happen during this time of year. Between freak storms, car breakdowns, her parents' deaths, and the discovery of her husband and bestie's affair, Maggie is ready to hide in her apartment with an Eleanor Ashley book and ignore the world. However, instead, she is given a once-in-a-lifetime Christmas opportunity with an all-expenses-paid trip to England to meet her biggest fan. Who just happens to be Eleanor Ashley! And even though Maggie's nemesis Ethan was also invited, along with Eleanor's terrible family, she still gets to spend Christmas with the author who made her want to be a writer! What could go wrong? Short answer: everything.

Eleanor goes missing out of a locked room, someone is clearly trying to murder her, and nobody but the butler seems the slightest bit concerned about this turn of events. In fact, they're determined to ignore it and continue on as usual, leaving Maggie and Ethan to team up to use their fictional mystery writing expertise to solve a very real crime.

One of Ally Carter's biggest strengths as a writer comes from her ability to make her main characters seem real and relatable - and Maggie truly shone through as this. And I think the reason she did this for me was in the way I truly saw myself in this character. Like Maggie, I didn't grow up with a lot of money and books were one of my biggest support systems. And like Maggie, I had an author I would turn to in any situation who inspired me to be a writer myself - and the irony in this situation is for me that author is Ally Carter. When Maggie realizes Eleanor is a fan of her books, she is probably the most relatable because this would be me in this situation:

""I'm glad. Because you're one of my favorite authors."
And then Maggie died.
The End. "

- Ally Carter

However, Maggie also brought to life some weaknesses I have seen and have been working on in myself: being so grateful someone notices you that you'll make yourself small just to keep them happy. On multiple occasions, I have had friend breakups when I am no longer willing to revolve my entire around them, where any success I have is either ignored, criticized, or not taken seriously. Where if I am not doing everything in my power to assure them, make them happy, and manage their emotions instead of my own, then I am being a bad friend and a terrible person. It's a lesson I am still learning, and seeing Maggie go through this same sort of struggle was one I could relate to. This book reminded me to never stop seeing my worth, and people will celebrate it with me - I just need to find them. It was a message I really needed a reminder of, and as Maggie got to see how amazing she was, I was also reminded of how amazing I am.

However, in addition to Maggie's amazing characterization there's a very layered and twisty mystery that requires the readers to keep track of three very different questions:

1. How did Eleanor disappear out of a locked room?
2. Who is trying to kill her?
3. Why is nobody concerned about her disappearance?

The clues and reveals to this mystery are expertly woven into the plot it never seems to lose momentum. But, it also knows the best times to rest and allows the readers to start to think through the mystery and how it could possibly be solved. There were so many theories I had throughout reading and so much suspicion that could be put on the entire cast of characters. In the end, I ended up being completely wrong about who did it (which is rare for me!) but the fun I had along the way and how genius of a reveal it was made sure I wasn't disappointed by my wrongly interpreting the clues.

With everything I have already talked about, it's hard to believe there is time for an expertly written romance along with the mystery and Maggie's character journey. However, Maggie and Ethan's romance is adorable and one worth telling. Ethan's mysterious backstory and Maggie's enthusiastic hatred of him make for a fun dynamic, especially as they start peeling back each other's layers once they realize they are the only ones in the mansion they can trust. In addition, Ethan is a man who looked toxic masculinity in the face and decided there was something better out there, which makes him one of my favorite romance leads I have read recently. He is both tough and vulnerable while showing someone who is a "walking social media feed" can also be someone who has a mask due to being afraid of getting hurt.

Filled with Ally Carter's signature wit and hysterical shenanigans, this book is the perfect Christmas cozy mystery. It also makes me excited my birthday is in December, because I am certain this book is going to be my birthday read year after year. With its important message, fun mystery, and an amazing cast of characters, I cannot recommend this book enough. And I cannot wait to see what Ally Carter decides to write next.

The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year is available through HarperCollins Publishers