Sophie Winston's sister-in-law Laci is entertaining her friends and family for Christmas Eve dinner, and while she thinks everything is going to be fine, it's not. Someone is stealing everyone's Christmas gifts, and their house is now the latest on the block to be emptied. As if this isn't enough, Laci's father shows up with his new girlfriend, Bonnie -- angering her mother Marnie, since they've only been separated a month. As if that isn't enough, they discover that Laci's younger sister Shawna is nearly engaged to Bonnie's son Beau.

But at another event, there's an altercation that sends Shawna running out in tears, and no one knowing how to handle it. Not even Sophie, who discovers Bonnie's body at her home and needs to call the police, wishing her detective boyfriend Wolf was in town instead of spending the holidays in Maine. Now, the hunt is on for a killer, and with a plethora of suspects, it's all Sophie can do to keep her family from fighting and try to figure out who left a basket of Ragdoll kittens in her sunroom...

This is the fourth book in the series, and I probably like it better than the others, although I still think that Sophie needs to grow a spine. She never says no to anyone, even when she knows she should. Another thing I don't care for is the fact that she practically thinks everyone on her suspect list is the guilty party at one time or another...and she's always wrong. Where is she getting her clues from in the first place? Just because someone acts what you think is suspiciously, doesn't mean they're a murderer. As Laci said, they all have secrets.

But, it was interesting all the same to watch everything play out with the kittens (which I do love) and find out that Mars has a backbone after all. Now we get to wait and see what happens in the next book, and if he'll revert to being wallpaper. Something to look forward to.

In the end, it all came together just the way I thought it might, since the clues were leading in that direction all along, and as we expected, the murderer was caught and the reasons for the murder were what we thought. I will read the next in the series, because this one had enough action to keep me interested enough to keep reading. Recommended. ( )

A decent read but Davis is certainly the queen of adjectives when it comes to describing ingredients. Almost every item is exceptional in some way such as crisp. ( )

I am glad that I was reading this in book form instead of an e-book so I could go back to the beginning to see all of the characters. Thank you Krista for this page which listed everyone. It did help (some) to keep everyone straight. While I loved the book, it is a tad character heavy.
The beginning of each chapter is one of the highlights as it gives advice either from Sophie or Natasha. Sophie's advice is always spot on while Natasha's is little different at times.
This book was different as it didn't pit Sophie against Natasha much as in previous books;however, Natasha did make her presence known loud and clear. Her character just cracks me up.
It's Christmastime where all should be love and peace, but it isn't. Sophie's sister-in-law's father arrives with new girlfriend. Everyone is aghast at this move and then when girlfriend is found murdered, Sophie has to figure out who did it. With her boyfriend, Wolf, out of town she is forced to work with Kenner who hasn't always been in Sophie's corner. ( )

I do enjoy this series, but as mentioned in my review of anther book by same author the amount of food that is eaten is overwhelming. My other point of contention is the god awful clothing that the characters wear. Christmas sweaters to mention a few. ( )

We've all had holiday seasons that don't seem to be worth all the hassle that leads up to it, but when the Christmas gifts are stolen, and unwelcome guests appear and then end up dead, that really tends to spoil the festivities.

Sophie is caught up in the disastrous holiday when her brother George's neighborhood is victimized by thieves (taking even the Christmas dinner) and then her sister-in-law's father shows up with a new girlfriend. The girlfriend ends up dead but the disaster is alive and well as everyone seems to be a suspect.

The twists and turns were totally entertaining! ( )