Review: I’ll be Home for Mischief by Jacqueline Frost

Yes it’s only August, but my tbr is filling up with fab new festive books coming out between now and Christmas so I thought I’d get a bit of a head start on sharing some reviews. Today I’m talking about the newest novel in Jacqueline Frost’s Christmas Tree Farm Mystery series, I’ll be Home for Mischief, which was one of the books I featured in my Christmas preview last month.

Check out the synopsis from the publisher, and then read on for my thoughts!

What is Jacqueline Frost’s I’ll be Home for Mischief about?

It’s Christmastime in Mistletoe, Maine, and the Historical Society has launched a widespread campaign to celebrate the town’s 150th anniversary. Descendants of the founding family, the Snows, have returned for the first time, and Holly is determined to make the family’s visit magical. In an attempt to put Mistletoe on the map, Holly’s mother, a respected local baker, attempts to break a record by baking the world’s largest gingerbread man, but her plans are whisked away when Mr. Snow’s body ends up in the batter. 

When Mr. Moore, the local mistletoe farmer, is accused of the crime, Holly reprises her role as amateur sleuth to protect the sweet older man. Between hosting the inconsolable Mrs. Snow and other guests at the inn, receiving threatening messages telling her to stop her investigation, and preparing for her first wedding anniversary with Sheriff Evan Gray, she might need a Christmas miracle to survive.

When someone breaks into Holly’s office and scratches a warning into her desk, she knows she has little time left. Can Holly uncover the killer before someone else gets burned, or is her involvement a recipe for trouble?

My review of I’ll be Home for Mischief

This is the fifth book in the Christmas Tree Farm Mystery series and I found it just as fun as the others that have come before it. These books are some of the cosiest cosy mystery books I have reads – how could they not be when they’re set in a place like Mistletoe in the midst of all its very festive cheer! I would actually love to spend Christmas at the inn Holly runs – except for the murders of course!

I’m not sure whether it’s because I’ve read this one relatively early in the year, and I’m sort of used to the festivities and activities on Holly’s parents’ farm as the background after four books in this setting, but I felt like this one leaned more into the continuing stories of the characters than previous book, which I really liked (I’m hoping I’ve spotted some clues that we might get some more stories from these characters set outside of the Christmas season).

Holly and her friends, family, community, and town continue to be charming and warm and fun, and I felt like the mystery part of the story unfolded will, with good pacing and a satisfying ending.

With these sorts of mystery series it isn’t really necessary to read them in order since the books are stand alones, and enough context is given to understand how the characters fit together. That said, I think that now that there are a few books in the series and the peripheral characters’ stories are starting to build, you might get a bit more out of reading some of the previous books first (I’d recommend them all anyway, and this one isn’t out until November so there’s time!).

Thanks to Crooked Lane books and NetGalley for an ecopy of this one!

xo Bron
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I’ll be Home for Mischief by Jacqueline Frost
Out Nov 12 from Crooked Lane books
Source: I received a free ecopy from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley.
Category: Christmas Cosy Mystery (5th in series) 

Check out my reviews of some of Jacqueline Frost’s previous books:
– ‘Twas the Knife Before Christmas
– Stalking Around the Christmas Tree

Want more Christmassy content? Check out these posts.