Krissy Hancock is looking forward to an entire week off from her bookstore cafe, Death by Coffee. She plans to spend the holidays with her father in California. But at the last minute things change....she isn't going to sunny California after all. So, she has a week off in Pine Hills, Ohio. All of her friends are busy with their own holiday plans, so Krissy decides just to relax and enjoy her time off. Her zen just isn't meant to be, however. Krissy gets roped into taking the place of a sick elf in the annual holiday musical extravaganza. Her peaceful holiday soon turns into drama.....the director is too demanding, the performers are all gossiping backstage and there are fights over who will play the lead role. It all comes to a head when Chuck, dressed as Santa Claus, is murdered in the dressing room. Krissy steps in to investigate after her ex-boyfriend Robert is seen fleeing from the scene. Who killed Santa? Robert is a bit of a jerk, but Krissy is convinced that he didn't murder Chuck.

I really enjoy this series. Krissy is an enjoyable, intelligent, and capable main character. I like the mix of humor and murder mystery. The characters are all likeable and realistic. The coffeeshop/bookstore side theme is also one I enjoy. It gets used quite a bit in cozy mysteries, but I don't mind another series from that angle. I wish Death By Coffee was a real shop near where I live! I'd be there all the time! :)

Death By Eggnog is the 5th book in the Bookstore Cafe Mystery series. The mystery moved along at a nice pace. There were plenty of suspects, twists and turns. The holiday theme was well done. I have a weakness for holiday themed cozies -- so I really enjoyed this book! The Christmas theme was great, and the cover is adorable. All in all, another great book in this cozy series! The next book, Death by Espresso, will be released in June 2018!!

To find out more about the author and his books, check out his website: https://alexericksonbooks.com/

**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Kensington via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.** ( )

I am still enjoying this series. Krissy is my kind of sleuth. She is smart, kind, has good judgement, loyal and real. I love how she is not afraid to admit her flaws and laugh about her mistakes. This story does not use the coffee shop setting as much as the other books, but it is easy to see that this is where Krissy's comfort zone is. It is Christmas time and Krissy has a week off to go to California to spen the holiday with her father. At the last minute he calls her to say he is going away with his girlfriend so she has a week off and is staying in town. She gets roped in to playing an elf in the local holiday play, a singing and dancing elf and she can't sing and dance. There are so many things happening backstage such as the director being too demanding, the performers all gossiping backstage, male characters fighting over the same girl, and there are fights over who will play the lead role. Within a couple of rehearsals, the man playing Santa Claus is murdered. It turns out Chuck was a bully to the guys and rather handsy with the women so there were a lot of people who might have had a reason to kill him. When Krissy's ex-boyfriend is arrested for the crime, Krissy is convinced that he didn't do it. Both he and his new girlfriend ask Krissy to help and the investigation begins.

The mystery moved along at a nice pace. There were plenty of suspects, twists and turns and I was not able to figure out who the killer was. The author did such a good job of spreading out red herrings. I like Alex Erickson's writing style. It is humorous at times and to the point with just enough description to make the story enjoyable. The characters are quite likable with the exception of some of the minor characters in the play. They were a bit aggravating and did not appreciate Krissy investigating the crime. The holiday theme was well done, not overdone. When the culprit was revealed, he/she explained why, but it was not the best explanation for me. It was plausible, but just did not sit well with me. That is why I only gave it 4 stars. There was some humor in the story that had me smiling throughout the book. The romance was not very much a part of this story which is fine, but I am not very impressed with Will, Krissy's present boyfriend. He is rather stiff I and does not seem to be much fun. I would love to see her get back with Paul, the police officer. I do recommend not only this book, but the series to cozy mystery lovers. They are well written with great mysteries and characters. The publisher generously provided me with a copy of this book via Netgalley. ( )

Krissy Hancock and her best friend Vicki Patterson are the co-owners of Death By Coffee and combo coffee and bookstore in the town of Pine Hills, Ohio. When Krissy's plans to spend Christmas with her dad are changed, she finds herself staying in town getting to spend the holiday with her boyfriend Will Foster. Vicki still wants Krissy to take her scheduled vacation. Which gets her volunteered by store regular Rita to fill in for a sick elf in the Community Theater's Christmas musical. When the man playing Santa Claus is found murdered after a public fight with Robert Dunhill, Krissy's ex-boyfriend he becomes the #1 suspect for the crime. Robert's girlfriend Trisha begs Krissy to help prove his innocence to the police. Krissy is convinced the police have the wrong person in jail, so with her love of snooping and investigating she decides to help find the real killer. I got an advanced copy of this book from Netgalley and Kensington Books. ( )

Krissy Hancock and her best friend Vicki Patterson are the co-owners of Death By Coffee and combo coffee and bookstore in the town of Pine Hills, Ohio. When Krissy's plans to spend Christmas with her dad are changed, she finds herself staying in town getting to spend the holiday with her boyfriend Will Foster. Vicki still wants Krissy to take her scheduled vacation. Which gets her volunteered by store regular Rita to fill in for a sick elf in the Community Theater's Christmas musical. When the man playing Santa Claus is found murdered after a public fight with Robert Dunhill, Krissy's ex-boyfriend he becomes the #1 suspect for the crime. Robert's girlfriend Trisha begs Krissy to help prove his innocence to the police. Krissy is convinced the police have the wrong person in jail, so with her love of snooping and investigating she decides to help find the real killer. I got an advanced copy of this book from Netgalley and Kensington Books. ( )

Pretty generic. A bit of Christmas flavor, mostly around decorating a tree. ( )