Book Review: Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret by Benjamin Stevenson

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"My name's Ernest Cunninham. I used to be a fan of Golden Age mysteries, until I found myself frequently stuck in the middle of real-life ones. I'd hoped that any self-respecting murderer would take it easy over the holidays. I was wrong. So here I am, at the Christmas show of world-famous magician Rylan Blaze, whose benefactor has been murdered. My suspects are all professional tricksters: The Magician, The Assistant, The Executive, The Hypnotist, The Identical Twin, The Counselor, The Stagehand. I can see through the illusions, I know I can solve it. After all, a good murder is just like a magic trick, isn't it?" ~~~~ Yes, I've still been reading holiday reads. It doesn't matter what time of year it is. I randomly picked this title out of a jar containing the Christmas reads I have in my possession. I was thrilled that this book had more to do with a mystery than Christmas. Simply put, the story took place two days and the day before Christmas. The only way the holiday plays in this story is that the investigator's wife wants him home for Christmas Eve. What he doesn't tell his wife is that he got a call from his ex-wife who had been arrested for a murder. Ernest took it upon himself to solve the crime. I love mysteries and this was pretty good. It is short, so short you could and should probably read it in one sitting because remembering the clues makes the story move smoother for the reader. Author Benjamin Stevenson wrote a well thought out mystery and brilliant clues, added with his genius wit. Previous books he wrote which sound like a series but I'm sure can be read as standalones are "Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone", and "Everyone on This Train is a Suspect." Quick, fun read.