Okay. A very quick read. Amusing but not well developed. Way too many characters to keep track of. ( )

I've never read any of the books Mary Higgins Clark has written on her own, but I've read a few of these that she's co-authored with her daughter and I've read a few of Carol Higgins Clark's Regan Reilly mysteries, and they are pure fluff of the average variety. But when found for a buck at a used library books sale or book shop, they make for easy, light holiday reading equivalent to eating a mass-produced christmas cookie.

The writing isn't bad, but it's not deep and the plots rely on stunning coincidences not usually found in nature. You are absolutely guaranteed that the bad guys will all come to a bad end, the good guys will all win, all wrongs will be made right and justice will prevail. If you go into this book knowing this, you'll find a very fast, festive read. ( )

Very light read with not much of a mystery to it. More about a small town wanting to have a festival at Christmas when a group of workers from a local store win the lottery. It made it too confusing having the out-of-town sluths from the Regan Reilly series come and help solve the problem of a missing lottery winner and his girlfriend plus crooks of all kinds living in the town. Did not get much of a Christmas feel while reading. ( )

This is the 5th Christmas story co-authored by mother/daughter team Mary Higgins Clark and Carol Higgins Clark. They are short, cute mysteries that are easy to read.

In the picturesque village of Branscombe, New Hampshire, it’s time for the Festival of Joy. The town are all working together to prepare for this first, hopefully, annual festival. When the hard-working, long-time employees of Conklins do not get the expected Christmas bonus, they leave the store disgruntled. When it turns out that the same night their lottery numbers are drawn as the winners in the Mega mega lottery, their anger turns to joy. Unfortunately, one the their regular group did not play that week on the advice of his financial advisors. When he finds out that they are swindlers who also played the same numbers, he had told them what numbers they usually played, he steals their lottery ticket and bad luck befalls him. Regan Reilly, her husband Jack, her paretns as well as Willy and Alvirah Meehan had all travelled to Branscombe for the festival, so they all get involved in the mystery. The action is fast-paced in this clever story, with just enough twists to keep you interested. A cute Christmas mystery, which I read by the pool in Florida and enjoyed just as much as if I had read it over the Christmas holidays. ( )

I bought this book during the holidays a few years ago at the local Friends of the Library store. I don't think I have ever read a Higgins Clark book, so I had no idea what to expect. What a fun cozy mystery this was! It was fast-paced, had likable characters and stood alone nicely, even though it's the fifth in a series.

There is just enough intensity to cause a little "reader stress" and a lot of levity to balance it. This was a delightful book, and recommended. ( )