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Mr. Lemoncello's Library
Mr. Lemoncello's Wondermous Christmas Gift
Get ready for a puzzle-filled Christmas! The New York Times bestselling Lemoncello series gets its first holiday special with this festive edition, perfect for stocking stuffers. When an eleven-year-old begrudgingly moves just before Christmas, a surprise invite to Mr. Lemoncello’s holiday party changes everything.
Eloise Dobyns and her mom are on their fifth move in five years and this time they’ve found themselves in Ohio just two weeks before Christmas. Eloise is out of friends, patience, and holiday cheer, but she hasn’t met Mr. Lemoncello yet.
After receiving a personal invite to Mr. Lemoncello's legendary annual holiday party, Eloise has two stay home, and continue sulking over this latest move or, go to the party and find out what all the fuss is about. After all, Mr. Lemoncello and his library may just have everything Eloise needs to settle in and cheer up in her new environment.
Welcome back to Lemoncello's Library in this novella full of puzzles, adventure, and holiday magic! Listen to more of the New York Times bestselling Mr. Lemoncello series with Books 1–6.
Eloise Dobyns and her mom are on their fifth move in five years and this time they’ve found themselves in Ohio just two weeks before Christmas. Eloise is out of friends, patience, and holiday cheer, but she hasn’t met Mr. Lemoncello yet.
After receiving a personal invite to Mr. Lemoncello's legendary annual holiday party, Eloise has two stay home, and continue sulking over this latest move or, go to the party and find out what all the fuss is about. After all, Mr. Lemoncello and his library may just have everything Eloise needs to settle in and cheer up in her new environment.
Welcome back to Lemoncello's Library in this novella full of puzzles, adventure, and holiday magic! Listen to more of the New York Times bestselling Mr. Lemoncello series with Books 1–6.
Audible Audio
First published October 13, 2026
About the author
Chris Grabenstein
142 books2,468 followersCHRIS GRABENSTEIN is a #1 New York Times bestselling author. His books include the LEMONCELLO, WONDERLAND, HAUNTED MYSTERY, DOG SQUAD, and SMARTEST KID IN THE UNIVERSE series, and many fun and funny page-turners co-authored with James Patterson. You can visit Chris at ChrisGrabenstein.com.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Eloise moved to Ohio two weeks before Christmas, asked where homeroom was, and two girls in festive headwear basically told her “same place as always” and walked away. Middle school said welcome to town and immediately chose psychological warfare.
This poor kid has moved five times in five years, which is enough to make anyone look at a cardboard box and think, absolutely not, we are not forming an emotional attachment to another zip code. Now she and her mom have landed in Alexandriaville two weeks before Christmas, when everyone else already has friends and traditions and plans, and Eloise has Mr. Waffles, her books, and a brand-new school decorated like Christmas itself is personally running for student council. She is not feeling festive. She would actually like December to lower its voice.
Her first day does not help. There are Santa hats. Reindeer antlers. An Olaf from Frozen advertising warm hugs. Eloise is just trying to locate room 7-A before she becomes The New Girl Who Is Also Late, and the aforementioned reindeer-antlered welcoming committee is apparently unavailable for basic human kindness. Then Clarence appears, and Clarence talks like somebody accidentally left a seventh grader inside a 1940s radio program. "Gee whiz." "Swell." "Shindig." Eloise immediately asks if anyone has ever told him he talks differently, because this child has been in Ohio for approximately six minutes and we're already asking the important questions. Clarence basically says everybody tells him that and he takes it as a compliment. Done. Clarence, come sit by me.
Then Mr. Lemoncello gets involved, and obviously this man does not hear "lonely new kid having a terrible Christmas" and think perhaps a quiet welcome basket would suffice. No. Mr. Lemoncello owns the most bonkers library in America and has the restraint of a game-show producer who just found an unlimited confetti budget. There is a legendary Christmas party. Eloise gets a personal invitation. There are games and surprises and enough festive nonsense happening inside this library that Eloise's plan to remain emotionally unavailable to Ohio is immediately in serious jeopardy.
And Eloise is GOOD at the puzzle stuff. Suspiciously good. She starts looking at anagrams and clues like they're minor administrative tasks while I am sitting there rearranging the same six letters seventeen times and accidentally inventing a pharmaceutical. I will not spoil a single puzzle because that is between you, Eloise, and whatever unresolved business you personally have with word games. Just know that this eleven-year-old humbled me repeatedly, and she did not even know I was competing with her.
But the thing that got me wasn't Eloise solving things. It's why she's so reluctant to let any of this matter. Five moves in five years means five rounds of starting over. At some point, of course she's going to stop unpacking certain parts of herself. Why get excited about a place? Why make friends? Why build traditions when you've learned that everything can disappear into boxes again? Eloise isn't being a little Christmas grump because she needs somebody to blast her with holiday spirit. She's tired.
Which is why Clarence quietly sneaking into her life got me. Mr. Lemoncello's ridiculous library got me. Watching Eloise slowly realize there might actually be room for her here got me. Nobody needs to give her a giant speech about belonging. People just keep including her until she starts acting like maybe she believes them. Excuse me, I came here for puzzles and Christmas shenanigans. I did not authorize feelings about a child being afraid to put down roots.
Naturally, there are also adults bringing their own nonsense into the festivities. Roger comes clomping down the library steps in his expensive wool coat and a scowl, berating poor Heather about her abilities as a literary agent because apparently a children's Christmas party seemed like an excellent location for a professional meltdown. Sir, there are children nearby solving puzzles. Santa is spiritually on the premises. Could we perhaps put the workplace hostility in a little gift bag and save it for January? Eloise has been in town for two weeks and already has enough going on.
By the time everything really gets rolling, Eloise has gone from wanting Christmas and Alexandriaville to leave her alone to being neck-deep in Mr. Lemoncello's particular brand of organized holiday chaos. And because this is Mr. Lemoncello's Wondermous Christmas Gift, there are little winks toward familiar Christmas stories tucked into the festivities too, which made the whole thing feel like somebody dumped a stack of beloved holiday books onto the library floor and yelled, "Everybody grab something, we're making memories."
This was 4.5 stars of exactly the kind of Christmas nonsense I wanted. Sweet without making my teeth hurt, goofy without losing Eloise underneath all the games, and warm in a way that actually feels earned. Also, Clarence may continue speaking like he is about to sell me war bonds or invite me to a sock hop for the remainder of this series. Nobody correct that child. He is perfect exactly where he is.
Merry Mayhem Prize: For Taking One Extremely Over-It New Girl and Throwing Enough Puzzles, Library Shenanigans, Christmas Spirit, and Clarence at Her That She Never Had a Chance of Remaining a Grinch
Thank you to Random House Children's Books and NetGalley for the ARC, and especially for not making me solve an anagram before receiving it. Eloise would have finished hers, made three new friends, attended the Christmas party, and gone home while I was still sitting outside the library whispering, "Wait, can I use the E twice?"
This poor kid has moved five times in five years, which is enough to make anyone look at a cardboard box and think, absolutely not, we are not forming an emotional attachment to another zip code. Now she and her mom have landed in Alexandriaville two weeks before Christmas, when everyone else already has friends and traditions and plans, and Eloise has Mr. Waffles, her books, and a brand-new school decorated like Christmas itself is personally running for student council. She is not feeling festive. She would actually like December to lower its voice.
Her first day does not help. There are Santa hats. Reindeer antlers. An Olaf from Frozen advertising warm hugs. Eloise is just trying to locate room 7-A before she becomes The New Girl Who Is Also Late, and the aforementioned reindeer-antlered welcoming committee is apparently unavailable for basic human kindness. Then Clarence appears, and Clarence talks like somebody accidentally left a seventh grader inside a 1940s radio program. "Gee whiz." "Swell." "Shindig." Eloise immediately asks if anyone has ever told him he talks differently, because this child has been in Ohio for approximately six minutes and we're already asking the important questions. Clarence basically says everybody tells him that and he takes it as a compliment. Done. Clarence, come sit by me.
Then Mr. Lemoncello gets involved, and obviously this man does not hear "lonely new kid having a terrible Christmas" and think perhaps a quiet welcome basket would suffice. No. Mr. Lemoncello owns the most bonkers library in America and has the restraint of a game-show producer who just found an unlimited confetti budget. There is a legendary Christmas party. Eloise gets a personal invitation. There are games and surprises and enough festive nonsense happening inside this library that Eloise's plan to remain emotionally unavailable to Ohio is immediately in serious jeopardy.
And Eloise is GOOD at the puzzle stuff. Suspiciously good. She starts looking at anagrams and clues like they're minor administrative tasks while I am sitting there rearranging the same six letters seventeen times and accidentally inventing a pharmaceutical. I will not spoil a single puzzle because that is between you, Eloise, and whatever unresolved business you personally have with word games. Just know that this eleven-year-old humbled me repeatedly, and she did not even know I was competing with her.
But the thing that got me wasn't Eloise solving things. It's why she's so reluctant to let any of this matter. Five moves in five years means five rounds of starting over. At some point, of course she's going to stop unpacking certain parts of herself. Why get excited about a place? Why make friends? Why build traditions when you've learned that everything can disappear into boxes again? Eloise isn't being a little Christmas grump because she needs somebody to blast her with holiday spirit. She's tired.
Which is why Clarence quietly sneaking into her life got me. Mr. Lemoncello's ridiculous library got me. Watching Eloise slowly realize there might actually be room for her here got me. Nobody needs to give her a giant speech about belonging. People just keep including her until she starts acting like maybe she believes them. Excuse me, I came here for puzzles and Christmas shenanigans. I did not authorize feelings about a child being afraid to put down roots.
Naturally, there are also adults bringing their own nonsense into the festivities. Roger comes clomping down the library steps in his expensive wool coat and a scowl, berating poor Heather about her abilities as a literary agent because apparently a children's Christmas party seemed like an excellent location for a professional meltdown. Sir, there are children nearby solving puzzles. Santa is spiritually on the premises. Could we perhaps put the workplace hostility in a little gift bag and save it for January? Eloise has been in town for two weeks and already has enough going on.
By the time everything really gets rolling, Eloise has gone from wanting Christmas and Alexandriaville to leave her alone to being neck-deep in Mr. Lemoncello's particular brand of organized holiday chaos. And because this is Mr. Lemoncello's Wondermous Christmas Gift, there are little winks toward familiar Christmas stories tucked into the festivities too, which made the whole thing feel like somebody dumped a stack of beloved holiday books onto the library floor and yelled, "Everybody grab something, we're making memories."
This was 4.5 stars of exactly the kind of Christmas nonsense I wanted. Sweet without making my teeth hurt, goofy without losing Eloise underneath all the games, and warm in a way that actually feels earned. Also, Clarence may continue speaking like he is about to sell me war bonds or invite me to a sock hop for the remainder of this series. Nobody correct that child. He is perfect exactly where he is.
Merry Mayhem Prize: For Taking One Extremely Over-It New Girl and Throwing Enough Puzzles, Library Shenanigans, Christmas Spirit, and Clarence at Her That She Never Had a Chance of Remaining a Grinch
Thank you to Random House Children's Books and NetGalley for the ARC, and especially for not making me solve an anagram before receiving it. Eloise would have finished hers, made three new friends, attended the Christmas party, and gone home while I was still sitting outside the library whispering, "Wait, can I use the E twice?"
October 17, 2026
Spectactulmous!
Christmas chaos, quirky characters, ridiculous shenanigans, and a whole lot of Lemoncello magic! Which is absolutely handsdown the best part, anything Lemoncello is a win in my book. This was delightfully wacky, a whimsical adventure bursting with holiday cheer, clever surprises, and just enough mayhem to keep you guessing. Pure festive fun from start to finish! The perfect addition to the Lemoncello series.
Absolutely adoreded this novella. As always, Mr. Grabenstein makes writing magic with short engaging chapters that are perfect for your reluctant reader. (That's my professional opinion as a librarian.)
Highly recommend- because "Hello, It's a Lemoncello!"
Christmas chaos, quirky characters, ridiculous shenanigans, and a whole lot of Lemoncello magic! Which is absolutely handsdown the best part, anything Lemoncello is a win in my book. This was delightfully wacky, a whimsical adventure bursting with holiday cheer, clever surprises, and just enough mayhem to keep you guessing. Pure festive fun from start to finish! The perfect addition to the Lemoncello series.
Absolutely adoreded this novella. As always, Mr. Grabenstein makes writing magic with short engaging chapters that are perfect for your reluctant reader. (That's my professional opinion as a librarian.)
Highly recommend- because "Hello, It's a Lemoncello!"
July 6, 2026
I have loved the Lemoncello books from the very beginning. The series is wonderful and I was so happy to see a new one is coming out. This book was just as fun as the others with puzzles to solve and antics at the library. This time, the fate of Christmas is on the line.
While delivering a great story as usual, Grabenstein shares the perfect Christmas message. Grab your tissues for the ending as a few tears encompassing multiple emotions may be shed.
Thank you to #NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for honest feedback.
While delivering a great story as usual, Grabenstein shares the perfect Christmas message. Grab your tissues for the ending as a few tears encompassing multiple emotions may be shed.
Thank you to #NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for honest feedback.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I received an electronic ARC from Random House Children's Books through NetGalley.
Charming Christmas story based on new characters who interact with Mr. Lemoncello. Eloise and her mom have just moved to Ohio; Eloise is not looking forward to Christmas as her mom has to work. When she receives an invitation to the Lemoncello Christmas party, she doesn't want to go. Her mom helps her change her mind and the adventures are launched. Together with a new friend, she embarks on an adventure at the library to solve one last puzzle for Mr. Lemoncello. Of course, there is a villain who changes by the end. This is the only transition I feel is a bit too abrupt but it still works.
A light read for middle grades who want to spend more time in this world.
Charming Christmas story based on new characters who interact with Mr. Lemoncello. Eloise and her mom have just moved to Ohio; Eloise is not looking forward to Christmas as her mom has to work. When she receives an invitation to the Lemoncello Christmas party, she doesn't want to go. Her mom helps her change her mind and the adventures are launched. Together with a new friend, she embarks on an adventure at the library to solve one last puzzle for Mr. Lemoncello. Of course, there is a villain who changes by the end. This is the only transition I feel is a bit too abrupt but it still works.
A light read for middle grades who want to spend more time in this world.
October 31, 2026
This is the 7th book in the middle school series and is set at Christmas. It is filled with fun, with lots of puzzles and a gentle message of friendship. The series is still clever and unique and I love it!
September 16, 2026
I love these characters and the puzzles they need to solve. I'm glad the author came out with another book. I'll keep reading them. I highly recommend them for reluctant readers. They are very engaging. I've also read the graphic novel adaptations but prefer the original chapter ones.
June 14, 2026
Thank you Netgalley and Random house for this ARC. This is another spectactulmous addition to the Mr. Lemoncello's Library series. This book kept me hooked from start to finish. A wonderful Christmas story full of puzzles, lovable characters and all the feels that proves once again why Chris Grabenstein is one of our library's favorite authors. This book will definitely be on both my library's Christmas list and my list of gifts to give.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you Netgalley and Random House Children's Books for this ARC book.
This is an adorable adventure that brings in so much Christmas fun. I loved the references to Christmas Classics mostly books but also some of films and other Christmas fun. It was also cool to see references to the other holidays that take place around this time of year and a reminder of how inclusive Mr Lemoncello's world is even in a Christmas special. The story is very sweet and fun though I wish it had been a little longer and would have enjoyed more puzzles. The story progresses through different rooms themed after classic Christmas tales and some rooms felt comparatively rushed. That said I absolutely adored the characters and getting to see even more of Mr. Lemoncello's wonderful library. This would be a wonderful stocking stuffer for Mr. Lemoncello fans.
This is an adorable adventure that brings in so much Christmas fun. I loved the references to Christmas Classics mostly books but also some of films and other Christmas fun. It was also cool to see references to the other holidays that take place around this time of year and a reminder of how inclusive Mr Lemoncello's world is even in a Christmas special. The story is very sweet and fun though I wish it had been a little longer and would have enjoyed more puzzles. The story progresses through different rooms themed after classic Christmas tales and some rooms felt comparatively rushed. That said I absolutely adored the characters and getting to see even more of Mr. Lemoncello's wonderful library. This would be a wonderful stocking stuffer for Mr. Lemoncello fans.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
** “A villain is just a victim whose story hasn’t been told." **
Chris Grabenstein returns to the wacky world of Luigi L. Lemoncello’s Library in “Mr. Lemoncello’s Wondermous Christmas Gift,” a tale about the importance of stories.
Eloise Dobyns and her mother have moved from Buffalo, N.Y., to Alexandriaville, Ohio, the home of Mr. Lemoncello’s amazing library, so her mom can start a new job as the hospital’s head pediatric nurse. So that means a new school and no friends for Eloise, and it’s happening right before Christmas. What a bummer!
But then she meets the quirky Clarence at school, who gives her an invitation to Mr. Lemoncello’s Spectactulmous Holiday Extravaganza, and things start to look up. She begrudgingly decides to attend, and her decision changes her life … even putting the fate of Christmas in her hands.
Grabenstein once again creates a zany and quirky story filled with heart, creating both relatable and unbelievable scenarios. He does a great job of filling his story with characters with spunk and moxie, as well as creepy villains. And his story is filled with some great themes, like sometimes it’s hard to tell who the true villain is; the importance of stories and how they help us write and dream the future; and finding the courage to seek the truth.
Children of all ages will enjoy “Mr. Lemoncello’s Wondermous Christmas Gift,” which is due out Oct. 13, as well as fans of series like Grabenstein’s “Ms. Pennypickle” series and James Patterson’s “Treasure Hunters” series, as well as authors like Lemony Snicket.
Five stars out of five.
Random House Books for Young Readers provided this complimentary copy through NetGalley for my honest, unbiased review.
Chris Grabenstein returns to the wacky world of Luigi L. Lemoncello’s Library in “Mr. Lemoncello’s Wondermous Christmas Gift,” a tale about the importance of stories.
Eloise Dobyns and her mother have moved from Buffalo, N.Y., to Alexandriaville, Ohio, the home of Mr. Lemoncello’s amazing library, so her mom can start a new job as the hospital’s head pediatric nurse. So that means a new school and no friends for Eloise, and it’s happening right before Christmas. What a bummer!
But then she meets the quirky Clarence at school, who gives her an invitation to Mr. Lemoncello’s Spectactulmous Holiday Extravaganza, and things start to look up. She begrudgingly decides to attend, and her decision changes her life … even putting the fate of Christmas in her hands.
Grabenstein once again creates a zany and quirky story filled with heart, creating both relatable and unbelievable scenarios. He does a great job of filling his story with characters with spunk and moxie, as well as creepy villains. And his story is filled with some great themes, like sometimes it’s hard to tell who the true villain is; the importance of stories and how they help us write and dream the future; and finding the courage to seek the truth.
Children of all ages will enjoy “Mr. Lemoncello’s Wondermous Christmas Gift,” which is due out Oct. 13, as well as fans of series like Grabenstein’s “Ms. Pennypickle” series and James Patterson’s “Treasure Hunters” series, as well as authors like Lemony Snicket.
Five stars out of five.
Random House Books for Young Readers provided this complimentary copy through NetGalley for my honest, unbiased review.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
I received this book for free to reviews but all thoughts and opinions are my own.
This was a lovely return to the world of Alexandriaville, Ohio! I loved seeing Mr. Lemoncello's world through a holiday lense and seeing how he brings fun +games to the holiday season!
Clarence was my favorite character, with his quirky language and eagerness to help! I love the Mr. Lemoncellos series for the fact that it is a story about books and this one reminded my of the fourth book in the original series because. . .well I don't want to tell and spoil it!
Eloise was having a rough Christmas and I felt horrible for her and had so much fun following her on her adventure in the library. It was refreshing to have a new character to see the story though (deviating from Kyle in the OG) and this story was short + sweet.
I loved the cameos and references to the original book and reading this inspired me to do a total reread of the Mr. Lemoncello series and to be transported back into the magic. Mr. Lemoncello isn't as present in this story as the other books, but he still leaves a huge mark on the story. I also want to read a lot of the books mentioned in the story (because what would a Mr. Lemoncello book be without a reading list?) Reading this in late summer, it still put me in a holiday mood so I can't imagine what it would do in winter!
I am so grateful to help promote a book from my childhood series!
If you like holiday stories with a twist, wacky children's books, adventures, and books and books you will love this book!
This was a lovely return to the world of Alexandriaville, Ohio! I loved seeing Mr. Lemoncello's world through a holiday lense and seeing how he brings fun +games to the holiday season!
Clarence was my favorite character, with his quirky language and eagerness to help! I love the Mr. Lemoncellos series for the fact that it is a story about books and this one reminded my of the fourth book in the original series because. . .well I don't want to tell and spoil it!
Eloise was having a rough Christmas and I felt horrible for her and had so much fun following her on her adventure in the library. It was refreshing to have a new character to see the story though (deviating from Kyle in the OG) and this story was short + sweet.
I loved the cameos and references to the original book and reading this inspired me to do a total reread of the Mr. Lemoncello series and to be transported back into the magic. Mr. Lemoncello isn't as present in this story as the other books, but he still leaves a huge mark on the story. I also want to read a lot of the books mentioned in the story (because what would a Mr. Lemoncello book be without a reading list?) Reading this in late summer, it still put me in a holiday mood so I can't imagine what it would do in winter!
I am so grateful to help promote a book from my childhood series!
If you like holiday stories with a twist, wacky children's books, adventures, and books and books you will love this book!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
🎄🧩 📚 Add this to your Christmas list! 🎄🧩 📚 🎁
🎄📚 Mr. Lemoncello’s Wondermous Christmas Gift 🎁🧩
This book was absolutely WONDERMOUS! ✨ Chris Grabenstein does it again with another fast-paced, puzzle-filled adventure that kept me smiling the whole way through.
Thank you to #NetGalley for the ebook! 💚
If you’ve loved the other Mr. Lemoncello books, this one definitely lives up to the series. It’s packed with clever clues, fun games, holiday magic, and nonstop excitement for middle grade readers. 🎅📖🕵️♀️
I especially loved the creative page layouts, the interactive puzzles, and the surprise chapter from another book — trust me, you’ll know exactly what I mean when you get there! 👀✨
This was the perfect mix of Christmas cheer, mystery, and bookish fun. A great holiday read for kids (and grown-up readers who still love a good puzzle adventure)! 🎄🧩 📚
🎄🧩 📚 Add it to your Christmas list! 🎄🧩 📚 🎁
🎄📚 Mr. Lemoncello’s Wondermous Christmas Gift 🎁🧩
This book was absolutely WONDERMOUS! ✨ Chris Grabenstein does it again with another fast-paced, puzzle-filled adventure that kept me smiling the whole way through.
Thank you to #NetGalley for the ebook! 💚
If you’ve loved the other Mr. Lemoncello books, this one definitely lives up to the series. It’s packed with clever clues, fun games, holiday magic, and nonstop excitement for middle grade readers. 🎅📖🕵️♀️
I especially loved the creative page layouts, the interactive puzzles, and the surprise chapter from another book — trust me, you’ll know exactly what I mean when you get there! 👀✨
This was the perfect mix of Christmas cheer, mystery, and bookish fun. A great holiday read for kids (and grown-up readers who still love a good puzzle adventure)! 🎄🧩 📚
🎄🧩 📚 Add it to your Christmas list! 🎄🧩 📚 🎁
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I’ll admit it felt a little early in the year to be reading a Christmas story, but I couldn’t resist picking up an advance copy of Mr. Lemoncello’s Wondermous Christmas Gift since The Lemoncello Library series is a favorite in our household.
As always, the story blends playful puzzles and cleverness with a meaningful message at its core. What stood out most to me were the delightful nods to other classic Christmas stories, which added an extra layer of charm and nostalgia.
One of our family traditions is checking out a stack of favorite holiday books from the library each year. I will definitely be adding a few new titles to the list this year after reading this book!
Thanks to Chris Grabenstein, Random House Children's Books, and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for a review.
As always, the story blends playful puzzles and cleverness with a meaningful message at its core. What stood out most to me were the delightful nods to other classic Christmas stories, which added an extra layer of charm and nostalgia.
One of our family traditions is checking out a stack of favorite holiday books from the library each year. I will definitely be adding a few new titles to the list this year after reading this book!
Thanks to Chris Grabenstein, Random House Children's Books, and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for a review.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I thought this was a wonderful addition to the Lemoncello world. I always love a good Lemoncello puzzle and mystery. Even though I was a bit sad that this wasn't a Kyle Keely story, Eloise is starting to grow on me as a main character. She was solving those anagrams left and right and leaving me in the confusion. Either these kids are really smart or I'm just really bad at anagrams... or both!
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
This just feels like a perfect Christmas story. The main character has moved to a new area and is feeling lonely when she gets pulled into a mystery. She has one new friend she has a lot in common with and a mother who works a lot.
This was particularly fun because of the puzzles and references. The ending was heartwarming and sweet. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this
This was particularly fun because of the puzzles and references. The ending was heartwarming and sweet. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this
Review of advance copy
Review to follow in School Library Journal.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me review this book. This was another fun read by Chris Grabenstein! I do like that he’s branching out with new characters. I like how Eloise tries to make the best of Christmas while her mom works. It’s another zany and crazy adventure featuring Mr.Lemoncello! I like how Eloise isn’t sure what to expect but still keeps playing the game and makes some great friends along the way.
October 20, 2026
Meh, this one was ok. New characters. Different feel to the book. Had a good Christmas message. But not quite as entertaining as the main series.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I love the Lemoncello world and this short story did not disappoint. I loved the story and the connection to other Christmas favorites. I thought it was well done and is a great addition to the series.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews