Missing Under The Mistletoe: A Flower Shop Mystery Christmas Novella

A Flower Shop Mystery #19.1

by Kate Collins

It’s Christmas Eve in New Chapel, Indiana. But this night will be anything but silent in a brand new Flower Shop Mystery Novella from New York Times bestselling author of Moss Hysteria and Yews With Caution.



After being hired to deliver poinsettias to Churchill’s department store in downtown New Chapel, feisty flower shop owner Abby Knight finds herself mixed up in the disappearance of everyone’s favorite Santa Claus, Mr. Churchill himself. Promising Churchill’s daughter that the legendary Christmas Eve celebration will not go on without her father, Abby must recruit her whole staff at Bloomers, and even her family, to help.



But while the excitement builds and the town square fills with revelers, there is one person who must come to terms with his own holiday mystery, Abby’s husband and partner, private investigator Marco Salvare. The clock is ticking down the minutes to the big celebration as clues are quickly uncovered, but Abby and Marco soon realize there is much more at stake than one man’s life. As the town gathers around for the lighting of the tree, and the suspect is just within arm's reach, Team Salvare is barred from the case. Little does Abby know that her next move won't just seal Santa’s fate, but the fate of Christmas itself hangs in the balance.

Genres: Mystery, Christmas, Cozy Mystery, Romance, Holiday

155 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 14, 2017

About the author

Indiana native and former teacher Kate Collins is the author of the New York Times best-selling Flower Shop Mysteries, featuring feisty florist Abby Knight and the zany crew at Bloomers. Her books have made the New York Times Best-seller's list, Barnes & Noble mass bestsellers lists, the Independent Booksellers lists, and are available in large print editions in the U.S. and the UK.

3 of The Flower Shop Mysteries are on the Hallmark Mystery Movie channel!

Kate's historical romance novels and her children's books, JANEY WEBSTER, EB*, *EXPERIENCED BABYSITTER, and JASON JERVISS AT YOUR SERVICE, are available now as ebooks in all formats. Great reads for ages 9-14.

Kate graduated from Purdue University with a master's degree in education, taught elementary school for six years, but after the birth of her first child, gave up teaching to pursue a long-time dream of putting children’s stories to paper. After writing short humorous stories for children’s magazines and working part-time as a legal secretary, she sold her first historical romance novel in 1995, publishing seven historical romantic suspenses under the pen name Linda O’Brien before turning to her true love, mysteries.

Reviews

[Linda Langford · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice Christmastime Murder mystery novella.

[Mackey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh geesh, what was I thinking!? Right - it's set in Indiana. I love Indiana. I didn't love this book. :(

[Meg · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good 3* read, an easy and quick Christmas novella. Unfortunately, some errors threw me. I still enjoyed visiting the flower shop again, as well as various recurring characters. I still have a couple books in the series in the TBR, and will be reading another novella next.

[Anastasia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Missing under the Mistletoe by Kate Collins is a novella in the Flower Shop Mystery series. Christmas has always been special at Churchill's department store and when the owner goes missing just before taking on his role as Santa Claus, Abby and Marco investigate. Short and sweet with brief appearances from all the usual characters.

[Lorraine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kate Collins’ Missing under the Mistletoe ( A Flower Shop Mystery Christmas Novella) introduced me to Abby Knight, owner of Bloomers, a flower shop in New Chapel, Indiana. Abby, a newlywed married to Marco Salvare, has an order to deliver poinsettias to Churchill Department Store on Christmas Eve just before the placing and lighting of the staring the town’s Christmas tree. This has always been a favorite time for Abby - celebrating Christmas and especially the placement of the gold star on the town’s tree - , but her husband, Marco, wants no part of any of the celebrations. Upon delivery of the flowers to Churchill’s, Abby discovers Mr. Churchill’s daughter hurt in the ‘toy shoppe’ where Santa is supposed to be, Mr Churchill himself. Abby calls 911 for Mr. Churchill’s daughter, but no one knows where Mr. Churchill is. Abby is worried and crushed that Santa is missing with the big town celebration to begin soon. Abby talks to her husband, Marco, who is a private detective, and they decide to find him together. And what they discover?! Abby also learns why Marco hates Christmas. Will they ever be able to celebrate this special season together? A very festive and enlightening mystery! 4 stars.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great Christmas story!

I love Marco and Abby! This was a great Christmas novella. So heartwarming! Once again they save the day with the help of their friends and family.

[Jeanie Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love mysteries that take place at Christmas but while this novella was pretty good, it just didn't catch me. Just one example of the kind of things that felt off was the fact that they had a Christmas market on Christmas Eve. What business wants to make a major put to sell Christmas gives on the evening of Christmas Eve? That is the kind of off that I felt about much of the book.
I don't usually review 3 star books but this one has been bugging me.

[Annette · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a delightful holiday read. I love Abbey and Marco. They are still as fresh and likable as when we first met them. This series keeps moving along quite nicely. Adding a Christmas story to this series was such a treat for me. Loved it.

[Helen Podlevsky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the story

I felt the action in the story and could picture it as it happened. Love all of the flower shop mysteries

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read! This is a cute little Christmas addition to a fabulous series.

[Angela Go · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's Christmas Even and Santa is missing! But Team Salvare is on the job, searching for him.

Levi Churchill, owner of the New Chapel, Indiana department store, plays Santa at the town's annual Christmas Eve celebration. When he is kidnapped, the celebration is put in jeopardy. But florist Abby Knight Salvare and her private investigator/bar owner husband Marco, are on the case to find Santa before his disappearance ruins Christmas.

Missing Under the Mistletoe is a delightful cozy mystery novella with a twist on finding happiness at Christmastime. This book is a lighter than the full-length Flower Shop mysteries (also "cozy" mysteries). It will delight fans of the series looking for a holiday read and is a good introduction for new readers to Abby Knight and her Flower Shop mystery series.

[Julianne Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast and Fun Christmas Mystery

I thought this book was a fun read with the mystery of what happened to Santa. I read this on its own from the Flower Shop Mystery and it was easy to understand, but I didn't realize the characters were also PI's. That threw me for a loop. But it was fun that they each had their own side hustle. One owning a bar and the other owning a flower shop.

I was interested to see why Marco was so against Christmas. Which is why I also loved the scene where he plays Santa and does such a good job with all the kids.

The mystery was fun. The 'who did it' didn't really surprise me though. It was sad that a person so close can think of doing such a horrible thing.

I enjoyed the relationship between the two characters. And I liked that they are actually a married couple. That doesn't happen too often in books.

[Jamie Lindemulder · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a light and fun Christmas mystery. I really like the Flower Shop Mystery series and this one was even better because it could be read without having read any of the others. There were a lot of rude characters in this one (the mom waiting for Santa, Marcille and Mrs. Guilford). Cousin Jillian really made me mad in this book. It's her daughter's first Christmas and she isn't going to celebrate with her? I don't care if you don't like your in-laws, you can suck it up and spend 6 hours at a party with them and your daughter.

I would definitely recommend this if you have read any of the other books by Kate Collins, or if you are just looking for a quick who-dun-it to read before the end of the year.

[Dorothy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Christmas Delight

My favorite detectives, Team Salvare, have solved another mystery. This one threatens to spoil Christmas for the whole town. Abby has only a few hours to find Santa and save Christmas for New Chapel. Her determination, stubbornness, smarts, and courage, along with help from her usual crew of family and friends, make quick work of finding answers. The bigger mystery though is why her hunky hubby hates the holiday. This novella will warm your heart, bring a few tears to your eyes, and several chuckles. I loved the insider nod to the Flower Shop Mystery titles! This story would make another great Hallmark Mystery.

[Jacquie Stricklind · Rating 4 out of 5]

Where is Mr. Churchill who plays Santa Claus, parents are lined up with their children to see Santa and get presents? When Abby comes to deliver flowers to Churchill's store she is asked by parents where is Santa, so she goes looking for him and finds Churchill's daughter hurt in the room where Churchill changes into his suit, she promises her that she will find her dad. Meanwhile Abby is also wanting to know why her husband Marco hates Christmas so much. Abby and Marco team up to find out where Mr. Churchill is and who has him, even though they have been both warned not to interfere in the investigation. A good read.

[Nancy H · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a quick, Christmas- themed mystery that is definitely a page-turner. Abby, owner of Bloomers flower shop, is hired to provide poinsettias for the big Christmas celebration in town. When she delivers them, she discovers that the town's favorite 'Santa' has been kidnapped, possibly murdered, and she is the only one who believes he is in trouble. With her husband, she insists on solving the mystery, despite the police chief ordering her to stay out of it, and eventually, at great danger to herself, finds out what has happened. This is a very satisfying short mystery.

[Aimee Worth · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best novellas

This is a perfect story for the holiday season. I love how the town has become a character in these stories. It's easy to feel like you are part of New Chapel. Abby and Marco make a great team in solving mysteries. Their chemistry helps the story flow easily. The flower shop series is a must read.

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've only read a few of the prior books in this series, but became interested in after seeing the movie version, starring Brooke Shields, on the Hallmark Movies and Mysteries channel. Some of the details are different from the books to the movies, but both are fun. This novella is a quick, entertaining read for the holidays.

[Marsha Holz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another winner & great Christmas book

This is another great book in the Flower Shop series. I loved it. I read all the books in this series. I highly recommend this book and series. It's a winner!!

[Kari · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so fun! A little tension a lot of holiday and a lot of love with our favprite New Chapel characters! I cannot wait to start the next novella. I hope there is still more to come from this series!!

[Melissa Castor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book! The Department store owner who was playing Santa goes missing and his daughter is found injured. Abby and Marco set out to find what happened. Abby also tries to find out why Marco doesn't seem to like Christmas. Would love more books in this fun series!!

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a nice short story...it was so nice to be able to read a whole mystery in a day. And it was nice that it included Abby's whole family, and Sgt Reilly, and the ladies from the florist shop. Loved it.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The novella arrangement was actually perfect for this story and had a lot of Christmas charm. I've read several of the Flower Shop mysteries and even 20 installments in, their bouquet remains fresh (OK, I know that's stretching an analogy, but you get the point).

[Libby]

(E-Lib) I don't really like to read Christmas books in the Spring, but this was the next one in the series, and I needed a nice fluffy book after the last book I read. I was happy to read Abby's dad helping her with the case in this one. So sweet.

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I probably shouldn't have skipped books in this series, but I planned to read this last December. I got it a little late. I enjoyed the book, it seemed a bit short, though. It would be best to read the rest of the series before reading this one, so you understand the storyline better.

[Rebecca Crull · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was totally a 2 star read for me until the end. So probably 2.5 stars. It was very Hallmark Christmas movieish. I’m not a fan of those. I haven’t read any of this series, but I can tell there is a lot more that has happened before this book.

It was quick and not horrible. 🤷🏻‍♀️

[Hope Connelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly think I’d like it more if I read the other 19 books prior. I didn’t like Marco at first and I thought his love of Christmas was very like all of a sudden. Very hallmark like. Not a bad book. Would recommend.

[Lauren Turney · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wouldn’t call it a mystery, as it was very predictable. However, it was cute and felt like a Hallmark movie. It had cheesy puns and meh dialogue, the story was easy finish in an hour or two. The plot was very dull, so it was just an okay read for me.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story and good to get a quick fix of this series between books. Love this series!

[carol thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Flower shop mystery

Easy reading mystery series highly recommended for anyone who enjoys cozy mysteries, I would start at the beginning to get to know the characters .