The Santa Slaughter

by Rachel Beattie

My name is Meredith Gray, but I go by "Merry", and usually I love the holidays...but not this year.

With divorce papers to sign and bills to pay, I'll take whatever job I can get this close to Christmas - even if that means dressing up as an elf for my town's annual Christmas Market. When our Santa - former Silver Brook "Man of the Year" Bill Barraclough - is found bludgeoned to death I'm not going to stand by and let a murderer ruin Christmas...

The Santa Slaughter is a festive cozy mystery novella, perfect for a brief seasonal escape during the hectic holiday season!

Genres: Christmas, Cozy Mystery, Holiday, Mystery Thriller, Novella, Cozy, Mystery

77 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 1, 2022

Reviews

[Meg · Rating 1 out of 5]

.5/5 😬

[Sally Andrews · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute, fast read. But it needs proofreading. “Santa Clause?? Ugh. It’s Santa Claus. He’s not a part of speech.

Also wasn’t sure what to think when Adam “sloped away.”
Stuff like that needs repair. It detracts from the story.

Otherwise, it was ok.

[Claire Eymin · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 Stars

Santa gets killed and almost the whole small town is a potential suspect. A well rounded cozy mystery in such a short book with the tiniest hint at potential romance.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute, quick, fun, read.

[Clare · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't realise that this was a short story and was looking forward to getting stuck in but almost as soon as it started it was finished!
I feel this could have been a lot more padded out and made a great Christmas read, but it just wasn't worth it I'm afraid.

[Carina Braga · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a book with less than 100 pages so it's normal the pacing and depth might not be for everyone.
I am one of those people.
It's a series so the reader might find more development on the next books, hopefully.
Right now, it has that vibe of episodic crime series that the killer is caught in two days.

[Jae · Rating 4 out of 5]

On the verge of divorce (she just has to sign the paperwork), Merry is left dealing with a mountain of bills her dastardly ex left her. Not too proud to take work where she can get it, she agrees to dress up as an elf and help her friend Maggie at the grotto in the Christmas market, where children can come see Santa. While Bill Barraclaugh, the man portraying Santa, has jolly St Nick down pat, in real life he’s more of a Grinch. Merry witnesses Bill’s wife arguing with him, another man who wanted to be Santa claims that Bill isn’t all he’s cracked up to be, and even Merry’s soon-to-be ex would like to have a word with “Santa”. Therefore, it’s a shock but not a surprise when Bill ends up dead behind the grotto. Merry’s friend on the police force, Kate, would like her to keep her ears and eyes open, but when Merry puts the clues together, the killer has no intention of letting her go.

Characters were done well for a novella-length story, and there was just enough background provided for things to make sense. There’s a potential for a new romance for Merry (sign the damn papers!), and pacing was good throughout.

Probably deserving of 3.5 stars, but in the spirit of the holiday(s) I’ll bump it up to 4.

[Grey853 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Merry normally loves Christmas, but not this year. Her husband has left her and cleaned out their joint banking account. She's got heartache, overdue bills and divorce papers waiting to be signed. She's taken on a job an elf who has to wear a humiliating costume to help Santa in order to make money. That's fine until Santa ends up dead. Who knew the guy in the red suit had so many enemies.

Merry's bitterness about her husband is pretty understandable, but rather toxic in what's supposed to be a Christmas novella. It's a short mystery and I hope if I read others in the series, I'll like the main character better than I did in this one.

[Ken Finlay · Rating 3 out of 5]

“The Santa Slaughter” is, as the title suggest, firmly set in the run up to Christmas.
Meredith 'Merry' Gray, is putting off signing the divorce papers on her two-timing soon to be ex-hubbie Neil.
Short of cash she takes a job as one of Santa's elves at the Silver Brook Christmas market.
She's no sooner started than Santa (aka Man of the Year Bill Barraclough) is slain at the back of his grotto.
It reminded me of a locked room mystery, though in this case nearly everything happens close to the grotto.
Merry doesn't so much solve the murder as have the solution come to her.
It's jolly enough but not particularly memorable.
2.5 Stars, raised to 3 Stars.

[Regina Lancaster · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Santa Slaughter

'It was best of times; it was the worst of times': it was Christmas time and Meridith was getting a divorce after being left (for a younger woman) with all the bills while he took all the money! That's how our story begins, Meredith is working as Santa’s helper just to make ends meet. And then Santa is murdered! Well, it's not the real Santa, but at first, the stand-in is someone who seems to be without enemies. Then the truth starts pointing fingers, and the plot thickens. See if you figure it out before Meridith does! Pick this book up before Christmas; you will be thankful for what you have, too.....

[Lee Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Santa Slaughter - Rachel Beattie

A laid back cosy Christmas story…

I found an error
Merry - “Maggie passes me a steaming cup of ‘HOT CHOCOLATE’ without me even having to ask” … Next page, same conversation…
Merry - “I take a sip of my ‘COFFEE’ and smile at her” …next page, new conversation with Jeremy, same drink ??
Merry - “I raise my eyebrows at him over the rim of my mug and take another sip of my ‘HOT CHOCOLATE’ 🤷‍♀️

And of course I need to try Maggie’s hot chocolate recipe, I love hot chocolate. 😋 And I need to read the next book ‘The First Date Disaster’ 🙂 ☕️

[Anne Newman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Merry has agreed to be an elf in Santa’s Grotto due to being in debt since her soon to be ex, husband left her, taking all,their money with him. On the first night, Santa disappeared and when she went looking for him, she found him dead, obviously murdered! The next day, there is a replacement Santa and things are going smoothly when there is a motor accident which puts someone in hospital & Merry takes the slightly injured driver there to be patched up. When she takes her home things gets very interesting indeed.

[Mary Lou Webb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute Christmas Cozy

A cute novella with fun characters, a good plot, and nice pacing. Santa didn’t get run over by the reindeer in the story, but by someone closer to home. The possibilities are numerous, and Merry sifts through them one by one. Once she discovers the murderer, it’s nearly too late—for her! Buckle up for a well-plotted, quick Christmas murder. It’s the perfect break from wrapping presents.

[Candis · Rating 4 out of 5]

No spice but still good

This is definitely a cozy mystery To read in a quick bind for a palette cleanser. Definitely has enough of Rollercoaster twists until you reach the end. There is however no spice, but you can tell there is potential for it and possibly the next book When it comes to the main female character and The reindeer guy

[Marlyn G. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Snuffy and Santa

Santa is found murdered by one of his elves. Santa had many secrets, and one of them cost him his life. Several people were on the losing end of Santa's secrets. Quick and fascinating read.

[Sheri · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Santa Slaughter by Rachel Seattle

The story moves at a fast pace with likable characters and an interesting plot. A nice touch that kept me guessing until the end. I enjoyed this read and recommend it to those who like cozy murder mysteries. I look forward to reading more by this author.

[Patience Jalbert · Rating 1 out of 5]

Plain out right bad. Couldn’t tell what was going on half the time and confusing. I can’t even begin to explain what happened in this book because I retained none of it. Not worth the read.

[Rachelle Bachiu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short quick read. Merry is short of money and accepts a gig for Christmas. With friends encouraging her she helps out with this murder.

[Terez · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tohle bylo moc uspěchaný - holt 80 stránek, no. Na druhou stranu - třikrát čtyřikrát víc tohohle bych fakt číst nechtěla. Takže vlastně asi dobrý.

[Camilla Forselius · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kort, enkel och spännande bok

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was better than I expected it to be. It's short but good.

[Ravyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quick alright read.

[Mariko McCrary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Minor errors but entertaining read

There was some minor editing errors at the beginning of each chapter but it wasn't enough to stop me from reading.. I enjoyed it..

[Louise Tindall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun easy festive read

A fun murder mystery short story. Nicely wrapped up at the end. Very Christmassy setting at a Christmas market with lots of hot chocolate

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good murder mystery

I liked the characters. The 2 teens acted just like teens. I did not figure it out until the end.

[Betty Stein · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice story

Cute short story nice introduction to the series looking forward to reading more of the series soon And following the author

[Rizza · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good Christmas murder

[Michelle Palmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick read

Some humor and mystery wrapped into one short story. Add an attractive vet and reindeer handler to the mix and a cat.