Better Watch Out

by Christina Freeburn

If you want a sweet, Christmasy read, then choose another book. In Christina Freeburn’s  Better Watch Out, Merry is the main character; her business is handcrafting. As she specializes in Christmas items, her focus as well as the town’s is the same. The town is even named Season’s Greetings. With several murders and embezzlement happening in their town, lots of people are feeling more Grinchy and Scroogey than normal. Even the parishioners of Harmony Baptist are displaying a very mean spirit. 

Better Watch Out has a complicated plot. Merry tries to do the right things, but just makes situations more convoluted. She is also dealing with personal issues. Possibly her divorce from her second ex-husband was not finalized. She is still sorting through feelings for her first ex-husband, the father of her grown children. Lottery money is at stake, and trust and friendship fall victim to greed.

I should have liked her guinea pig, Ebenezer, but he just seems to be a squeaky irritation rather than the rescue from loneliness that Merry desires. My favorite part of the book is the ending with a resolution worthy of people with good intents.

I would like to extend my thanks to Edelweiss and to Henery Press for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 4/5

Category: Mystery

Notes: #2 in the Merry and Bright Handcrafted Mystery Series

Publication:   October 15, 2019—Henery Press

Memorable Lines:

Now, I felt like I was in a snow globe. Every time the world settled, it got shook up and all the pieces swirled around and all I could do was remain frozen until everything settled back down.

I was thankful the pastor didn’t follow me inside, though his words had come with me, shoving out the Christmas joy from my heart. Nope. I wasn’t going to let it happen. No one would put a damper on my happiness of spending the morning teaching my mom and her friends a new craft.

The first year after a loss was gut-wrenching. It was hard enough to remember to breathe, trying to celebrate something—anything—could make you feel like your lungs were being crushed.