This one popped up on one of my social media accounts. Don't remember if it was Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or wherever. Something about the cover called to me. I mean, killer reindeer? What's not to love? And that goes for real reindeer and for killers dressed as reindeer. And I was lucky enough to have someone gift me a copy for Christmas, and I dove right in.
Welcome to Tinselvania, home of Tinsel Inc., the world's No. 1 GoTo for all things tinsel. Tinselvania, where every day is Christmas. Tinselvania, which has a non-existent crime rate. Until now.
You Better Watch Out doesn't take the time to ease you into the story. Forgit jumps right in with both feet, brutally killing one of the townsfolk in the very first chapter, impaling him on reindeer antlers. And now that we've got blood on our hands, the author takes a step back an introduces us to our heroine, Mary Classen, CEO of Tinsel Inc. Mary has it all: she's intelligent, has a loving family and caring and supportive friends, a job others would kill for... The only thing missing is a man in her life. That's not to say she needs one, but most locals feel intimidated by her, and given that just about everybody in town works for her, it wouldn't seem right to fraternize with her employees.
Enter Bright Harmon. Bright works for a competitor in NYC, and he's been sent to assess the company in order to try to acquire it for his boss. What he didn't plan on was falling in love with Mary (and let's face it, her name, especially given this turn of events, really should have been Meredith [Meri -- or Merri, for short]. Merri and Bright. Get it?). And Mary, despite all her bluster about not having time for a relationship and how she's perfectly content with her lonely life, reluctantly admits to having feelings for Bright. While their relationship blossoms, folks--her family, friends, and coworkers--are being killed off left and right. No one is safe. But why? And who is the man (or woman) under the reindeer costume?
While the book describes itself as a Christmas horror comedy, I found it to be heavy on the Christmas and horror and light on the comedy. It has its moments, especially when Mary's mother and Aunt are involved, but for the most part, it comes across more as a horror romance mystery. Normally I would bail on something like this. Romance? Me? Shudder. But Forgit blends the three together perfectly, and there's just enough blood, guts, and gore to offset the saccharine sweetness of new love, which is why I was able to forge right through, trying to piece together the clues the author leaves lying about like so much discarded tinsel. And just when you think you have it figured out, Forgit adds something else to the mix that leaves you questioning what you originally thought was going on, and leads you through a merry maze with twists, turns, and doublebacks that at times can leave your head spinning, or at the very least keep you off balance until the twisted, heart-pounding conclusion.
If you're looking for a holiday tale with that little extra something, then I can't recommend Forgit's You Better Watch Out enough. And based on the ending, I don't think we've seen the last of Tinselvania.
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