Review: Secret Santa by Sierra Dean

Secret Santa
Book 2.5 in the Secret McQueen series
Author: Sierra Dean
Publisher: Samhain
Format: ebook
Length:  Novella
Release date:  11/29/11
Author's website: Sierra Dean

’Tis the season for ho-ho-homicide.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. The season for mistletoe, Christmas lights…and a killing spree. When Secret’s friend, Detective Mercedes Castilla, asks for help to solve a series of murders longer than a string of lights, Secret resigns herself to the fact her holidays will be anything but peaceful.

It seems someone is killing New Yorkers in an unusually gruesome way, and as the bodies pile up faster than presents under the tree, the police are no closer to finding the killer than Secret is to finding the perfect present for one of her boyfriends, Lucas.

Tracking down a monster in Manhattan the week before Christmas is almost as difficult as shopping for her ever-expanding collection of loved ones. When tragedy strikes close to home, Secret must do everything in her power to put an end to the horror in time for Santa to come down the chimney.

If you are a fan of the Secret McQueen series and are jonesing for your next fix, you are going to love this novella.  It's got a little bit of everything in it.  Secret once again has to figure out what's going on in New York and this time she's got Holden along to help her. Now if you don't know this by now, I love Holden.  Love, love, love him and I was so happy to read so much about him in this story.  He and secret have this underlining tension that has spanned throughout the previous books and knows that it's there, but can't really act on it.  Secret is half vamp/half were and only recently tapped into her were side with the help of Desmond and Lucas from the previous books in the series.  She is currently involved with both of them who are both weres and Holden being a vamp of course is not happy with this.   I think he's always been attracted to her and never acted on it and has finally admitted that he wants her.  Now Secret's emotions are being pulled between 3 men that care deeply about her. 

I also loved the gory parts of the book as Secret has to figure out who is murdering people and stuffing body parts into Christmas stockings.  I found myself saying "ewww" a lot and while this type of subject in a book is not my favorite, it was entertaining in this book.  LOL  I just couldn't wait for Secret to get to the bottom of things so we could see what was really going on.  This is where Sierra Dean's writing really excels because she makes her stories so entertaining!  This series has quickly become one of the ones that I look forward to reading.  The author's words and storyline flow from chapter to chapter and it just captures you to the point where you don't want to stop reading for anything!  I've had this experience from the 1st time I read one of Sierra's books and truly think it will be the same every time.  I love her "voice" and the characters each bring something different to the series which makes you want more even after you read the very last word on the page.

I'm giving Secret Santa a rating of:

If you are looking for a new, fresh, UF/PNR series to get into, you will not be disappointed with Secret McQueen. It's just as unique as what Secret is and you'll find yourself wanting to read more of her. What are you waiting for, get started! 

Reviews of the other books in the series:
Book 1: Something Secret This Way Comes
Book 1.5: The Secret Guide to Dating Monsters
Book 2: A Bloody Good Secret