Hello, everyone! Today I’ve got the perfect review for the Christmas season. I recently finished reading The Merriest Misters by Timothy Janovsky. It was such a good pick to read during the holidays. Read on to find out more about my thoughts on this festive tale.

The Santa Clause meets Husband Material in this delightful holiday novel!

Fixing Christmas? Easy. Fixing their marriage? Not so much.

Patrick Hargrave and Quinn Muller have been married for less than a year, but their passionate romance is cracking under the pressures of domestic life and a cumbersome mortgage. That’s until Christmas Eve when Patrick wakes Quinn up ‘I think I’ve killed a man.’

Quinn realizes the ‘burglar’ Patrick knocked out is none other than Mr. Claus himself. Instructed by a harried elf to don the red suit and take the reins of the reindeer-guided sleigh up on the roof, Quinn and Patrick work together to save Christmas.

But as the sun rises on Christmas morning, the sleigh brings them back to the North Pole instead of New Jersey, and they’re in for a massive shock. The couple must assume the roles of Santa Claus and the first ever Merriest Mister or Christmas will be cancelled . . . permanently.

With Christmas – and their marriage – on the line, Patrick and Quinn agree to stay together for one year. But can running a toy shop together save their relationship, or will Patrick and Quinn be stuffing coal in each other’s stockings come next Christmas?

***Thank you to St. Martin’s Griffin for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley. My review contains my honest thoughts about my reading experience.***

The Merriest Misters was such a great choice to read during the Christmas season. I liked the way it took a premise so familiar and crafted such a new, heartwarming story with it. The book had a good mix of humor, festiveness, and heartfelt soul-searching. It managed to explore some pretty heavy, emotional themes without becoming too overwhelming by leaning into the absurdity of the premise. It really worked for me.

The Merriest Misters was big on the miscommunication trope. I usually HATE this trope, but this story handled it better than most. The integration of the memory chapters gave a lot of context to how the dynamic between the characters evolved. So, I felt like I understood their miscommunication and its history and wanted to see them overcome it to heal their relationship.

I genuinely enjoyed the plot of The Merriest Misters. From the characters’ first interaction with Santa, which involved a frying pan, up until the end, it was such a fun ride. I loved getting to explore the North Pole and learn about how to be Santa alongside Patrick and Quinn. I do wish the world-building had been a bit deeper, though, with better explanations of some of the history and rules. A few parts felt a bit hand-wavey and forced to fit the plot. The pace also seemed too quick at times with the reader hopping in and out of the story with each chapter as it raced to cover a year of time in only 320 pages.

The main characters in The Merriest Misters, Quinn and Patrick, were well written. I liked getting both POVs and seeing how each of the men interpreted the same life events and relationship problems. Patrick was a workaholic who was constantly striving for parental approval. Quinn was a burnt-out teacher. He also struggled with figuring out what being a husband meant to him. Both men had to learn a lot about themselves in order to figure out what they needed to do to be able to fit together in the future. The story explored traditional gender roles and stereotypes, especially within a marriage, as well as the difficulties of getting married before really knowing oneself.

Overall, I had a great time reading The Merriest Misters. It was refreshing to read a story about a married couple working through their issues rather than the usual romance. The holiday trappings were entertaining and provided a fun backdrop for the exploration of some deep themes. Therefore, I rate The Merriest Misters 4 out of 5 stars.

There you have it! My long overdue review of The Merriest Misters. Have you read this one? What did you think? Let me know down in the comments! I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas.