Book Review: The Santa Suit (ARC)

Author: Mary Kay Andrews

From Mary Kay Andrews, the New York Times bestselling author of Hello, Summer comes The Santa Suit, a novella celebrating the magic of Christmas and second chances…

The Santa Suit was a lovely way to put the reader in the holiday spirit, even if the outside weather is warm. While this was a shorter read, it feels complete and did not leave me disappointed. The story follows Ivy Perkins after she filed for divorce from her ex-husband, Kyle. The two of them owned a marketing and public relations firm in Atlanta, Georgia. After getting divorced, Ivy decided to start again by moving to another state and living her dream in a farmhouse. She buys a 106-years-old farmhouse called Four Roses Farm in Tarburton, North Carolina and makes the move there with her dog, Punkin. When she arrives at her new home, she meets her realator in person for the first time, Ezra Wheeler.

From the time Ivy arrives at her house, she begins to learn all the minor and major obstacles that come from this change in her life. While cleaning out some things from the previous owners, she comes across a Santa suit. Tucked into the sleeve is a note from a little girl, Carlette that is wishing from her father to return (from a war). This starts Ivy on a journey to discover the mystery behind the note. Along the way, she begins to settle into her new home with help from Ezra and her new life in the small town where she meets another new friend, Phoebe. Along with Ivy’s story, there are two subplots mainly involving Phoebe and Ezra. All three stories weave together to create a heart-warming read.

All the characters in this novel were greatly enjoyable. I love that even the minor characters were complex and they all interacted together. As the novel is set in a smaller town, I loved that the author kept the community feel throughout the entire novel. The setting was charming and I love the inclusion of all the quirks that come with living and working on very old homes. My house is close to the one in the novel as it is 103 years old, so I definitely related to Ivy. This novel made me want to pick up my own house and put it in a farm setting as I love the community feel described in the pages.

Overall, this novel was easily read in one sitting as it kept my interest to the point it was impossible to put down. While there may be different pieces to the story, such as a potential second chance romance and the mystery of the note, everything was tied together nicely in one way or another by the end. I commend the author for bringing all the pieces together to make it not only feel complete, but not rushing any element. As the story was extremely enjoyable, I do wish that it was longer. The characters, mystery, and town were all fantastic, so the potential to expand on all of them was there. I would easily read a longer version of the story if I was given the opportunity. No matter the length, the story delivered a heart-warming holiday tale that continues to make me a fan of Mary Kay Andrews!

**I give a special thank you to Netgalley and the publisher, St. Martin’s Press, for the opportunity to read this enjoyable novel. The opinions expressed are completely my own.**