Hello Fellow Readers,

I am not quite ready to think about Christmas much less read about it but in this world, it is time for Christmas books to start arriving. Seems incredible, I know. I bet the Christmas decorations are out along with the Halloween decorations in stores also.

Today’s review is of the book Christmas at Glitter Peak Lodge. It has the subtitle, A Heartwarming Holiday Cozy Mystery Set in Snowy Norway. The book is set up like an Advent Calendar. Twenty-four chapters mark the 24 days leading up to Christmas. As the book opens, we find ourselves viewing an avalanche from the eyes of Ingrid Berg. Ingrid was a world-class climber. She had been a climber since she was young but one day in the Himalayas, her world of climbing came to an end. She survived the avalanche, but the memories drove her from climbing back to her family’s hotel, Glitter Peak Lodge. She is back and learning all about her role as manager from her grandmother who has been running the Lodge for years. It is time for her grandmother to retire and Ingrid knows she must step up. The Lodge has financial problems and it seems that something goes wrong practically every day. And then Ingrid’s, ex-love and fellow climber shows up at Ingrid’s door. Ingrid does not want to see him as she blames him for being caught in the avalanche and the death of their friend in the avalanche. Another of Ingrid’s friend arrives with the Influencer who is secretly pregnant. Thow in Ingrid starting to fall in love with an old flame and there is a lot going on.

And then a mysterious American woman and her husband arrive at the Inn. Ingrid’s grandmother is not as welcoming as Ingrid would expect and she doesn’t know why. There is a mystery to untangle that seems to concern the mystery woman, Ingrid’s grandmother, and the town bully.

The book was originally written in Norwegian and translated into English. I think that there is a different style of writing that is sparser than we are used to and more direct. I know they are Swedish translations, but I am thinking of A Man Called Ove and The Hundred Year Old Man Who Climbed out of the Window and Disappeared and the Elderly Lady Books. (An Elderly Lady is Up to No Good or An Elderly Lady Must Not Be Crossed) This book has the flavor of those books but is slightly more Americanized.

There is a lot going on in this book. Everything does get tied up in the end but there is a lot to keep track of. (Is that a good guy? A bad guy? Who are all the bad guys?) I think the book is a fine cozy mystery. It might be a little harder to get into the story but then it progresses.

Thanks for reading.