A review by stephsbooktalk
The Merriest Misters by Timothy Janovsky

5.0

Thank you so much to St Martin's Press for an advance copy of this!!
Thank you so much to MacMillan Audio for an advance copy of this!!

This book will be out on October 1st, 2024.

This book is an absolute delight! The holiday reads that I have read previously never fully gave me the holiday vibes but this made me want to go to the North Pole and got me in the spirit of Christmas.

"Marriages are, as silly as it may seem, tandem bicycles. If you can't learn to pedal together, you'll end up tipping or crashing or worse."

The Santa Clause is one of my all time favorite holiday movies so I was excited when Janovsky announced that this was going to be a retelling. I felt that it had the same spirit but written for 2024 and with the author's own flair. Marriage in trouble is a new trope for Janovsky to write and I thought he did a good job navigating it. My heart felt for Patrick and Quinn - they both had so much love for one another but wanted to still do stuff on their own.

They both were at different crossroads - Quinn realizing that he might not want to be a teacher anymore and Patrick being overworked & losing his job and not sure what his next move could be. Going to the North Pole was a reset for them as a couple and really allowed them to spend that missed time together and to realize why they love one another. Patrick and Quinn just seemed so happy in the North Pole and it had made me wonder if for Quinn not having the "timeline" would have perhaps made him more present instead of just waiting for the ultimate end to occur. I will say I am nervous for the couple for being separated majority of the time but they seem to have a plan and to make it work especially with the epilogue.

As I mentioned above this book made me want to go to the North Pole and that is credit to the way Janovsky describe the setting. All that was missing was Judy's hot chocolate. Hobart was such a delight as a head elf!!

I thought the pacing was really well done. Throughout the book there was a countdown until the next Christmas with a sprinkle of past moments that give the readers a glimpse to their lives previously which was a nice touch.

I paired my reading with the audio. Mark Sanderlin once again knocked it out of the park with his narration taking on the role of Quinn. I felt that based on what we knew of Quinn, Mark's tone and cadence fit his character perfectly. Zach Barela is a new narrator for me and I thought he was so good as Patrick. Just like with Mark, Zach's tone felt like it matched Patrick wonderfully! I love a dual POV and thought this was well done via audio and easy to follow by listening.

If you are looking for a book that emits Christmas magic and just is a feel good read - give this one a read!