This was a fun, festive read with a horror twist. I found it easy to read and well written. The main character is likeable, and you can relate to her as she enters a new workplace. She starts with a terrible interview at a publishers and ends the story running the business. The devil is on her side.

Definitely much more THE OFFICE then Stephen King. It's a fun read, but it doesn't go far enough in either humor or horror to be a super compelling read.

The concept of this book reminded me of Gremlins and those cheesy 80s horror movies and to be honest - I would struggle to describe it any other way. The book is set in the 80s and just screams slasher movie from the outset. It gives nods to the greats and is a fabulous read for those fans of the typical 80s horror movie.

In itself, it is a short read, although I struggled to read it quickly. I had to put aside my judgement and take it with a pinch of salt, for what it is - homage to those horror movies! Every action the protagonist Lussi took was seeped in ‘final girl’ vibes like going down to the basement in the dark … it was never going to go down well!

Despite it’s dated content though, the story itself was enjoyable and like I said - short. A lot seems to happen in it’s 220 pages and I enjoyed the horror tropes it included as it reminded me of my degree studies, it does read like a book made of a movie which works in its favour!

Secret Santa is THE PERFECT read for Winter; you can start it on Halloween and enjoy the spookiness whilst gearing up to December with talks of Christmas and festivities. Also, can we all just appreciate the cover; giving me 80s excellence, a throwback to the greats like Gremlins. Thoroughly enjoyed!

One of the first thoughts to pop into my head as I was reading this wasn’t even my internal monologue, it was Geoffrey Rush as Captain Barbossa and he said, “I hope you like 80s horror novels Miss Meyer because you’re in one.” So that tells you exactly what you need to know about this novel – it’s meta as hell from start to finish. It’s somehow both like and unlike Shaffer’s more well known Obama/Biden mysteries. They’re both very aware of the fact that they are riffing on very real things, and they’re both trying to be funny about it. With this book at least those funny moments come off far too forced. Shaffer really leans into the 80s horror aesthetic though and I am here for it. This book his Christopher Pike and R.L. Stine but for adults vibes all over the place. He knows who his target audience is.

Plot-wise it’s nothing special like I said it’s very reminiscent of a Pike or a Stine novel and those always had a predictability element. This book channels a similar type of occult to Pike’s The Wicked Heart which is a book I read in high school which was so traumatic that I still feel the effects of it to this day and I hate thinking about that book. It’s obvious to the reader what is happening right off the bat, the point of the book is to watch Lussi come to the conclusions that the reader has already made. It’s interesting to see how she handles the situation once she realises what is going on. She behaves about the way you would expect an 80s horror heroine to behave. Think if Lydia Deetz grew up and moved to New York to go into publishing – actually, I could totally picture Winona Ryder playing her in a film adaptation except Lussi’s in her early 20s.

If you like 80s horror movies and 80s horror novels you’ll get a kick out of this. If you miss Goosebumps or Pike novels definitely check this out. (originally posted on: https://twobirds1blog.wordpress.com/2020/11/09/secret-santa-recently-published-read-review-bookreview-arc/)

Secret Santa was such a great read for the holiday season. It was funny while also having a great sense of unease at the situation the main character finds herself in. I thoroughly enjoyed this.

I loved the sound of the blurb of this book set in a publishing house where mysterious disappearances have occurred over the years. Lussi has worked at a rival publishing house and is interviewed to work at Blackwood-Patterson but circumstances take over when she is interviewed by the legendary Xavier Blackwood.

She is employed to find the next Stephen King to prove herself, what she finds is not what she expects and things become darker and darker and deaths start to happen. At the Christmas party she is given a Secret Santa present and inside is a gift that she recognises from Xavier Blackwood’s office and her childhood.

The story takes a grisly turn when her co workers start to have accidents and she is warned her own life may be danger. A writer Fabian Nightingale, who Lussi knows from her previous job gives her the manuscript of his new book. He also gets pulled into trying to find out who is behind the secret Santa and the incidents.

A twisty tale with plenty of gruesome occurrences. I enjoyed the 80’s setting and the nods to the authors of the time, definitely a Christmas book with a big difference.

4 stars ****

A fast, fun seasonal read with the added bonus of being about books and bookish things, but fairly light on both the horror AND the comedy. 2.5 stars.

Publishing books are candy for me. This was a perfect one-sitting read for me on Christmas Eve. Thanks Quirk for publishing such fun horror stuff with amazing production values.

After Lussi Meyer loses her job editing some of the biggest names in horror, she secures a position at the mysterious publishing house Blackwood-Patterson, tasked with setting up a horror imprint and discovering the next Stephen King to save the company's finances.

Meyer is made to feel extremely unwelcome, and difficulties with her new colleagues gives Shaffer opportunities to poke fun at office politics, cringey Christmas parties, and the publishing industry. He melds German folklore, 80s nostalgia and a creepy doll to craft a series of supernatural deaths and a creeping unease.

A dark, fun and festive read!

I received this novel from Quirk Books through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review: my thanks to both of them for this opportunity.

Lussi Meyer is going through a rough patch: having lost her job at a publishing house some months before, she has uselessly hunted for employment for quite some time and is nearing despair. Her last chance lies in the interview she has obtained with Blackwood-Patterson, an old and somewhat stuffy publishing house specialized in high profile books, not exactly the right fit for her previous career as a horror editor, but whatever helps pay the bills will be welcome.

A bizarre (very bizarre!) set of circumstances sees Lussi not only hired but placed in the position of senior editor: the new management wants to move toward a more modern approach to publishing, and she needs to find the “next Stephen King” before the end of the year if she wants to maintain her job. The reception Lussi gets from her new colleagues is far from warm, and she finds herself the target of some serious hazing, the latest episode being the Secret Santa gift she receives: a weird wooden doll with very disquieting features.

Not long after that, some of her co-workers become victims of freaky accidents, and Lussi comes to the conclusion that the doll is somehow involved: what she doesn’t know is that her own life might be in danger…

I enjoyed this shortish book quite a bit: for starters it’s set in the ‘80s, with many period references I found both interesting and amusing, particularly where the horror scene was concerned since it enjoyed a revival in those years, and Lussi is quite versed in the matter also thanks to her keen interest in the genre from her early youth. Then there is the eerie background of Blackwood-Patterson, a place peopled by very peculiar characters that would not have been out of place in the Addams’ house; and last but not least the building itself, with its definite Gothic flavor, the old-fashioned look and dark interiors barely lighted by quaint, feeble lamps, and its many shadows lurking from dark corners.

Still, don’t expect to find paralyzing horror in Secret Santa, because the story is laced with a good dose of tongue-in-cheek humor and peppered with creepy episodes that would be perfectly at home in a parody movie of the genre, as the author delights in poking some fun at its tropes. Lussi is the perfect example of this tone because, unlike the protagonists of those movies, who seem always destined to some gruesome and bloody end, she navigates her troubles with considerable spirit and, far from being the stereotype of the damsel in need of rescue, she keeps managing to rescue herself very well, and to help others along the way - mainly her friend and horror author Fabien Nightingale.

The element of the creepy doll is certainly the main theme of the story, and another way for the author to indulge in the dark humor running through this book: disturbing dolls are quite frequent in horror, particularly in its visual aspect, and her the doll in question is also a far cry from the kind one would find in a child’s playroom, which adds a few more layers of ghoulishness to the whole recipe. Mix that with a gloomy, scary building that soon becomes another character in the novel, and you get an amusing page turner that will make you look at the coming holidays from a very different point of view.

Have fun… :-)

After losing her old job, Lussi is desperate for a new job in publishing. When a strange set of circumstances lead to her being hired to work at Blackwood-Patterson, she is told to find the next 'Stephen King' within the month.

But as soon as she arrives, Lussi finds herself the target of her co-workers' mean-spirited pranks. The hazing reaches its peak during the company’s annual Secret Santa gift exchange, when Lussi receives a demonic-looking object that she recognizes but doesn't understand. Suddenly, her coworkers begin falling victim to a series of horrific accidents akin to a George Romero movie, and Lussi suspects that her gift is involved.

A horror novel set in the 80s at Christmas ticks 3 boxes for me. I read through Secret Santa very quickly and loved it.

Working in publishing myself, I enjoyed the setting of Blackwood-Patterson, but thankfully my job experience is a little different to Lussi's!

I enjoyed the quirky characters involved and the horror storyline. This is the perfect festive read for any horror lover, but the Christmas theme isn't overly noticeable to anyone wanting to read this in the middle of summer!

I could see Secret Santa working really well as a film and would love to see an adaptation in the future!

Huge thank you for allowing me the chance to read this one!

DNF at 40%. So far, the only real horror <i>Secret Santa</i> has to offer is the '80s nostalgia name-dropping ala Peter Clines and the cutesy-coy attempts at humor (ex. "Lussi's finely honed publishing instincts told her the basement was probably going to be downstairs."). Is anything spooky or frightening going to happen? I don't know, but I kind of doubt it at this point. And no, an attempted jump scare over a mouse in the basement doesn't fucking count. I'm out!

Secret Santa was a fun, pulpy horror novel that reminded me of all the 80's horror I read when I was younger. Great pacing!

“Horror took you right to the precipice, where you could stare into the darkness without falling in.”

Secret Santa by Andrew Shaffer is the fun holiday horror story about Lussi Meyer, a genre fiction editor who is in need of a new job fast and finds herself at an interview with the infamous Blackwood-Patterson. A publishing house she didn’t expect to end up at, Lussi finds herself working for this distinguished publishing company and goes through all the motions of working at a new office. Team to meet, building to discover and unlucky for her something dark and unnerving that seems to be taunting her. Can Lussi ride it out or will she cave and leave?

This book has been compared to The Office and The Shining. What this book does is it brings together 80s nostalgia through a funny B-movie style plot which becomes a mystery to be solved.

The story is written during the height of horror in the 80s and the reader will come across several nods to horror books and movies. One thing is for certain there are many hilarious bits in this story. The dark humour is in the best and some of the most inappropriate places.

The frightful moments will make the reader cringe as Lussi investigates the strange things going on in the building.

Overall this was a fun holiday horror read, easy to devour, characters you will both love and hate, office politics with dark humour, mischief at play and ironically ideal to give to someone as a secret Santa gift.

The synopsis does a good job of giving the main points, so I'm not going to give away any further details because that's most of the fun with horror -- it's all about the reveal of the story. It's those moments when you jump a little as you are reading the story make it a five star read. Secret Santa did that to me a few times -- it made me want to scream at Lussi in a few different places -- what are you doing girl? Get out of there!

There's a folk tale associated with this story that made things interesting and a lesson if you are into that sort of thing. The cultural references to the 1980's also brought some relief to the more sinister activities in the story and put a smile on my face.

The story is complete but on the shorter side, so it's something you can devour in an afternoon or two. It's easy to get involved in the story and keep turning those pages to see what was going to happen (and who would be left standing!). Secret Santa also validated my aversion toward the whole secret santa activity, in general. I mean really, has anyone ever been happy with their Secret Santa gift? This story gives whole new meaning to that holiday ritual.

I liked this. The cover is amazing and made me want to read it. The story kept me reading and it didn't drag things out. It had just the right amount of horror, suspense and humor. Can't ask for anymore more.

An ARC was provided by the publisher. This is my honest review.

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Quirk Books in exchange for an honest review.
I love a good themed horror book. The sound of a Christmas horror set in an 80s office was too good to resist. Alas, Secret Santa feels very mismarketed to me. This isn't really a horror book, at least not in the way it's implied to be. Secret Santa tells the story of Lussi, a woman who gets a job at a publishing office after the boss dies. Soon after, she receives a cursed object in the company's secret santa exchange. The blurb says that 'Suddenly, her coworkers begin falling victim to a series of horrific accidents akin to a George Romero movie,' but that simply doesn't happen. One coworker dies quite gruesomely but it's not really a slew of slasher kills. Instead we get a weird cult plot and a lot of scenes of Lussi going around, trying to get clues.

I will say, I did really like Lussi as a protagonist. She was smart, interesting and I cared about her life. She was probably my favourite part of the book and I wish she'd been put in a more interesting plot. I also liked the elements of the publishing world and I thought these created potential for a good story. Sadly the book also moves away from the office atmosphere a fair bit, and I never really felt like her coworkers mattered much in the grand scheme of things.

If this book had been marketed as a crime noir or something similar, I think it would have better luck reaching an audience who might appreciate it. As it is, I lost interest as soon as I realised this wasn't going to be the kind of book I thought I was going to get based off the cover and blurb. I don't tend to judge books based off my expectations but in this case, it does feel like I was deliberately misled. I will say the author has huge potential though and if you like how this book does sound from my description, then definitely check it out. Just make sure you know what kind of book you will be reading.

Overall Rating: 3/5 stars

German folklore and creepy rituals bring to life a dark force that can both grant fortune and despair... It's the 1980's in New York City, and Lussi is just a working girl trying to make it in the Big Apple. After finding some success at a smaller horror-focused publishing company, she is forced to find a new job when they are bought out by a big-time publisher. Lussi is desperate when she walks through the doors of Blackwood-Paterson, and she's too determined to let the weird vibe and gothic decor deter her from her goals. Plus, she needs the money. So when the owner, Mr. Blackwood himself, dies suddenly after rudely rejecting her for an open editor position, she decides to seize the day and convinces his son to bring her on with the promise of finding the next bestseller. Then the weirdness starts happening -- accidents, broken limbs, near-lobotomies... What is going on here? Lussi has no idea. But instead of running in the opposite direction, she is intent on keeping this job and figuring out what is haunting this publisher and its employees before she ends up maimed...or worse!

Thoughts: Okay, this is one of the most unique "holiday" books I've read in a long time! This is a cross between Annabelle (because hello, haunted doll) and Krampus (because, um, bad Christmas vibes). Shaffer has given readers a fun, interesting, and totally different holiday story. It's a page-turner with plenty of drama and storyline to keep readers hooked, and while the horror doesn't really jump out at you it is unique enough that I was clearly picturing the grisly scenes as they were happening. Shaffer offers plenty of descriptive pieces to push the imagination along, and the ending is just on-point. Need a break from "cute" holiday stories? Pick this one up and you won't regret it!

I enjoyed this! It's a little slow to start but picks up. I wouldn't consider this horror though, it's more thriller with a little supernatural elements. I enjoyed the publishing aspect of the novel and the 80s nostalgia vibe!

Secret Santa by Andrew Shaffer is a holiday horror book that follows Lussi as she navigates her new job as senior editor at a failing publishing house. Lussi starts the job out with an interview in which the owner suffers a heart attack and eventually dies. Lussi then meets the owner's son and convinces him that she can turn around the publishing house by finding the next great horror writer. Lussi is met with an odd group of coworkers and an even odder building but things take an even weirder turn when Lussi receives a secret santa gift of a terrifying doll. Accidents begin to plague those around Lussi and she is forced to get to the bottom of the strange occurrences - no matter where the investigation may lead her.

This was a quick read and not too heavy for a horror book. It was definitely a book that readers will enjoy if they are looking for a funny and fast-paced horror novel with a holiday twist. The book is set in the 80s during the major push of horror novels in publishing and it made for a fun backdrop to the more "campy" style of the book. While I mostly enjoyed the book, readers looking for a scarier book will need to keep looking. It was funny and had some spooky elements to it, but I personally didn't find it to be scary. This will be a good book for readers who want a fun, fast, spooky read with a little bit of scary moments in it. This book will stand out in that there aren't many horror holiday books on the market (at least that I'm aware of at my store) and that not being too scary gives it a broader appeal. I would recommend this book to fans of Grady Hendrix or those that want to try horror but don't want it to be too gory or graphic.