Lisa Unger threatens to turn the Yuletide season on its ear with the release of her biting and sinister novella, CHRISTMAS PRESENTS. Mark my words, the presents distributed in this story are not ones you would want to find under your Christmas tree.

The prologue is set six days before Christmas. Lolly, a dancer from a roadside topless bar, is approached in the parking lot after her shift by a handsome stranger she had danced for inside. With snow beginning to fall and her stomach growling, she takes him up on his offer of a great dinner at a nearby diner. It may end up being the last mistake she will ever make in her lifetime.

"CHRISTMAS PRESENTS is Lisa Unger at her deadliest. This novella will disturb and frighten the sturdiest of thriller readers and features a great final act."

Meanwhile, Madeline Martin, who runs a top-rated indie bookshop called The Next Chapter, is surprised when a semi-famous face pops in one night to purchase a book. Upon seeing his credit card, she realizes that she has been chatting with none other than Harley Granger (which instantly made me think of the great actor Farley Granger, who was a Hitchcock fave). Harley runs a true crime podcast, and the real reason for his visit is to dig into Madeline’s past --- specifically, the night she was nearly killed by her ex-boyfriend and alleged serial killer Evan Handy, who was convicted of murdering her best friend, Steph, in that same attack.

As Madeline attempts to keep her past hidden, she also sees the possibility of a windfall at her store when she sets up Harley for a book signing and discussion. Is it purely coincidental that a new series of female abductions in the area is happening right on cue with Harley’s visit? Madeline is not sure what to think, but she is smart enough to know that the past may be starting to repeat itself. What really hits home for her is when Harley points out that each of these recently kidnapped women all resemble her in some way.

We are given a glimpse into the dark mind behind Lolly’s abduction and the twisted spin it puts on the holiday season when her kidnapper insists on torturing her while wearing a Santa Claus mask. Madeline does not know what to believe and who to trust, outside of her friend and potential love interest, Badger, and her father, the town sheriff.

CHRISTMAS PRESENTS is Lisa Unger at her deadliest. This novella will disturb and frighten the sturdiest of thriller readers and features a great final act. It will be extremely difficult to resist finishing this story in one sitting, but be sure to read it before Santa Claus comes down your chimney and pays you a visit --- that is, if it’s really Santa.