“I Don’t Need an Amateur Sleuth Getting in My Way.”
Last year, I was curious about the first season of Mistletoe Murders, but Hallmark put it on their Hallmark+ streaming service, so I couldn’t watch it. I was on the fence when I saw season one was going to air on their cable channels this year since I wasn’t sure I wanted to commit. Thanks to a recommendation from a friend, I decided to give it a try. And I’m glad I did.
Apparently, this series is based on an Audible Original series. In Hallmark’s version, it features Emily Lane (Sarah Drew), a woman with a mysterious past who has moved to a small town to reinvent herself. Literally. She opens Under the Mistletoe, a Christmas gift shop. Her one employee is Violet Wilner (Sierra Marilyn Riley). Violet’s dad just happens to be the local detective, Sam (Peter Mooney). That’s going to be important when Emily starts getting involved in local murders.
The first season consisted of three mysteries, each broken into two hour-long episodes. When they aired on cable, they aired back-to-back, so we got them more as a movie instead of a weekly series.
The first story finds Emily and Sam investigating when a body is found on the local Christmas tree farm. The victim just happens to be the fiancé of Emily’s veterinarian friend. Up next, Emily joins the local Christmas choir to figure out what is happening after a series of mysterious accidents hits the group. Finally, when the local bookstore owner dies and leaves behind a mysterious treasure hunt, Emily joins forces with the rest of the heirs to follow the clues and find his killer.
Those who are fans of Hallmark’s mystery movies will enjoy this series. It’s essentially a mash up of their mystery and Christmas movies.
And it works well. There are several characters besides the three leads who appear in all the episodes, and I enjoyed getting to know them. Each mystery was well plotted with plenty to keep me engaged as we followed Emily and Sam.
The scenes that Emily and Sam shared together are easily some of my favorites. Their chemistry and banter made me smile. So many great one-liners. And it was easy to root for their romance to take off as well. Meanwhile, I enjoy Violet. She’s a great character in her own right, and her attempts to nudge her dad and her boss together are cute.
The rest of the cast is good as well. Whether they were a suspect in one story or a series regular, I felt they brought their characters to life.
Yes, this is a Hallmark production, but the low budget feel is kept to a minimum. Again, if you are a fan of the channel, you’ll enjoy watching these stories.
There is more to Emily’s backstory than we learn here. I think I might have been frustrated by the cliffhanger if the new season weren’t premiering this coming Friday. Hopefully, we get some answer there instead of just the endless teasing.
But don’t let that frustration stop you. If you want some charming mysteries filled with Christmas, you’ll be glad to sit down and watch the first season of Mistletoe Murders.
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