It’s a Wonderful Knife by S.C. Wynne

It’s beginning to look a lot like murder.

Chopping down a Christmas tree has never been something Dr. Maxwell Thornton aspired to. But his boyfriend, Sheriff Royce Callum, has a tradition of visiting Giggly Elves Tree Farm every Christmas to do just that.

Trying to prove he’s a team player, Maxwell agrees to accompany Royce on his week-long tree-felling adventure. It’s a chance to spend some quality time with Royce, and also get a break from Rainy Dale.

All guests are required to turn in their cell phones upon arrival because Giggly Elves Farm is for people who yearn to escape modern-day stresses. Maxwell endures a lumpy mattress and high sodium meals of bacon, beans, and more bacon, with a fairly good attitude. But when a freak storm washes out the road back home, Maxwell begins to feel the strain.

Things turn downright terrifying when a guest is found stabbed to death in the reindeer barn, and all of the cell phones are found destroyed. It seems there’s a murderer on the loose, and he or she has a very different interpretation of how to bring out the holiday spirit in others.