Secluded setting, holidays in isolation with your family, and insane snow storms are all moments of fear in my mind. But add them all together, you get 25 Days from Per Jacobsen. While the story had promise, it ultimately wasn’t for me.
Hoping to bring his family closer together, Adam Gray arranges a vacation in a remote cabin on a snowy mountain. Things take a dark turn, however, when someone starts leaving gifts in the Christmas stocking mounted on the barn door.
Each morning brings something new, and with every passing day, the contents become more terrifying. Soon, the family makes a spine-chilling realization: they’ve been dragged into a deranged game of Secret Santa, and if they want to survive, they will have to fight.
The author opened up with a note mentioning that you could read 25 Days as if it was an Advent calendar. However, while in theory this was a fun idea, the execution was a bit lacking. Naming the chapters by the December date was confusing as it’s not exactly the date in the story. I toyed with this concept, but opted to just read straight through and glad I did.
The Advent calendar themed was also present in the story, as the family sees some startling gifts in the stocking on the barn to kickoff the madness that ensues. However, while the description of the book leads us to think it is a big part of the story, it really is only the beginning as it veers away from this plot line into something different about midway thought the story.
There was not as much unease or tension as I expected, hoping the creepiness of the stocking would seep out of the pages. But honestly wasn’t on edge as much as I had hoped for in a holiday thriller such as this. There are frightening and suspenseful moments as the story progresses, but the uneven pacing and storytelling breaks any long lasting fear.
25 Days by Per Jacobsen is a book with a great concept, plot and storyline, but ultimate falls shot on the execution. Having a book you can read everyday of Advent is great in theory, but when the story doesn’t line up with each day, it made it harder to follow along. While it was fun to jump into a holiday thriller, was not what I had hoped for.
25 Days is available at bookstores everywhere from Emily Bestler Books. The audiobook, narrated by Carlotta Brentan, is available via Libro.fm!
