Lucci Meyer is looking for a job. Although her work editing horror novels was good and the books were on the bestseller lists, the whole publisher she’d worked for got bought out by another and the entire staff was let go. Now Lucci needs a new job, and she is down to her last chance. Blackwood-Patterson, the reputable publishing house known for its literary fiction, isn’t somewhere she thinks she’ll fit in, but she has to try to make it work.

Walking in for her interview, she can’t help but notice the imposing gothic building with the iron bars on the windows. Her interview with the publisher, Mr. Blackwood, doesn’t go well. But somehow, Lucci gets the job of senior editor and is tasked with finding the next great horror manuscript to help the company make some money. It’s the 1980s, and horror novels are big money, and it’s time for Blackwood-Patterson to get their cut of the market.

As Lucci navigates the cliques and the shoulder pads, the new-girl hazing and the pastry thief, she realizes that while someone at the office clearly doesn’t want her there, she has more resources than she realized to deal with their animosity. And then, when a Secret Santa exchange ends up with her receiving a creepy demonic looking doll, Lucci isn’t sure if she should be flattered or afraid. But after a series of incidents in the office that Lucci feels are connected to the doll, she grows worried about possibly putting them in danger, or even being in danger herself. Can she summon all of her knowledge of horror novels and movies and find a way to control the demon doll, or are they all doomed?

Secret Santa is a hilarious parody of horror novels, with more than a few true creepy moments thrown in. This is set in the 80s, with all the fun of Aqua Net, Waldenbooks, the metal-studded jean jacket, and side ponytails, with lots of references to the the most popular works of horror. Author Andrew Shaffer offers us a trip through time to the middle of a Stephen King novel set in the middle of a Gremlins movie, and it’s big fun for fans of horror, the 80s, and really funny satires.

I loved Secret Santa. I thought it was a lot of fun, and at just over 200 pages it’s a quick read. If you have a secret Santa exchange and happen to pick the name of someone who loves horror and has a good sense of humor, this would actually make a perfect Secret Santa gift to give, because this book is a gift (a hilarious, twisted, chilling gift) in and of itself.

Egalleys for Secret Santa were provided by Quirk Book through Edelweiss, with many thanks.