Christmas normally descends on Lake Eden, Minnesota, as gently as reindeer alighting on a rooftop - but this yuletide season the only thing coming down Hannah Swensen's chimney is a case of murder.

The holidays have arrived, and Hannah and her good pal, Lisa, have agreed to provide all the goodies for the town's annual production of A Christmas Carol. But before anyone can say "bah, humbug!" a Santa-size sackful of trouble ensues. Like the fact that Lisa's husband will be playing Mr. Claus to his ex-girlfriend Phyllis Bates' Mrs. Claus. Or that before the curtains even go up, Phyllis is found dead in the snow - wearing a costume that the real Mrs. Claus would put on the naughty list. Soon after, the suspects pile up faster than snowdrifts in a blizzard while a merry murderer remains on the loose. With clues even harder to find, it might take a visit from ghosts of Christmas past to wrap up this mystery in time for the holidays.