As the author describes it, this is a playful reimagining of how Charles Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol that incorporates historical facts but sometimes changes or embellishes them to fit the story. Silva captures the tone of Dickens’ era and quite probably what his life was like at times – he was well-known and popular until Martin Chuzzlewit flopped and he had to write a holiday story mainly for financial reasons. But she adds much to the story beyond that – creating, if not a holiday classic, at least an entertaining and emotional addition to the genre that is not sickeningly sweet.