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The Kingdom of Sweets: A Novel of the Nutcracker
Light and dark - this is the destiny placed upon Natasha and Clara, the birthright bestowed on them by their godfather, the mysterious sorcerer Drosselmeyer. Clara, the favourite, grows into beauty and ease, while Natasha is cursed to live in her sister's shadow. But one fateful Christmas Eve, Natasha gets her chance at revenge. For Drosselmeyer has returned and brought with him the Nutcracker, an enchanted present which offers entry to a deceptively beautiful the Kingdom of Sweets.In this land of snow and sugar, Natasha is presented with a power far greater than the Sugar Plum Fairy, who is also a giver of gifts . . . and a maker of dread-filled bargains. As Natasha uncovers the dark destiny laid before her birth, she must reckon with powers both earthly and magical . . . and decide to which world she truly belongs.
368 pages, Paperback
First published November 28, 2023
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,694 reviews
December 25, 2023
I think I missed the meaning of this story. Greed? Gluttony? Random Christian propaganda?
My main thoughts:
I distinctly remember a strong emphasis on beauty in the Tearling trilogy, but not in a good way. Like Johansen's former books, Kingdom of Sweets is deeply rooted in the outdated and harmful beliefs of slut-shaming. This goes past the MC thinking women in non-traditional relationships are sinful whores, and transcends into the belief that all conventionally attractive women are inherently evil, including her own sister.
I would include a direct quote, but I am not allowed to do so. However, within the first 10% of the book, Johansen writes that all sex workers are evil and married women are good. I could write a novel on how harmful this is, but I would like to think that any reader of this review has the social competence to dissect this viewpoint on their own.
This continues into Natasha as a character. She is the absolute most insufferable I'm Not Like Other Girls girl. She constantly degrades femininity, and thinks her own niche interests such a the unbelievable READING is so much more productive than that bimbo Clara's blasphemous doll collecting or, dare I even write this, partying!
(Dear Natasha, the reason your parents like Clara more than you is because she isn't drowning in self pity and loathing! It's not because she's prettier than you!)
On top of all of this, the main tension revolves around a man, and a boring one at that. Every single plot point goes back to him, and Natasha has barely any personality outside of him.
Overall, this book has a huge superiority complex and reinforces girl-on-girl hate. What happened to women supporting women? I think Erika Johansen should read Little Women and learn a thing or two.
(I think the ending is supposed to subvert the anti-feminism of the first 70%, but it did not work for me.)
Adjacently, Natasha refers to Mikhail as "the scarred boy" for most of this book rather than by his name, which she learned early on. Just no.
What I will give to Johansen is that she is a very vivid writer. Her visuals are amazing. Unfortunately, that is the only redeeming quality in an otherwise thematically frustrating book.
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
My main thoughts:
I distinctly remember a strong emphasis on beauty in the Tearling trilogy, but not in a good way. Like Johansen's former books, Kingdom of Sweets is deeply rooted in the outdated and harmful beliefs of slut-shaming. This goes past the MC thinking women in non-traditional relationships are sinful whores, and transcends into the belief that all conventionally attractive women are inherently evil, including her own sister.
I would include a direct quote, but I am not allowed to do so. However, within the first 10% of the book, Johansen writes that all sex workers are evil and married women are good. I could write a novel on how harmful this is, but I would like to think that any reader of this review has the social competence to dissect this viewpoint on their own.
This continues into Natasha as a character. She is the absolute most insufferable I'm Not Like Other Girls girl. She constantly degrades femininity, and thinks her own niche interests such a the unbelievable READING is so much more productive than that bimbo Clara's blasphemous doll collecting or, dare I even write this, partying!
(Dear Natasha, the reason your parents like Clara more than you is because she isn't drowning in self pity and loathing! It's not because she's prettier than you!)
On top of all of this, the main tension revolves around a man, and a boring one at that. Every single plot point goes back to him, and Natasha has barely any personality outside of him.
Overall, this book has a huge superiority complex and reinforces girl-on-girl hate. What happened to women supporting women? I think Erika Johansen should read Little Women and learn a thing or two.
(I think the ending is supposed to subvert the anti-feminism of the first 70%, but it did not work for me.)
Adjacently, Natasha refers to Mikhail as "the scarred boy" for most of this book rather than by his name, which she learned early on. Just no.
What I will give to Johansen is that she is a very vivid writer. Her visuals are amazing. Unfortunately, that is the only redeeming quality in an otherwise thematically frustrating book.
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
August 24, 2023
The Kingdom of Sweets is a dark and twisted retelling of Tchaikovsky's ballet The Nutcracker (or perhaps the earlier short story “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King” by E.T.A. Hoffmann, although this book reminds me much more of the ballet). I'm not quite sure how to classify it – it reads a lot like a YA novel, yet the subject matter seems too mature for it to have been written for teenagers.
My grandmother took me to see The Nutcracker for Christmas every year as a child, and the first 50 percent or so of this novel reminded me so much of the magic of watching the live performance – there's Clara and Fritz and Drosselmeyer and the Christmas Eve gift of a Nutcracker. Sadly, there's a distinct lack of a Mouse King, although it's implied at one point that the battle between the Nutcracker and Mouse King does take place, but outside of the events of this book. The remainder of the story veers off quite a bit from the original tale, however, and focuses more on the consequences of Natasha's journey to the Kingdom of Sweets on that fateful Christmas Eve.
Overall, I found this book to be imaginative and suspenseful, and the prose is beautiful. The plot is original despite it being a retelling, and it's clear that the author has a great fondness for the original tale. I also enjoyed the complexity of the characters and the Sugar Plum Fairy's much darker role in this version of events.
Despite its charms, however, there were a couple of aspects of the story that I didn't enjoy as much. First and foremost, there was a lot of repetition as far as the sisters' background was concerned. Yes, we get it, Clara was always treated better because she was beautiful. It's an important piece of the story, of course, but it was mentioned over and over and over again. Because of this repetition, I felt as if the story dragged a bit in certain parts. Also, absolutely none of the characters are particularly likable – moral ambiguity and greed and jealousy abound. While I don't need the books I read to have likable characters, it would have been nice to have at least one decent character to counter the darkness of the story.
And finally, the ending. I don't know how to feel about it. On one hand, I liked knowing the fate of characters and how their lives worked out after the events of the book. On the other hand, bringing real world happenings into the ending really pulled me out of the story. I mean, yes, this novel was technically always set in the “real” world, but until specific events and places were mentioned at the end, it really felt as if the story was set in a magical far away kingdom in a time long ago.
Final rating: 3.45 stars, rounded down (I really wish that Goodreads allowed half-star ratings because a 3.5 would be perfect, but alas). The Kingdom of Sweets was a mostly fast-paced and exciting read, but certain aspects of the story keep me from rating it higher. Howerver, it's still definitely worth a read if you enjoy dark and atmospheric retellings.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Dutton for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review.
My grandmother took me to see The Nutcracker for Christmas every year as a child, and the first 50 percent or so of this novel reminded me so much of the magic of watching the live performance – there's Clara and Fritz and Drosselmeyer and the Christmas Eve gift of a Nutcracker. Sadly, there's a distinct lack of a Mouse King, although it's implied at one point that the battle between the Nutcracker and Mouse King does take place, but outside of the events of this book. The remainder of the story veers off quite a bit from the original tale, however, and focuses more on the consequences of Natasha's journey to the Kingdom of Sweets on that fateful Christmas Eve.
Overall, I found this book to be imaginative and suspenseful, and the prose is beautiful. The plot is original despite it being a retelling, and it's clear that the author has a great fondness for the original tale. I also enjoyed the complexity of the characters and the Sugar Plum Fairy's much darker role in this version of events.
Despite its charms, however, there were a couple of aspects of the story that I didn't enjoy as much. First and foremost, there was a lot of repetition as far as the sisters' background was concerned. Yes, we get it, Clara was always treated better because she was beautiful. It's an important piece of the story, of course, but it was mentioned over and over and over again. Because of this repetition, I felt as if the story dragged a bit in certain parts. Also, absolutely none of the characters are particularly likable – moral ambiguity and greed and jealousy abound. While I don't need the books I read to have likable characters, it would have been nice to have at least one decent character to counter the darkness of the story.
And finally, the ending. I don't know how to feel about it. On one hand, I liked knowing the fate of characters and how their lives worked out after the events of the book. On the other hand, bringing real world happenings into the ending really pulled me out of the story. I mean, yes, this novel was technically always set in the “real” world, but until specific events and places were mentioned at the end, it really felt as if the story was set in a magical far away kingdom in a time long ago.
Final rating: 3.45 stars, rounded down (I really wish that Goodreads allowed half-star ratings because a 3.5 would be perfect, but alas). The Kingdom of Sweets was a mostly fast-paced and exciting read, but certain aspects of the story keep me from rating it higher. Howerver, it's still definitely worth a read if you enjoy dark and atmospheric retellings.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Dutton for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review.
July 14, 2023
˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥4/5 stars
read if you like:
♡ nutcracker retelling
♡ gothic fairy tales
♡ twisted, imperfect characters
♡ perfect for christina henry, tim burton and erin a. craig lovers
➸ cursed from birth by their godfather, the cunning sorceror drosselmeyer, twins clara and natasha have been leading entirely different lives. clara, who was blessed with light, has floated through life with an ease only the beautiful can ever know while plain natasha, the dark twin, has been relegated to the shadow cast by her sister. all this changes when on christmas eve a nutcracker gifted to them by drosselmeyer whips the two of them away to the kingdom of sweets. a sugar-frosted land where not even all the sugar in the world can conceal its terrible air of decay.
➸ the kingdom of sweets is not nearly as sweet as its title would have you believe. rather, erika johansen’s nutcracker retelling echoes all the pretty frosted sugar plum trappings of the holiday classic and recasts them for a macabre, gothic fairy tale riddled with twisted, viciously imperfect characters. it is a reckoning between two sisters whose relationship pulses with the aching wounds of jealousy, betrayal, love, hate and vengeance. the complexity and moral failings of natasha and clara render them no damsels or fairytale heroines. they are women working within the stifling confines of what they’ve been born into, trying to resist desires which hang like forbidden fruit in their line of sight.
➸ conclusion :
a dark perversion of a beloved childhood story, johansen’s hauntingly lyrical prose promises that just as too much sugar decays your teeth, so too do long-held dreams, once realised, turn to rot and disappointment. this fairytale is enchantingly bitter, tangy and grim and i’m still finding my feet after being feverishly swept away in its wintery landscape.
thank you netgalley for the arc !
read if you like:
♡ nutcracker retelling
♡ gothic fairy tales
♡ twisted, imperfect characters
♡ perfect for christina henry, tim burton and erin a. craig lovers
➸ cursed from birth by their godfather, the cunning sorceror drosselmeyer, twins clara and natasha have been leading entirely different lives. clara, who was blessed with light, has floated through life with an ease only the beautiful can ever know while plain natasha, the dark twin, has been relegated to the shadow cast by her sister. all this changes when on christmas eve a nutcracker gifted to them by drosselmeyer whips the two of them away to the kingdom of sweets. a sugar-frosted land where not even all the sugar in the world can conceal its terrible air of decay.
➸ the kingdom of sweets is not nearly as sweet as its title would have you believe. rather, erika johansen’s nutcracker retelling echoes all the pretty frosted sugar plum trappings of the holiday classic and recasts them for a macabre, gothic fairy tale riddled with twisted, viciously imperfect characters. it is a reckoning between two sisters whose relationship pulses with the aching wounds of jealousy, betrayal, love, hate and vengeance. the complexity and moral failings of natasha and clara render them no damsels or fairytale heroines. they are women working within the stifling confines of what they’ve been born into, trying to resist desires which hang like forbidden fruit in their line of sight.
➸ conclusion :
a dark perversion of a beloved childhood story, johansen’s hauntingly lyrical prose promises that just as too much sugar decays your teeth, so too do long-held dreams, once realised, turn to rot and disappointment. this fairytale is enchantingly bitter, tangy and grim and i’m still finding my feet after being feverishly swept away in its wintery landscape.
thank you netgalley for the arc !
November 16, 2025
1.5 stars
This is a quote from the book and it pretty much sums up how I felt about it. It wasn't what I expected from a story based on The Nutcracker. It was much darker, and the author made some odd choices, like both girls sleeping with boys at the age of 16, one of them getting pregnant and the other sister killing both her and her unborn baby. It turns out that the other sister is still alive in some form, but that doesn't change what happened.
The only thing I found interesting was the first third of the book that somewhat followed the story of the Nutcracker. But then the book turned into something else and only the names of the characters remained. I feel the author tried to include too many ideas, as well as the actual historical events, but they just felt random, messy and all over the place.
The audiobook narrator, Grace Gray, is fantastic, but even her narration couldn't make this story more enjoyable for me. I didn't find it magical or Christmassy at all. It was just bizarre.
"Was there any meaning to be found?"
This is a quote from the book and it pretty much sums up how I felt about it. It wasn't what I expected from a story based on The Nutcracker. It was much darker, and the author made some odd choices, like both girls sleeping with boys at the age of 16, one of them getting pregnant and the other sister killing both her and her unborn baby. It turns out that the other sister is still alive in some form, but that doesn't change what happened.
The only thing I found interesting was the first third of the book that somewhat followed the story of the Nutcracker. But then the book turned into something else and only the names of the characters remained. I feel the author tried to include too many ideas, as well as the actual historical events, but they just felt random, messy and all over the place.
The audiobook narrator, Grace Gray, is fantastic, but even her narration couldn't make this story more enjoyable for me. I didn't find it magical or Christmassy at all. It was just bizarre.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 6, 2023
This was certainly a book!!
December 18, 2023
Whelp I should have DNF'd this but, I said to myself it would get better that things would wrap up and everything would make some sort of sense. No, nope, nay, nay. I was oh so very wrong and now I am annoyed with only myself to blame.
To be fair this book started off great, but the last half of the book I don't know. The story took a turn. Now normally I love Nutcracker retellings, but this was such a disservice to that wonderful story. While reading this I was longing for Midnight in Everwood which was fantastic and had dark undertones as well. This book shouldn't be called Kingdom of Sweets. That title is sort of misleading and while it's a Nutcracker retelling it gave me no Christmas vibes even though several Christmas's came and went in this story. I think part of it is there was not one likeable character. All of them, awful. It makes it hard for me to enjoy a story if I can't root for anyone and the plot was ok, but not enough to save the book for me. If you liked this book that's wonderful and I am sorry I do not share your love of this book. I was hoping and so wanting to love it but, I just wish I could get back the time I wasted.
To be fair this book started off great, but the last half of the book I don't know. The story took a turn. Now normally I love Nutcracker retellings, but this was such a disservice to that wonderful story. While reading this I was longing for Midnight in Everwood which was fantastic and had dark undertones as well. This book shouldn't be called Kingdom of Sweets. That title is sort of misleading and while it's a Nutcracker retelling it gave me no Christmas vibes even though several Christmas's came and went in this story. I think part of it is there was not one likeable character. All of them, awful. It makes it hard for me to enjoy a story if I can't root for anyone and the plot was ok, but not enough to save the book for me. If you liked this book that's wonderful and I am sorry I do not share your love of this book. I was hoping and so wanting to love it but, I just wish I could get back the time I wasted.
January 4, 2024
2.5 stars.
The Kingdom of Sweets was nothing like I expected, so for that I’ll give it points. Otherwise? I think I kind of hated it. I actually feel like the summary is misleading, the marketing is incorrect (this is horror, for sure) and the book never gave itself space to achieve more than abhorrent characters and an ability to both show and tell too much and too little, all at once.
Part of me wants to say that there was potential here, but another part of me feels I only think that because of my long time love of all things Nutcracker. The author has a stellar vocabulary, though. 😂
The Kingdom of Sweets was nothing like I expected, so for that I’ll give it points. Otherwise? I think I kind of hated it. I actually feel like the summary is misleading, the marketing is incorrect (this is horror, for sure) and the book never gave itself space to achieve more than abhorrent characters and an ability to both show and tell too much and too little, all at once.
Part of me wants to say that there was potential here, but another part of me feels I only think that because of my long time love of all things Nutcracker. The author has a stellar vocabulary, though. 😂
December 18, 2023
When he placed one hand on each of our foreheads in the old pagan sign of blessing, our mother began to weep.
"Light," Drosselmeyer said, looking down at Clara. And then, turning to me: "Dark."
Cursed as an infant at her own christening, Natasha grew up in her twin sister Clara's shadow. While her sister hogged the spotlight, Nat preferred a quiet life surrounded by books and her imagination . . . until Clara took the ONE THING Natasha valued most of all. And, when given a chance for revenge, she decided to finally claim what she desired, no matter the cost.
Anyone looking for a cheery, holiday feel-good read should open another book. This is a VERY DARK fantasy where bad things happen to people and hapless gingerbread men. Some readers may not like Natasha, our narrator. True, she is not a good person, but neither is anyone else in this bleak tale. I found her fascinating, and was rooting for her, even as she indulged her darkest dreams. Be warned - the author is willing to travel to some pretty scary places, and you may not want to take this trip.
"Should you happen upon my nutcracker again, I would leave it be . . . The finished item holds a great danger for one as poorly used as yourself."
"Light," Drosselmeyer said, looking down at Clara. And then, turning to me: "Dark."
Cursed as an infant at her own christening, Natasha grew up in her twin sister Clara's shadow. While her sister hogged the spotlight, Nat preferred a quiet life surrounded by books and her imagination . . . until Clara took the ONE THING Natasha valued most of all. And, when given a chance for revenge, she decided to finally claim what she desired, no matter the cost.
Anyone looking for a cheery, holiday feel-good read should open another book. This is a VERY DARK fantasy where bad things happen to people and hapless gingerbread men. Some readers may not like Natasha, our narrator. True, she is not a good person, but neither is anyone else in this bleak tale. I found her fascinating, and was rooting for her, even as she indulged her darkest dreams. Be warned - the author is willing to travel to some pretty scary places, and you may not want to take this trip.
"Should you happen upon my nutcracker again, I would leave it be . . . The finished item holds a great danger for one as poorly used as yourself."
December 13, 2023
DID I READ THE SAME BOOK AS EVERYONE ELSE?!
The amount of wallowing in self-pity coming from the main character was an absolute headache to read. Guys she's not like other girls!! because she doesn't like partying!!! ugh give me a break. Plus all the conversations surrounding women, marriage, and sex were so weird and only came across as hateful to me, and there were quite a few slurs thrown around! Even for the maid! Maids are described as "a little and ugly and dark" by the way. So I hope that tells you everything you need to know about this story already.
At one point I thought I understood what the author was trying to discuss (maybe about society's standards of women at this point in time, or the topic of identity) but in the end it just felt so confusing, rushed and clearly wasn't executed well.
And just so you know -- ALL the characters are insufferable, not just our fmc so it's a slog to read. NONE of them seemed to have any depth at all, and no growth throughout the whole book.
I kept going as I was hopeful for a new/interesting twist on the nutcracker, but I'm not sure that our main character beating up and
Overall this book honestly made me feel miserable when reading, which obviously, is not a good sign! I think this story tried to do too much... and I can always appreciate when an author steps out of the 'norm' and just goes for it with something different, but this? What was the point?
OMG ALSO, I've also just remembered that there's a random killer clown on the loose throughout this story too and I'm not even joking hahaha, like WHAT?
Which leads me on to say, please look up trigger warnings!
I can't be bothered to talk about this book anymore, the last 50% of it was just a hate read from me to be honest because I wanted to see just how badly this train wreck would end and oh, it delivered.
Sorry.
Read this if you want to be unhappy
-Sarah
---> Book Blog
The amount of wallowing in self-pity coming from the main character was an absolute headache to read. Guys she's not like other girls!! because she doesn't like partying!!! ugh give me a break. Plus all the conversations surrounding women, marriage, and sex were so weird and only came across as hateful to me, and there were quite a few slurs thrown around! Even for the maid! Maids are described as "a little and ugly and dark" by the way. So I hope that tells you everything you need to know about this story already.
At one point I thought I understood what the author was trying to discuss (maybe about society's standards of women at this point in time, or the topic of identity) but in the end it just felt so confusing, rushed and clearly wasn't executed well.
And just so you know -- ALL the characters are insufferable, not just our fmc so it's a slog to read. NONE of them seemed to have any depth at all, and no growth throughout the whole book.
I kept going as I was hopeful for a new/interesting twist on the nutcracker, but I'm not sure that our main character beating up and
Overall this book honestly made me feel miserable when reading, which obviously, is not a good sign! I think this story tried to do too much... and I can always appreciate when an author steps out of the 'norm' and just goes for it with something different, but this? What was the point?
OMG ALSO, I've also just remembered that there's a random killer clown on the loose throughout this story too and I'm not even joking hahaha, like WHAT?
Which leads me on to say, please look up trigger warnings!
I can't be bothered to talk about this book anymore, the last 50% of it was just a hate read from me to be honest because I wanted to see just how badly this train wreck would end and oh, it delivered.
Sorry.
Read this if you want to be unhappy
-Sarah
---> Book Blog
November 22, 2023
I will confess I am in general not a huge fan of ballet so while I have seen the Nutcracker it is not a story I revisit every year. I was intrigued by this reimagining of it and honestly it was almost like a whole new story for me because most of the original was lost to my memory. I liked the focus on Natasha and the consequences of her actions. This story is full of magic and wonderful things but it is also full of greed and heartbreak and how the price we pay is often more than the value of what we receive. I’m not sure the lesson meant to be taken from the story, but it was an interesting story. It read like a young adult story, but I’m not totally sure that is the right audience for it, if so it is on the mature end of young adult. Most of the characters are a little flat, but we also only see most of them through Natasha’s eyes and we often only see part of a person. I do wonder what would have happened if we could have seen more of the story from other perspectives, at least from Clara. Natasha and her twin sister Clara were born on Christmas Day. Their mysterious (and creepy) godfather came and “blessed” them with gifts. Clara was named light and was beautiful and charming and attracted all the blessings of the world. Natasha was named dark and was left with eyes open to the truth, homely appearance and invisibility in society. Overall I gave this one 3.5 stars which I rounded up because I did get caught up into the story.
December 5, 2023
She’s WHIMSICAL she’s DARK she’s PERFECT for Christmas season.
This book is a reimagining of the Nutcracker and follows twin sisters, Clara and Natasha. The twins are cursed at birth by Drosselmyer- Clara is the Light one and Natasha is the Dark one, and they grow up to resent each other. One Christmas Eve, the girls are transported to The Kingdom of Sweets where Natasha gets the opportunity to seek revenge on Clara. It’s very juicy.
This book gave me the heebie-jeebies in a good way. Everything felt very mysterious and magical but also threatening and dreary. The family dynamics here are so messy and the characters are morally twisted and veryyyyy imperfect, but that made them fun to watch. The darkly whimsical vibes really tied everything together, this book felt so unique to me.
Thank you to Dutton for the gifted ARC!!
This book is a reimagining of the Nutcracker and follows twin sisters, Clara and Natasha. The twins are cursed at birth by Drosselmyer- Clara is the Light one and Natasha is the Dark one, and they grow up to resent each other. One Christmas Eve, the girls are transported to The Kingdom of Sweets where Natasha gets the opportunity to seek revenge on Clara. It’s very juicy.
This book gave me the heebie-jeebies in a good way. Everything felt very mysterious and magical but also threatening and dreary. The family dynamics here are so messy and the characters are morally twisted and veryyyyy imperfect, but that made them fun to watch. The darkly whimsical vibes really tied everything together, this book felt so unique to me.
Thank you to Dutton for the gifted ARC!!
December 12, 2023
This was a very compelling and dark take on The Nutcracker. It was filled with jealously, love, betrayal, and the unspeakable horrors people are capable of. I really enjoyed the exploration of forgiveness and whether humanity is capable of doing better for ourselves. I'm not sure this book will work for everyone, but I really enjoyed it.
December 10, 2023
This book has no idea what it wants to be. Is it horror? Sort of. Is it fantasy? I guess a bit. Is it reimagined Russian revolution historical fiction? Weirdly, yes.
One of the things that drove me insane about this story was setting it in a place like Russia and then divorcing it of everything Russian. No correct Russian naming conventions. Calling the czar the King. Just very very simple things could have been done to draw the reader into the story, the wonderful Slavic nature of the nutcracker, but instead the story was hellbent on anglicizing the story and heaping on modern sensibilities while also sort of going to bat for autocracy?
Anyway there’s also a story about sisters. Somewhere in there.
One of the things that drove me insane about this story was setting it in a place like Russia and then divorcing it of everything Russian. No correct Russian naming conventions. Calling the czar the King. Just very very simple things could have been done to draw the reader into the story, the wonderful Slavic nature of the nutcracker, but instead the story was hellbent on anglicizing the story and heaping on modern sensibilities while also sort of going to bat for autocracy?
Anyway there’s also a story about sisters. Somewhere in there.
November 28, 2023
Hm, this is a tough one. Because while I don't think I enjoyed much, if anything, about this take on The Nutcracker, I have to admit the vibes were really doing it for me. And because, well. I really like The Nutcracker.
For readers who want to experience something new from this canon, I think you'll be very satisfied because this feel more like a side-quest and homage than a direct retelling or reimagining of the story; not to mention all the ways it diverges from the original. There are added layers to Clara as a character, too, as we see her from her twin's perspective; the twin who is her opposite in looks, temperament, and more. In fact, much of the focus of this story is about their bond and how it fractures and what happens after.
The Kingdom of Sweets, the Sugar Plumb Fairy, Drosselmeyer, the Nutcracker, all will be almost unrecognizable to what you know of them. Some of which I liked, some of which I didn't, and others which I didn't feel much of any way about them.
The major themes that Johansen brings to us are to do with greed, jealousy, the inequalities found in society, and then blows it all up onto a bigger stage as the times transition into greater conflict. While some of this was well done, it was at times painfully repetitious and too much was rehashed over and over again despite the point having long been made.
I do enjoy when a story is given a darker bent and, again, the vibes in here were good. But had you taken away the elements I felt nostalgic over, my love to the original content, I don't think this would've done half as well. Or, conversely, maybe it would've been better. Hard to say. The upside though is it's made me want to reread the Legrand retelling (maybe I'll save that for Christmas Eve!) and it's made me want to put on some Tchaikovsky (though it's too early in the season for me and I refuse to dip into the carols before December).
---
This review can also be found at A Take From Two Cities.
For readers who want to experience something new from this canon, I think you'll be very satisfied because this feel more like a side-quest and homage than a direct retelling or reimagining of the story; not to mention all the ways it diverges from the original. There are added layers to Clara as a character, too, as we see her from her twin's perspective; the twin who is her opposite in looks, temperament, and more. In fact, much of the focus of this story is about their bond and how it fractures and what happens after.
The Kingdom of Sweets, the Sugar Plumb Fairy, Drosselmeyer, the Nutcracker, all will be almost unrecognizable to what you know of them. Some of which I liked, some of which I didn't, and others which I didn't feel much of any way about them.
The major themes that Johansen brings to us are to do with greed, jealousy, the inequalities found in society, and then blows it all up onto a bigger stage as the times transition into greater conflict. While some of this was well done, it was at times painfully repetitious and too much was rehashed over and over again despite the point having long been made.
I do enjoy when a story is given a darker bent and, again, the vibes in here were good. But had you taken away the elements I felt nostalgic over, my love to the original content, I don't think this would've done half as well. Or, conversely, maybe it would've been better. Hard to say. The upside though is it's made me want to reread the Legrand retelling (maybe I'll save that for Christmas Eve!) and it's made me want to put on some Tchaikovsky (though it's too early in the season for me and I refuse to dip into the carols before December).
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This review can also be found at A Take From Two Cities.
January 20, 2024
I remember when Johansen's debut The Queen of the Tearling came out, it was a hotly popular fantasy. Emma Watson was even tied to a potential movie (that is now stuck in development hell, like many books optioned for movies). So I was shocked that I had not heard anything on GoodReads about this book. I didn't even know it was coming out until I saw it was one of the Book of the Month's December picks. Despite the gorgeous cover and the winning premise (a dark retelling of The Nutcracker!), I now understand why it hasn't blown up on GR.
This book has very little to do with the Nutcracker, aside from a girl named Clara (not the main character) who is gifted a magical nutcracker by her godfather, Drosselmeyer (now malicious), which takes her to a magical land where the Sugar Plum Fairy rules (also now evil). The whole rat king storyline is absent - the main plot of the Nutcracker is just a hallucination from Clara's fevered imagination.
Instead, we are stuck with Clara's "dark" twin, Natasha. Drosselmeyer is an evil magician who cursed the twins to be split into "light" (Clara) and "dark" (Natasha). Clara is therefore a frivolous flibbertigibbet who gets knocked up by a servant (?!?!). This is supposed to be set in 1900 Russia, by the way, and Clara/Natasha are from a formerly wealthy industrialist family that socializes with nobility. The fact that Clara/Natasha are so blase about Clara's pregnancy is one of the many things that make no sense in this book.
Natasha, meanwhile, has been sleeping with Conrad, the son of a duke who sneaks into her bedroom at night. It is clear to literally everyone that Conrad is never going to marry Natasha. It also makes no sense that as a child Conrad played with random children in the street. The children of Russian nobility did not play in the streets.
In any event, it turns out that Drosselmeyer gives Clara (but not Natasha!) a large enough dowry that it tempts the duke to agree to marry Conrad to Clara (it seems rather unlikely that a Russian duke would agree to marry his heir to the daughter of a member of the bourgeois, but I am not a Russian history scholar, so who knows). Natasha is SHOCKED and BETRAYED that her sister would agree to the marriage...although, again, Clara is pregnant and will show soon (and Conrad for some reason agrees to accept a servant's child as his own...) AND Natasha never had a chance to marry Conrad because of the huge difference in their rank and her lack of dowry (her father's business is struggling and he is in debt to Drosselmeyer as it is). Conrad also shows exactly no interest in marrying her. In fact, he doesn't seem to particularly like her and it's clear to the reader that he sees her as nothing more than an easy conquest.
But it is all Clara's fault! Clara is a beast! Clara must be punished! So Natasha spirals into hatred and depravity. Natasha and Clara were supposedly "best friends" before the engagement is announced. And yet Natasha speaks about Clara with contempt the entire book (even Clara's reading choices are "rubbish" and "trash"). Natasha is ugly (unclear what this means) while Clara is beautiful and charming. Natasha is smart (not demonstrated by her actions) while Clara is an airhead. Natasha has depth (again, not demonstrated by her actions) while Clara is shallow. Natasha can allegedly see the darkness of humanity (but never catches on that Conrad is a jerk?!?) while Clara skates along without any troubles.
I recall that the protagonist of the Queen of the Tearling was similarly obsessed with physical appearance. It doesn't matter that Clara gets likely unwanted male attention or that people only like her for her looks - being "ugly" (being short and dumpy with a broad face is not exactly the height of hideousness) is far worse than anything that a beautiful person may experience.
When Drosselmeyer's magical nutcracker transports both Clara and Natasha to the Kingdom of Sweets, Natasha readily agrees to the Sugar Plum Fairy's deal to steal Clara's life in exchange for an alliance against Drosselmeyer. Natasha strangles Clara (!!!) and steals her face. Natasha then happily marries Conrad, who (surprise!) turns out to be awful. She also, despite complaining about how Clara is popular and how she is unpopular, refuses all social engagements. She pushes away everyone (including her mother-in-law!) who tries to befriend her because they are also too shallow for Natasha. Natasha does exactly what she did before becoming Clara - be an anti-social hermit who thinks she is better than everyone else and spends her time alone reading. Why she had to MURDER HER TWIN to do exactly what she would have been doing anyway is unclear. The only thing she "got" was access to Conrad's wealth/a life of leisure. Who is the shallow one now, Natasha?!?. Natasha does not have a single friend or ally in the entire book (except allegedly Clara, who she murders, so not really a good friend). It's clear that people don't avoid Natasha because she's "dark" or "ugly" but because she is a terrible person who looks down on everyone else. Natasha reminds me of the 30 Rock episode where Liz Lemon thinks she was the underdog outcast in high school, when in reality she was the mean girl.
The primary problem with this book is that, like The Magicians, it has a villainous protagonist that the book (and potentially author) treat as a sympathetic protagonist. Natasha is a psychopath who has no regrets about murdering her sister. She spends the entire book victim-blaming, with her general attitude being that "bitch got what she deserved."
The amount of internalized misogyny demonstrated by Natasha in this book is absurd. CLARA is terrible and had to die for "stealing" Natasha's "boyfriend" (in quotes because Conrad was clearly just using Natasha and was never going to marry her, so there was nothing to steal and they were not a real couple). But Natasha doesn't blame Conrad and still happily marries him. Conrad isn't the villain, Clara is! Natasha also repeatedly talks about how she feels "pity" for Drosselmeyer after she betrays him (I counted at least four instances of her feeling pity/sympathy), while it takes until the verrrryyy end for Natasha to express any pity for Clara, or even apologize for, you know, MURDERING HER AND ABANDONING HER IN A NIGHTMARE REALM. Drosselmeyer tortured people, experimented on children, and tried to kill Natasha, but Natasha feels more sympathy for him than for her own sister whose grand crime was *checks notes* being pretty and accepting a marriage proposal. According to Natasha, "Clara's transgressions were real, and they had demanded punishment." Really, Natasha? Clara deserved DEATH?!?! (when Natasha learns that Clara didn't actually die and instead was trapped in a nightmare realm, Natasha is like "well if I knew she would be tortured for years, I wouldn't have been okay with that. Death is okay but years of torture may be crossing a line."). Natasha has the AUDACITY to tell Clara that she "forgives her." FORGIVES HER. FOR WHAT. For being a spoiled child?!? Natasha then expects Clara to readily forgive her as well. FOR MURDERING HER AND STEALING HER LIFE. THESE ARE NOT COMPARABLE WRONGS. There is also a random woman at the Christmas party who Natasha takes the time to tell us "somehow had the look of a tart." This woman and her potential sluttiness has nothing to do with the plot, by the way, it's just an off-hand comment. Natasha, again, is sleeping with a man she is not married to and will never be married to. But she feels free to judge this random woman who is simply drunkenly swaying to the music as a "tart."
It would be one thing if Johansen had other characters call out Natasha, react with horror at her actions, or generally punish Natasha for her cruelty. Instead, Natasha is presented as sympathetic. Look, she gives candy to poor children! Everyone else treats the servants poorly, but Natasha doesn't yell at them so she's an angel! Clara was a beautiful little fool who was marrying Natasha's crush, so she definitely deserved to be strangled and have her life stolen by her envious twin!
The fake historicity of the book also irked me. I read other reviews that mentioned that this book ended up being a semi-historical fantasy. This surprised me, given that there was absolutely nothing about it that was historical. There's one historical personage (Rasputin) who shows up, adding nothing to the story. There's a few references to real books (i.e., Alice's Adventures in Wonderland). And then in the last few chapters, for the first time it is explicitly stated that this is supposed to be set in Russia (!?!?) during the early 20th century. The fact that people are being tricked into thinking that this book is in ANY way historical fantasy boils my blood, as Johansen clearly did no historical research (at least for the majority of the novel) and this book is as historical as Bridgerton. It's a hot mess when it comes to history. First off, the names are majority German but it is theoretically set in Russia. Clara is a German name. Their surname, Stahlbaum, is German. A supposedly RUSSIAN duke is named Conrad for goodness' sake. Then there are random other culture names. There's an Arlette (French!), Cadwallader (English!), Charles (English again!), Deirdre (Irish!), Angelo (Italian!). Then there is a sprinkling of actual Russian names (Natasha, Anastasia). What is this alphabet soup of names? Would it not make more sense just to set this in Germany (the actual setting of The Nutcracker), or give everyone Russian names? Even the currency is German (pfennigs). It's like Johansen started this book in Germany, decided in the end to throw in the Russian Revolution, and never went back to edit it into coherency.
But wait, there's more! There is absolutely nothing "Russian" about this book. It is set in Generic European country. The rulers are called the King and Queen (not even Tsar and Tsarina), the city is unnamed (it's just "the city"), there are no Russian cultural touches. Apparently, in the Russian Orthodox Church, Christmas is celebrated on January 7, not December 25. And in early 20th century Russia, Halloween (/Hallow's Eve) was not traditionally celebrated and poor children certainly did not beg for candy door-to-door. Johansen hilariously has a character explain that the fact that Natasha and Clara were born on Christmas makes their birth more powerful, since Christmas is tied to pagan solstice celebrations. Again, Russian Christmas does not take place on December 25. Also, THE SOLSTICE IS SEVERAL DAYS BEFORE CHRISTMAS. It's the 21st. Being born several days later should not connote the same "power." If Johansen was going to just make up everything and not make the book relate to Russian culture at all, why bother setting it in Russia? If she was going to just throw history to the wind, why end up anchoring it to a specific time period and historical events?
This book has very little to do with the Nutcracker, aside from a girl named Clara (not the main character) who is gifted a magical nutcracker by her godfather, Drosselmeyer (now malicious), which takes her to a magical land where the Sugar Plum Fairy rules (also now evil). The whole rat king storyline is absent - the main plot of the Nutcracker is just a hallucination from Clara's fevered imagination.
Instead, we are stuck with Clara's "dark" twin, Natasha. Drosselmeyer is an evil magician who cursed the twins to be split into "light" (Clara) and "dark" (Natasha). Clara is therefore a frivolous flibbertigibbet who gets knocked up by a servant (?!?!). This is supposed to be set in 1900 Russia, by the way, and Clara/Natasha are from a formerly wealthy industrialist family that socializes with nobility. The fact that Clara/Natasha are so blase about Clara's pregnancy is one of the many things that make no sense in this book.
Natasha, meanwhile, has been sleeping with Conrad, the son of a duke who sneaks into her bedroom at night. It is clear to literally everyone that Conrad is never going to marry Natasha. It also makes no sense that as a child Conrad played with random children in the street. The children of Russian nobility did not play in the streets.
In any event, it turns out that Drosselmeyer gives Clara (but not Natasha!) a large enough dowry that it tempts the duke to agree to marry Conrad to Clara (it seems rather unlikely that a Russian duke would agree to marry his heir to the daughter of a member of the bourgeois, but I am not a Russian history scholar, so who knows). Natasha is SHOCKED and BETRAYED that her sister would agree to the marriage...although, again, Clara is pregnant and will show soon (and Conrad for some reason agrees to accept a servant's child as his own...) AND Natasha never had a chance to marry Conrad because of the huge difference in their rank and her lack of dowry (her father's business is struggling and he is in debt to Drosselmeyer as it is). Conrad also shows exactly no interest in marrying her. In fact, he doesn't seem to particularly like her and it's clear to the reader that he sees her as nothing more than an easy conquest.
But it is all Clara's fault! Clara is a beast! Clara must be punished! So Natasha spirals into hatred and depravity. Natasha and Clara were supposedly "best friends" before the engagement is announced. And yet Natasha speaks about Clara with contempt the entire book (even Clara's reading choices are "rubbish" and "trash"). Natasha is ugly (unclear what this means) while Clara is beautiful and charming. Natasha is smart (not demonstrated by her actions) while Clara is an airhead. Natasha has depth (again, not demonstrated by her actions) while Clara is shallow. Natasha can allegedly see the darkness of humanity (but never catches on that Conrad is a jerk?!?) while Clara skates along without any troubles.
I recall that the protagonist of the Queen of the Tearling was similarly obsessed with physical appearance. It doesn't matter that Clara gets likely unwanted male attention or that people only like her for her looks - being "ugly" (being short and dumpy with a broad face is not exactly the height of hideousness) is far worse than anything that a beautiful person may experience.
When Drosselmeyer's magical nutcracker transports both Clara and Natasha to the Kingdom of Sweets, Natasha readily agrees to the Sugar Plum Fairy's deal to steal Clara's life in exchange for an alliance against Drosselmeyer. Natasha strangles Clara (!!!) and steals her face. Natasha then happily marries Conrad, who (surprise!) turns out to be awful. She also, despite complaining about how Clara is popular and how she is unpopular, refuses all social engagements. She pushes away everyone (including her mother-in-law!) who tries to befriend her because they are also too shallow for Natasha. Natasha does exactly what she did before becoming Clara - be an anti-social hermit who thinks she is better than everyone else and spends her time alone reading. Why she had to MURDER HER TWIN to do exactly what she would have been doing anyway is unclear. The only thing she "got" was access to Conrad's wealth/a life of leisure. Who is the shallow one now, Natasha?!?. Natasha does not have a single friend or ally in the entire book (except allegedly Clara, who she murders, so not really a good friend). It's clear that people don't avoid Natasha because she's "dark" or "ugly" but because she is a terrible person who looks down on everyone else. Natasha reminds me of the 30 Rock episode where Liz Lemon thinks she was the underdog outcast in high school, when in reality she was the mean girl.
The primary problem with this book is that, like The Magicians, it has a villainous protagonist that the book (and potentially author) treat as a sympathetic protagonist. Natasha is a psychopath who has no regrets about murdering her sister. She spends the entire book victim-blaming, with her general attitude being that "bitch got what she deserved."
The amount of internalized misogyny demonstrated by Natasha in this book is absurd. CLARA is terrible and had to die for "stealing" Natasha's "boyfriend" (in quotes because Conrad was clearly just using Natasha and was never going to marry her, so there was nothing to steal and they were not a real couple). But Natasha doesn't blame Conrad and still happily marries him. Conrad isn't the villain, Clara is! Natasha also repeatedly talks about how she feels "pity" for Drosselmeyer after she betrays him (I counted at least four instances of her feeling pity/sympathy), while it takes until the verrrryyy end for Natasha to express any pity for Clara, or even apologize for, you know, MURDERING HER AND ABANDONING HER IN A NIGHTMARE REALM. Drosselmeyer tortured people, experimented on children, and tried to kill Natasha, but Natasha feels more sympathy for him than for her own sister whose grand crime was *checks notes* being pretty and accepting a marriage proposal. According to Natasha, "Clara's transgressions were real, and they had demanded punishment." Really, Natasha? Clara deserved DEATH?!?! (when Natasha learns that Clara didn't actually die and instead was trapped in a nightmare realm, Natasha is like "well if I knew she would be tortured for years, I wouldn't have been okay with that. Death is okay but years of torture may be crossing a line."). Natasha has the AUDACITY to tell Clara that she "forgives her." FORGIVES HER. FOR WHAT. For being a spoiled child?!? Natasha then expects Clara to readily forgive her as well. FOR MURDERING HER AND STEALING HER LIFE. THESE ARE NOT COMPARABLE WRONGS. There is also a random woman at the Christmas party who Natasha takes the time to tell us "somehow had the look of a tart." This woman and her potential sluttiness has nothing to do with the plot, by the way, it's just an off-hand comment. Natasha, again, is sleeping with a man she is not married to and will never be married to. But she feels free to judge this random woman who is simply drunkenly swaying to the music as a "tart."
It would be one thing if Johansen had other characters call out Natasha, react with horror at her actions, or generally punish Natasha for her cruelty. Instead, Natasha is presented as sympathetic. Look, she gives candy to poor children! Everyone else treats the servants poorly, but Natasha doesn't yell at them so she's an angel! Clara was a beautiful little fool who was marrying Natasha's crush, so she definitely deserved to be strangled and have her life stolen by her envious twin!
The fake historicity of the book also irked me. I read other reviews that mentioned that this book ended up being a semi-historical fantasy. This surprised me, given that there was absolutely nothing about it that was historical. There's one historical personage (Rasputin) who shows up, adding nothing to the story. There's a few references to real books (i.e., Alice's Adventures in Wonderland). And then in the last few chapters, for the first time it is explicitly stated that this is supposed to be set in Russia (!?!?) during the early 20th century. The fact that people are being tricked into thinking that this book is in ANY way historical fantasy boils my blood, as Johansen clearly did no historical research (at least for the majority of the novel) and this book is as historical as Bridgerton. It's a hot mess when it comes to history. First off, the names are majority German but it is theoretically set in Russia. Clara is a German name. Their surname, Stahlbaum, is German. A supposedly RUSSIAN duke is named Conrad for goodness' sake. Then there are random other culture names. There's an Arlette (French!), Cadwallader (English!), Charles (English again!), Deirdre (Irish!), Angelo (Italian!). Then there is a sprinkling of actual Russian names (Natasha, Anastasia). What is this alphabet soup of names? Would it not make more sense just to set this in Germany (the actual setting of The Nutcracker), or give everyone Russian names? Even the currency is German (pfennigs). It's like Johansen started this book in Germany, decided in the end to throw in the Russian Revolution, and never went back to edit it into coherency.
But wait, there's more! There is absolutely nothing "Russian" about this book. It is set in Generic European country. The rulers are called the King and Queen (not even Tsar and Tsarina), the city is unnamed (it's just "the city"), there are no Russian cultural touches. Apparently, in the Russian Orthodox Church, Christmas is celebrated on January 7, not December 25. And in early 20th century Russia, Halloween (/Hallow's Eve) was not traditionally celebrated and poor children certainly did not beg for candy door-to-door. Johansen hilariously has a character explain that the fact that Natasha and Clara were born on Christmas makes their birth more powerful, since Christmas is tied to pagan solstice celebrations. Again, Russian Christmas does not take place on December 25. Also, THE SOLSTICE IS SEVERAL DAYS BEFORE CHRISTMAS. It's the 21st. Being born several days later should not connote the same "power." If Johansen was going to just make up everything and not make the book relate to Russian culture at all, why bother setting it in Russia? If she was going to just throw history to the wind, why end up anchoring it to a specific time period and historical events?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 29, 2023
The Kingdom of Sweets is a beautifully written and immensely compelling novel. While the main characters may not be overly sympathetic, they are fascinating amidst all their flaws.
Born on Christmas, twins Natasha and Clara Stahlbaum are cursed and blessed on the day of their christening by their godfather, the sorcerer Drosselmeyer. Sixteen years later, Clara has grown beautiful and lives a life of ease and indulgence, while Natasha is viewed as plain and often ignored by those around her.
When the yearly celebration on Christmas Eve culminates in heartbreak and danger for Natasha, she is forced to confront her unspoken despair and resentment. A Christmas present from Drosselmeyer, a magical Nutcracker doll, unexpectedly transports Natasha and Clara into the wondrous Kingdom of Sweets.
The time spent by Natasha and Clara within The Kingdom of Sweets is probably my favorite part of the story. Initially and deceptively beautiful, the horrors of the realm and its ruler, “The Sugar Plum Fairy,” are described so richly that I was both captivated and disturbed.
While the plot was interesting, I found the characters to be my favorite part of The Kingdom of Sweets. While other reviewers have mentioned finding Natasha unsympathetic, her isolation, her pain at being seen as something less by others and the way that she compensated by burying herself in her books and claiming that her curse was the reason that she could see the dark “truths” of the world around her-as opposed to it being due to the effects of pessimism and years of emotional neglect-made her immensely relatable.
Natasha is raised by a mother who is wrapped up in a laudium addiction and the attention of mediums and by a greedy father whose focus is upon social climbing, whores and wasting money.
Starving for crumbs of affection and willing to accept them from the boy who refuses to publically claim her and believing that her relationship with her sister is better than it actually is, when everything comes to a head, the choice Natasha ends up making is understandable, though not justifiable.
While we aren’t given as deep a glimpse into Clara’s life as we are Natasha’s, we are able to witness the superficial and ultimately unfulfilling nature of her existence. Being beautiful and overindulged does little to prepare her for the grim realities that she inevitably encounters.
Of the two antagonists, Drosselmeyer is the least developed and also the least interesting. Setting the events of the novel in motion due to his own selfishness and contributing to Natasha’s dismal life made his eventual fate all the more fitting.
The mercurial Sugar Plum Fairy helps to manipulate a distraught Natasha into committing a terrible act and then continues to remain within the periphery of her life in order to fulfill her own goals. Her reason for desiring revenge against Drosselmeyer is one again understandable, though the methods she utilizes are reprehensible.
When the novel reaches its climax, the setting becomes less fantastic and more rooted in actual history. There was foreshadowing prior to the change, though one can also interpret it as while the characters grow and inhabit their lives, the potential for encountering the more fanciful aspects of the world inevitably fades.
Part of me did hope for a happier ending, but that would not have been true to the spirit of the story. Some wounds-and relationships-cannot be healed despite genuine regret or a desire for absolution.
Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Group Dutton and Erika Johansen for providing me this eArc in exchange for my honest opinion.
Born on Christmas, twins Natasha and Clara Stahlbaum are cursed and blessed on the day of their christening by their godfather, the sorcerer Drosselmeyer. Sixteen years later, Clara has grown beautiful and lives a life of ease and indulgence, while Natasha is viewed as plain and often ignored by those around her.
When the yearly celebration on Christmas Eve culminates in heartbreak and danger for Natasha, she is forced to confront her unspoken despair and resentment. A Christmas present from Drosselmeyer, a magical Nutcracker doll, unexpectedly transports Natasha and Clara into the wondrous Kingdom of Sweets.
The time spent by Natasha and Clara within The Kingdom of Sweets is probably my favorite part of the story. Initially and deceptively beautiful, the horrors of the realm and its ruler, “The Sugar Plum Fairy,” are described so richly that I was both captivated and disturbed.
While the plot was interesting, I found the characters to be my favorite part of The Kingdom of Sweets. While other reviewers have mentioned finding Natasha unsympathetic, her isolation, her pain at being seen as something less by others and the way that she compensated by burying herself in her books and claiming that her curse was the reason that she could see the dark “truths” of the world around her-as opposed to it being due to the effects of pessimism and years of emotional neglect-made her immensely relatable.
Natasha is raised by a mother who is wrapped up in a laudium addiction and the attention of mediums and by a greedy father whose focus is upon social climbing, whores and wasting money.
Starving for crumbs of affection and willing to accept them from the boy who refuses to publically claim her and believing that her relationship with her sister is better than it actually is, when everything comes to a head, the choice Natasha ends up making is understandable, though not justifiable.
While we aren’t given as deep a glimpse into Clara’s life as we are Natasha’s, we are able to witness the superficial and ultimately unfulfilling nature of her existence. Being beautiful and overindulged does little to prepare her for the grim realities that she inevitably encounters.
Of the two antagonists, Drosselmeyer is the least developed and also the least interesting. Setting the events of the novel in motion due to his own selfishness and contributing to Natasha’s dismal life made his eventual fate all the more fitting.
The mercurial Sugar Plum Fairy helps to manipulate a distraught Natasha into committing a terrible act and then continues to remain within the periphery of her life in order to fulfill her own goals. Her reason for desiring revenge against Drosselmeyer is one again understandable, though the methods she utilizes are reprehensible.
When the novel reaches its climax, the setting becomes less fantastic and more rooted in actual history. There was foreshadowing prior to the change, though one can also interpret it as while the characters grow and inhabit their lives, the potential for encountering the more fanciful aspects of the world inevitably fades.
Part of me did hope for a happier ending, but that would not have been true to the spirit of the story. Some wounds-and relationships-cannot be healed despite genuine regret or a desire for absolution.
Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Group Dutton and Erika Johansen for providing me this eArc in exchange for my honest opinion.
December 16, 2023
Dare I say it?! I do believe this is my absolute favorite book I have read in 2023! What a beautifully written, dark re telling of the Nutcracker! OMG I adored reading the pages in this book.The storytelling that the author does was phenominal in every way!! I just can’t get over how much I loved this book!!! This is is what reading is all about! Being able to escape to another world or life and finding yourself submerged into the story just by the author’swords. The story immersmed me to a magical, but dark place that I enjoyed.
I loved the eerie & mysterious vibes that Drosselmeyer had. & him as a terrified puppet made me both giggle and cringe! 😬 There were many bizzare instances that the story had that I gravitated towards. For example the whimsical gingerbread men and all of Orlav’s toys. I loved that the Queen had batted wings 🦇 That element made her character demonolic like to me, and it added to the creepiness. I found the ending to be bittersweet & I loved the meaning behind the relationship story between Clara and Natasha. It reminded that things are not always what they seem & although some might seem to have more riches & beauty in life, it doesn’t mean their life is happier or better than the rest.
I loved the eerie & mysterious vibes that Drosselmeyer had. & him as a terrified puppet made me both giggle and cringe! 😬 There were many bizzare instances that the story had that I gravitated towards. For example the whimsical gingerbread men and all of Orlav’s toys. I loved that the Queen had batted wings 🦇 That element made her character demonolic like to me, and it added to the creepiness. I found the ending to be bittersweet & I loved the meaning behind the relationship story between Clara and Natasha. It reminded that things are not always what they seem & although some might seem to have more riches & beauty in life, it doesn’t mean their life is happier or better than the rest.
Want to read
September 23, 2023A new Nutcracker retelling? Seems like I already have plans what I'm going to do on Christmas Eve.
October 11, 2023
Disclaimer: I received a digital copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
“The Kingdom of Sweets” is a lot like its protagonist: difficult to love.
In fact, the standalone novel based very loosely on E. T. A. Hoffmann’s short story/Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s ballet is genuinely hard to read for the first two-thirds of its length. This dark fantasy tinged with horror is expertly put together and cleverly weaves together fantasy with Russian history, but is also graced with characters who are uniformly unlikable.
As newborns, Clara and Natasha were blessed/cursed by the sorcerer Drosselmeyer – Clara was declared “light” and Natasha “dark.” And they grew up accordingly: Clara was beautiful and beloved by everyone, while Natasha was unattractive and ignored, taking her solace in a world of books. Then, at the Christmas party that marks their seventeenth birthday, it’s announced that newly-pregnant Clara is marrying the wealthy boy that Natasha is infatuated with – and both girls are given strange living toys by Drosselmeyer.
Soon Clara is whisked away into a magical Kingdom of Sweets, and Natasha follows her doggedly. But she soon senses that there is something profoundly wrong about this strange sugar-coated dimension, which is ruled over by the Sugarplum Fairy.
And as a bitter, jealous Natasha discovers the depths of her sister’s betrayal, she is offered a Faustian bargain by the Fairy – if she helps the Fairy destroy Drosselmeyer, the Fairy will let her kill Clara and take her appearance and her life. But the life that Clara seizes for herself isn’t as sweet as she hoped it would be – and as the years go by, she discovers that she can’t escape the sins of her own actions. Her only hope is to uncover the ancient magic that Drosselmeyer coveted, which may be her only escape.
Let’s be upfront about this: for the first two-thirds of “Tbe Kingdom of Sweets,” there are absolutely no likable characters. At all. Everybody without exception is a terrible person of one stripe or another, whether they’re a cold unfeeling parent, a murderous sorcerer, sadistic socialites or a shallow selfish sister. This includes Natasha herself, who is a bitter, hate-consumed person who has a heavy dose of Not Like Other Girls Syndrome, and deludes herself into thinking she is smarter and more insightful than everybody else. She would fit in well on social media.
As a result, I had to struggle to get through the first two-thirds of the book, despite Erika Johansen’s skillful writing and some well-written interlacing of Hoffman’s tale with actual Russian history from the turn of the 20th century. It just wasn’t enjoyable to be in Natasha’s head because I was so repulsed by the character, especially since the narrative doesn’t really hint at future growth, and I couldn’t really bring myself to care much about whatever ironic punishment she suffered as a result of her own actions.
However, things started to turn around when Clara reenters the story; the story becomes more streamlined and organic, and Natasha is forced to face the evil that has been brewing inside her for so long. It makes that last third of the book more poignant, more gripping, and more suspenseful as Natasha has to find a way to, if not undo what she’s done, then at least try to make amends while defeating the Fairy. It becomes more a story about redemption and forgiveness, which softens Natasha’s harsh, prickly worldview and how she looks at others, such as the priest.
But to get to that solid final third, you have to slog through the first two-thirds, which are simply not enjoyable to read. If you don’t mind that, then “The Kingdom of Sweets” is a solid dark’n’twisted version of the Nutcracker story.
“The Kingdom of Sweets” is a lot like its protagonist: difficult to love.
In fact, the standalone novel based very loosely on E. T. A. Hoffmann’s short story/Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s ballet is genuinely hard to read for the first two-thirds of its length. This dark fantasy tinged with horror is expertly put together and cleverly weaves together fantasy with Russian history, but is also graced with characters who are uniformly unlikable.
As newborns, Clara and Natasha were blessed/cursed by the sorcerer Drosselmeyer – Clara was declared “light” and Natasha “dark.” And they grew up accordingly: Clara was beautiful and beloved by everyone, while Natasha was unattractive and ignored, taking her solace in a world of books. Then, at the Christmas party that marks their seventeenth birthday, it’s announced that newly-pregnant Clara is marrying the wealthy boy that Natasha is infatuated with – and both girls are given strange living toys by Drosselmeyer.
Soon Clara is whisked away into a magical Kingdom of Sweets, and Natasha follows her doggedly. But she soon senses that there is something profoundly wrong about this strange sugar-coated dimension, which is ruled over by the Sugarplum Fairy.
And as a bitter, jealous Natasha discovers the depths of her sister’s betrayal, she is offered a Faustian bargain by the Fairy – if she helps the Fairy destroy Drosselmeyer, the Fairy will let her kill Clara and take her appearance and her life. But the life that Clara seizes for herself isn’t as sweet as she hoped it would be – and as the years go by, she discovers that she can’t escape the sins of her own actions. Her only hope is to uncover the ancient magic that Drosselmeyer coveted, which may be her only escape.
Let’s be upfront about this: for the first two-thirds of “Tbe Kingdom of Sweets,” there are absolutely no likable characters. At all. Everybody without exception is a terrible person of one stripe or another, whether they’re a cold unfeeling parent, a murderous sorcerer, sadistic socialites or a shallow selfish sister. This includes Natasha herself, who is a bitter, hate-consumed person who has a heavy dose of Not Like Other Girls Syndrome, and deludes herself into thinking she is smarter and more insightful than everybody else. She would fit in well on social media.
As a result, I had to struggle to get through the first two-thirds of the book, despite Erika Johansen’s skillful writing and some well-written interlacing of Hoffman’s tale with actual Russian history from the turn of the 20th century. It just wasn’t enjoyable to be in Natasha’s head because I was so repulsed by the character, especially since the narrative doesn’t really hint at future growth, and I couldn’t really bring myself to care much about whatever ironic punishment she suffered as a result of her own actions.
However, things started to turn around when Clara reenters the story; the story becomes more streamlined and organic, and Natasha is forced to face the evil that has been brewing inside her for so long. It makes that last third of the book more poignant, more gripping, and more suspenseful as Natasha has to find a way to, if not undo what she’s done, then at least try to make amends while defeating the Fairy. It becomes more a story about redemption and forgiveness, which softens Natasha’s harsh, prickly worldview and how she looks at others, such as the priest.
But to get to that solid final third, you have to slog through the first two-thirds, which are simply not enjoyable to read. If you don’t mind that, then “The Kingdom of Sweets” is a solid dark’n’twisted version of the Nutcracker story.
December 14, 2023
this book started off so strong. I am talking "this is about to make my favorite books of all time list". And then the author not only dragged it out, but she butchered it.
Ever since I watched the namesake ballet, I have been caught hook, line, and sinker for anything remotely reminiscent of the Nutcracker. So imagine my surprise when this book appeared on NetGalley as a dark, gothic reimagining of the Nutcracker.
I saw twin sisters, revenge, The Kingdom of Sweets, and Evil Sugar Plum Fairy, and practically went berserk in my rush to click the "request" button. And then I was approved! But when I went to GoodReads to log it, I noticed a rush of mixedand downright bad reviews citing poor pacing, writing, and bad characters.
So I put it off for months because I didn't want to be let down (spoiler: I was), but I figured I'd given five stars to a fair share of other books with mixed reviews... in this case, the majority were correct in their poor/mixed rating.
Starting off, the pacing was questionable at best. The beginning was atmospheric, elusive, and attention-grabbing. I was invested, loved the mystery, and couldn't wait to know more about the magic system.
Then, a character dies a little over halfway through the book and things after that quickly fell apart. The magic system that had been so beautifully built up crumbled into pieces, the motivations of central characters changed without cause, and two characters that had been justifiably gone resurfaced with little explanation.
Nevertheless, I powered through. Then, in the last 30 pages, it's revealed the entire novel was actually happening against a real, historical background that is pertinent to the plot. This is where I realized I should have dnf'ed.
In other words, you spend three-quarters of the book knowing (in uncertain terms) what time period it's set in and that it's taking place somewhere in Eastern Europe, but not much else: your focus is on the characters. Then, out of nowhere, it's stated that it's early twentieth-century in Russia and you're getting a short, unrelated history lecture on Lenin and the Red Scare. This all should have been stated at the very beginning of the book.
I also felt as if the author added in the part about Russia at the last minute because I did some two-minute googling and the timeline was NOT adding up. Like, we go from zero electricity, corsets, escorts, carriages, arranged marriages, and very Bridgerton ideals to suddenly it's WWI, electricity is everywhere, the Red Scare, Lenin, and a bunch of other things in less than 8 years.
All in all, glad I finally got this off my TBR in time for the holidays, but very disappointed.
Ever since I watched the namesake ballet, I have been caught hook, line, and sinker for anything remotely reminiscent of the Nutcracker. So imagine my surprise when this book appeared on NetGalley as a dark, gothic reimagining of the Nutcracker.
I saw twin sisters, revenge, The Kingdom of Sweets, and Evil Sugar Plum Fairy, and practically went berserk in my rush to click the "request" button. And then I was approved! But when I went to GoodReads to log it, I noticed a rush of mixed
So I put it off for months because I didn't want to be let down (spoiler: I was), but I figured I'd given five stars to a fair share of other books with mixed reviews... in this case, the majority were correct in their poor/mixed rating.
Starting off, the pacing was questionable at best. The beginning was atmospheric, elusive, and attention-grabbing. I was invested, loved the mystery, and couldn't wait to know more about the magic system.
Then, a character dies a little over halfway through the book and things after that quickly fell apart. The magic system that had been so beautifully built up crumbled into pieces, the motivations of central characters changed without cause, and two characters that had been justifiably gone resurfaced with little explanation.
Nevertheless, I powered through. Then, in the last 30 pages, it's revealed the entire novel was actually happening against a real, historical background that is pertinent to the plot. This is where I realized I should have dnf'ed.
In other words, you spend three-quarters of the book knowing (in uncertain terms) what time period it's set in and that it's taking place somewhere in Eastern Europe, but not much else: your focus is on the characters. Then, out of nowhere, it's stated that it's early twentieth-century in Russia and you're getting a short, unrelated history lecture on Lenin and the Red Scare. This all should have been stated at the very beginning of the book.
I also felt as if the author added in the part about Russia at the last minute because I did some two-minute googling and the timeline was NOT adding up. Like, we go from zero electricity, corsets, escorts, carriages, arranged marriages, and very Bridgerton ideals to suddenly it's WWI, electricity is everywhere, the Red Scare, Lenin, and a bunch of other things in less than 8 years.
All in all, glad I finally got this off my TBR in time for the holidays, but very disappointed.
Want to read
August 16, 2023ARC received. Thank you so much, Dutton!!
This sounds enchanting and the perfect read for around Thanksgiving, as I believe it is Nutcracker-inspired.
This sounds enchanting and the perfect read for around Thanksgiving, as I believe it is Nutcracker-inspired.
December 23, 2025
well i really loved the first half
December 4, 2023
The characters were insufferable but I think that was the point. What lost me was the book felt like there were 10 different plots shoved into a standard sized book and only half of them made any sense or ended up resolved. The book felt both rushed because of this and also like it slogged on and on.
December 22, 2023
I really liked this in the beginning, because it reminded me a lot of the animated movie The Nutcracker Prince, which I LOVE. But I grew increasingly confused as to why things were happening as the story went on. I didn't really care about the relationship between Natasha and Clara, even though it seemed to be a main point toward the end. They didn't spend much of the book together, and we didn't really see them interact in a way that would warrant the ensuing events. Last thing, and I may be in the minority here, but I don't like hearing about real life historical events in my fiction, particularly in fantasy fiction.
December 8, 2023
This was a dark horror fantasy, but also stayed surface level enough where I couldn’t envision the fantasy aspect at all. I think the author had a good idea, a fantastic foundation of writing and prose, but the execution was a bit all over the place. It didn’t read fluidly which was probably my biggest struggle. I do think it was unique for a retelling!
*the ending chapter was sooooo unnecessary. Definitely took the story down 1/2 a ⭐️
*the ending chapter was sooooo unnecessary. Definitely took the story down 1/2 a ⭐️
December 11, 2023
This was a mess.
September 26, 2023
The Kingdom of Sweets is a retelling of The Nutcracker, but not your traditional kind. It is dark and gruesome, exploring the twisted tale between twin sisters, and what truly defines light and dark.
One fateful Christmas, Clara and Natasha were born. Cursed by their godfather Drosselmeyer, Clara is all things good and light, while Natasha is forced to stand in her sister's shadow. When Clara steals the one thing that Natasha desperately wants, Natasha's hatred for her sister grows darker, taking on sharp edges. Sent to the Kingdom of Sweets, Natasha makes a bargain with the Sugar Plum Fairy to get her revenge and take back what she sees as hers.
The Kingdom of Sweets is a standout retelling. It exposes the shadowy corners of the Nutcracker, weaving a gothic story filled with brutal magic. I loved the focus on twins and the complexities that come with siblings. Their relationship is a tangled mess of love and hate, jealousy and bitterness. Both sisters can't see past their own problems, so their decisions are self-serving and made without concern for the other. Neither of them is likable, too concerned with what's in front of them to consider the disastrous repercussions of their actions.
The plot was fairly complex, made of smaller subplots. As things got resolved, the overall picture would fall apart even more. Natasha's brash decisions and oversights caused more issues than she could have imagined. It truly is a character study, showing how Natasha's bad actions have ways of coming back to haunt her.
The Kingdom of Sweets is a gruesome tale, filled with rotten characters and evil decisions. It stays true to the source material, with a focus on Christmas Eve and the Sugar Plum Fairy, while also being an original and inspired take. If you prefer your characters more bitter than sweet, and to see the ugly underside of magic, this is the book for you.
Thank you NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Dutton for the advance copy! All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
One fateful Christmas, Clara and Natasha were born. Cursed by their godfather Drosselmeyer, Clara is all things good and light, while Natasha is forced to stand in her sister's shadow. When Clara steals the one thing that Natasha desperately wants, Natasha's hatred for her sister grows darker, taking on sharp edges. Sent to the Kingdom of Sweets, Natasha makes a bargain with the Sugar Plum Fairy to get her revenge and take back what she sees as hers.
The Kingdom of Sweets is a standout retelling. It exposes the shadowy corners of the Nutcracker, weaving a gothic story filled with brutal magic. I loved the focus on twins and the complexities that come with siblings. Their relationship is a tangled mess of love and hate, jealousy and bitterness. Both sisters can't see past their own problems, so their decisions are self-serving and made without concern for the other. Neither of them is likable, too concerned with what's in front of them to consider the disastrous repercussions of their actions.
The plot was fairly complex, made of smaller subplots. As things got resolved, the overall picture would fall apart even more. Natasha's brash decisions and oversights caused more issues than she could have imagined. It truly is a character study, showing how Natasha's bad actions have ways of coming back to haunt her.
The Kingdom of Sweets is a gruesome tale, filled with rotten characters and evil decisions. It stays true to the source material, with a focus on Christmas Eve and the Sugar Plum Fairy, while also being an original and inspired take. If you prefer your characters more bitter than sweet, and to see the ugly underside of magic, this is the book for you.
Thank you NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Dutton for the advance copy! All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
July 17, 2024
i thought this was a dark nutcracker book why are we getting into the politics of 1800s russia
January 7, 2024
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free eARC in exchange for an honest review.
I ended up really disappointed by this sadly. At first, the atmosphere was beautiful, eerie, and magical, but it went downhill fairly quickly. I was expecting the dark fairytale it was pitched as, but it just didn't end up that way - it felt as though the author had so many ideas, and was trying to stuff them all into one book, rather than focusing on one good idea. I don't think this can even be classed as a Nutcracker retelling, because it is so far off The Nutcracker's beautiful whimsy.
Natasha was an awful main character - she was so self-pitying that it was painful. Not only was she insufferable, but so were the rest of the characters - I didn't care what happened to any of them, and for me, that ruins a book.
The writing style wasn't necessarily bad - I think that if the author had stuck to one solid idea, this would have been rated higher for me. But unfortunately as it stands, I really didn't enjoy this.
I ended up really disappointed by this sadly. At first, the atmosphere was beautiful, eerie, and magical, but it went downhill fairly quickly. I was expecting the dark fairytale it was pitched as, but it just didn't end up that way - it felt as though the author had so many ideas, and was trying to stuff them all into one book, rather than focusing on one good idea. I don't think this can even be classed as a Nutcracker retelling, because it is so far off The Nutcracker's beautiful whimsy.
Natasha was an awful main character - she was so self-pitying that it was painful. Not only was she insufferable, but so were the rest of the characters - I didn't care what happened to any of them, and for me, that ruins a book.
The writing style wasn't necessarily bad - I think that if the author had stuck to one solid idea, this would have been rated higher for me. But unfortunately as it stands, I really didn't enjoy this.
December 28, 2023
I don’t think I’ve ever read a book quite like this, where the writing and atmosphere definitely worked for me but the actual plot and characterization was so bad. We’ve needed to leave behind the two sisters fighting over an asshole guy for several decades now, and the fact that this entire book stems from that is quite frankly so uninspired. Yet the writing is stunning and visceral.
So I’m just left confused.
So I’m just left confused.
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