What do you think?
Rate this book
Winterbriar: A Nutcracker Retelling
Clara Sanchez's 26th Birthday and Winter Break is coming up, along with her friend group's annual pre-Christmas party and Secret Santa exchange. It's all nothing but good things. Or at least it should be. She's hiding something from everyone. Ten months ago, a fall during class diagnosed her with a degenerative disease that will end her ballet career before it even starts. After months of hiding bruises, fatigue and trembling limbs, she's decided to tell everyone after her Tio Drosslemeyer's party.
But on Christmas Eve, creatures from another realm attack and she falls into the fae realm.
The Winter Court, one of the four Faerie Realms that exist outside the mortal plane is where the usurper- Rudolph Ratkin-has taken over and draining all the magick within the realm.
He's collected pieces of the Starcore, the very creation magick that keeps the realm alive. Rudolph plans to use the Winter Solstice to end the Court and everyone still intertwined with its magick. With the cursed Prince Han, a friend and something more from another lifetime, her mouse Blossom, and the surviving members of the other clans - Clara has to stop him. Before the Winter Solstice arrives and all is lost.
But on Christmas Eve, creatures from another realm attack and she falls into the fae realm.
The Winter Court, one of the four Faerie Realms that exist outside the mortal plane is where the usurper- Rudolph Ratkin-has taken over and draining all the magick within the realm.
He's collected pieces of the Starcore, the very creation magick that keeps the realm alive. Rudolph plans to use the Winter Solstice to end the Court and everyone still intertwined with its magick. With the cursed Prince Han, a friend and something more from another lifetime, her mouse Blossom, and the surviving members of the other clans - Clara has to stop him. Before the Winter Solstice arrives and all is lost.
290 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 18, 2025
14 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 14, 2026
A mix of The Nutcracker Prince, Suspiria (all versions), and a splash of 90s isekai anime, Winterbriar is must for your December holiday read. We follow a Latina FMC who is attending a prestigious ballet school, but deals with chronic and physical pain that prevents her from her dreams of going center stage. A holiday party changes everything. A mix of horror that is reminiscent of a Dario Argento film, but never loosing whimsy and wonder of a Barbie fairy tale, Winterbriar takes the reader on a magickal journey to save the winter realm from complete annihilation. Our FMC is bold, vivid, and unafraid to be vulnerable. I also have to give kudos to the formatting of the physical version of the book because the spacing was very easy on my eyes to follow; I appreciate any print that has font and formatting that is easy for follow. A must read for the holidays!
January 15, 2026
Beautifully written! I’d recommend this to teens, young adults and adults alike! I like this nutcracker retelling. It had enough new and fresh ideas to keep it exciting! I’m glad she makes her main character strong but also weak and vulnerable. I would read more from this author!
Read
December 11, 2025Read and edited this book <3
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews