What do you think?
Rate this book
Long Live the Pumpkin Queen
Revisit Shea Ernshaw's thrilling New York Times bestseller companion to Disney Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas with this official graphic novel adaptation. Jack and Sally are truly meant to be... or are they? Newly crowned, Sally is thrown into the role of Queen of Halloween Town. Cast into the spotlight and tasked with royal duties, Sally can't help but wonder if all she's done is swap her captivity under Dr. Finkelstein for a new cage. When Sally and Zero accidentally uncover a long-hidden doorway to an ancient realm called Dream Town, she unknowingly sets a chain of sinister events in motion, putting herself, and the future of Halloween Town, in jeopardy. Can Sally discover how to be true to herself and save Halloween Town, or will her future turn into her worst nightmare?With text adapted by Liz Marsham, and artwork by Alessio Petillo and Ismael Canales.
160 pages, Paperback
Published September 1, 2025
4 people are currently reading
20 people want to read
About the author
Shea Ernshaw
10 books5,452 followersShea Ernshaw is the #1 New York Times, USA Today, and Indie Bestselling author of THE WICKED DEEP, WINTERWOOD, A WILDERNESS OF STARS, LONG LIVE THE PUMPKIN QUEEN, and A HISTORY OF WILD PLACES. Her novels have repeatedly been chosen as Indie Next Picks and A HISTORY OF WILD PLACES was a Book of the Month selection. She is also the winner of the Oregon Book Award.
She often writes late, late, late into the night, enjoys dark woods, scary stories and moonlight on lakes.
You can connect with her here:
www.sheaernshaw.com.
www.instagram.com/sheaernshaw/
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 26, 2025
'I am now Sally Skellington.
The Pumpkin Queen.'
A beautifully illustrated and lyrical adaptation of Shea Ernshaw's novel, 'Long Live the Pumpkin Queen', a sequel to 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' and part of that franchise's ever-expanding universe and lore.
It is about Sally - the dear, dear ragdoll, queen, wife, daughter, diplomat, and witchy, crafty seamstress and scientist. This is strictly her story, stitched together to fit her character, her dimensions, and rightfully so, given her complexities. Plus she is my absolute, resolute favourite.
My thoughts on the 2025 graphic novel are more or less the same as in my review of the 2022 novel, which can be read here. It is a well written adventure and treat, even though, bizarrely, not that many of Halloween Town's gruesome and ghoulish residents are shown and depicted here, and no land besides Halloween Town and Dream Town receives much attention, and the samples of prose taken from the source material, however beautifully written, can get excessive for this mostly visual medium.
I have to add also that I adore Jack and Sally's relationship - they are one of my favourite Disney couples, and one of my favourite fictional couples period - and how the newlyweds are drawn together in this graphic novel, such as whenever they kiss, and those last triumphant kisses…they take my breath away.
Just like Jack does. I have always had a strange attraction to Jack Skellington that I will not explain myself for. I'm sure I'm not alone in my love for that lean, dark, gentlemanly, whimsical, winsome, curious, alluring, charismatic and personality-filled skeleton, however.
Ethereal, lush, wistful, exciting, introspective, self-reflective, poignant, shadowy and romantic, though simply adapted and not too potent - it certainly isn't too scary or macabre - the graphic novel version of 'Disney Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas: Long Live the Pumpkin Queen', by Liz Marsham, Ishmael Canales and Alessio Petilo, is a creative delight for Halloween, for all ages. Appropriately, it has a dark, dreamy mystique to it. I read it the day after I watched the original movie for the hundredth time, and it seems I can't get enough of either.
Happy Halloween 2025, everyone!
Long live Sally Skellington the Pumpkin Queen! Her own queen, unlike any other!
Final Score: 3.5/5
The Pumpkin Queen.'
A beautifully illustrated and lyrical adaptation of Shea Ernshaw's novel, 'Long Live the Pumpkin Queen', a sequel to 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' and part of that franchise's ever-expanding universe and lore.
It is about Sally - the dear, dear ragdoll, queen, wife, daughter, diplomat, and witchy, crafty seamstress and scientist. This is strictly her story, stitched together to fit her character, her dimensions, and rightfully so, given her complexities. Plus she is my absolute, resolute favourite.
My thoughts on the 2025 graphic novel are more or less the same as in my review of the 2022 novel, which can be read here. It is a well written adventure and treat, even though, bizarrely, not that many of Halloween Town's gruesome and ghoulish residents are shown and depicted here, and no land besides Halloween Town and Dream Town receives much attention, and the samples of prose taken from the source material, however beautifully written, can get excessive for this mostly visual medium.
I have to add also that I adore Jack and Sally's relationship - they are one of my favourite Disney couples, and one of my favourite fictional couples period - and how the newlyweds are drawn together in this graphic novel, such as whenever they kiss, and those last triumphant kisses…they take my breath away.
Just like Jack does. I have always had a strange attraction to Jack Skellington that I will not explain myself for. I'm sure I'm not alone in my love for that lean, dark, gentlemanly, whimsical, winsome, curious, alluring, charismatic and personality-filled skeleton, however.
Ethereal, lush, wistful, exciting, introspective, self-reflective, poignant, shadowy and romantic, though simply adapted and not too potent - it certainly isn't too scary or macabre - the graphic novel version of 'Disney Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas: Long Live the Pumpkin Queen', by Liz Marsham, Ishmael Canales and Alessio Petilo, is a creative delight for Halloween, for all ages. Appropriately, it has a dark, dreamy mystique to it. I read it the day after I watched the original movie for the hundredth time, and it seems I can't get enough of either.
Happy Halloween 2025, everyone!
Long live Sally Skellington the Pumpkin Queen! Her own queen, unlike any other!
Final Score: 3.5/5
September 21, 2025
The nightmare before Christmas is my all time favourite movie. I love all things related to it. This graphic novel took my appreciation for the movie even further. I felt like we didn’t get to see enough of Jack and Sally in the movie and although similar is to be said about long live the pumpkin queen we do get to see more of there relationship from Sally’s perspective. We can truly see how much she loves Jack everything she would sacrifice for him and how far her love would take her. Seeing Sally grow into herself more was amazing. The way she finds herself and explores everything she is leaves me waiting for more. Wanting to find out more about Sally but also explore the relationship she can Jack have.
December 4, 2025
Very cute, cozy spooky. This is not quite how I imagined Sally - the Sally in the movie is very sure of herself, escapes, even when she is punished she keeps going, she is very sure that Jack is right and does something about it. She has little choices but she takes them. Of course that Sally wouldn't have had that lovely journey and met her parents - I love this backstory by the way, very inventive while making sense - and that would be a shame.
October 3, 2025
The story is good and didn't miss any of the story points and the art was good look had the right feel.
November 28, 2025
I wanted to read the novel, and I am so happy to have found by chance this graphic version. It was very relevant to enjoy the story even more, as we get to see the other realms.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews