This book deserves more than the three stars I’ve given it and I feel like I have to explain the reason for this score.

I took one star off for the first quarter of the book. I felt like the author just wanted to right about Everwood and the route to get there wasn’t important. As soon as we arrived in Everwood, the writing changed and I started to really enjoy the book. The reason for dropping another start is completely personal. I have never read ‘The Nutcracker’ and I feel like you need to, in order to really understand the underlying themes and nuances of this book. I felt like I was always reading above the surface and never getting to know the characters on a deeper level.

I loved being within the magical world of Everwood. Honestly, it is a pretty good book. As I’ve said above, it starts off slow but as soon as Marietta arrives in Everwood things pick up. The characters aren’t very well-rounded, but this is probably because I’ve not read ‘The Nutcracker’ and didn’t have any preconceived ideas to refer back to. Marietta and Delara were my favourite characters. I kind of want a sequel with the sisterhood exploring different worlds; travelling pants style.

“Yet when th0se nights were at their bleakest, those twin pillars stood firm and unyielding, the two women framing Marietta’s life into something she could tolerate.”

In the end, I’m a little disappointed and would only really recommend this book to people who have already read and love ‘The Nutcracker.’

I thoroughly enjoyed the style of descriptive writing in this book. The author can certainly write with flourish. However, I can’t say I enjoyed the way the storyline developed and it didn’t captivate my interest as I had expected it would. The pace is altogether too slow for me. It just wasn’t a book I enjoyed much.

Midnight in Everwood is simply divine. A fairy tale for grown ups, full of magic, sparkle and fierce women - I loved that!

Marietta has a passion for ballet and longs to pursue it professionally. But her parents are determined to marry her off, and when Dr Drosselmeier becomes their new neighbour, it seems a match may have been made. However, there is something off about him, and Marietta is determined to reject his proposal.

On Christmas Eve, she is exploring the set for her performance of Sleeping Beauty - a set built by Drosselmeier. As the clock strikes midnight and she attempts to escape his advances, she finds herself transported to another world. A world filled with gingerbread houses and marzipan streets. A gleaming palace of ice and sugar that seems magnificent. But behind its vanilla scented facade lies dark magic and she becomes entrapped by the evil King.

Forming an alliance with Pirilipata and Dellara, they conspire to escape their gilded cage, and with a little help from the handsome Captain Legat, their plan is set in motion.

Absolutely delightful to read and to be transported to a land that is filled with sugary filled treats. A real festive sparkler.

I must confess that I have never read the original Nutcracker, but I fell in love with the ballet years ago, and because of this, I was so excited to read this reimagining. It was everything I hoped it would be and more – just pure Christmassy wonder. M.A. Kuzniar’s writing made me feel like a child again, as I was swept away by the magical world of Drosselmeier’s creation.

Marietta is a character who is easy to fall in love with, and I adored her determination to follow her dreams and loyalty to her new friends. In Drosselmeier, we are gifted a character who is mysterious and chilling and yet absolutely captivating and wondrous. I think I would have found it impossible not to fall for his charms in Marietta’s shoes.

Kuzniar’s writing is wonderfully descriptive, and I was utterly captivated. The world that Marietta is drawn into is so delightful on the surface that it makes King Gelum’s cruelty quite startling. While reading Midnight in Everwood, I found the real world just melted away, and it was a real struggle to drag myself back to it when annoying things like the need to eat interrupted my reading.

I adore the ballet and wasn’t sure how this would translate but the author has captured the very essence of it and I could almost hear the music as I read. I know this book will become part of my Christmas reading ritual for years to come!

‘Midnight in Everwood’ is the perfect book to read around Christmas time. It has the perfect blend of magic, adventure and Christmas spirit. This book take place in Nottingham in 1906 and follows Marietta who is passionate about ballet and dreams to dance and achieve her goals. Unfortunately, she is limited by the social constraints of her time and her gender. Her parents expect her to give up dancing and marry. Their plans seem to gather speed when a new neighbour moves in and he is deemed to be the perfect match for her. Marietta is not keen on following through with their plans and she rebels. She is a strong character who knows what she wants and will fight for it.
The writing in this book is magical and it helped create strong visuals while reading. The descriptions of the dresses people wore, both in Nottingham and in Everwood, are exquisite. I also loved how well and aptly the world building was achieved in Everwood and the food descriptions were simply stunning. I found myself craving chocolate and pastries while reading.
This book is simply beautiful: plot, writing and character development.

There’s nothing Marietta Stelle loves more than ballet, but after Christmas, her dreams will be over as she is obligated to take her place in Edwardian society. While she is chafing against such suffocating traditions, a mysterious man purchases the neighbouring townhouse. Dr Drosselmeier is a charming but calculating figure who wins over the rest of the Stelle family with his enchanting toys and wondrous mechanisms. This part of the story is quite accurate. Also, I like that it takes place in Nottingham and the descriptions are perfect for the time and place.

When Drosselmeier constructs an elaborate set for Marietta’s final ballet performance, she discovers it carries a magic all of its own. On the stroke of midnight on Christmas Eve, she is transported to a snowy forest, where she encounters danger at every turn: ice giants, shadow goblins and the shrieking mist all lurk amidst the firs and frozen waterfalls and ice cliffs. After being rescued by the butterscotch-eyed captain of the king’s guard, she is escorted to the frozen sugar palace. At once, Marietta is enchanted by this glittering world of glamorous gowns, gingerbread houses, miniature reindeer and the most delicious confectionary. But all is not as it seems.

The setting is absolutely beautiful and so perfect for the festive season. I loved reading this during Christmas time. The atmosphere is perfect and the plot is well balanced. My favourite part was the character development: Marietta changed to much during the book and I really liked her at the end. Also, she encountered some awesome women in Everwood and I really like all of them, they are great examples. I am happy I read the book for the incredible women in it.

Also, there is a little bit of romance, but the ending was so new and refreshing! I have never read a book with this type of ending! 10/10 for it.

I really liked this take on the Nutcracker ballet, the characters were delightful and it was definitely a christmassy read.

I’ll start by saying I never really knew the story of The Nutcracker properly, the most I had probably seen or known was from Mickeys Once Upon a Christmas! So I was really excited for this book. I bought it a few weeks ago and really felt in a Christmas mood reading it. Also, I bought an amazing Waterstones exclusive copy, and it has the most gorgeous spredges. I also had it approved on Netgalley so thank you to HQ and Netgalley for the advanced e-arc.

5 stars from me. This book was fabulous and so magical. I loved the descriptions of Everwood. The gingerbread houses, the smells and scents people and things gave off, the magic was found everywhere. The story was a great retelling (if I can say that without having read the original), and I loved Marietta. She was fearless, and strong and brave, and I loved how she stood for what she believed in. Now Drosselmeier was awful, but I loved his character! Ms Kuzniar has written him brilliantly, he is so evil, and the scene in the ballroom with the clock was amazing, it had me on edge. But when Marietta was transported to Everwood, wow it was just captivating.

I think everyone would love this book, it’s full of magic, beauty, sorrow and happiness. Give it a read… you know you want to!

I loved this book and it’s magic. Set in my home town of Nottingham,
I was griped from the first page.

Marietta Stelle has big dreams of being a ballerina but expectations are that she will marry.
The arrival of a mysterious toymaker, Dr Drosselmeier, starts a magical journey.

As the clock chimes midnight, Marietta finds herself transported from her family’s ballroom to a frozen sugar palace, silent with secrets, in a forest of snow-topped fir trees. She must find a way to return home before she’s trapped in Everwood’s enchanting grip forever.

The beautiful, magical world just pulls you in. A perfect winter read.

I want to start by saying the descriptions in this are incredible. The world building is exquisite. But that’s really all there is unfortunately. The characters are one dimensional and the actual plot was slow paced and lacking. It felt like it took an age to actually get to Everwood and even then it didn’t pick up in pace. For something that’s only 300ish pages I would usually fly through but it’s been a hard slog and I was avoiding picking it up as it just wasn’t clicking. Unfortunately this just wasn’t for me.

2.5

I didn't know what to expect when I received this book, other than that it would be a perfect wintery read, it was an adult retelling of The Nutcracker and the cover is absolutely stunning. The world of Everwood was magical, vivid and atmospheric, which immersed me in the story and was one of the strengths, as was the whimsical writing. However, at times, the expressive prose was personally too much for me and repetitive when I wanted more depth. I also couldn't connect with any of the characters because I found them a little too surface layer and I wanted more complexity and deeper characterisation to flesh them out. The conclusion was quick and ultimately anti-climatic.

While there were great aspects to this story, overall it wasn't for me. However, I do think that A Midnight in Everwood will appeal to other people who will be swept up in the world of Everwood.

Thank you to Netgalley and HQ for a copy in exchange for a honest review.

Festive, whimsical and filled with lavish descriptions of delectable confectionery that made me crave sugary goodness like never before, Midnight in Everwood is a delight from start to finish.

This retelling of The Nutcracker has everything it needs to craft a captivating tale of adventure, love, self-discovery and independence. As a disclaimer, I should say: I haven't read the original (yet!), though I intend to remedy that ASAP, but I saw the ballet a few years ago right around Christmas-time and remember walking out absolutely enchanted by it. I was delighted to find the same feeling while reading Midnight in Everwood, which included some of the well-known elements of the tale while including some very original new developments and nuance.

Marietta, the protagonist, was definitely the star and I loved watching her grow through her experiences in Everwood, learning from those she meets there. She is passionate about her dance and willing to fight for what she believes in, and even though at times she appeared somewhat irrational and unnecessarily stubborn, I loved seeing her mature without losing her fire. I particularly appreciated how the romantic element developed and was weaved in delicately, without overpowering the main story and, most importantly, without Marietta changing herself and her dreams for it.

The rest of the cast is beautifully varied and colourful, making it easy to empathise with the more positive ones and fully hate the villains. I was especially fond of the female friendships that developed and how those characters evolved.

The setting deserves a special mention, as thanks to the vivid descriptions it almost takes life, between gorgeous dresses, sumptuous meals and frosty forests. It's also a world where not everything is as it seems, and I loved slowly unpeeling the layers to get to the truth with Marietta. My only issue with this was that at times the descriptions were slightly too rich and detailed, and this sometimes didn't really feel like it fit in with what was happening and slowed the pace. This is entirely personal preference though, and it absolutely didn't ruin my enjoyment of the book overall.

Midnight in Everwood is a gorgeous, masterfully crafted tale giving new life to a Christmas classic, and one that I'll look forward to revisiting in Christmases yet to come. Best enjoyed while sipping hot chocolate underneath a comfy blanket.

Beautifully atmospheric and wonderous, unfortunately I just could not get on board with the writing style for this one. It's incredibly descriptive, to the point of over exaggerating every scene, and as a result my mind just could not follow the story. The plot is also very slow, to the detriment of my enjoyment. By the time the story picks up and we actually reach Everwood I'd lost all interest in Marietta, and I feel like we never really scratch the surface oh who she is as a person beyond her love of ballet.

So much promise, and I love the concept, but this was too stylised and descriptive for somone like me.

I will admit I nearly NDF this one at about 30% but I felt like that was a bit early and I am glad I carried on. The beginning is a bit slow and there are too many descriptions of the food and lavish clothes and home etc. That does slightly carry on throughout the book but once the action kicks in it becomes a bit more balanced although there was still times where I found myself skimming paragraphs about the sugar palace and the food etc to get to the nitty gritty action of the plot.

Once she went through the Grandfather clock though things definitely got a lot more interesting and I will admit I was hooked at this point and read the rest of the book in like 2 days because I wanted to know what was going to happen. However the ending ended up being a little bit flat and unmemorable.

I have given this book 3 stars but I would say it is 3 and half star read

I really loved this story, the take on the Nutcracker, which is a ballet i love to...Loved the characters in the book they way the story was told, just eautiful especially to read before Christmas

The Nutcracker has always been a favourite of mine so I was very excited to read this retelling!

Midnight in Everwood was the perfect read to get me into the Christmas spirit! It started off a little slow and It took me a few chapters to adjust to the writing style, it was a touch too flowery for my taste at times, but I soon got totally swept away in the magic and wonder of the world building and decadent descriptions.

This story really captures the imagination with plenty of ballet, a creepy villain and a touch of romance and found family which I really loved.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a brilliant concept. However it failed to keep my attention. I dnf’d about 100 pages in and I do believe I’ll pick it up again sometime soon. I think a physical copy will be easier to read. So for the moment I’ve rated it 3 stars and will change the rating in the future.

This was a lovely retelling of The Nutcracker. As a dancer, I adored the balletic references and exploration of the ballet within the story and through the main character. I hoped I would love it, but it did fall a little flat in places. I think that was because I adore The Nutcracker and that occasionally made it a little more difficult to separate from this interpretation.

I adored the setting and magic and hated Drosselmeir, which was easily accomplished with how he had been written.

This was a perfect winter read, I really enjoyed it.

I knew this story would be a winter dream, but I was blown away by how atmospheric Everwood was. Every description as tangible as the next, inviting my senses to see, smell and taste the sweets and spices associated with Christmas. From gingerbread to sugar mice, to marzipan, my sweet tooth was in heaven. Even the ballet scenes painted pictures in my mind, despite me having no experience with dance. I spent time searching up the ballet terms as they were dotted throughout, and I was captivated by the art Marietta portrayed.

But of course, Midnight in Everwood does more than make you hungry. As a retelling of the nutcracker, I think M. A Kuzniar captured the characters, motivation and storyline perfectly. Yes, I do wish there was more of a romance between Marietta and the captain, but that was never the main purpose of the story. Marietta is a modern woman in an oppressive time, so she feels lost, but Everwood gives her the strength, friendship and knowledge needed to allow her to follow her dreams and desires. As a strong, female protagonist, Marietta inspires us all to stand up for ourselves, refusing to be knocked down.

I cannot express how much I loved this book, in fact it may be my favourite book of the year. It wasn’t a perfect story, it did have flaws, but everything does. For what this book is, it is just such a purely enjoyable, delectable story that I will always keep in my heart.

At first I really struggled getting into this book, the setting, the narrative and the characters made it extremely difficult for me to get lost in the story. Then about 15% in Marietta got introduced to Everwood then I have to say I was in love. I got lost in the story and I just didn’t want it to end. Also the descriptions of everwood were just mouth watering and I found myself craving all different chocolates and desserts so thanks for that. I will definitely be recommending this book to everyone