Midnight in Everwood

This book is EVERYTHING I wanted and more. I love retellings and anything comparable to The Nutcracker is my type of book. I grew up absolutely obsessed with the original story, so knew I had to read Midnight in Everwood as soon as I could.

Now, this book isn't just a pretty cover. That's saying something as the advanced edition is absolutely stunning beyond belief. However, Kuzniar has created such an inventive and immersive world I was entranced from the very first page.

I definitely recommend this book to EVERYONE!

This is a lovely book, but it just didn’t sparkle for me.

What I did love was the friendships. Marietta’s development throughout the story and I didn’t mind the romance even though I thought it just fine.

The magical world and all it’s descriptions should have been words after my own heart, but they were just too much. Every single thing had ten descriptors that then led to a further page more of saying how decadent everything was and it’s just too much for me. And that’s saying something!

I just didn’t fall enchanted but I can see why others would.

I’ve never read The Nutcracker but I am interested now! I’d love to then see how faithful this book is to the original story.

I loved the idea of this book, but it took almost 30% through to get to the more fantasy, magical aspect of the story, and it was dragging on.
The descriptions were nice, but too much for me, basically leaving me with no room to imagine things for myself. And the main character I found rather annoying. She is very independent and modern for a woman of her time, which is normally a good thing, but there was just something about how she went about doing things and speaking to people that kind of left me just not giving a damn about her. Eventually I decided that I just didn't want to continue. I wasn't enjoying the story much and was having to force myself to pick the book up and keep reading, which is not a good sign.
I really wanted to love this book, but sadly, it's just not for me.

Poor Marietta who wished she could be a ballerina but her family wanted her to marry well and so the chances of fulfilling her ambition was unlikely. She then met Dr Drosselmeier. a toymaker, who built a magical set for her to dance. It was a magical story and for it to be called "the Nutcracker for adults" was absolutely right. I thoroughly enjoyed my journey through this book.

What a gorgeous cover! Beautifully designed.
However, sadly for me the story was too convoluted. Marietta wants to be a ballerina. She does not want to follow her parents wishes, ie to marry Herr Drosselmeyer. From there it seems to go off into a fairy tale story, based of course on the ballet 'The Nutcracker'. Fantasy isnt my favourite genre, but there were some beautifully written descriptive parts of the book.Thank you NetGalley for a review copy.

Beautiful Christmas tale with ballet, magic and Enchanted Kingdom...

“If you do not cherish your dreams, you have forgotten how to live. Dreaming is an intrinsic part of human nature, on par with love and hate and hope.”
#MidnightInEverwood #MAKuzniar #HQ

Book 1/1

My rating: 4.5/5 GR: 3,95/5

My book review might be slightly biased, because it’s set in Nottingham and I truly love this city for its atmosphere, and it’s been my home for 7 years! The fact that author managed to bring Nottingham’s Edwardian Christmas feeling is probably the best part of this book.

Beware: A lot of food descriptions, you will end up salivating all over your book! 😀
Marietta Stelle is a ballerina, but growing and successing in society where women's fate has already been decided is not an easy task. She’s got a brother who gets involved in all of her adventures.
Mysterious neighbor arrives to their area. Nobody knows much about Dr Drosselmeier. He grows fond of Marietta and is determined to make her his wife. However, Marietta doesn’t want the fate her parents have planned. She wants to dance.
Marietta denies Drosselmeier and gets locked in the magical realm – Everwood. Which from the first sign she loves and it seems like a dream. King wants her to dance for him. Be careful what you wish for, sometimes things that seem like a dream might lead to your suffering.

I’m sure that everyone who loves vibes of England, Tchaikovsky, ballet and the tale of the Nutcracker will love this book. And it’s such a beautiful Christmas present!
The reason it’s not 5 st , I was slightly upset about captain Legat....

Described as a retelling of The Nutcracker, filled with enchanted toys, decadent balls, fierce feminine friendships and a forbidden romance, I started reading this with high hopes as it has been compared to The Night Circus which I loved. The beginning was very promising, the writing is lyrical and the descriptions enchanting however it failed to move on. The story just didn't engage me and I really struggled to continue reading.

This is, obviously, a very personal opinion and whereas the book was not for me that's not to say that other readers may not be swept away by the beauty of the prose.

Crackles with magic, enchantment and intrigue.

I loved the strength of Marietta Stelle as she grows to fight for what she believes in, to fight for herself.

Adored MA Kuznair's richly detailed, sumptuous world-building - a careful blend of magic with danger, sinister yet enchanting.

PS the descriptions of the food. Warning! This book will make you peckish!

Enter the magic of Everwood this autumn. A land of snow and sugar, magic and wonder; Everwood is enchanted beyond measure. But is all quite as wonderful as it seems?

M.A. Kuzniar brings us a spell-binding retelling of The Nutcracker, filled with enchanted toys, decadent balls, fierce feminine friendships and a forbidden romance.

In Nottingham, 1906, twenty-year-old Marietta Stelle dreams of being a dancer. However, the ballerina is set for her last dance once Christmas arrives, as her parents are determined she marry as she approaches her 21st birthday; and Marietta sees all her hopes and dreams disappearing before her eyes.

The arrival of Dr Drosselmeier, a mysterious new neighbour, however, heralds change for Marietta.

Dr Drosselmeier's arrival brings with him magic long lost in childhood back into Marietta's life, but Drosselmeier's magic is darker than Marietta could have imagined, and she finds herself transported into a new world in Everwood.

In scenes reminiscent of Narnia, Marietta steps into a grandfather clock at the stroke of midnight on Christmas Eve, and finds herself in a snow-covered forest.

Soon she discovers the town of Everwood, and with it comes a confectionery of wonders, and for me, it's where the book really begins to shine. Kuzniar brings us delightful descriptions and magical imagery of gingerbread homes, sugar snow, candy cane dwellings and marzipan cobblestones.

Marietta soon finds herself in danger in the forest, and after being rescued by
Captain Legat, leader of the King's Army, a bronze-haired and beautiful young man with butterscotch eyes, she is brought to the frozen sugar palace, where the decadence of the dancing and glittering gowns, miniature reindeer and delicious confectionery beguile her.

All is not as it seems, however, and Marietta soon discovers that King Gelum rules his kingdom with a reign of terror. He lives in luxury whilst he keeps his people oppressed, ill and starved. And his fascination with Marietta leaves her as a pet in a gilded prison with the fairy Dellara, whose words are as sharp as her teeth, and Pirlipata, a princess from another land. Together they must forge an alliance to win their freedom.

But danger lurks at every turn, and rebellion is in the air. Along the way, Marietta learns to fight for what she believes in, and she finds forbidden love with a certain butterscotch-eyed Captain.

Midnight in Everwood is the perfect book to curl up with on cold winter night's, especially with a sweet treat and a hot chocolate close at hand, as this book has the capacity to make the reader feel hungry with all the descriptions of marzipan scents, molten chocolate and gingerbread.

I must admit, I found the book a little difficult to get into at first. It was enjoyable, but felt quite slow, and I found it took quite a while to read it. However, once Marietta arrived in Everwood, I found myself captivated by the story and desperate to discover what would happen.

The themes of feminism and LGBTQ+ rights run throughout this book. Marietta is desperate to live her own life. She doesn't seek or desire to marry for the sake of societal expectations, and she wants to follow her heart and dance. Meanwhile, her brother, the delightful Frederick, has his own desires curtailed, as his love of art and his relationship with his best friend, and secret beau, Geoffrey, must be hidden. Ironically, it is when she is trapped in Everwood that Marietta discovers that life can be different and people can live, and love, however they want, without judgement from society. Obviously this book is set in another time, but it does serve as a reminder just how stifled some people were and the freedoms we have today. It's certainly thought-provoking.

Meanwhile, the friendship between Marietta, Dellara and Pirlipata was a delight, and as a romantic, I adored the development of the love between Marietta and Legat. My one quibble would be <spoiler>whilst this is a feminist tale, and I'm glad Marietta followed her heart to dance, as well as standing up to Dr Drosselmeier and her parents, I wish we could have had an epilogue maybe a few years in the future, where she found a door back to Everwood, and we saw her reunited with Legat. But that's the romantic in me!</spoiler>

If you want to feel the magic of the season, then Midnight in Everwood is the perfect book with which to do it. Four stars! Now I'm off in search of some marzipan!

Midnight in Everwood will be published on October 28th and is available for pre-order now.

Thanks to NetGalley and HQStories for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to netgalley and HQ for allowing me to read this delightful magical book, I was hoping to be swept away in this wintery book and I was not disappointed. I now eagerly await the finished copy to experience it all again.

Marietta wants to be a dancer for ballet, she is someone who unfortunately was born in the wrong time when her only expectation is to be a good girl and be married, she does not want this at all. She is strong independent and even now teaches us all that we need to follow our dreams.

I adored everwood and the tension that it gave and the captain has my heart and I am sure he will have many peoples heart as you read the book, perfect to read when you want to be swept away in a magical world where you find yourself in the darkest times.

Maria’s writing made me fall for the world where I could not put the book down I needed to know what was going to happen, so much so I stayed up with 4am to finish it and now I all the emotions and whimsy from this book, it makes me feel like I was swept into a of intrigued if you are looking for a magical nutcracker retelling/ reimagining look no further than this amazing book.

I wanted to enjoy this book and found the cover very appealing. Unfortunately I found myself skim reading as I didn’t enjoy the book very much at all. I really didn’t care what happened to the characters and couldn’t engage with the story.

Although I would not typically be drawn in by novels like this, I really enjoyed this retelling of The Nutcracker.

Set in the winter, the book follows Marietta Stelle, a young woman enamoured by dance who longs to be a ballerina but bound by duty to her society family to marry in the New Year. However, when handsome and mysterious toymaker Dr Drosselmeier moves into town, Marietta's life becomes infused with magic, though all is not as it seems...

Although the writing definitely toes the line between luxurious and purple prose, the descriptions make this book sparkle - they are lush, evocative, and delicate as spun sugar.

Midnight in Everwood will be a delightful Christmas-time read.

This book is everything I ever wished for and more. I love ballet, strong female characters and magic and this novel blends all of those elements perfectly. Highly visual, the scenes appear fully formed in the mind from the start but they become technocolour when Marietta arrives at Everwood. The words capture the musicality and gracefulness of ballet and The Nutcracker ballet, from which is based takes on a darker, haunting and thrilling form with powerful characters to remember and an unforgettable story to be cherished and reread over and over. I can't wait for a physical copy to hold and have on my forever bookshelf.

Wow! Such a wonderful book. We all know the story of The Nutcracker and this is the first time that I have ever seen a book based upon the tale. There are so many elements that are recognisable from the story, but they have been given an delicious twist.
The story is set in Nottingham in the early 1900s when times are beginning to change for women - there is a reference to the suffragettes within the narrative. Marietta is the daughter of the Baron and is expected to do her duty and make a good marriage. However, Marietta's passion is ballet and her father has indulged her to allow her to attend weekly lessons but at Christmas on her 21st birthday - he has decreed that she will dance no more.
The house opposite the family home gains a new occupant, an inventor - Dr Drosselmeier (think Clara's godfather in the original story) He delights the family with his magical gifts - even a nutcracker -and becomes enamoured of Marietta to the delight of her parents, telling her that he will create a magical set in the family ballroom for Marietta's final performance - the ballet Sleeping Beauty in which she will be dancing the principal part. Marrietta discovers that Drosselmeier's 'magic' is darker than she believed and she finds herself walking off the set into a magical, sugar frosted land where a sugar palace is full of secrets and she must find a way of returning home.
I loved this, the magical landscape that Marietta finds herself in is so sumptuous and delectable. This is a sugar coated land where even the elaborate gowns worn by the guests in the palace shimmer and sparkle, covered with scenes that change. I was totally invested in the characters and found that I cared about Marietta and the dangers that surrounded her in this frosted land where nothing was quite as it seemed.
This has everything, magic, adventure, a villain, heroes, friendship, secrets, ... I could go on but I don't want to give spoilers away. Marietta is a young woman who is wanting to gain her independence and to step away from the path that her parents are wanting to force her down and you are with her, crossing your fingers and toes as she plots to return home.
This is a perfect book for wintery evenings curled up under a blanket with a mug of foaming hot chocolate.

An adult retelling of The Nutcracker, Midnight in Everwood follows passionate ballerina Marietta as she enters a magic world for her final performance before her parents force her to give up dancing.

The cover of this book is stunning, and I was so excited to fall into the world! Unfortunately, however, I found it a bit difficult to get through. The prose is very flowery and I found it difficult to connect to the story as a result, since it didn't hold my attention. Only a personal preference though - I'm sure there are others who will love it!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

**thanks to netgalley and publisher for the copy

This story screamed magical retelling to me when I first requested it and it had been although the story isn’t my usual read I enjoyed it from beginning to end. It was a fast read and chapters a good length and the story was well written.
I like that it was written in the past and manage to transported me there and I loved it being based in Nottingham
Although my knowledge on the nutcracker is limited I feel like I know more about the original story now and I can’t wait to read more from this new author

3.5stars

An enjoyably enchanting reimagining of The Nutcracker, partially set in Edwardian era Nottingham and filled with dazzling settings and magically festive delights—Christmas can’t come soon enough!

Marietta Stelle longs to be a ballerina, but her dancing days are almost will be over after Christmas (which is to be her last performance.) At the wishes of her family, Marietta must give up ballet (the most treasured thing in her life), marry a suitable husband and take up her place in society.

But the arrival of the mysteriously handsome toy maker (and new neighbour) Dr.Drosselmeier, heralds the arrival of magic and wonders that Marietta has never seen before. Though, Drosselmeier’s magic is far Darker than she could ever have anticipated....

When the toy maker constructs an elaborate theatre set— worthy of her final performance, Marietta discovers it carries a magic of it own. For when the clock strikes midnight, Marietta finds herself in an unfamiliar land of snow topped trees and frozen sugar palaces filled with sugar spun webs of lies and secrets—though the sweetness only seeks the mask the kingdoms’ decay under the rule of a tyrant.

Midnight in Everwood was such an enjoyable and charmingly inventive take on a well loved classic, though I do have to warn the deliciously tempting descriptions will leave you craving the sugar laden comfort foods of Christmas.

The writing had a lyrical quality that was really enjoyable and the whimsy of Everwood was exceptional, if you loved the clever blend of historical fiction and magical realism in The Night Circus then I’m pretty sure you’ll love this.

The characters were very nicely written, and I loved the strength Marietta showed when faced with a troubling situation.Marietta’s unrelenting naïveté in the first half of the book, however was a little annoying.

The pace was spot on and the plot undeniably compelling, I just couldn’t put it down-the only thing that hindered my enjoyment was the continuous ballet jargon (the names of particular moves,etc.), I know absolutely nothing about ballet besides how incredibly difficult it is and how elegant it looks,so I couldn’t really picture what the dances mentioned or decribed looked like without having to search online. Though,this isn’t really a problem with the book and more with my lack of ballet knowledge.

Overall a really enjoyable and fun read, I’d definitely recommend to fans of Erin Morgenstern, Stephanie Garber and The Nutcracker.

And also a massive thank you to HQ and NetGalley for the digital ARC.

As soon as I saw the cover for this book I juat knew I had to read it. I love fantasy stories and was completely drawn to this. It is stunning!

The story was not at all what I expected. Although, having never read The Nutcracker, I didn't really know what to expect. The world of Everwood was a different and 'sweet' surprise. It really does sound magical!

I really enjoyed this book and would definitely read more by the author.

Midnight in Everwood
by M.A. Kuzniar
61683182
Julie Kelly's review Aug 04, 2021 · edit
really liked it

I will reread this in the Winter. I can imagine curling up in a cosy armchair in front of a roaring fire with this festive novel in one hand and a hot chocolate in the other. A retelling of The Nutcracker set in 1906 in Nottingham, this is a sumptuous tale blending fantasy, feminism, and gothic romance. What’s not to like?!

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC. My views are unbiased and independent.

🌟🌟🌟🌟

Midnight in Everwood was an utter delight from page 1. Admittedly, I was relatively unfamiliar with the Nutcracker so was unsure how the original plot would weave its way into the retelling, but Kuzniar seamlessly wove the story into Edwardian England. The comparison titles of The Night Circus, Caraval and The Bear & the Nightingale were spot on. This book combined the lyrical, atmospheric writing of Erin Morgenstern, the whimsical, tricky magic of Caraval and the headstrong, confident MC of the Bear & the Nightingale. Needless to say Midnight in Everwood was nuanced mix of gorgeous description and compelling plot. Fast paced, intriguing and mysterious, I fell in love with determined Marietta and her love of dancing. She quickly forms an unbreakable friendship with her two female companions in Everwood and their relationship quickly became one of my favourite parts. Kuzniar is a master of visceral, beautiful prose so distinct I felt like I was in Everwood right alongside Marietta, tasting the sugary confections and admiring the artful dresses. Midnight in Everwood has been one of my favourite reads this year and I’ll can’t wait to own a hard copy of my own. Would highly recommend for fans of whimsical world building, atmospheric writing and compelling characters. Five stars!