A huge thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Penguin Group Dutton for providing this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A darker twist on the story of the Nutcracker, focusing on toxic sister relationships.

I honestly didn’t know almost anything about the Nutcracker (my only exposure was literally Danny Gonzalez’s video on it, to be honest) so I can’t speak to any accuracy or where this story deviates from the original. However, I thought this story was easy to follow along, and even when things got significantly more fantastical - everything seemed to be set in reality to where it was believable.

Told from the perspective of one sister who was essentially “cursed” to be the dark twin (Natasha) to her sister’s “light,” (Clara) we follow as she grows up and see the cracks in her relationships due to the favoritism for her sister. Clara is seemingly able to float through life without a care in the world, while Natasha, as the “dark” sister, has to accept living in the shadows and being invisible.

This is the status quo that both live with, until one night, after the announcement of Clara’s betrothal where she is gifted a nutcracker. This nutcracker goes with Clara on a magical adventure to the land of the Sugar Plum Fairy, while Natasha is dragged along behind her into this world, and forced to follow in her sister’s footsteps. While Clara is dazzled by the light and beauty of this world, Natasha sees the facade of the illusion of the candy land, as well as the “fairy” that rules it.

Overcome by jealousy to her sister, Natasha makes a bargain with this false fairy - completely changing the trajectory of both sister’s lives in the process.

However, after causing ruin to each other’s lives, are the two sisters able to move past this and forgive one another? Or will they destroy both the real, and fantastical, worlds to take their revenge on one another?

I was surprised by the real-world historical fiction worldbuilding of this novel, as I wasn’t expecting such a real world connection to a seemingly fantastical story. However, I thought this book did a good job of combining the two, so that the magic of the Sugar Plum Fairy never seemed entirely impossible - even when in the “real” world.

This would be a good novel to read for anyone who likes darker fantasy retellings, as well as historical fiction and toxic sibling relationships. I was unsure until the very end how the story of the two sisters would conclude, and thought it was a very poignant ending with neither sister being truly innocent nor a true villain.