*I received a copy of this book digitally for free and I am leaving this honest review voluntarily*

Hello Fellow Readers,

Before I start getting into the nitty gritty of my review I will admit that I am not as familiar with the story of the Nutcracker as others might be, but despite this, I felt this was the perfect book to kick off this holiday season (even with it being as dark as it is). Johansen's writing was imaginative and beautiful and I very much enjoyed her how very descriptive she but not in a way that felt too much.

This book is very much focused on Natasha 'The Dark Sister' and the consequences of her actions throughout the book, she's not a very likable character but I don't think any of the characters in this was likable or meant to be liked. This was fine, considering the nature of the book. I did very much enjoy the first part of The Kingdom of Sweets but admittedly the middle of the book lost a lot of its steam. There were a lot of parts that seemed to drag on. The ending did pick up a bit but I am not sure if I liked it or not. 

There was also a lot of repetition about the twin sisters and how Natasha was Dark and Clara was light. Yes, I get that it's important to the plot to understand why Natasha and Clara are the way that they are, but you don't need to constantly remind me about it. 

Overall, a gothic fantasy retelling for those who need a bit of darkness in their holiday reads.