This book has one of the most beautiful covers I've ever seen. When I found out it was a 'retelling' of the classic story, The Nutcracker, I really wanted to read it. However, it wasn't quite the romantic magical fairy tale I was hoping for.

Midnight in Everwood is set in Nottingham in 1906. Marietta Stelle dreams of becoming a professional ballerina but, as her parents are well-to-do, she is expected to have an arranged marriage to a man of equal status. Her new neighbour, the creepy Dr Drosselmeier, has impressed her family with his gifts of 'magical' clockwork toys; now he's built a stunning set for Marietta's last ballet performance on Christmas Eve. As the grandfather clock strikes midnight, Marietta hides from Dr Drosselmeier inside, only to find herself in a winter wonderland...

This is one of those 'perfectly good book but totally wrong reader' scenarios. From the cover, I was expecting a romantic fairy tale retelling of The Nutcracker, in the same way that Naomi Novik's Spinning Silver was a retelling of Rumpelstiltskin. However, while Midnight in Everwood does have elements of The Nutcracker, it is not a retelling but more 'inspired by'. There are also elements of other well-known stories such as The Red Shoes, Alice in Wonderland and The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe.

The first third of the story is about Marietta's life in Nottingham, showing how privileged she is (I loved the descriptions of her fabulous gowns!) but how she is also trapped by that privilege. Her life has been planned out for her by her parents and will be continued by her husband. As much as she rebels against this with her ballet lessons (considered shocking for an upper-class Edwardian girl) she is quite naïve. When she arrives in Everwood her first thought is to relish her freedom, ignoring the fact that she might be walking into a pretty trap. Marietta has many hard lessons to learn about family, friendship, love and sacrifice before she can earn her own happy ending.

Midnight in Everwood would suit anyone who loves ballet and historical novels about women fighting for their right to lead the independent life they want. It's not quite the magical fantasy the cover suggests, despite the luscious descriptions of the sweets in Everwood. I would have preferred more fairy tale magic, more romance, and an ending more in keeping with the original ballet, but the story is still worth a solid four stars.



Thank you to M.A. Kuzniar and HQ for my copy of this book, which I requested from NetGalley and reviewed voluntarily.

Utterly enchanting.

This is a retelling of The Nutcracker I believe (I’ve not read it, only watched the ballet I forget how many times..), and it absolutely enchanted me, it’s a perfect read as the weather turns colder, thoughts turn to snow, hot chocolate, etc, etc.

The scene setting is delectable, the writing conjures up scents that had me heading for the sweet cupboard, the story is romantic, cruel, full of friendship, and a dose of evil of course.

This story absolutely enchanted me, it really is the only description for it.

My thanks to Netgalley and HQ for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review

Nottingham, 1906 see Marietta Stelle about to cast caution to the wind & audition for an opportunity to train as a ballerina. Her parents have other plans & want her to give up her dreams & marry, & when the mysterious Dr Drosselmeier, moves into a neighbouring house, they are quick to invite him to dine at their home. Their plan works & Drosselmeier becomes infatuated with Marietta, but she feels that there is something odd about the man. His work as toymaker is unparalleled, filled with wonder & magic, but the man himself has a darkness around him. Marietta finds out how dark when he offers to create a set for her final ballet performance on Christmas Eve, & he transports her to a strange land - Everwood has magic, buildings made of icing sugar & candy, but it is ruled by a tyrant. Can Marietta escape & return home whilst evading Drosselmeier's plans for her future?

If I had to describe the writing style of the book, I'd say sumptuous with every page brimming with delicious descriptions. It's a style that's not for everyone but I found it an enchanting world, one that it was easy to lose oneself in reading about. Marietta was an intriguing main character who shows the reader the constraints that her society put on women (needing a chaperone to venture out shopping or to her ballet practice for example), & her feminist ideals of being able to choose for herself, although she did stray towards being too headstrong at times, & brought trouble upon herself where a milder answer would have sufficed. I initially did not know it was a retelling of The Nutcracker, but after a quick read up about it, I could see where the author was coming from. I would have awarded this the maximum 5 stars if it weren't for a couple of things; one where Marietta puts others at risk to see the person she has fallen for, & two, the ending seemed a little too quick & easy compared to the rest of the book, therefore, I rated it 4.5 stars (rounded up to 5).

Thanks to NetGalley & publishers, HQ, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

A Nutcracker retelling?... Ummmm, yes please.

This wonderful novel is set in 1906’s England and follows Marietta Stelle, a young adult who is passionate about ballet but is about to be forced to give it up by her family when she turns 21, because they want her to get married and be the loveable wife any husband would be lucky to get, and that does not involve hours spent at the ballet studio. Enter the creepy Dr Drosselmeier, and Marietta finds herself sucked into another realm bursting with sugar, ice and people warning her to leave, does she listen? No she does not. She ends up as a guest of the King and finds herself in his palace, which is said to be inescapable… good luck girl, good luck.

I got through this gorgeous retelling very quickly because I just couldn’t put it down, the author did such an amazing job at staying true to the original tale of the Nutcracker while simultaneously recreating it is such a beautiful and magical way, which is not an easy feat to achieve. The world building and descriptions were absolutely incredible, I mean at one point my mouth was actually watering while I was reading the food descriptions, holy cow they actually made me hungry. I wanted to dive into the pages of this book and experience the magic and atmosphere for myself because it was just so beautifully written. @cosyreads is a very talented writer and I can’t wait to see where she goes from here. Definitely an author to watch!

Thank you so much to @hqstories for gifting me an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book. It was slow to start but once the story went to Everwood it was very magical.

A bit over the top at times but that’s what fairy tales are all about.

Thank you to #NetGalley for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review #MidnightAtEverwood

Midnight in Everwood is a magical novel that is filled with wonder and magic. It is bursting with such amazing descriptions that suck you right into the world. The descriptions of a world filled with sweets and confection made me hungry and made of a lush world full of fantasy with an incredible plot to keep you reading on. I felt that the characters were well-rounded and likable throughout this book and I really wanted what was best for the main protagonist Marietta. It was super fast-paced and when I picked it up I felt that I could get through loads without realizing it. It was the perfect winter read to get you right in the mood for Christmas and something I highly recommend reading for the Christmas season.

An enchanting and atmospheric tale with characters to root for, an intriguing plot, and sparkling prose. I really enjoyed immersing myself in Edwardian Nottingham and thought Maria Kuzniar conjured up the worlds - both historical and magical - in a lovely way.

A retelling of The Nutcracker in 1906. Marietta is weighted down with family duty when she just wants to follow her love of ballet. A winter wonderland that will sweep you off your feet. Highly recommend.

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Midnight In Everwood follows Marietta a ballerina who enters a magic world for her final performance before she is forced to give up her passion to marry a man by her parents. The story is a retelling of The Nutcracker. I have to admit I’ve never read The Nutcracker before, but in all honestly I feel it doesn’t really matter whether you have read it or not as the story stands on its own.

What first drew me to this book was definitely the stunning front cover and a promise of a new magical world and characters that I would fall in love with. And although I got all of these things I did find this to be a little difficult to get through I found the storyline to be slow and a little repetitive in places.

The first half of the book is much slower and does pick up but not until we are introduced to the magical world. It’s not until about the halfway point when we actually get introduced to the magical world, which for me was a little too long to have to wait. Although the magical world is well done, I did feel like something was missing, but I can’t quite pinpoint what was missing for me.

Although I wasn’t feeling the slow burn romance trope between the characters overall I thought most of them were well written. There were a few that felt a little underdeveloped and a little predictable and these are the ones I struggled to like.

I was really hoping to love this book, but it didn’t quite meet my expectations. Don’t get me wrong Midnight In Everwood is not a bad book at all it just didn’t blow me away!!

If you’re planning to read this book I would say definitely give it a go as you never know you may absolutely fall in love with it like so many others!!

I would like to thank the publisher HQ and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

If you want to read a story in which you can lose yourself, this is one to read. It was so full of descriptions which were so magical and to imagine.

How the story was told was fabulous and it felt like you could touch and eat sugar coated palace and village of Everwood.

The relationship between Marietta, Pirlipata and Dellara was lovely, characters so different but together they were strong.

Their empowerment, I felt was a big part of this adventure, a delight to read.

Highly recommend this book.

For fans of "The Toymakers" and "The Night Circus" (two of my favourites!), this book does NOT disappoint! It has a wonderful atmospheric quality and it's a cleverly told winter's tale. Absolutely enjoyed this, especially with copious amounts of tea. Thank you so much for this ARC!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

The premise of this book was intriguing - a vaguely feminist retelling of the Nutcracker based in Nottingham (I grew up in the East Midlands, and it's not often you see Nottingham featured in literature). I thought the main message of the narrative was good - believe in yourself and don't let other people stop you from achieving your dreams. However, I felt the two pieces of the story didn't mesh together all that well, and I found myself wishing the Everwood section was just the whole story. That aside, I did enjoy most of the plot and particularly the Everwood characters.

If I could give Midnight in Everwood infinite stars I would. It’s a magical, sweeping fantasy with a fierce dreamer in Marietta. It is dark and atmospheric and full delicious descriptions of hot chocolate. You feel the struggle of societal expectations clash with ballerina dreams. The villain is every inch the vile nightmare you expect and yet, I still felt chills every time he spoke. I loved the romance between her and Lestatand the ending made me hopeful.

Thank you so much for the ARC.

A retelling of The Nutcracker with a gothic, haunting twist, this is a very different type of christmas story that transports you to a world like no other.

I will say that it took a couple of chapter for me to get invested but as the book goes on, the pace picks up and I was IN. The pace of this story is slow but oh so rewarding. If you're the kind of reader that finds extensive detail boring or tedious, this isn't for you. A lot of the book is absolutely saturated with dance, fashion and pure luxury.

The story is beautifully woven and full of decadent, wondrous descriptions that are utterly captivating. I got myself so lost in the story and the magic of it all. The author has given a lot of time and attention to world building and scene setting as well as filling the book with many ballet terms and luscious, opulent imagery.

If you are a fan of small intimate gestures, the lingering, a slow burn forbidden romance and particularly HANDS (a la Mr Darcy - if you know, you know) then this is right up your street but you have to stick with it because this comes later.

I feel like this story really encapsulates the energy and feel of the original story. The intensity, the jeopardy and the romance. I loved it.

Marietta has only one dream- to become a ballet dancer. However, having being brought up in a conservative, patriarchal family, she only has one destiny and that is to be a wife. Her life is almost like a 'gilded cage': she has been given everything but freedom.

Her fate is sealed when the mysterious doctor Drosselmeier moves into the neighbourhood and casts his magical spell onto Marietta's family. Marietta's dancing days are numbered. Once Christmas is over, she would be married and take her place in society.

Not according to Marietta- she has no intentions to give up her independence and share the world with a man she feels nothing towards. What is more, she knows that there is something strange and dark about him, which her family cannot see as they are so spellbound by him.

When they are finally on their own, after Christmas Eve dinner, Marietta refutes him, and trying to escape, she gets locked in a Grandfather Clock- what is to be a centerpiece Drosselmeier conjured for her role as Aurora.

In a true fairytale fashion, as soon as the clock chimes midnight, Marietta finds herself stumbling upon snow-topped trees, a sugar palace, and the world of Everwood that cannot be real. She soon gets noticed by the nefarious king and is forced to dance for him becoming his plaything. Drosselmeier's dark magic still haunts her. However, Marietta's strong, independent spirit, using the help of the King's most trusted, starts constructing a cunning plan to deceive him.

#midnightineverwood is like a fairytale for adults, written in a sophisticated language that abounds with emotion, heart fluttering from beginning to end, that will teleport you into a world hard to leave behind and make you hope for A Christmas Carol style ending.

Thank you @netgalley, author and publisher, for an advanced copy of this novel.

A different kind of Christmas story. This retelling of The Nutcracker was imaginative and intriguing. I felt it was written for a teen/ young adult age group rather than adult fiction . I found this book slow to get into but rewarding with perseverance. An enjoyable read with some great imaginative touches
Thank you to Netgalley, and HQ books for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review

This was one of my most anticipated reads of the year but unfortunately it fell really flat for me. Mainly because of the writing style. The story itself was full of good ideas and a new twist on the nutcracker story but it was so flowery, so overly descriptive, so excessively full of metaphors and similies that it distracted from the story.

Magical, enchanting, and sure to get you in the Christmas spirit, MIDNIGHT IN EVERWOOD will transport you to a world like none other. The descriptions and imagery in this novel were fantastic, sending my imagination on a joyous winter wonderland of a ride. Marietta's love for ballet was beautiful to witness and her determination to carve her own path truly inspiring. Her growth throughout the novel was evident and I love that! Kuzniar's supporting characters were also fun to witness and I found the budding friendships and romances to be delightful.

While I enjoyed this book, I will say I found it to be rather long and I did get kind of bored towards the middle. That's why it took me a couple of weeks to finally finish the book. I was hooked at the start then felt myself waning halfway through. Nonetheless, I am thankful for the joy this novel put into my heart for the upcoming holiday season. I am so ready for Christmas and everything that comes with this most wonderful time of the year!

Marietta Stelle loves to dance but her father doesn’t believe it’s appropriate for a young lady of her station to perform in public and has set the date when she must give up ballet and take her place in Edwardian society. When the mysterious toymaker Dr Drosselmeier moves in across the road, Mariette senses something strange and sinister about him—he too seems to have plans to imprison her in a role she doesn’t want. At midnight on Christmas Eve, however, Marietta stumbles through a portal into a magical land full of confectionary, wonder and terrible danger. With the help of some new friends, she plans her escape from Everwood but also from the cage her father has planned for her.

I haven’t read the original story that ‘The Nutcracker’ was based on, but I’ve seen the ballet several times. (Although I have to admit, the version of The Nutcracker I’m most familiar with is the Barbie movie!) What I particularly loved about this is that the author has taken the elements of ‘The Nutcracker’ and created something entirely new and wonderous.

‘Midnight in Everwood’ is an enchanting story that captures in prose all the romance and wonder of the original ballet, with a new protagonist who springs to life on the page with passion, courage and determination. I adored every delicious moment of this story.