The Kingdom of Sweets

• Author: Erika Johansen
• Genre: Fantasy
• Publication Date: November 28, 2023
• Publisher: Dutton

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Bestselling author of the Queen of the Tearling series, Erika Johansen, journeys to a new kingdom in this brilliant stand-alone novel—a darkly magical take on The Nutcracker where two sisters, cursed from birth, are forever changed one memorable Christmas. . . .

Light and dark—this is the destiny placed upon Natasha and Clara, the birthright bestowed by their godfather, the mysterious sorcerer Drosselmeyer. Clara, the favorite, grows into beauty and ease, while Natasha is cursed to live in her sister’s shadow. But one fateful Christmas Eve, Natasha gets her chance at revenge. For Drosselmeyer has brought the Nutcracker, an enchanted present that offers entry into a deceptively beautiful world: the Kingdom of Sweets.

In this land of snow and sugar, Natasha is presented with a power far greater than Drosselmeyer: the Sugar Plum Fairy, who is also full of gifts . . . and dreadful bargains. As Natasha uncovers the dark destiny laid before her birth, she must reckon with powers both earthly and magical, and decide to which world she truly belongs.

Some of my fondest winter memories are of going to the ballet to see the Nutcracker. Granted, it’s been a few years since I’ve seen it, but I thought I had a pretty good grasp on the basics of the story. Then I was offered the opportunity to read this, and it just felt like the perfect holiday read. 

I didn’t get very far before realizing that while this is based on the events of the Nutcracker, Johansen has taken the liberty to make this story her own. The plot is imaginative, the writing is lyrical and transportive, and I couldn’t put this book down. I was absolutely loving it, and when I had to stop reading, I found myself thinking about the story. 

The story centers on twin sisters who given a birthright by their godfather, Drosselmeyer. Clara was blessed with “light,” while Natasha was cursed with “dark.” Consequently, Clara grew up viewed as beautiful with everything handed to her, while Natasha is seen as plain and is constantly overlooked in favor of her sister. But despite their strange birthright, Natasha never sees a problem with this, and loves her sister, who she sees as her best friend. 

However, one Christmas, Drosselmeyer comes with a Nutcracker doll for their younger brother Fritz, and a ballerina doll for Clara, who practices ballet. Fritz becomes enraged and throws the doll, breaking its arm. One of Drosselmeyer’s boys fixes it, and later that night, it manages to transport both Clara and Natasha to the Kingdom of Sweets, which is ruled by the Sugar Plum Fairy.

The Kingdom of Sweets was where the story really started getting interesting. Everything was described so beautifully that I was able to visualize it, and while everything seemed so wonderful, there was also an undercurrent of menace. Anyone who has read any fairy tale knows that anything that looks too good to be true is probably hiding a dire threat. 

And that’s where the Sugar Plum Fairy comes in—she’s one of those characters that fascinated me in this story. She’s a much more intriguing antagonist that Drosselmeyer, in that she manages to indirectly manipulate the characters throughout the story. While I could completely understand Natasha finally reaching a breaking point with Clara, and having it out with her, the Sugar Plum Fairy’s influence is more than obvious, and you can see her influence in Clara’s actions as well. 

Finally, I loved how it all worked out—that we got to see more of the story play out. It was consistently paced and so engaging all throughout the book, and thoroughly enjoyed this book, despite how much it diverged from the original story. I actually liked the direction that Johansen took it, and made it completely her own, while still retaining enough elements of the original story to make it recognizable. 

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