This book was so good! I've always wondered about the different trees in the grove and what all the different holiday worlds looked like. I also loved this Sally, she really grew into herself.

Now I want more books set here! ( )

To be honest, I have never been a Nightmare Before Christmas stan. I don't think I'd ever even watched the complete film before my own kids got super into it a year or so ago. So I went into this with a mild interest -- Sally was an interesting enough character and the holiday doors seemed cool AF.

It's an odd experience, reading a book based on a media that is VERY heavily iconic FOR it's unique visual design. It was pretty jarring for me tbh -- I don't have a strong inner eye and could not filter that unique animation style to the story I was reading and that's a very "it's not you, it's me" issue. There's a very brief portion of Sally passing through the human world that broke my brain because I couldn't translate what I know movie Sally looks like to "people world" or even TNBC-looking "humans". Again that's a "me" issue but throwing it out there for others that might similarly find it a hard juggle between an iconic visual and essentially fanfiction.

And this DID read like a fanfiction to me. Nothing wrong with that but worth mentioning as I'm sure there are plenty of AO3 fics that are as or more fulfilling. The looks behind other doors were pretty cool and I think we got to at least peek behind all the ones we saw in the movie. The plot device was interesting but would have been more compelling in an original story rather than a Disney commission. Props for building a better Sally backstory too.

All in all-- decent and entertaining enough read, probably more so if you were a Burton kid. The storyline and writing seemed a bit juvenile for the YA tag, it reads more like an MG.

Very confused about the bad reviews — I loved this book, and I will most likely read it again. As a fan of Nightmare Before Christmas, I wasn't bothered by the fact that some of the plotlines were a bit altered. I thought it was a cute, fun read, but it definitely was not entirely YA like everyone is saying; I would probably say it's middle grade and mayyyyybe branching out into YA at most. ( )

This came just a whisper short of a five star review. I think it would have gotten there if some of the plot elements got a little more development. As it is, I thought the bones of some of these ideas were solid and interesting, there was just something about the finished product that didn't fully satisfy. It's hard to put my finger on what that was, just that there were points I sat back and thought "yes, I could see this, I like the thought, but...."

Even if it didn't fully, one hundred percent click for me, this was a lovely read and well worth the time. I loved the recognition that for all the happiness of her new life, Sally is making a lot of changes without a lot of time to adjust and build her confidence, and of course there's going to be a learning curve attached. It's a more realistic "happily ever after", and it was a pleasure to follow her on her journey to come into her own. It certainly also helps that the worlds are very lushly painted and beautifully described. I'd love to read more of Ernshaw's work, and I hope she'll be invited back to the NBC universe. ( )

This was a delightful tale about Sally, the newly crowned Pumpkin Queen. It's been months since Jack almost destroyed Christmas. He and Sally have just been married, and there are only two weeks until Halloween.

After spending a romantic honeymoon in Valentine town, the duo is back home, preparing for the most important night for their town. But something is amiss.

Sally feels lost and unsure of her place as the Pumpkin Queen. She doesn't want things as they were when she was Dr. Finklestine's prisoner, but she doesn't want the title or responsibility of queen either.

In a moment of distress, she and Zero take took the woods, only they go deeper than ever before. Together, they uncovered and long hidden ancient door and inadvertently unleashed a power they didn't know existed. Sally makes a mess bigger than Jack. It's up to her to make things right in order to save not only Halloween Town but every holiday town and the human world. Along the way, she finds out who she truly is, both literally and figuratively.

This was a great story full of mystery, adventure, and discovery. I have no idea how anyone didn't enjoy this story. It was fully of whimsy and adventure. ( )