Heather Dixon Wallwork

A retelling of The Nutcracker Ballet with a dash of The Pied Piper. Clara Stahlbaum has her future perfectly planned: to marry the handsome pianist, Johann Kahler (ah!) and settle down to a life full of music. But all that changes on Christmas Eve, when Clara receives a mysterious and magical nutcracker. Whisked away to his world--an enchanted empire of beautiful palaces, fickle fairies, enormous rats, and a prince--Clara must face a magician who uses music as spells...and the future she thought she wanted.

The Enchanted Sonata

Heather Louise Wallwork

Clara Stahlbaum has her future perfectly planned: marry the handsome pianist, Johann Kahler (ah!), and settle down to a life full of music. But all that changes when she receives a magical nutcracker and is whisked away to his world full of giant rats and beautiful palaces.

Nica

"I don't know," the Emperor said, "why anyone must suffer misfortunes, Nikolai. But I do know that in the face of bitterness and disappointment, when our souls cry out in despair and anger, that we might fight it. As we fight everything in this life - with nobility, courage, and grace."

"When someone is overtaken with a dark emotion," he said. "Pain. Or grief. Or anger. If they continue to dwell on it, it grows. The rat feeds on every thought it's given. If not tempered, the rat will consume the soul, and destroy its host and everyone around it"

"If he does not drive it out, he will destroy himself and others."

"And how does one do that?" said the Emperor.

"By starving it. Never feeding it angry or obsessive thoughts. Never listening to it. Even not wanting a rat inside you has the power to starve it."

man i wish i saw this quote earlier before my roommate situation,, hayst yucky

"If you do not meet this misbehavior with an iron fist, it will haunt you later as a much larger beast."

Languages could tell you what to say; music made you feel.

"It's not the man's fault; it's not anyone's fault. Life can deal blows."

"Music is interesting, isn't it?" the magician said. "Gently played, it can soothe one's soul. It can rouse one to fight in a battle; it can conjure memories of those lost. I could even make someone fall in love with you. Or plunge you into the depths of despair."

"Music is a sort of magic anyway, isn't it? You can sing a baby to sleep, or wake them up again with song. You hear music, and it makes you want to dance. It's already a but magic."

I'm stuck between 4.5 and 5 stars on this one, simply because I wanted more. The story was a new and fun take on the Nutcracker story, and I would have loved to get just a little more deeply into the world and some of the other characters. 

This reminds me a bit of Stardust by Neil Gaiman, it's a short and fast paced fantasy book, which I think is pretty unusual with most fantasies and therefore why it feels a little distant while reading, I don't get the lore and detail that comes with a 500-800 page fantasy tome. 

I thought this book was really sweet and I read it at the perfect time, during our first snow of the winter. It's a cozy book to cuddle up with

Emma Lechner

I'm stuck between 4.5 and 5 stars on this one, simply because I wanted more. The story was a new and fun take on the Nutcracker story, and I would have loved to get just a little more deeply into the world and some of the other characters. 

This reminds me a bit of Stardust by Neil Gaiman, it's a short and fast paced fantasy book, which I think is pretty unusual with most fantasies and therefore why it feels a little distant while reading, I don't get the lore and detail that comes with a 500-800 page fantasy tome. 

I thought this book was really sweet and I read it at the perfect time, during our first snow of the winter. It's a cozy book to cuddle up with

Vicky (A City Girl's Thoughts)

DNF'd. 

ONLY because I had to return this book! 😡 I *wish* I had time to finish this before the due date but sadly 😔 *no*

Overall it's really good, a nice light Nutcracker retelling for the Christmas or Winter season👌🏽

Ward

Steph L 

I want to write a formal review of how much I devoured this book. I'll start it soon and hope to get it up on my blog by the first or second of January. The short version is that this book was absolutely amazing, and one of my top ten reads of 2019!!!

Merve A. 

Eloise

The Nutcracker has never been one of my favorite stories, but I adored how it was reimagined here - this is absolutely a novel that can be read without any prior knowledge of the story, as it stands on its own. There’s a real sense of magic in the story that sweeps you along – I smiled at the various references, but never felt that they detracted from the originality of this story.

I'm not sure how to express how enthralling this book was to read. It's a rich visual experience flavored with nostalgia and fairy magic, as well as a smidgeon of amusement at fairy tale characters' naivety.

Aleena Korell

Absolutely delightful. Full of strong, lovable characters, wit, and lol worthy one-liners. The perfect Christmas read!

Jennifer

A cute, sugary, and cozy retelling of The Nutcracker Ballet - as someone who had been Classically trained in piano, I was intrigued to read something inspired by music. The writing is so goregous and I enjoyed reading the descriptions of the sceneries. Thanks to the writing style, I find this a really smooth and fun read!

While I highly enjoyed the Christmassy sceneries and vibes, I do think there are rooms for improvement with regards to the side characters (some of them felt pretty flat). Because I am pretty familiar with The Nutcracker Ballet, I felt that the lack of proper side character development results in a slightly predictable plot. 

Nevertheless, the writing style and the concept of The Enchanted Sonata are quite interesting. For a quick and easy read, this book did a wonderful job. It's festive, fun, and beautifully written - so I'd recommend this to Classical Music fans who are into poetic writing styles.

(3.5 stars out of 5)

When Clara receives a mysterious nutcracker, she is taken away to an enchanted kingdom where music is magic in this retelling of The Nutcracker Ballet.

Renee Delcourt

Another beloved read

I first read Heather Dixon's Entwined quite some time ago now. I saw this while looking for a new book to read and instantly power read the whole thing in 24 hours. You can feel the music that drives the plot of the story and like Entwined, the story vibrates with artistry. Clara's amazing musical magic and Nutcracker's bravery and untempered courage make for a unique and moving novel. This new take on The Nutcracker will have a permanent spot on the book shelf for a very long time.

Narah Quinn

I adored this! 
A simple, easy to read - young reader friendly - and beautifully blended retelling of The Nutcracker and the Pied Piper. 
I sadly missed the archive date - but I have loved reading this over my Christmas break! 

I do not want to give anything away so I will keep this fairly brief. 
The writing was simple, age appropriate (for the characters) and also for the fairy-tale land they inhabited. 
I often find teenage girls to be very annoying in a lot of teen and YA but Clara was kind and brave and although she had moments of 15 year old dreaminess - I think we have all been there - and it made her very likeable.
Nutcracker was an awkward teenage boy with the weight of a kingdom on his shoulders, but who still managed to find the humour in the terrible but who did not act like a spoiled prince which was refreshing. 

The action peaked again and again, the supporting characters were deep and thoughtful and I was rooting for all of them along the way - I even felt a degree of sympathy for the Magician in the end. 

Over all - I highly recommend this to anyone who is looking for a simple, heartfelt read, and I definitely recommend reading it at Christmas! It have me all the feels! 

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and Smith Publicity

Janne Janssens

'The Enchanted Sonata' a magical story.

Heather Dixon Wallwork wrote a very original story, even though it was based on the well known The Nutcracker. 

Clara has a clear picture of her future and Christmas would be the start of that future. That evening she will play a piano concert, for which she practiced intensively for two years. This way she will attract the attention of Johann, a talented pianist whom she has never met but is very much in love with.
The evening before she receives a special present: a nutcracker and a book. These bring her to an enchanted realm where a magician changed all soldiers and children into toys by playing magic music on his flute. He wants the Emperor to prove he is a real ruler. Clara is the only one who can break the spell with her piano music, but she's afraid to miss the concert and lose her picture perfect future.

Clara felt very young in the beginning. I don't know exactly why. Maybe because of her crush for someone she had never met, maybe because I saw Disney's Nutcracker only two weeks ago. Thinking she was maybe 15, her love for Johann was quite weird to me, because I thought he was way too old for her. The same with Nutcracker.
It took me a while to have empathy for her character. It was only in the last 5 chapters that the chemistry between Clara and Nutcracker felt right.

It was a great decision to tell the magician's background story. It made his character much more interesting and believable. However, it would have given more tension if the story had been spread over a few chapters, alternating with Clara and Nutcracker's story. This way, it would have taken longer to reveal everything.

Eventhough I loved Heater Dixon Wallwork's writing style, it felt like some sentences seemed to be repeated a lot. Because of this repetitiveness, the story lost its flow sometimes. 

However, The Enchanted Sonata is a lovely, light read. Ideal for reading around Christmas time.

** spoiler alert **
           Ebook provided by NetGally in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

What makes music...magic?

The Enchanted Sonata  is such a magical story.

Heather Dixon Wallwork wrote a very original story, even though it was based on the well known The Nutcracker. 

Clara has a clear picture of her future and Christmas would be the start of that future. That evening she will play a piano concert, for which she practiced intensively for two years. This way she will attract the attention of Johann, a talented pianist whom she has never met but is very much in love with.
The evening before she receives a special present: a nutcracker and a book. These bring her to an enchanted realm where a magician changed all soldiers and children into toys by playing magic music on his flute. He wants the Emperor to prove he is a real ruler. Clara is the only one who can break the spell with her piano music, but she's afraid to miss the concert and lose her picture perfect future.

Clara felt very young in the beginning. I don't know exactly why. Maybe because of her crush for someone she had never met, maybe because I saw Disney's Nutcracker only two weeks ago. Thinking she was maybe 15, her love for Johann was quite weird to me, because I thought he was way too old for her. The same with Nutcracker.
It took me a while to have empathy for her character. It was only in the last 5 chapters that the chemistry between Clara and Nutcracker felt right.

It was a great decision to tell the magician's background story. It made his character much more interesting and believable. However, it would have given more tension if the story had been spread over a few chapters, alternating with Clara and Nutcracker's story. This way, it would have taken longer to reveal everything.

Eventhough I loved Heater Dixon Wallwork's writing style, it felt like some sentences seemed to be repeated a lot. Because of this repetitiveness, the story lost its flow sometimes. 

However, The Enchanted Sonata is a lovely, light read. Ideal for reading around Christmas time.

Jessica 

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  As a note, a copy of this novel was sent to me via NetGalley by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not effect my opinions in any way.
 Review also found here at Booked J. 

I needed a book like this, at a time like this. I'm so glad I was able to read it. There are books that are so vivid and fast-paced, and purely magical, that they are the ultimate getaway from ordinary. After the last few months from h*ll, this was one of those rare bright spots. In short? The Enchanted Sonata was positively stunning and sweet. I could not put it down.

Heather Dixon Wallwork crafts a delightfully musical, re-imagined version of two beloved classics: The Nutcracker Ballet and The Pied Piper. Two titles I would have never thought to put together, but that work so, so well. The Enchanted Sonata is for the readers who love to dream and a total must-have for fans of The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert or ABC's Once Upon A Time.

The Enchanted Sonata is so gripping, and so full of energy, I could not put it down and shuddered anytime I actually had to. It follows the familiar themes of the stories it is based upon, but the end product is a new kind of story and wholly its own. Breath-taking, unique, yet undeniably familiar.

I really and truly loved every bit of this story and can't wait to read more. The characters are all well developed and easy to like, or hate, or be sympathetic with. I loved that the magic lay primarily in the music, in Clara and in the villain. Something about these little notes develops in true and complete magic, and it adds an extra layer to the story that I really enjoyed.

My favourite part of The Enchanted Sonata is, perhaps, the feeling that comes with it: wonder. You're intrigued throughout, there are moments of action and sweetness and joy and pain, but the wonder? I was filled with it by the time I finished this book and it soon became an incredibly bright spot in my day. If ever there was a book, about magic, that truly felt magical--The Enchanted Sonata is it.

This has been said a few times on Booked J, but I felt so enamored with this book it felt not unlike just sitting back and listening as someone took me back to those childhood fantasies. Whether this was because of the fantasy elements, the innocence feeling it sometimes held, and all those little luscious details or because it feels like something classic, there was something about The Enchanted Sonata.

Think: stories being told, at Christmas, just near a fireplace. It takes us back to a simpler time (which is hilarious because the book is not simple by any means) and boosts your spirits.

I thought the pacing was fantastic, and almost timeless. We know when it takes place. We know there is a fantasy world outside of all Clara has always known. We know something, inexplicably, ties them together. Still, The Enchanted Sonata felt of no time at all, and the pacing was so smooth you'd almost forget that the storyline is within only a few days worth of time.

If you are looking for an easy-going, but still bright and captivating, story of self-discovery, heroism, music and magic within ourselves (and others!) this is the book for you. It was cozy and warm; the perfect read to pick up and indulge in a little hot cocoa with this winter.

The Enchanted Sonata is vivid and magical, I am obsessed!

Plus, that cover art is just as stunning as the story. I only hope I have the money to get a physical copy one day soon.

The Enchanted Sonata

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