Thank you so much to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for my copy of The Fright Before Christmas by Jeff Belanger Narrated by Jeff Belanger in exchange for an honest review. It published September 4, 2023.
This was a fun and informative book that was well-narrated by the author. I can think of a few people I want to gift this audiobook to!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the Audiobook ARC!

I listened to this one a few weeks ago as an audiobook, as a bridge between Halloween and Christmas. It did focus mostly on Krampus, the Yule Lads, pretty popular 'monsters' of the Yule season. Fantastic for folks who haven't looked into them before or folks who want a refresh. I was kind of hoping to go into unusual or less well known entities, but it was still a fun listen.
It's probably not a great sign that I haven't retained much of it at all, though. Probably wouldn't go back to it.

This was an interesting history of Christmas that focuses on the creepy aspects of the holidays. I'm glad it was short because there didn't seem to be enough meat to justify a longer book. I appreciated the Office references. I enjoyed it bit I wish it had a little more depth. Most of the information was stuff I basically already knew from pop culture.

Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

The Fright Before Christmas by Jeff Belanger is a wonderful compilation of Yule time figures such as Krampus, The Yule Cat, La Befana, St. Nicholas, Gryla, and many more. I had heard of a few of these prior and truly loved hearing about them again as a way to get into the holiday spirit this year. This book is great as an introduction to many of these Yule time figures and will inspire many to seek out more information on their lore and how these traditions have evolved. I loved seeing one of my background’s favorite traditions, La Befana, being represented in this book. You should try some befanini cookies this year! :) Happy Holidays!

I rate this 4.5/5 stars. Thank you to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review The Fright Before Christmas by Jeff Belanger. My comments are an independent, honest review.

I listened to the first half of the audiobook and just couldn’t get into it. The different aspects of Christmas folklore is an interesting topic, but I found this book to be somewhat boring. Maybe the ebook version is better. Thank you to the publisher for an advance copy.

As someone whose favorites holidays are Christmas and Halloween, this book was right up my alley. It discusses some of the darker sides of the holiday season by introducing us to other holiday traditions/folklore from around the world. I found them to be interesting and enjoyed learning more about the history of why/how these traditions and holiday characters took shape. Of course, we have Santa Claus, but we get also get background on Saint Nikolaus, Krampus, Yule Cat, Tomte, the Yule Kids, A Christmas Carol, and more. This is a fun book to read right after Halloween to help bridge that gap between Halloween and Christmas.

Christmas roots and traditions are so far from what we believe them to be and Jeff Belanger is here to set us straight by highlighting the holiday’s dark origins!

What can I say? I loved this. It’s informative and fun. The best way to present retainable information (in my opinion) is to add a good dose of humor. Belanger succeeds.

I listened to this on audio, but I’d like to get a physical copy to re-read in the near future. I enjoy exploring the fascinating roots of holidays and discovering how we’ve been misled, both within religion and within the commercialized popularity of any highly celebrated day.

I am immensely grateful to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for my copy. All opinions are my own.

An excellent examination of Christmas, looking at it through the lens of psychology, religion, economics, history, geography, politics, and the many other factors that went in to forming modern Christmas – as well as all the darker, ancient aspects simmering beneath the surface.

Belanger clearly loves diving deep into a subject and digging up all the creepy, dark, surprising facts to be found, and here we get a delightful array of spooky facts and myths behind the cheery holiday of Christmas.

I was interested in this book because I love Krampus but actually the part of the book about monsters was the least interesting. I really enjoyed learning more about the history of Christmas. The author narrates his own book and does a good job. The one complaint I have is that he could take out the extremely long retelling of A Christmas Carol - we know how the story goes.

I don’t think there is ever been a more perfect Holiday release- holiday books are always released at the end of summer early fall, and The Fright Before Christmas by Jeff Belanger is the Perfect Book in bridge the spooky season, two holiday season gap!

Christmas will never be the same!

Author, Jeff Boulanger, deep dives into Christmas past and brings us the creepier and spookier side of our favourite holiday!

I spanning folklore roots of the Christmas holiday from Yule to Saturnalia, he shows us the dark (and light) origins of many Christmas traditions… and many that we had forgotten.

Familiar characters like Saint Nicholas and elves are shown in new light along side, Krampus and the Belsnickel!

Narrated by author, Jeff Belanger, and he seamlessly walks us through this eerie path of history. I absolutely loved listening to this audiobook, where his narration felt more like listening to storytelling around a campfire well chestnut popped. His comfort, ease and extensive knowledge of the subject, made this a treat to listen to. That being said, I’m already looking into buying my own copy, so I can enjoy what I assume will be great. Illustrations to go with these tales!

This is an excellent book, perfect for this spooky season as we amp up for the holidays. Maybe you’ll find a new tradition among these old tales!

Thanks to dreamscape media for my ALC copy. Opinions are my own.

The Fright Before Christmas written and Narrated by Jeff Belanger is available now!

This is the kind of Christmas book that I can definitely get behind it is a bookful of the scary beast that only come out around Christmas time it talks about the different traditions where they come from and some we even find out where they began and where they sit in popular media. This book is narrated by the author and I thought he did a phenomenal job I really enjoyed this book and learned so much I didn’t know about the scary things that could happen on and around Christmas I thought Krampus and the three ghost from Charles dickens a Christmas Carol where is scary as it gets but oh no it gets a lot scarier and it’s all in this book The Fright Before Christmas there’s even a ghost called Greela who has 13 kids that also stock at Christmas time this is a definite five star review and a book I thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend I just loved it! I want to thank the Author an Netta Galley for my free arc copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

What an interesting and fun volume! Turns out that Tim Burton wasn’t the first one to bring us a nightmare before Christmas, but that it’s been a universal tradition for ages. I was also surprised to learn that the Holiday hasn’t been what it is since the birth of Christ but is somehow a new tradition. This is a very short read, and so well written that I inhaled it in one sitting. It is also narrated by the author, which sometimes can backfire but in this case was fantastic. Like having a knowledgeable uncle at the fireside telling you all these creepy stories. I liked how, despite some traditions being clearly outdated, he never judges, and it’s fascinating to learn the origins of many Christmas features, such as the mistletoe. I loved it!
I chose to listen to this audiobook and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, #NetGalley/# Dreamscape Media!

This is the perfect audiobook for a quick holiday trip or to hunker down inside with. It's a quick, fun, but informative romp through midwinter monsters and yuletide beasties. I was not familiar with Jeff Belanger before this, but he does a great job narrating his work. I am now interested in what other ghostly tales he has. I really enjoyed this audiobook and may listen to it again to get into the holiday spirit - we need more spooky in all our holidays. Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a fun, easy read. In The Fright Before Christmas, Jeff Belanger goes through the different past traditions around the Christmas/Winter Solstice holidays. Not only does Belanger go into what these myths and legends were, but he dives into the evolution of these myths into our current traditions today. This book is done in a very fun way, and is very respectful of those who find Christmas to be a special and religious time of year. I would highly recommend this for anyone interested.

Thank you to Dreamscape and Netgalley for this audio ARC!

The Fright Before Christmas was a very fast read/listen. I received this as an ARC audiobook and was completed rather quickly. I loved to hear about the dark side of Christmas. If you're interested in where the legends come from, this is a good one to give a listen to (Or read). And it's perfect because the holidays are right around the corner.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the ARC and the chance to listen and review it honestly.

Happy reading!

A fun and snappy look at the creepy side of Christmas.

I love reading about the history of holiday traditions, and it’s pretty much a tie between Halloween and Christmas for my favorite. This book is sort of a blend of both, looking at the more sinister figures connected to Christmas lore and how they came to be.

Belanger has combined solid and thorough research with clever tone and a sense of humor, and the book is just the right length for the subject matter.

Highly recommend the audiobook format if you’re able to read that way. The author narrates and he’s fantastic.

This is a book about the dark side of the Christmas season.

I learned some stuff about all sorts of creepy monsters and lore.


It was interesting and fun. Sometimes I had a hard time staying focused on it but the narration was good.

I really enjoyed this romp through Christmas adjacent frightening and fascinating traditions and legends. As a person of Swedish descent, I appreciated the chapter on the tomten especially. The author shows us that many Christmas traditions are based on the very real threats that are associated with the winter solstice and the dangers of life in the cold darkness. And like the original fairy tales, these traditions are often about morality and consequences. By telling these stories of Christmas related threatening beings, the writer is also trying to give all his readers the kind of wake up call that Ebenezer Scrooge gets in A Christmas Carol, the wonderful story that I also read every year. I would recommend this to anyone who is interested in the history of the season. It was a great audiobook read by the author.