This book was so adorable & fun and delivered more than it promises. I went into it with expectations for a fun romcom with nods to Nightmare Before Christmas and I got all of that and a seriously satisfying world building all centered around holiday kingdoms, rivalry, politics, AND a tension filled romance between 2 princes??

I loved this story, I loved the characters and the drama and I am fully invested in book 2! I can’t wait to read more about these characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bramble for this book to review!

This book was so much fun! This is the perfect mix of steamy and funny and I fell in love with the characters and the romance.

GAY HALLOWEEN TOWN STFU.
Red, White & Royal Blue meets The Nightmare Before Christmas in a sexy, quirky romcom where the golden-hearted Prince of Christmas falls for the totally off-limits Prince of Halloween.
It's Gay, it's Christmas, it's Halloween, it's PERFECTION.

Self-proclaimed trainwreck Christmas Prince Coal briefly meets sexy and brooding Halloween Prince Hex and sparks immediately fly. The only problem is, Coal didn't know who Hex was. Two years later they meet again under political turmoil within the Holiday realm, with the King of Christmas pitting the two princes against each other for the honor of marrying the Easter princess.
With tense family dynamics, fraught Holiday politics, and a warm-hearted friend group full of busybodies, The Nightmare Before Kissmas is a multilayered confection tailor-made for fangirls and fanboys alike. The speedy quips shared in group chats and agonizing adoration between love interests will keep readers oscillating between laughing out loud and swooning. Pacing in the overarching Holiday relations plot felt a little off at times, but in the end the author pulled it all together into an interesting story. The holiday vibes are immaculate, and I would definitely recommend this to a fan of romantasy or cozy fantasy that is looking for a fun holiday read.

The Nightmare Before Kissmas by Sara Raasch was a cute, quirky and entertaining read. It definitely felt like instalove but I was able to get past it because it was a different romance from everything else that's out right now. I thought the relationships between all the characters was well done and felt very real. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I guess because the title and being a fan of NBC I kinda thought this book would be a little eccentric, fantasy ish and dark holiday theme. But I think that’s was completely my mindset and assumptions. There was a lot of different aspects in this book that I feel didn’t quite come together well and didn’t interest me.

The love story was a cute story( I didnt really expect that), some politics involved, I’m not interested in reading politics so I will say there were moments for me I was up and down on interest. The book starts out good, real attention grabber, then after a while I definitely swayed back and forth with my feelings. There’s some circling involved as well. When it comes to holiday books I really like to gravitate towards cute, cozy, feeling and I can definitely see where the author was heading in that direction, but it didn’t hit any holiday feelings for me. I think there was probably too many dynamics in this book that has a lot of potential, and just didn’t hit it for me. I think that’s this book could definitely be loved but it didn’t meet my expectations and it wasn’t for me.

A fun read that goes at a jaunty pace, this is a good read for people who don't mind an instantaneous love story. The book's true strength lies in the platonic relationships—there is real chemistry in their interactions and you can feel how much Coal loves his friends and brother. The story seems to struggle to balance the world-building, political plots, and romance at times, which is the only reason I didn't give it a full 5 stars, but I still highly recommend it for any fans of romance.

I try to go into books meeting them where they are. From the summary, this books seemed like it would be a fun, ridiculous love story. Unfortunately that’s not really what it is and the book just never came together.

The world building for this story is really strange. Each holiday has a royal family that works to spread joy from their holiday. Usually, I’ll handwave the fact that I’m not exactly a fan of monarchies in real life, but the way some of the holidays were absolutely had me thinking “Are you SURE your family should be the head of this holiday?” specifically, Easter. Religion was also brought up a few times in a way that felt odd. Coal just says they leave the religious parts of their holidays alone, which is kind of impossible practically? Christmas is a Christian holiday even if it’s also celebrated by people who are not Christian or barely see themselves as such. Easter is also heavily religious. Honestly, I think it would have made it less noticeable if the author just didn’t bring up religion at all. It wouldn’t work for everyone, but putting the reference directly in the text absolutely brought it to the front of my mind for a long time.

Wrapping back around to Easter, I was really sad that Iris, one of the only prominent female characters in the book was so intensely passive. She’s willing to go along with whatever her father decides to try and keep the peace for Easter, but unfortunately, no matter how many times the story says “She’s a pawn and that’s not right!” it doesn’t make her not a pawn and she doesn’t do much other than be a cheerleader to the Coal or help him try and handle Hex’s appearances. The other prominent woman, is Coal and Kris’ mother, who isn’t really in the story at all, but who left them when they were young and is positioned as cause of Coal’s father (aka Santa) becoming a tyrannical jerk who heavily controls his son’s lives and makes them miserable. There are a few minor female characters, but they are largely just their job (Santa’s assistant, cook).

The romance felt kind of bolted on. Hex isn’t a terrible character, but I didn’t feel like we ever really got to know him fully. I didn’t see why Hex and Coal were so into each other so quickly. Also, for a couple that is trying to stay under wraps, they sure did have a lot of moments pretty much directly next to groups of people, including Coal’s father/Santa. They sent explicit texts while at a stuffy dinner. It made no sense. Even the writing itself changes when the romance is brought up or during sex scenes. It felt a little overwritten and very different than the rest of the book.

Finally, this isn’t even a big deal, but Hex says that Halloween is also called Mischief Night, which is absolutely isn’t. Mischief Night is a very minor holiday that happens usually the night before Halloween (with a few other options as well, but none of them being Halloween). The only reason this bothered me was simply because this is a novel about holidays. I would hope the holiday would be correct. Overall, I really struggled with this book. I loved the premise, but can’t get behind the execution.

"Red, White & Royal Blue meets The Nightmare Before Christmas" in the brief description caught my attention, and I enjoyed both, so I had to read this one! It was a very fun, cute read, regardless of the holiday season. It was charming, funny, dramatic, and romantic. It touched on politics, family, abandonment, friendships, coming out, and cultural differences. I enjoyed all the characters, though I have to say that Hex was my favorite. The ending definitely leaves you wanting more, so thankfully, there's going to be a sequel.

Great meeting of Nightmare Before Christmas and Red White & Royal Blue. Campy and fun but also feels relatable and real with some tasteful spice added to the mix. Enjoyed it thoroughly and would recommend to others as a fun seasonal read, only lacking was the need for more! As well as parts feeling very fast with the storyline and progression of events happening very very quickly.

Coal - the Christmas prince - struggles with the direction of his holiday. When his father announces his engagement to the Easter princess (something neither of them want) he has two weeks to figure out how to turn everything around. The complication: Hex - the Halloween prince - they guy Coal has been daydreaming about for 2 years, in on the premises and is also supposed to be courting Easter. Can the holiday heirs come together to foil Santa's plans for world domination?

Cute characters, witty dialogue and magic touches make this a delightful holiday read. I would highly recommend this.

Sara Raasch notes in both the dedication and the acknowledgements that this book's purpose is to bring joy, and I am here to confirm that it 100% does! What first drew me to the book is the unique premise of having royal holiday families who are all working to bring joy (which turns into a kind of energy source) back to their holiday lands. The book delves into the politics surrounding the holidays, centering on the heirs to the holidays, who are currently in college. The main love story between Coal (Christmas Prince) and Hex (Halloween Prince) can be considered insta-love, as they meet once and continue to think of each other until their next meeting over a year later, however that didn't hinder my enjoyment of the romance. A highlight of the book was the friendships between Coal, Kris (his brother) and Iris (Easter Princess). Coal, Kris, Iris and Hex all end up working together to stop an arranged marriage that no one wants, and while the catalyst for the issues wasn't my favorite, this book did entertain me for the entire time. Overall, I really had a good time reading this story, and as the world itself was one of the most interesting parts to me I was excited to see that we may get another book set here! 4.5⭐

To be honest, it was not my cup of tea. It was well written, but the premise of the story wasn't something I could get into.

I felt like the plot never quite got off the ground, but wasn't super bothered by that, since I was less interested in the plot than the interactions between the two MCs. You definitely get what's on the tin here, which is a more-than-welcome creative interpretation of the classic grumpy/sunshine trope.

I'll probably return to this universe for the next one.

I’ve always enjoyed a holiday rom-com and this book was perfection. Just the right mix of holiday nostalgia, funny banter, likeable characters and a great story. The world built has some interesting potential and I can’t wait to see more in future stories. I’m already planning to add this book to my holiday reading list to enjoy by the tree with some hot cocoa.

Advanced reader copy provided by NetGalley in return for my honest review.

I was only mildly interested in this book because the tagline was RWRB meets Nightmare Before Christmas. I thought there is no way the author could possible incorporate these two amazing works. I was wrong. Sara does an amazing job with this book and I cannot wait to order a copy when it hits shelves.

Coal and Hex are such charming and amazing characters,that at times I like them more than RWRB characters. The side characters are also amazing and I am very concerned/anxious for the next book in this series as it appears they may not be as solid as I would like.

I will say that there should be a trigger warning in this book for anyone dealing with familial loss, grief and anxiety. There is also a small section that alludes to violence between a parent and child.

Overall, this book really is a must read for those who love holiday and LGBTQIA romances.

Well I tried but it was so silly that I had to put the book down. The main character thought they were so funny as they said the most cringe-worthy jokes. The setup of the brother and the main character was not my style at all. It probably doesn't help that I came from a more serious fantasy book and that is my current mood. I like cute romances but sometimes the level of cheesiness is a bit of a struggle and this felt turned up to 11.

Super fun read! Great palate cleanser between thriller/horror books and was easy to get through. Really enjoyable and writing was easy to digest.

Normally I find “x meets y!” blurbs to be inaccurate, but calling this “Red, White & Royal Blue meets The Nightmare Before Christmas” is spot on.

Imagine, if you will, a world just like ours but in which holidays are run by royalty and Santa is a megalomaniac. He’s a terrible father to his ne'er-do-well heir, Coal (technically Nicholas) and Coal’s ignored younger brother, Kris. Coal and Kris are best friends with Iris, Princess of Easter.

After a disastrous attempt to spread meaningful joy, Coal has a drunken snog in an alley with someone who turns out, as he learns two years later, to be Hex, a prince of Halloween. Santa wants Coal to marry Iris. But Coal and Hex have explosive chemistry, and Coal is just discovering the depths to which his father will go to ensure Christmas is the most powerful holiday of the year.

The Nightmare Before Kissmas definitely feels inspired by Red, White & Royal Blue, but with more simplistic politics and higher heat. It’s a little over-dramatic, but it’s a funny and sweet coming of age story about how friendship and love are what spark real joy in a complicated world.

J'ai adoré ma lecture ! C'est une histoire mignonne, avec des personnages attachants et un mood qui donne envie. Je dois avoué que la page couverture m'avait attiré au départ et je n'ai pas été déçu.