“To Crack a Solider”

Description:

“A broken soldier. A wooden ballerina. When battle comes, can Alex use his gifts to defeat the Mouse King?

Alexander Monde may have survived the war with Brisia in one piece, but that doesn’t mean he’s not broken. His family, his home, and his friends are all gone, leaving him just a shell of the man he once was. When a mysterious visitor arrives at the army hospital the night of the winter solstice, Alex is given a gift that will change his life forever: a ballerina doll.

When midnight arrives and his ballerina comes to life, a battle ensues between the dancer and Mouse King. The mirror gateway to Faerie is broken, and Alex finds himself stranded in a new and completely unfamiliar world. Worse still, a wound from the recent battle is causing him to slowly become more and more wooden and stiff as time goes on. As the sprightly ballerina slowly begins cracking the shell of his heart, will Alex be able to find the missing pieces of the mirror and restore the gateway? Or will the Mouse King come out victorious against the wooden soldier?

To Crack a Soldier is a retelling of the Nutcracker. It is one of twelve novellas in The Shattered Tales, a collection of twelve fractured retellings of your favorite fairy tales. They can be enjoyed in any order, so fall in love with the swoony sweet romance, magical adventures, and tale-shattering twists one happily-ever-after at a time!“

Personal Thoughts:

This book was a light read, well written, with a hint of Christmas, and a unique retelling of the Nutcracker. I really enjoyed how the author rewrote it, and the ending was ✨perfection✨.

It is part of a standalone series, and is in the same world as other books she has written. A main character is featured as a side character, and there are minimal spoilers, that have to do more with world building than characters. It is on kindle unlimited.

Characters-Alexander is very well written with clear goals. I didn’t instantly love him, I liked him, but as the story goes on I really cared about what happened to him. The MFC (main female character), Celesta was really fun. They had a Grumpy/Sunshine relationship, I enjoyed their dynamic so much. They balance each other out, instead of too much sunniness. There were cute together. She is very sacrificial, and the author wrote her well. She wasn’t happy all of the time, but she also didn’t hide her sadness away with fake smiles. She truly was happy, or found happiness in small things.

Christianity(magic)-There are mentions of the Almighty, though brief. There is a magic system, but it was interesting how she wrote it. In this world the magic comes from music, and even though it is a fight of good and evil the magic isn’t split into good and black magic, but rather flows with the intentions. (basically, no witchcraft)

No profanity.

Romance- 2 kisses, and a mention of someone staring at Celesa’s figure. Light flirting, snuggling.

Spoiler

After they nearly drowning, they snuggle to stay warm.

Violence wise Alexander deals with slight PSTD. There are fights, mentions of deaths, and horrors of war, but nothing graphic. Near drowning.

Positive/negative messages- Celesta is half pixie and half elf and this affects how people see her. There is a lot of judgement about her heritage and people treat her badly, but also many people love her for her.

I recommend this for 14+, and give it 3 1/2 stars ⭐⭐⭐