"Every single one of those instances when I thought I was hypnotized by seeing joy on other people, I’d been searching, searching specifically for his joy. Because now that I’ve experienced it, it renders all past joy obsolete."

The Nightmare Before Kissmass is the utterly silly, emotionally endearing story of what happens when the Prince of Christmas and the Prince of Halloween are forced to fight for the Princess of Easter only to fall in love with each other in the process. For a book set in the North Pole, this one had no right to make me cry as much as it made me laugh, but that's exactly what it did. 

"I make jokes. I’m a smartass. I don’t talk like this, with weight, but every second of a life spent being the comedic relief has been saving up sincerity for him."

After a few well-intentioned mistakes in the past, Coal has taken a step back from his role as heir to Christmas. He hides his true feelings and keeps up the facade of the funny guy while doing what is asked of him. But for the past year and a half, he hasn't stopped thinking about that guy behind the bar who understood him so thoroughly in the few minutes they spent together. And when he steps back into his life as a rival suitor and fellow Holiday Prince, Coal starts pushing back on what's expected of him to fight for what he truly wants. And Hex, our sweet and shy Prince of Halloween, has let his grief and guilt overwhelm him until he's shielded himself from the world. But with Coal, he can't help but let down his walls and be himself. These two are utterly obsessed with each other from the moment they meet and watching them fall in love is so beautiful.

"He fumbles, and I rock towards him, the smallest crack in his façade lets pieces of him slip through and I want to catch every single one."

This book is so full of Holiday cheer and joy, but it's also full of heart and that's what makes it special. For a book about fantasy royals based on Holidays, there's a sense of realness about it. The way Coal and Hex allowed themselves to be vulnerable with each other instead of shying away from their insecurities or the way they challenged each other so they could grow into the best versions of themselves. And it's not all about the romance either. The friendship between Coal, Kris and Iris, so full of banter and snark, but also unending support and love is one of my favorite parts about this book. Through Coal's struggles of figuring out what he wants Christmas to be and completely changing the way their holiday system works, they stand by each other. And that's what's at the core of this book, connection and spreading the magic and joy of being with those you love.

"Is it possible to shake apart from loving someone too much? They’re going to feel tremors all the way down in North Pole City and think it’s an avalanche but no, it’s me, combusting because of the calamitous power this one man has over me."

This whole world of joy based magic and Holiday royals is fun and entertaining. The characters are truly relatable and make you feel so much. Coal and Hex are so completely obsessed with each other and made me so happy with their silliness and the abundance of love they had to give. This book knew how to keep me hooked whether it was with Coal's funny headlines, their hilarious text chains, Holiday puns or just by their ridiculous shenanigans as they tried to fix Christmas. This story has found a home on my favorites shelf and I can't wait to see what's next for these royals!

"Joy creates magic. I have never believed that more than with him."