Sally’s Lament (Twisted Tales #19) by Mari Mancusi

Title: Sally’s Lament (Twisted Tales #19)

Author: Mari Mancusi

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: Scholastic Australia

Published: 1^st September 2024

Format: Paperback

Pages: 352

Price: $17.99

Synopsis: Sally has mostly loved her creepy hometown of Halloween Town. But lately, she can’t help but want something more. In a place full of the frightening, you’d think living in the shadows wouldn’t feel so … isolating. She knows she could do so much more if she wasn’t always stuck in the lab of her creator, Dr. Finkelstein. Soon Sally is surprised to learn that the Pumpkin King, Jack, is longing for a change of his own. Determined to find a solution for them both, Sally follows a vision that could be the key to changing their fates. But the more time Sally spends in the strange, jolly land of Christmas Town, the more suspicious she grows of the seemingly idyllic winter wonderland. What is lurking behind those dancing sugar plums? And what exactly does it mean to be put on the Naughty List? Will Sally be able to save the best of both towns—before it’s too late?

~*~

Patchwork doll Sally, lives in Halloween Town with her creator, and is never allowed to take part in the Halloween festivities. She longs to break away, and in this novel, she has found a way to escape from Doctor Finkelstein using deadly nightshade. Things seem okay in Halloween Town – until Sally discovers that the Pumpkin King, Jack Skellington is out of sorts as well. And when Zero, Jack’s ghost dog disappears into the forest with trees that have doors into other holiday worlds, Sally and Zero enter Christmas Town.

In the original movie, it is Jack who enters Christmas Town and comes home to Halloween Town, wanting his town to take over Christmas. Yet, Sally’s adventure takes centre stage in this retelling. Whilst in the movie, Jack came back filled with ideas and a desire to recreate Christmas, Sally discovers something more sinister. Christmas Town is nice…perhaps too nice. There’s no pranks, no fun unless it is nice, and everyone seems to be on edge. Enter Mr Jingles, the man Santa employed to help out in Christmas Town. Except, he’s there to keep things nice. Sally finds this new town strange, jolly and a bit suspicious. It’s too much of a good thing. 

It’s her new friend, Abigail who helps her out, and eventually leads her to the truth of what is really going on. Both towns have things that everyone in the respective town loves – but for Sally, it’s about combining the best of both and finding her way in the world that made this book come to life for me. Like the rest of the Twisted Tales series, it follows the general storyline of the movie, but deviates. In the movie, Jack goes to Christmas Town and brings the fun back. In this novel, Sally goes and uncovers something sinister – something that should never be associated with Christmas. I loved that this was a female character driven book, and this one allows two girls – Sally and Abigail, to be active participants in their own fates and the fates of the worlds that they come from.

Christmas is meant to be fun – all holidays are. But what happens when people try to make them into something they’re not? In this book, it’s Sally who understands the true meaning of Christmas, despite being from a different holiday town. She works hard to be part of Halloween Town, to fit in and to escape Doctor Finkelstein. I felt that this was a liberation novel for Sally, allowing her to grow as a character and become the doll she wants to be. The story moves between Halloween Town and Christmas Town, with Sally and Jack trying to escape the things that make the seemingly perfect Christmas Town sinister – the complete opposite of what it is really meant to be. Each book contains the fun of the original movie with a twist that gives the story more meaning, and creates a new story as well. It is the beloved characters and settings that make this series work, and give the Disney stories a distinct flavour – it’s Disney for young adults, proving that you don’t need to be a child to love Disney. It’s for everyone, just like the holidays Jack and Sally save in this book. It’s another fantastic addition to the Twisted Tales series.