The Return of The Christmas Witch

Before spring break, we were asked to read and write about a children’s literature book that involved witches, so I chose The Legend of The Christmas Witch (2021). After reading the book and then being left on a cliffhanger, I was curious about the Christmas Witch and her story: How does she get out of the ice? Does she reunite with her brother? Does she keep true to her vow to destroy Christmas? Thanks to Dr. Williams, I got the chance to read the sequel. In this blog post, I will provide an overview of the book’s events, discuss prominent connections to witchcraft, and then conclude with my opinions on the quality of the book. 

In The Return of The Christmas Witch (2022), Kristtörn awakens from her long slumber—frozen in ice—only to find that she no longer has the powers that she once did. She ventures out into the modern world and discovers that Christmas is not at all how it once was. Kristtörn is furious with her brother (Santa Claus) for abandoning Christmas and allowing this falsehood of the holiday to carry on. Simultaneously, there is a young girl named Piper who is angry at Santa for the same reasons and is hopeful that Christmas will be restored by Kristtörn, who is determined to confront Santa once and for all. 

Continuing from the first book is a strong emphasis on a witch’s connection with nature as Kristtörn puts her hands on the ground and feels the electrical charge of the earth, reigniting her magic. She regains the ability to speak with animals. Throughout the story, Kristtörn communicates with Lutzelfrau (her adoptive mother, who is also a witch) in her dreams. After looking around the internet for correlations between witchcraft and dreams, there is a type of magic called dream magic. According to this site, dream magic has been around for a long while and is extremely versatile in use. We are able to connect with spirits when we sleep as the lines between worlds are lessened and our souls wander through various dimensions. 

One theme in this book that I have seen numerous times in stories with witches was sisterhood. Kristtörn left Piper with a gift and a note, “when you wear this holly crown, remember: you are never alone. We will always be connected through the earth.” During the events of The Return of The Christmas Witch, there isn’t much physical interaction between Kristtörn and Piper; however, they have many similarities. They both argue with their brothers/their brothers are the ‘favored’ child, seek to restore Christmas to its old ways, persistently attempt to contact Santa, and are angry with him for ‘selling out’ Christmas. While Piper doesn’t have magic and can’t connect with Kristtörn in that sense, they are both different from others and thereby alienated—a common occurrence for witches—thus forming a sisterhood through being othered (Kristtörn more than Piper). 

I didn’t enjoy the sequel as much as I did the original. The book still had beautiful illustrations and an engaging storyline, but this book lacked magic. Since Kristtörn didn’t have her abilities for most of the story, she was left to wander around for the majority of the time and marvel at how different things are. It was also strange how, in the first book, she is hellbent on destroying Christmas, and then once that comes to fruition, she fights to restore it to the way it was. When she does restore Christmas, there is no explanation offered for how she does this other than lifting the dark fog. While the book ends with Kristtörn reuniting with her brother and Christmas being back on track, Lutzelfrau warns Kristtörn of possible dangers ahead. Could there be a third book in the make?