
Title: The Snow Song
Author: Sally Gardner
Genre: Historical Fiction/ Fantasy/ Fairy Tales
Goodreads Rating: 4.05
My Rating:
Source: Audiobook
Synopsis:
Women imprisoned by superstition, chained by guilt.
Perched on a mountain in a land of ancient forests is a village, rife with secrets. Cut off from the outside world it is run by the elders, men to whom tradition is all.
Edith lives alone with her alcoholic father who is forcing her to marry the village butcher. But she is in love with a shepherd who promised to return to her.
As the village becomes isolated in a sea of snow, Edith loses her power of speech. And it is this enchantment that will have far-reaching consequences, not only for Edith but for the whole village.
My Review:
Once again the cover drew me into this one and when I knew it was a mix of historical fiction and fairy tale I was even more intrigued.
This was a beautiful tale set in an old village where women are the lesser sex, only useful for one thing. The men, particularly the Elders and the Reverend rule the roost and what they say goes. After Edith meets a violinist and falls in love her father plots to stop his daughter marrying a ‘gypsy’. Edith finds herself promised to ‘The Butcher’ a despicable man that shows no respect towards women and instantly starts planning her escape.
Without giving too much of away as the snow falls and the mountains we see a change in the village as more people start to see the injustice of Edith’s predicament. We uncover more hideous stories involving the butcher and learn about other characters sacrifice. I loved the tales that Edith’s grandmother told and the different traditions they followed.
With folklore and fairy tale running through this story it’s easy to get swept up in the magic and forget that these characters represent many people from our history. Sally Gardner brings the setting and the nameless men to a dramatic conclusion, one I was all the more happy to welcome.

What a lovely cover! And it sounds intriguing as well..
Great review, Lucy, I’ll have to add this one!
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I hope you enjoy it ☺️
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Thank you! I’m a little unsure about it but it has me curious so.. we’ll see. *fingers crossed*
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🤞🤞
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Ooh I love a book that combines folklore and fairy tales.
Great review!
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It was a beautiful, unique story ☺️
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I must add it to my list then 📚💕
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