The Book of Snow and Silence by Zoe Marriott

I would like to thank the author for an advance copy of this novel in exchange for a fair and honest review

Published – Out Now

Price - £3.99 Kindle eBook £7.99 paperback

Fierce Princess Theoai is devastated when betrayal by her own sister destroys her chance to inherit their mother’s crown. Exiled across the sea to wed a prince she has never met, she soon finds that taking possession of her new crown will be more perilous than she could ever have imagined. The snowy realm of Silinga is rotten to the core, and Theoai’s handsome Prince is spoiled and reckless, with eyes only for the beautiful mute who washed up on the shore the day after Theoai’s arrival: Shell. But though she enchants the entire palace with her unearthly dancing, Shell is more than just a romantic rival, and against her will Theoai is drawn to her. As they both navigate the glittering, treacherous court, their relationship changes from hostility to friendship – and then to a love that will shake the very foundations of the cold kingdom that seeks to tear them apart.

There has been a long history of looking back at old fairy stories to see what else may be lurking within the text from Neil Gaiman to Angela Carter to Disney. I think that’s a good thing if we keep stories as they are at the time or don’t challenge the hidden messages within them then we would hardly be progressing as a species (it is important that genres move onwards). The Little Mermaid is one of those stories I confess I have little love for (plus I’m not a Disney cartoon fan) so its always stood out as a sore point. Zoe Marriott in The Book of Snow and Silence tries to build a very different tale

We meet Princess Theoai travelling on the high seas to meet her future husband who she has never met. Recently disgraced and no longer next in line to her own kingdom she has been arranged in marriage to Uldar himself heir to the ice kingdom of Silinga. Upon their first meeting a distaste makes her lose her ship; her servants and almost her future spouse. But fortunately, Theoai saves his life (which he denies) and in the process they also rescue the mysterious mute Shell. A wo man who captivates the prince and puzzles and alarms Theoai. As Theoai starts to prepare for her wedding she discovers all is not what it seems int his kingdom; has to learn to fight for her position and re-value all her alliances and in particular review what Shell really means to her.

I really enjoyed the world that Marriott creates in this tale with a very descriptive style painting an amazing picture of this sophisticated magic powered society who live in an impossible ice palace. Marriott uses lots of colour and texture to paint a fascinating picture. This proves a good contrast for Theoai who comes from a far dryer climate. A world where some people have magical power and how they live in an ice kingdom is really well thought out and has key elements that drive the plot.

Character wise our central relationship is Theoai and she falls into my favourite type of character someone slightly unlikable – although clearly smart she is very unsettled by the events that drew her here and lost her throne. This means she can behave fairly terribly but the mystery as to why is what powers her character which we slowly piece together. On top of that is the attraction of the palace intrigue. As a potential Queen finding Shell taking Uldar’s attention is a problem and we see some interesting side play as she attempts distraction but at the same time we see Shell and her aren’t actually enemies….I really liked this development in particular. None of the characters is quite what we think they are and that leads to some much more interesting choices each will make which gives the story a nice sense of ambivalence on who you should be trusting. My one issue is a lot of the switches take place a little later in the story than I’d had liked which made some reversals and revelations appearing quite sudden in the final act but perhaps this matches the original format of the story. Despite that IO enjoyed the ride in Marriott’s storytelling.

If you enjoy a revisioning of fairy tales and perhaps a little more diversity in their romances, then this would be a very enjoyable read. I found it filled with interesting worlds, challenges and also a nice subversive look at kings and queens that rule the not so fair lands. A lot of thoughtful fun and in times like these that’s quite important in storytelling