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Snow: A Retelling of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (Once Upon A Time)
In a tiny Welsh estate, a duke and duchess lived happily, lacking only a child—or, more importantly, a son and heir to the estate. Childbirth ultimately proved fatal for the young duchess. After she died, the duke was dismayed to discover that he was not only a widower, but also father to a tiny baby girl. He vowed to begin afresh with a new wife, abandoning his daughter i...more
Published
by Turtleback Books
(first published February 1st 2003)
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Weird! This book had a fairly promising beginning. A few subtle changes but easily recognizable as Snow White. Then you reach the part where she encounters the dwarfs, or in this case, the lonely ones, and it gets a little bizarre for my tastes. I liked parts of the final half and other parts were just too odd. And the conclusion really had me rolling my eyes! I'm intrigued enough, however, to try at least one more of these Once Upon a Time books. (First half - 3 stars, second half - 2 stars)
Read my reviews HERE.
The basic storyline is quite the same. The King, Snow White, her evil stepmother, the evil queen’s magic mirror, a huntsman after Snow’s and the dwarves- altogether will give a very familiar environment in a very unfamiliar way. Along with the traditional concept of magic and supernatural in the story, author Tracy Lynn provides some more fantasy elements on her own that give the story a wonderful shape. The evil queen’s motif to kill Snow is different; instead of seven dwar...more
The basic storyline is quite the same. The King, Snow White, her evil stepmother, the evil queen’s magic mirror, a huntsman after Snow’s and the dwarves- altogether will give a very familiar environment in a very unfamiliar way. Along with the traditional concept of magic and supernatural in the story, author Tracy Lynn provides some more fantasy elements on her own that give the story a wonderful shape. The evil queen’s motif to kill Snow is different; instead of seven dwar...more
I really liked this retelling of Snow White. You could see the similarities between this story and the original Snow White, but this one had a lot of originality that it kept me riveted.
Snow—or rather, Jessica—is a child raised by servants. Since the servants obviously do not know how a proper duchess is to be raised, Jessica mostly runs wild among the estate. That is, until her father remarries. Everyone, including Jessica, is fooled by Anne, the new duchess, except for Alan, the fiddler. He is...more
Snow—or rather, Jessica—is a child raised by servants. Since the servants obviously do not know how a proper duchess is to be raised, Jessica mostly runs wild among the estate. That is, until her father remarries. Everyone, including Jessica, is fooled by Anne, the new duchess, except for Alan, the fiddler. He is...more
Of all the retellings I've read from this series, this one was one of the books that surprised me the most. At first I really didn't think it would be something special, but as I kept passing the pages, I found myself growing quite fond of the story.
Jessica's mother died when she was born, forcing her father to hate Jessica even before she could remember. She is typically the same fair skinned, red lips and black haired Snow White, but that's where the simmilarities end. Jess is a free spirit,...more
Jessica's mother died when she was born, forcing her father to hate Jessica even before she could remember. She is typically the same fair skinned, red lips and black haired Snow White, but that's where the simmilarities end. Jess is a free spirit,...more
Sep 16, 2012
Historyprincess
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
once-upon-a-time
"Snow White" has been adapted numerous times, but very rarely do they reach the level of creativity that this retelling did. This is one of my favorites of the series, and I wish that Tracy Lynn wrote more for the series than just this one book.
Jessica is the daughter of the Duke of Kenigh, and lives in Wales in the early nineteenth century. However, her father is distant because Jessica's mother, whom her father loved dearly, died giving birth to her. For the first eleven years of her life, Jes...more
Jessica is the daughter of the Duke of Kenigh, and lives in Wales in the early nineteenth century. However, her father is distant because Jessica's mother, whom her father loved dearly, died giving birth to her. For the first eleven years of her life, Jes...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
I've read several of the fairy-tale "retellings" in this series, and most of them suffer from the same problem: the story takes forever to get going, but is wrapped up WAY too quickly, leaving the reader very un-satisfied and feeling like the time invested wasn't all that worth it.
I liked the story, once it got going. It was a very interesting twist on Snow White and held my interest throughout (which was cool since I've never been a fan of Snow White). I liked the Lonely Ones and the use of "sc...more
I liked the story, once it got going. It was a very interesting twist on Snow White and held my interest throughout (which was cool since I've never been a fan of Snow White). I liked the Lonely Ones and the use of "sc...more
This book was hard to get into, but great at the end. Snow is a retelling of the classic tale of Snow White. While that fairy tale has never been my favorite, as Snow White always seemed a bit, well, naive, this version was interesting. There was a different take on the evil stepmother, her motivations behind trying to kill ‘Snow’, and the way the seven dwarves were translated into this new setting was odd but fitting.
While this story wasn’t exactly edge-of-your-seat material, it worked well eno...more
While this story wasn’t exactly edge-of-your-seat material, it worked well eno...more
OK. Well, I knew the original tale had its very odd qualities and such, so I was intrigued what direction this retelling of Snow White would be. Definitely not what I imagined. For one, it was set in Victorian Era. Actual Victorian time which puts it too much into "real life" for me to be happy with a fairy tale world. Plus, I think it ended up restricting or complicating the author's attempts at a story. The Gemma Doyle trilogy worked the historical fantasy much better than this book.
I feel th...more
I feel th...more
This is a retelling of Snow White. Well... another book that ends too quickly and unsatisfactorily. No one can effectively end a complex story like this in less than 10 pages.
And let's talk about the "operated on them" part. What kind of explanation is that? Operated how? Where did the human DNA come from? Did she need male DNA? Did the Duchess try to carry them in her womb? The lack of these answers makes me queasy with the romance between Snow and the half raven/man that could be her half bro...more
And let's talk about the "operated on them" part. What kind of explanation is that? Operated how? Where did the human DNA come from? Did she need male DNA? Did the Duchess try to carry them in her womb? The lack of these answers makes me queasy with the romance between Snow and the half raven/man that could be her half bro...more
I really didn't like this one. I had such high hopes for it since, it promised to place Snow White into the Victorian world. It did, but very poorly. The author seemed to try to make the story a sort science fiction / steam punk novel with it's emphasis on science, but then goes and allows the stepmother to be a scientist who dabbles in the "black arts". That is copping out. Add to that the fact the "seven dwarves" are five mutant "Lonely Ones" and I was rather disappointed. The "Lonely Ones" ar...more
Once upon a time, there was a reviewer who loved fairy tales. She discovered a luminous retelling of Snow White complete with a stepmothers jealous vanity, kindly yet isolated miners, and a deathlike sleep, and, after giving the book five stars, lived happily ever after.
When a duke's wife dies during the birthing of their long awaited child, the motherless darling grows up in the kitchens until her father remarriage (coinciding with her puberty). The duke's new wife takes the tomboyish Jessica u...more
When a duke's wife dies during the birthing of their long awaited child, the motherless darling grows up in the kitchens until her father remarriage (coinciding with her puberty). The duke's new wife takes the tomboyish Jessica u...more
"Snow: A Retelling of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves" is a compelling twist of the well-known tale, "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" by the infamous Grimm Brothers. The story begins with the tragic death of Duchess Jessica's mother, who dies during childbirth. The father of the duchess is devastated by his wife's demise and is terrified at the reality of being a widower, who has to raise a baby girl alone. So, Duchess Jessica is completely ignored by him during her childhood years, and the r...more
Snow was strange but interesting! A lot happened in such a short amount of pages, which is risky as far as the writing goes, but I feel like it was pulled off rather well. Not perfectly, but enough that I could enjoy and be sucked into the story.
The scientific approach to magic lended to the interest. It wasn't your typical faiytale, and I liked the explanations for it. I also liked the idea of the stepmother as this mad (insane) scientist - I twist that I very much so liked, as opposed to a cl...more
The scientific approach to magic lended to the interest. It wasn't your typical faiytale, and I liked the explanations for it. I also liked the idea of the stepmother as this mad (insane) scientist - I twist that I very much so liked, as opposed to a cl...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Before I start ranting, let me say that this book had a lot of potential. Tons really. However, the actual product was far from a masterpeice. Hopefully, I'll be able to adress all of the issues.
1. The Beginning:
I thought the beginning actually wasn't horrible, but it wasn't anything special. Which in itself makes it worse than horrible.
The first thing that I did not like was the prologue. It tends to deter me in almost any book; they seem to be an easy way for an information dump. This prologu...more
1. The Beginning:
I thought the beginning actually wasn't horrible, but it wasn't anything special. Which in itself makes it worse than horrible.
The first thing that I did not like was the prologue. It tends to deter me in almost any book; they seem to be an easy way for an information dump. This prologu...more
Whatever redeeming qualities this book has, they are overshadowed by the fact that it ends not with a bang but with a whimper. Even the main character admits it, verbatim.
Retelling a fairy tale is difficult because it's hard to do it better than the original (unless the original is heinous, like the gruesome original Little Mermaid). I was happy that this version of Snow White wasn't sweet and Disneyfied, but it veered WAY too far out there. I'm not referring to the "dwarves" (although they wer...more
Retelling a fairy tale is difficult because it's hard to do it better than the original (unless the original is heinous, like the gruesome original Little Mermaid). I was happy that this version of Snow White wasn't sweet and Disneyfied, but it veered WAY too far out there. I'm not referring to the "dwarves" (although they wer...more
In Wales during the reign of Queen Victoria, a Duke in a small village loses his wife in childbirth when she gives birth to his daughter, Jessica. Broken hearted over the loss of his beloved wife, the Duke let his daughter be raised by the various servants. When the Duke remarries the beautiful and intelligent Anne, Jessica finally has a mother. As the Duchess teaches her how to be a proper woman, Jessica still finds ways to be with the servants. Her best friend Allen, the violin player, spends...more
Jul 24, 2011
Elizabeth
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
favorites,
once-upon-a-time
I was very surprised with this book. Out of all the "Once Upon A Time" series books, this was the least one I wanted to read. I've heard/read many versions of "Snow White" and it's not one of my favorite fairy tales. (I never cared for the dwarfs much either.)
However, this book was excellent. It went way beyond the simple cottage of the seven dwarfs and took a direction that made this classic story interesting and new. I liked the changes from wicked stepmother to "mad scientist," seven dwarfs...more
However, this book was excellent. It went way beyond the simple cottage of the seven dwarfs and took a direction that made this classic story interesting and new. I liked the changes from wicked stepmother to "mad scientist," seven dwarfs...more
This book is what showed me the world of FairyTales retold.
Snow (if you can't tell by the title) is the reselling of Snow White. The evil stepmother is also a mad scientist obsessed in finding a way to be with child, or to make a child. And the only person that knows of her experiments is her "loyal" servant Alan. Alan find out that Jessica (Snow) is in trouble and helps her escape. The dad is not dead in this version but he is absent from Jessica's life because she remind him to much of his be...more
Snow (if you can't tell by the title) is the reselling of Snow White. The evil stepmother is also a mad scientist obsessed in finding a way to be with child, or to make a child. And the only person that knows of her experiments is her "loyal" servant Alan. Alan find out that Jessica (Snow) is in trouble and helps her escape. The dad is not dead in this version but he is absent from Jessica's life because she remind him to much of his be...more
Snow by Tracy Lynn is a part of the Once Upon A Time series of fairy tale retelling's and it take the classic Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and completely turns it on it head. In this version of the classic children's tale there are half human half animals, an electrocution, memory loss, a man that is half robot or something and it is set in the age of Queen Victoria in London England. Sound a little strange to you, well that's because it is, yet somehow the story really pulls it's weight and...more
Dec 12, 2010
Amanda
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
once-upon-a-time-series
This was a very interesting take on the classic Snow White story. I think I might even like this one better, although the Disney movie is pretty good : ) In this retelling, Lynn actually gives an explanation as to how the main character gets the name "Snow". I like how she has a normal name, Jessica, first. The changing of her name really shows a shift in the story and how Jessica/Snow feels. Her father is still alive, unlike most of the versions, but he's kind of out of it and doesn't notice an...more
This book needed to go through several more drafts to find its feet and work out the rather major kinks. First, Tracy Lynn did not do enough research on the Victorian period. The dialogue was often gaggingly modern, and the world did not seem fully fleshed out - or fully understood by the author. She needed to do more research on the class system, geography, culture, speech, landscape, and, most of all, names.
Naming the Victorian character "Jessica" did not seem to fit at all. Two of the charac...more
REALLY REALLY REALLY WEIRD!!!!! Everything about this book was strange. From the "seven dwarfs"(which were really five hybrids between animal and human, can you say creepy?) to the wicked stepmother, who was basically this mental scientist whose purpose I never really understood. Even snow/Jessica was a weirdo, although that may not be surprising considering her abused childhood. "Prince Charming" was actually this half raven freak, and instead of waking her with a kiss, they shock her on the li...more
What I liked about this book is the writing style of the author! The story couldn't in anyway impress me nor gain my esteem. I think that Tracy tried to put her own thoughts about the story of "Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs" and make something different that would actually be interesting and original, but she ended up mixing things up, although she made a success at times I daresay.
Jessica is the daughter of a Duke and a Duchess. After the death of her mother right after her being born, the d...more
Jessica is the daughter of a Duke and a Duchess. After the death of her mother right after her being born, the d...more
I'm sorry that I'm in a bad mood while writing this review, but I really didn't like this book. I will not read this book again. The only good thing in this book was Raven and he wasn't in nearly enough of the story. I thought he was really cute and I liked his character, but the rest of the book had me pounding my head against the table. Jessica or Snow, whatever her name is, is not relatable and didn't feel real for the bulk of the book. She felt like a shallow character that hadn't been thoug...more
I almost lost interest in this book half-way through, or maybe it was less than that, when Snow met the Lonely Ones. I put it down for awhile, and then flipped to the end where I read who's "children" the Lonely Ones really were. It kindled my interest enough to go back and read the rest of it.
The writing style was a bit too obvious, as the author's first book it reminded me a bit too much of my first novel I was writing for NaNoWriMo during the same time. But I think I enjoyed it more once my...more
The writing style was a bit too obvious, as the author's first book it reminded me a bit too much of my first novel I was writing for NaNoWriMo during the same time. But I think I enjoyed it more once my...more
I really enjoyed this retelling of ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarves’. Snow takes a different approach; removing the woods, the magic and dwarves and replacing them with the back alleys of London, steampunk and an unusual and mysterious gang of thieves who ‘mine’ the streets for its gold. Here, Snow’s real name is Jessica and she is the daughter of a Welsh duke, forced to flee her home when her stepmother’s vanity turns murderous. I loved the take on the ‘evil’ stepmother – Lynn brought so much...more
7th- 9th
Snow a young girl is very ignored. Her father gets re marred to a woman who does not treat Snow very well. Snow flees the estate to London and finds herself embraced by a band of urban outcasts. But her stepmother isn't finished with her, and if Jessica doesn't take control of her destiny, the wicked witch will certainly harness her youth and threaten her very life.
Why not teach a classic through a modern twist. This would be a great story to use to compare and contrast two stories. T...more
Snow a young girl is very ignored. Her father gets re marred to a woman who does not treat Snow very well. Snow flees the estate to London and finds herself embraced by a band of urban outcasts. But her stepmother isn't finished with her, and if Jessica doesn't take control of her destiny, the wicked witch will certainly harness her youth and threaten her very life.
Why not teach a classic through a modern twist. This would be a great story to use to compare and contrast two stories. T...more
I loved this story. I love most fairy tale retellings. I liked Jessica and I loved the Lonely Ones and Alan. The step-mother was messed up. I don't know if I can pick a favourite character.
I love this "Once Upon a Time" series. It seems to have stagnated because I haven't seen a new one for a couple years, but that's okay. I love how they can take place anywhere (real world or made up) and in any time period, like how Rumplestiltskin took place in America with some Irish immigrants, or how one o...more
I love this "Once Upon a Time" series. It seems to have stagnated because I haven't seen a new one for a couple years, but that's okay. I love how they can take place anywhere (real world or made up) and in any time period, like how Rumplestiltskin took place in America with some Irish immigrants, or how one o...more
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Pseudonym of Liz Braswell.
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