Cherita Smith

I enjoy this short story from Cherita Smith. I’ve been trying to read more fairy tale retellings, so it was only natural that this one worked well with my current reading mood.

I’ll be honest that I’m not very familiar with the “original” Snow White story. But it’s safe to say that readers shouldn’t expect a Disney movie from this story. It’s a bit dark, like may tales are. I’m glad the author kept the not-so-happy element in there.

With this being a short story, an author must sacrifice extensive world building in order for there to be room for the characters and plot. I feel that to a point that’s the case with this story. Smith set this in a world unlike our own, after a major event that changed the way the world lives and even looks. While I wasn’t really lost reading this story, I do feel like it could have benefited from having some more world building take place. it was intriguing and I wanted more. Maybe there’s more the author plans on doing with this world and readers will get it when that comes out. I’d for sure enjoy that.

While the characters weren’t very fleshed out, I think it worked just fine in this one. I was actually a bit surprised to be content not getting so deep into each of the major characters.

Overall, I enjoyed this story. I wanted a little bit more from it. But as I mentioned, maybe there’s more in store for us. I’d be more than happy to read more.… (meer)

*Thank you to the author for providing a free e-copy in exchange for an honest review*

Actual Rating: 3.75

I've always loved fairy tale retellings, and I jumped at the chance to read this novella. Project Snow takes place in a world plagued by infection. The only cure? Genetic engineering. When Amara turns sixteen, she will officially be considered immune, able to leave the Tower where she's been confined her entire life. But things aren't that simple. Not when the queen has her own plans, plans to cut out Amara's heart to replace her own.

One word that immediately comes to mind after reading this book is "potential". This book has so much of it, and I can't but wonder what it would be like if this was fleshed out into a full novel. With that said, I'll add that the pace of this book was fast. Like, really fast. The story jumps right in, and it speedily moves along, vaguely following the plot of "Snow White". Because everything was so compacted, the story was action-packed and wild the entire way through.

But for the same reason, I feel like I didn't quite get adequate time to get to know the characters. We follow the main character's emotional ups and downs, and it's easy to see how she could be overwhelmed, but I feel as though a more solid idea of her personality would help readers further understand the main character's relationship with the people around her. We saw a glimpse of this through Amara's conversations with her sisters, but I would love to see more.

One strength that I immediately noticed about this book was the powerful writing style. It was fluent and engaging, and as a sucker for heart-wrenching descriptions and memorable quotes, I was pulled right in.

I'll end my review with this: I absolutely loved the ending. It was the type of ending that left me speechless, then made me want to hurl the book across the room, then left me sitting in the same spot for hours, wondering.

I love those endings.… (meer)