I loved the world building of this book and the descriptions were so beautiful. The setting is so dark and delicious, and I was easily able to picture the world as I was reading. On top of that, there were some absolutely enthralling morally gray characters that really did something for me. All in all, I liked the book. My only complaint is that the ending was rushed.

I could not get into this no matter how hard I tried. It’s been sitting on my kindle and I’ve come back to it a few times, but the writing did not capture my attention in the slightest.

Big thanks to NetGalley for providing this review!

Many thanks to Victory Editing and Katherine Buel for the advanced copy of White as Witching via NetGalley, in return for my honest and unbiased review. Quick note: I don’t recap plots in my reviews, as it’s easy enough to read the book’s synopsis and blurbs, I purely focus on my feelings & opinions of how the books makes me feel.

This quick read incorporated the Brothers Grimms’ Snow White with elements of Snow White and Rose Red (also collected by the Brothers Grimm) added to the story as well. Due to the very different nature of the storyline, I wouldn’t class this as a retelling.

The story itself is deliciously dark, with many morally grey characters. There is a lot of blood and gore, great if this ticks your boxes!

Unfortunately, not all the ends tie up in the story and, with it being as short as it is, they’re just kind of left. Some things are a bit TOO convenient to hurry the story along, skip a complicated bit of plotline, etc, but in all fairness the author calls themselves out on this in the story itself, so all credit to them for this.

I was very disappointed by the author’s choice to employ a hefty dose of ableism near the end of the book. It was completely unnecessary, and the book would have been stronger with it in. It was not featured in the original stories, and even if it had, would have made for a stronger standpoint. I think Buel has let themselves down on this one.

Overall, it’s a very imaginative, dark, and delightful story. It’s both true to the Grimm origins and uniquely off-piste.

Moods: adventurous, dark
Tropes: fairy tale retelling, orphan, revenge
Pace: fast
Character development: medium
Plot or character driven: 50/50
Diversity: medium
Trigger warnings: Ableism, Blood/Gore, Child abuse, Death, Death of a family member, Guns/weapons, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical or mental abuse, Violence

Rating 4/5
This review will be featured on my blog at www.mymentalshelf.com in future

Snow had wonderful character development throughout the book and I liked the way the dwarves were written. I do wish there was more building up of the relationship between Snow and Bregas. But I think it’s true fairytale style for the love story to just kind of happen rather than develop over time. Giving it four stars.

Snow White retelling.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit, I liked that this was more of a dark retelling which intrigued me. However, the curing of the facial scars had me a bit sad. I would of enjoyed it more if this was embraced.

I loved the first half of this book. The second half felt very rushed maybe would have been better if it had been 2 books rather than 1. I still enjoyed reading. A good read for Spooky season.

White as Witching is a dark and magical retelling of Snow White, also with a little hint of Red Riding Hood (I think?). It has great premise, including human, demons, dwarves, fairies and fae world and the wicked female witch villain that reminds me much of acotar.

The story’s pace is well enough, but I didn’t really able to get into the story. I’m not particularly like the main characters and having a hard time connecting with Snow, but I like Blood Red, Prickle the goat, and the dwarves’ riddles. I actually wished that I could see Prickle more as a companion animal. Not only that, but I also didn’t like the romance part. It feels a little cringy and lacks depth. In some parts, I feel like the story is being stretched out, even though I think it could be more concise but still reserving its essence.

Even so, I love the relationship between Snow and her sister. They’re separated for 7 years, each of them experienced hard times and struggled in their own way, but their struggles were basically for each other’s sake. And although when they meet again, they have changed both physically and in character, their love for each other is still strong. Overall, the story was enjoyable, and I like the originality of the retelling.

White as Witching was a fast-paced retelling of Snow White. I overall had a nice time following the well-rounded characters of this story and I really liked the twists on the original tale ; the author included classical fantasy elements such as white/dark witchcraft, demons, faes, Tolkien-like dwarves, as well as elements reminiscent of Baba Yaga, Lord of the Rings and The Swan Maiden.
It was a fast and easy read, it was very easy to get suck into the story.
However, I was really angry about a specific trope in this book that I find especially harmful. Beware, this next part contains spoilers.
Lyric, the evil queen and Snow White’s aunt is evil. Truly evil. She makes deals with demons, enslaves people and eats the hearts of young women to steal their magic. No question there. The thing that is problematic is that her reasons for seeking to rule and to rule without a man, is that she doesn’t want to ever be subjected to a man’s will and/or violence, as her mother and sister have been. I’m so incredibly tired of reading about oppressed people turning evil because of their oppression. She doesn’t like or trust men so she became corrupted by power and turned evil. Really? We’re in 2022, we know this sort of storyline has a real impact on society’s collective beliefs and it is not okay.
The second thing that ruined the book a little for me was the fact that for most of the book I thought it was SO COOL that Snow was not the cliché perfection she’s described as in the original tale. Yes, the reasons behind her disfigurement were horrible, but I liked that she was coming into her own, finding the courage to take back her throne and even finding without being a classical beauty. And then, in an unnecessary and ableist plot twist, she became pretty again and I got the feeling that the only real reason behind that was that she had to be “pretty” for the happy ending to be complete.
Without these two very disappointed points, I would probably have given this book 3.5 stars, because it was an enjoyable read otherwise. The rhythm was great, there were emotional moments as well as suspenseful ones and the revelations, although guessable, were exactly what I hoped for.

This book was really fun! The writing style wasn't particularly to my liking, and it was a bit like other stories I read. But it was still a really fun read in itself

I've been on the dark fairytale rabbit-hole lately and I'm hear for it. - with White as Witching we are given a Grimm inspired story through a dark and whimsical world.

We follow Snow White several years after she's fled from royalty due to witnessing the brutal murder of her father at the hands of her Aunt. When the Selection comes to the remote village where Snow has hidden since her father’s murder, she puts herself forward, trusting in her scarred face to hide her identity, and enters the castle she fled seven years ago—a place now haunted by unnatural whispers and eerie shadows.

But more is at stake than Snow’s revenge, or even the fates of five girls, and she must learn all she can about Lyric’s magic—and her own—before it’s too late.

This story was a fun read with perfect pacing and relatable characters. I loved that the author kept some of the darker twists that are present in the Grimm version of Snow White. As a YA, this book definitely exceeded my expectations. I recommend for anyone who loves a dark retelling.

White as Witching is an incredible and lush fantasy with gothic and dark atmosphere, which I like so much. Definitely was a perfect Halloween read and couldn't ask for more!

I really didn’t connect with the characters and there were too many plot points that just didn’t make sense, I struggled to get through it honestly.

Thanks to NetGalley for the arc of this book.

This book was just ok. It's a Snow White retelling.
I really liked the witchy vibes. I loved the fae, and wish they has a bigger part in the story.

An engaging retelling of Snow White with some German Folklore thrown in. I enjoyed it and thought the writing was lovely, but ultimately I’m just not really in this target audience.

This book was better than I expected. I really liked the ideas put forth from the blurb but I wasn't sure how well it would be executed. But it was cleverly written, full of riddles and foreshadowing and it wove the original elements of the fairy tale in with the new stuff really well.

The only thing I didn't like was the ableism towards the end. The author did a good job of making the point that her scar was a big part of her identity and made a point about sacrifice. But the message was still clear that she had to be "pretty" and perfect in order to rule and get her happy ending.

In all honesty, it completely ruined the book for me. A book that I was really enjoying, which I'll admit had a clever ending, but I couldn't get past the magical cure. I ended the book feeling really disappointed and betrayed.

I love a good fairy-tale retelling, so when I got the ARC for this one, I was really excited. While Snow White is not necessarily my favourite fairy-tale, what the author has made out of it is absolutely incredible. It was not all happy, but the book rather portrayed the complexities of love, power and relationships, often in a dark and thrilling way.

The plot was fast paced and I couldn't put the book away, once I was really in it. The characters are amazing and while I definitely have favourites, I loved all of them, each one having a complex personality. There was one aspect that I didn't really enjoy as much, as I believe it sent a wrong message or rather it stood in the way of even greater character development, so the author could have worked and made something great out of that. But that might just be my opinion.

What I liked best, next to my favourite characters, was the writing style. There were beautiful descriptions, it was very lyrical and I loved the riddles that were given. I enjoy riddles and songs in books in general as they make me think about their meaning and possible connections and these were no exception. When it was revealed what the riddles meant or I recognised a parallel, I always got really excited.

Overall I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed White as Witching and am intrigued to read more by the author!

Special thanks to Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for sending me this ARC!

This was my first time reading a Snow White retteling, so this was a very exciting experience for me. It drifts apart from the original story a bit, but the essence is there. The twin plot was probably my favorite thing. The way we watched them reunite again, after so long (and with a bit of conflict) was truly heart-warming. The ending also wrapped the book really nicely, bittersweet but with the hope of incoming happiness. My thanks to the publisher, the author and NetGAlley for opportunity to read and review this book.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC. All opinions are my own.

I absolutely love fairy tale retellings! This was no exception. It’s a darker retelling fast paced, quick read that keeps you captivated.

This was an enjoyable retelling, whether you're familiar with Snow White or not.
The pacing was a bit slow in places but over all I don't think it detracted from the story massively. I have to say, the characters that stole the show were Bregas/The Hunter and the dwarves. Both stole the scenes they were in and the riddles were fun to work out while the story progressed.
It's certainly one I'd recommend if someone was into retellings or looking for an easy read with a happy ending.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the eARC.

This was a creative retelling of Snow White, but still kept true to the general story. Snow White is a princess who flees the castle to escape a murderous queen. She manages to remain hidden for years, until returning to exact her revenge and take back her kingdom.

I really enjoyed reading this book, and read it in about 2 days. It was pretty fast paced in my opinion, moving directly from one major event to the next. Usually, I prefer a medium pace with more character development, but still enjoyed this. I also really liked the authors take on the hunter and the dwarves. I won't elaborate on that to avoid spoilers.