Book Review: The Reflections of Queen Snow White by David Meredith

The Reflections of Queen Snow White

David Meredith

Adult, Fantasy, Fairy Tale, Romance

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 What happens when "happily ever after" has come and gone?

On the eve of her only daughter, Princess Raven's wedding, an aging Snow White finds it impossible to share in the joyous spirit of the occasion. The ceremony itself promises to be the most glamorous social event of the decade. Snow White’s castle has been meticulously scrubbed, polished and opulently decorated for the celebration. It is already nearly bursting with jubilant guests and merry well-wishers. Prince Edel, Raven's fiancé, is a fine man from a neighboring kingdom and Snow White's own domain is prosperous and at peace. Things could not be better, in fact, except for one thing:

The king is dead.

The queen has been in a moribund state of hopeless depression for over a year with no end in sight. It is only when, in a fit of bitter despair, she seeks solitude in the vastness of her own sprawling castle and climbs a long disused and forgotten tower stair that she comes face to face with herself in the very same magic mirror used by her stepmother of old.

It promises her respite in its shimmering depths, but can Snow White trust a device that was so precious to a woman who sought to cause her such irreparable harm? Can she confront the demons of her own difficult past to discover a better future for herself and her family? And finally, can she release her soul-crushing grief and suffocating loneliness to once again discover what "happily ever after" really means?

Only time will tell as she wrestles with her past and is forced to confront The Reflections of Queen Snow White.

Oh, goodness. What has brought you, fine fellows, to the dwelling to the thrice musings of the muses?

Yeah, Okay, I think I'm going to stop there.
While reading throughout the book, I had to revert my plain, ole' English to something more medieval (or is it more Renaissance?) manner of speaking in order to get what the characters are talking about. Nevertheless, the book goes farther from the fairytale and happily-ever-after as it talks about, as the title suggests, reflections on life. 

The tone of Mr. Meredith's book reminds me so much of history books and memoirs rather than a fairytale retelling. It showed Snow White on a level that was not present in the fairytale: human. Yes, even with the presence of magical mirrors and wicked stepmothers, Snow White has real people problems. Dealing with family problems, the loss of someone important to her leading to the neglect of another are some of the many things that Mr. Meredith brings to life through this book.

The book also presented how Snow White coped with such problems (real-life problems). She exhibited emotions more than I was used to seeing from her. In the movies and fairytale stories, she also had problems but it was hard connecting to them. Indeed, as a kid, we just love such stories but as one grows older, it's hard not to point out things that are highly improbable to happen in real life. In the process, people lose the sense of wonder they felt when they watched it when they were kids and now they ultimately ask what even was the moral of the story.

Mr. Meredith walked the fine line between "reading too much into Snow White's life" and "what could have happened  after she was carried off to her happy ending by Prince Charming." For me, this book falls easily on the latter. It's a matter of preference really. If you loved that Snow White got her happily-ever-after and wouldn't like to know what comes after, then you can skip reading this book. But, if you do wonder, I truly suggest you grab a copy. The story line, aside from the way they speak, is very relatable to what is happening in someone's life.

The Reflections of Queen Snow White showed to me that Snow White can be someone you'd be able to relate to even after the wonders of fairytales have long gone. She has put wonder to you when you were a kid and be inspired through her experiences even as you grow older. 

David Meredith is a writer and educator originally from Knoxville, Tennessee. He recieved both a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts from East Tennessee State University, in Johnson City, Tennessee as well as a Tennessee State Teaching license. On and off, he spent nearly a decade, from 1999-2010 teaching English in Northern Japan, but currently lives with his wife and three children in the Nashville Area where he continues to write and teach English.
Author page: https://www.facebook.com/DavidMeredit...
Twitter:  DMeredith2013