Girl in Snow by Danya Kukafka

If there was ever a book that I disliked from the start, pushed through for no real reason and ended up happy I did, its Girl in Snow. In my notes, taken while just over halfway through the story, I have written This is an odd little book and I am battling to get into it. In hindsight, I think it is the oddness that kept me turning the pages.

I slide my hand over the gun.

Although I didn’t like the stilted, distant writing style which makes it difficult to engage with the characters and their story, it does stand out as being original thus saving the story from obscurity.

… masks of sorrow placed expertly over their relief.

There are a couple of quirky elements in author’s choice of writing style. Most of the characters are deliberately unlikeable from the start, either with an unflattering appearance (most are covered in acne)or jarring personality. But further distance is created by the occasional use of third person narrative. Together these elements serve as a veil through which the reader is shown events preceding and subsequent to the murder.

… he hated himself for it, but he couldn’t stop. He didn’t want to.

It is the secrets which are slowly, reluctantly dragged out of the characters over the course of the book, and the unexpected twists these bring to the story, that ultimately grabbed my attention.

… a woman not forgotten, only folded and stored away.

I loved the personal note from the editor serving as a prelude to the story. It added a touch that I didn’t know I have missed out on my reading journey.

We’ll always feel the shape of the people we’ve touched. But still, we spin away.

Title: Girl in Snow

Author: Danya Kukafka

Publication Date: 1 August 2017

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Source: Review copy

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When a beloved high schooler named Lucinda Hayes is found murdered, no one in her sleepy Colorado suburb is untouched—not the boy who loved her too much; not the girl who wanted her perfect life; not the officer assigned to investigate her murder. In the aftermath of the tragedy, these three indelible characters—Cameron, Jade, and Russ—must each confront their darkest secrets in an effort to find solace, the truth, or both.  — Abstract from Goodreads.com

The fact that I received a complimentary advanced copy of this book does not influence my policy to write an honest review.

Disclaimer: The quotes appear in my advanced review copy and may not appear in the final version.