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Never Afters #7
Triquetra
"Triquetra" by Kirstyn McDermott is a dark fantasy novelette about the fraught relationship between Snow White and her stepmother after Snow White has married the prince and has her own child. She visits her stepmother monthly promising to kill her in ever more horrible ways, at the same time attempting to stay away from the mirror that started it all.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
43 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 5, 2018
7 people are currently reading
1041 people want to read
About the author
Kirstyn McDermott
51 books100 followersKirstyn McDermott is an Australian author of two award-winning novels, Madigan Mine and Perfections, as well as a collection of short fiction, Caution: Contains Small Parts. Until recently, she produced and co-hosted a literary discussion podcast, The Writer and the Critic, and is currently undertaking a creative PhD at Federation University with a research focus on retold fairy tales.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 191 reviews
May 24, 2020
I will lay you naked upon the snow, stretched between four iron stakes. Before your skin can chap too badly, I will take a keen-edged blade and peel it from you as someone might peel an apple. Blood will pool rich and red around your body. I will leave your fingernails until last and spit them into the snow when I am done.
THANK YOU FOR THIS!!!
there's nothing i love more than a story that goes beyond the "happily ever after" curtainfall of a fairy tale. this most excellent free tor short is a glimpse into snow white's life a few years after all the dust has settled. "dust," in this case being "when a man became so enamored of a dead child he found in a glass coffin that he kissed her back to life, whereupon she demanded that her stepmother be forced to dance in red-hot iron shoes until she fell down dead."
well, turns out that stepmother didn't die, but she has been snow white's horribly scarred prisoner for many years, and once a month, the two meet to share an enchanted apple and exchange flowery death threats. typical mother-daughter stuff.
meanwhile, the prince has been a real disappointment, and all snow white really cares about is the daughter they created together, who is now seven - the same age she was when her husband kissed her without consent and made her snow wife.
which fact her stepmother is pretty quick to bring up at their most recent apple-feast.
and which ticks in snow's brain, where growing suspicion and maternal protectiveness drive her to find out the truth from an old talking mirror that once caused everyone a heap of trouble.
this does all the things i love to see in fairytale retellings/reversals, and i just loved it. i would be thrilled to read a whole collection of similar stories from this author, if we're putting wishes out there. my wishes do not involve anyone having the skin melted off their feet, which makes me less vicious than a seven-year-old girl.
short review for a short story!
read it for yourself here:
https://www.tor.com/2018/09/05/trique...
come to my blog!
September 10, 2018
a triquetra
Very dark fairy tale retelling, free here on Tor.com. Review first posted on Fantasy Literature:
In this “What happened next?” take on “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,” Fairest (Snow White) is married to her prince and living with him in his castle. They have a lovely, golden-haired seven-year-old daughter. And they have Fairest’s stepmother, imprisoned in their castle, along with the magic mirror that originally began all the trouble. Fairest visits her stepmother each month, when they share an apple from a magical tree (presumably grown from the poisonous apple of the tale) along with their latest idea of a gory, imaginative way in which to kill each other.
The stepmother also warns her about the unspeakable intentions of Fairest’s husband, the prince, toward their daughter. Whether to believe her? The magic mirror might answer, but Stepmother warns Fairest against that as well.
“Heed me well, Fairest. When you stand before that thing, when you peer into its depths, you also allow it to peer into you. It will see the very darkest of your fears; it will sup on them and find them delicious. And it will use them against you in terrible ways.”“Triquetra” is a dark subversion of the Snow White fairy tale, raising challenging questions about trust and the ways in which people can be misled. It’s imaginative, with vivid writing, but disturbing on several levels, not the least of which are the creative murder methods dreamed up by Fairest and her stepmother, which are used as a grisly framing device. I liked the way in which the stepmother’s character was recast, and the ultimate resolution of the story.
A triquetra is a triangular design with three interlocking, pointed loops, sometimes with a circle forming part of the design. It may be that the three points are intended to be Fairest, her daughter and her stepmother, but a few more interesting possibilities do come to mind.
Content notes: discussion of pedophilia, potential incest, and torture. Some gruesome imagery.
September 22, 2021
I have to admit, I am getting monopolized by these twisted novellas even when I ended up getting baffled or confused.
Triquetra is a twisted Snow White retelling that took place after the matrimony between Snow White and the prince in which Snow's husband is revealed to have some dark secrets. Not to mention her dealings with her stepmother that are similarly unsettling.
This book really reminded me of those dark Disney theories especially when you realized that the Prince was 31 when he found Snow White in the coffin; (& she was 14 WTF). Seemingly, this novelette do be twisting into the same affair(paedophilia) when it comes to Snow White's daughter. However, I was a bit confused (at this point I believed I'm just stupid) because I don't know what this is supposed to be about and who was the real antagonist; the prince, the mirror or Lady Heron.
Nonetheless, this retelling was written well in a sense of all the brutal realities of a woman's life, the wonder of how we cope, and the soaring, pure joy of discovery, independence, and power at the conclusion. The ending also hinted at a new start which I hope readers will get the chance to have a peek at what will happen next.
[2.5/5]
Triquetra is a twisted Snow White retelling that took place after the matrimony between Snow White and the prince in which Snow's husband is revealed to have some dark secrets. Not to mention her dealings with her stepmother that are similarly unsettling.
This book really reminded me of those dark Disney theories especially when you realized that the Prince was 31 when he found Snow White in the coffin; (& she was 14 WTF). Seemingly, this novelette do be twisting into the same affair
Nonetheless, this retelling was written well in a sense of all the brutal realities of a woman's life, the wonder of how we cope, and the soaring, pure joy of discovery, independence, and power at the conclusion. The ending also hinted at a new start which I hope readers will get the chance to have a peek at what will happen next.
[2.5/5]
May 1, 2023
A Triquetra representing the trinity of female archetypes: the Maiden, the Mother and the Crone.
The power and the responcibility. The woes of our sorrows and whatever we do to cope. Sometimes dreadfully damaging. Addiction. Paedophilia.
Q: She could have fled at any time, fled and flown and been free. (c) Now, this is the kind of powerful refrain one might have expected to experience in such a fairy tale post-tale.
Fleeing from one's pain? Or not, as in facing it and making things better for everyone. Fight and flight as strategic choices between various kinds of pain and degrees of being true to oneself and to others.
I would've loved to hate this novelette but I'd rather keep it in my memory. This is one hell of a painful read. Sick, slick and memorable.
All kinds of sadism, of grievous punishments inflicted on the people we could have been close with.
Q:
Fear is a stubborn habit; it must be broken again and again. (c)
Beware of spoilers ahead!
!
!
!
!
!
But... just who was punished in here? Imagine dooming a person to dreadful mutilation and then nursing the said person back to health? Just how damaging and PTSD-inducing would that be?
Doing all that as a kid, BTW.
The power and the responcibility. The woes of our sorrows and whatever we do to cope. Sometimes dreadfully damaging. Addiction. Paedophilia.
Q: She could have fled at any time, fled and flown and been free. (c) Now, this is the kind of powerful refrain one might have expected to experience in such a fairy tale post-tale.
Fleeing from one's pain? Or not, as in facing it and making things better for everyone. Fight and flight as strategic choices between various kinds of pain and degrees of being true to oneself and to others.
I would've loved to hate this novelette but I'd rather keep it in my memory. This is one hell of a painful read. Sick, slick and memorable.
All kinds of sadism, of grievous punishments inflicted on the people we could have been close with.
Q:
Fear is a stubborn habit; it must be broken again and again. (c)
Beware of spoilers ahead!
!
!
!
!
!
But... just who was punished in here? Imagine dooming a person to dreadful mutilation and then nursing the said person back to health? Just how damaging and PTSD-inducing would that be?
Doing all that as a kid, BTW.
September 11, 2018
Short story time!
Honestly, I had hoped to thrill my way through not-so-happy ever after with this Snow White rendition and I did get what I was promised.
But after pushing my way through the whole family dynamics of a mother-in-law (who didn't actually die) and daughter, including the whole down the slippery slope of a daughter's revenge, I found myself distantly amused and sometimes downright bored. Unfortunately.
Was this a not-so-thinly veiled family drama re-enactment? A wish-fulfillment fantasy?
Maybe.
And maybe it just didn't strike me as all that entertaining.
But for all of you hunting for dark post-scripts to your favorite fairy tales, by all means, dive in!
Honestly, I had hoped to thrill my way through not-so-happy ever after with this Snow White rendition and I did get what I was promised.
But after pushing my way through the whole family dynamics of a mother-in-law (who didn't actually die) and daughter, including the whole down the slippery slope of a daughter's revenge, I found myself distantly amused and sometimes downright bored. Unfortunately.
Was this a not-so-thinly veiled family drama re-enactment? A wish-fulfillment fantasy?
Maybe.
And maybe it just didn't strike me as all that entertaining.
But for all of you hunting for dark post-scripts to your favorite fairy tales, by all means, dive in!
October 8, 2018
This was a super dark sequel to the Sleeping Beauty fairytale. Set years after the original tale when Snow White has a daughter of her own. Snow White visits her wicked, imprisoned, stepmother once a month to exchange unpleasantries while also tries to stay away from the pull of the magic mirror that started all the family problems.
I must admit I did not particularly enjoy this one in the early stages as I was not a big fan of the really dark twist on the fairytale or the disturbing topics of domestic violence and child abuse that were at the heart of the story. It was all a bit dark and depressing. I think McDermott managed to save things with a couple of interesting and clever developments in the second half of the story and so this one ended better than it started but it was still just a bit dark for me.
The mirror never lies, my stepmother told me once, when I pressed her on the subject. The trick is to know whose truth it is speaking.
The mirror was the most interesting bit of the tale for sure. It gets neglected a bit in the Sleeping Beauty fairy tales but if I ever come across more sequels to the story I hope they focus on the mirror!
All in all I'd say this short story was a dark but interesting read. A bit disturbing for my liking but a story still worth the reading.
Rating: 3 stars.
I must admit I did not particularly enjoy this one in the early stages as I was not a big fan of the really dark twist on the fairytale or the disturbing topics of domestic violence and child abuse that were at the heart of the story. It was all a bit dark and depressing. I think McDermott managed to save things with a couple of interesting and clever developments in the second half of the story and so this one ended better than it started but it was still just a bit dark for me.
The mirror never lies, my stepmother told me once, when I pressed her on the subject. The trick is to know whose truth it is speaking.
The mirror was the most interesting bit of the tale for sure. It gets neglected a bit in the Sleeping Beauty fairy tales but if I ever come across more sequels to the story I hope they focus on the mirror!
All in all I'd say this short story was a dark but interesting read. A bit disturbing for my liking but a story still worth the reading.
Rating: 3 stars.
September 11, 2018
Maybe it is that I don't want yet enother dark twist on a fairy tale because I'm tired of seing (almost) innocent stories turned dark, but I didn't enjoy this much.
We follow Snow White years after she married the prince, haven given birth to a daughter that is now 7 years old. For some reason, she changed her mind about what was to happen to the wicked stepmother so the woman is still alive and is being visited once a month.
Suddenly, the handsome prince is a drunk and not good with money, complaining constantly and mistreating people. Oh, and he might desire his own daughter.
So Snow White is forced to talk to the mirror despite being aware of its manipulative powers and teaming up with the wicked stepmother. Sadly, Snow White is not the girl she once was. This Snow White ... well, I wanted to slap her. *lol*
On top of that, the story even had some small errors like . *doh*
All in all, it was too bland, done too many times before and I caught myself being antsy, wanting it to be over already. :(
We follow Snow White years after she married the prince, haven given birth to a daughter that is now 7 years old. For some reason, she changed her mind about what was to happen to the wicked stepmother so the woman is still alive and is being visited once a month.
Suddenly, the handsome prince is a drunk and not good with money, complaining constantly and mistreating people. Oh, and he might desire his own daughter.
So Snow White is forced to talk to the mirror despite being aware of its manipulative powers and teaming up with the wicked stepmother. Sadly, Snow White is not the girl she once was. This Snow White ... well, I wanted to slap her. *lol*
On top of that, the story even had some small errors like . *doh*
All in all, it was too bland, done too many times before and I caught myself being antsy, wanting it to be over already. :(
January 1, 2021
3.5 stars
An atmospheric subversion of the typical Snow White fairy tale that answers the question - what happens next, when the princess is grown but her memories remain?
I liked the trio of women here, the typical crone, mother and maiden and the roles they play in furthering the story. The inclusion of the mirror and its role in what happened to Snow White was interesting too, presenting a threatening aura that envelops it's surroundings.
I just wish it had been longer, and the ending more satisfying.
An atmospheric subversion of the typical Snow White fairy tale that answers the question - what happens next, when the princess is grown but her memories remain?
I liked the trio of women here, the typical crone, mother and maiden and the roles they play in furthering the story. The inclusion of the mirror and its role in what happened to Snow White was interesting too, presenting a threatening aura that envelops it's surroundings.
I just wish it had been longer, and the ending more satisfying.
September 6, 2018
Dark fairytales are nothing new, but when the writing is this good, and the take this original - it's a shining example of how they can be done well.
While it's grim enough in places to rival the original, I ended up really enjoying the path this story ended up taking. It's the first piece of Kirstyn McDermott's work I've read, but it won't be the last.
Read it here: https://www.tor.com/2018/09/05/trique...
While it's grim enough in places to rival the original, I ended up really enjoying the path this story ended up taking. It's the first piece of Kirstyn McDermott's work I've read, but it won't be the last.
Read it here: https://www.tor.com/2018/09/05/trique...
March 18, 2019
This original fiction piece is available on tor.com and is a dark fantasy take on what came after Snow White married the prince. Trapped in an unhappy marriage, "Fairest" dedicates her days to planning the long drawn out torture of her evil stepmother who she continues to visit. As dark forces move about, Fairest might just have to rely on her enemy to protect her beloved daughter from a cruel fate.
April 4, 2025
Definition: Triquetra; is a triangular figure composed of three interlaced arcs.
Public Domain photo from Wikipedia.
This short story is a twist on Snow White.
Fairest (love this name!) is imprisoned in a castle by her absent husband, along with her daughter & stepmother.
The prince certainly turned out to be no fairy tale prince!
A story for our time?
.& Fairest loathes her stepmother & plots against her. Fairest's predominant emotion & motivation is her love for her daughter & desire to set her free.
How will this be resolved?
A beautifully written dark fairy tale. I'm going to see out more works from this author.
& a shoutout to cover artist Audrey Benjaminsen. This is one gorgeous cover & I see more in it every time
Public Domain photo from Wikipedia.
This short story is a twist on Snow White.
Fairest (love this name!) is imprisoned in a castle by her absent husband, along with her daughter & stepmother.
The prince certainly turned out to be no fairy tale prince!
Though I’ve heard it said that these lands where we make our home were prosperous before he took governance of them, that it has been his taxes and sporadic, unannounced levies that have brought poverty among its people and made them fear what each new season might bring
A story for our time?
.& Fairest loathes her stepmother & plots against her. Fairest's predominant emotion & motivation is her love for her daughter & desire to set her free.
How will this be resolved?
A beautifully written dark fairy tale. I'm going to see out more works from this author.
& a shoutout to cover artist Audrey Benjaminsen. This is one gorgeous cover & I see more in it every time
https://wordpress.com/view/carolshess...
April 13, 2019
At this point I read several retellings of Snow White and this might be the best one along with Gaiman's Snow glass and apples.
July 18, 2021
The mirror never lies, my stepmother told me once, when I pressed her on the subject. The trick is to know whose truth it is speaking.
Snow white is married now and she has a daughter who is seven years old. Her stepmother has been locked up in a room and Snow white visits her once a month. Snow white's husband, Prince Charming? (it wasn't clear if it was prince charming) has sold off pretty much everything in their estate and now he plans on finding a match or may be selling his daughter to wealthy suitors.
On her monthly visit to her stepmother, Snow finds out a dark truth from her stepmother about her husband. She tries not to think of it as anything other than a wicked ploy or a manipulation but her stepmother's words keep circling in her head. Then she visits none other than The mirror for the first time. Would The mirror actually help her or manipulate her?
Whatever words the mirror chooses to speak, they will be mine alone to hear.
I love fairytale retellings and lately dark retellings have been making quite an impression on me. This was no exception. A very interesting and a dark retelling of Snow White. Once I started, I just couldn't stop reading so this being a short-story is both a good and a bad thing. One could never think that the stepmother could feel sorry for her actions and try to redeem herself and the actual evil could be The mirror itself. Although I always thought that The mirror was always quite the villain.
5 stars
Snow white is married now and she has a daughter who is seven years old. Her stepmother has been locked up in a room and Snow white visits her once a month. Snow white's husband, Prince Charming? (it wasn't clear if it was prince charming) has sold off pretty much everything in their estate and now he plans on finding a match or may be selling his daughter to wealthy suitors.
On her monthly visit to her stepmother, Snow finds out a dark truth from her stepmother about her husband. She tries not to think of it as anything other than a wicked ploy or a manipulation but her stepmother's words keep circling in her head. Then she visits none other than The mirror for the first time. Would The mirror actually help her or manipulate her?
Whatever words the mirror chooses to speak, they will be mine alone to hear.
I love fairytale retellings and lately dark retellings have been making quite an impression on me. This was no exception. A very interesting and a dark retelling of Snow White. Once I started, I just couldn't stop reading so this being a short-story is both a good and a bad thing. One could never think that the stepmother could feel sorry for her actions and try to redeem herself and the actual evil could be The mirror itself. Although I always thought that The mirror was always quite the villain.
5 stars
November 6, 2024
I will bring you before the mirror; let it tell the hard and glassy truth of your death.
I do love a good fairy tale retelling, especially when it's eerie and gorgeous.
Read it here for free!
I do love a good fairy tale retelling, especially when it's eerie and gorgeous.
Read it here for free!
October 6, 2020
I shall drown you in the river where the willows grow. Their branches will reach for you and in desperation you will grasp for them but they will break between your fingers like the bones of small birds. As the water fills your throat, the last thing you shall know will be my two hands holding you down.
Triquetra by Kirstyn McDermott is a short and dark retelling of the Snow White fairytale, set after she married her prince and had a child. It’s dark and foreboding like a good fairytale should be. This novelette won many awards and I can see why.
Fear is a stubborn habit; it must be broken again and again.
Themes: one apple a month, they exchange murder fantasies, the husband is a vile creature, beware the mirror, the raven.
4.5 Stars
Triquetra by Kirstyn McDermott is a short and dark retelling of the Snow White fairytale, set after she married her prince and had a child. It’s dark and foreboding like a good fairytale should be. This novelette won many awards and I can see why.
Fear is a stubborn habit; it must be broken again and again.
Themes: one apple a month, they exchange murder fantasies, the husband is a vile creature, beware the mirror, the raven.
4.5 Stars
August 12, 2021
A clever re-imagining of Snow White, or more accurately a follow on story which reveals that the sequence of events we know were not all they seemed.
This is a short and dramatic, atmospheric and dark story, published free on tor.com HERE
It is exceptional in its dark setting, it builds momentum and doesn't disappoint with twists to the very end, and as always there is an excellent cover provided as part of the story.
4 stars.
This is a short and dramatic, atmospheric and dark story, published free on tor.com HERE
It is exceptional in its dark setting, it builds momentum and doesn't disappoint with twists to the very end, and as always there is an excellent cover provided as part of the story.
4 stars.
March 14, 2019
An enthralling read!
Triquetra is the story of Snow White and what became of her and her stepmother. Told in a dark, foreboding way. The way a true fairytale is suppose to be.
Kirstyn McDermott's story voice held a classic tone to it. Beautifully done. And that cover picture!! No other would have been as perfect.
November 29, 2024
4.8/5 stars — it’s so hard for me to rate a short story or novella 5 stars because there’s always part of me that will wish for more character development or want more time to get my bearings in the world of the narrative, but this was really strong. all the darkness and hope alike that I could ask from a fairy tale retelling.
Plot: 5/5
Characters: 4/5
Pacing: 5/5
Writing: 5/5
Enjoyment: 5/5
Plot: 5/5
Characters: 4/5
Pacing: 5/5
Writing: 5/5
Enjoyment: 5/5
April 4, 2026
3.5 ⭐️
once more did the gorgeous cover illustrated by Audrey Benjamin capture me, so that i read a short story without any knowledge of what i will come across :p i'm obseeessseeddd with the cover help-
anygays, this is a dark sequel of the Snow White fairytale with different interesting topics that you find between the lines/interpret in the story. i rlly liked the atmosphere, but was left slightly confused with the writing style. still; its a good and interesting short story to read in between :))
once more did the gorgeous cover illustrated by Audrey Benjamin capture me, so that i read a short story without any knowledge of what i will come across :p i'm obseeessseeddd with the cover help-
anygays, this is a dark sequel of the Snow White fairytale with different interesting topics that you find between the lines/interpret in the story. i rlly liked the atmosphere, but was left slightly confused with the writing style. still; its a good and interesting short story to read in between :))
August 21, 2020
I loved this! A wonderfully dark short story about Snow White, now married to Prince Charming and with her own young daughter. Beautifully written and crafted with twists on all the characters.
December 4, 2021
Triquetra: Sau khi kết hôn với hoàng tử, nàng trừng phạt người mẹ kế và sinh được một người con gái. Hằng tháng, nàng đều đến thăm mẹ kế và hứa sẽ giết bà ta theo những cách thức khủng khiếp nhất. Nhưng nguồn cơn nguy hiểm liệu có đến từ bà phù thủy già này? Hay từ tấm gương nàng không bao giờ dám nhìn vào? Hay từ người chồng năm xưa đã hôn thi hài một bé gái và cưới nàng làm vợ?
*Triquetra: Maiden, Mother, Crone (Thiếu nữ, Mẫu thân, Lão bà) - ba vai trò của người phụ nữ trong cuộc đời.
Điểm: 7/10
Với mình, "Triquetra" là một truyện ngắn ổn, không xuất sắc mà cũng chẳng có gì đáng chê trách. Bối cảnh mùa đông tuyết trắng giữa những bức tường thành đem lại cảm giác trống vắng mà lại bức bối, với một cảm giác hiểm nguy mơ hồ luôn treo lơ lửng trên đầu nhân vật chính.
Thuộc thể loại retelling, "Triquetra" không cải biên lại "chuyện đã xảy ra" mà tập trung vào "chuyện xảy ra sau đó". Bạch Tuyết (dù nàng chưa bao giờ được gọi bằng cái tên này trong truyện) yếu đuối và bất lực, vì sau cùng nàng chỉ là một kẻ mồ côi không nơi nương tựa. Sự an toàn và hạnh phúc của mẹ con nàng phụ thuộc trọn vào người chồng nắm mọi quyền lực - hoàng tử của một vương quốc. Đây chính là khoảng trắng phía sau bức màn hôn lễ và lời hứa "hạnh phúc mãi mãi về sau" của những truyện cổ tích. Ngoài ra, truyện cũng có một "redemption arc" khá tốt và một kết thúc đem lại cảm giác trọn vẹn.
"Ta sẽ dìm bà xuống dòng sông bên hàng liễu. Bà sẽ nắm lấy cành liễu rủ trong cơn tuyệt vọng, cảm thấy chúng gẫy vụn giữa các ngón tay như lóng xương giòn của lũ chim nhỏ. Khi nước sông tràn đầy cổ họng, điều cuối cùng mà bà nhìn thấy sẽ là đôi bàn tay ta nhấn bà xuống."
*Triquetra: Maiden, Mother, Crone (Thiếu nữ, Mẫu thân, Lão bà) - ba vai trò của người phụ nữ trong cuộc đời.
Điểm: 7/10
Với mình, "Triquetra" là một truyện ngắn ổn, không xuất sắc mà cũng chẳng có gì đáng chê trách. Bối cảnh mùa đông tuyết trắng giữa những bức tường thành đem lại cảm giác trống vắng mà lại bức bối, với một cảm giác hiểm nguy mơ hồ luôn treo lơ lửng trên đầu nhân vật chính.
Thuộc thể loại retelling, "Triquetra" không cải biên lại "chuyện đã xảy ra" mà tập trung vào "chuyện xảy ra sau đó". Bạch Tuyết (dù nàng chưa bao giờ được gọi bằng cái tên này trong truyện) yếu đuối và bất lực, vì sau cùng nàng chỉ là một kẻ mồ côi không nơi nương tựa. Sự an toàn và hạnh phúc của mẹ con nàng phụ thuộc trọn vào người chồng nắm mọi quyền lực - hoàng tử của một vương quốc. Đây chính là khoảng trắng phía sau bức màn hôn lễ và lời hứa "hạnh phúc mãi mãi về sau" của những truyện cổ tích. Ngoài ra, truyện cũng có một "redemption arc" khá tốt và một kết thúc đem lại cảm giác trọn vẹn.
"Ta sẽ dìm bà xuống dòng sông bên hàng liễu. Bà sẽ nắm lấy cành liễu rủ trong cơn tuyệt vọng, cảm thấy chúng gẫy vụn giữa các ngón tay như lóng xương giòn của lũ chim nhỏ. Khi nước sông tràn đầy cổ họng, điều cuối cùng mà bà nhìn thấy sẽ là đôi bàn tay ta nhấn bà xuống."
February 8, 2025
“I shall simmer you slowly, until your skin sloughs away and your flesh becomes soup. Your bones will be boiled for stock so that I might dine with special delight on the consommé drawn from your marrow.”
Eh... an OK attempt at a dark snow white retelling, though it fell flat more than anything. More focused on gore and flowery prose than putting any effort into the actual story. Didn't move me.
Eh... an OK attempt at a dark snow white retelling, though it fell flat more than anything. More focused on gore and flowery prose than putting any effort into the actual story. Didn't move me.
September 10, 2018
i love dark fairy tale retellings and this was everything i ever wanted out of them!
November 25, 2022
Οκκ αλλά δεν περίμενα να μου αρέσει τόσο πολύ! Η ιστορία ακολούθησε τις θεωρίες (ή την original ιστορία της Χιονάτης; Δεν θυμάμαι 💀) που λένε οτι η Χιονάτη ήταν μονάχα ένα μικρό παιδί όταν ο πρίγκιπας την παντρεύτηκε. Κοινώς, παιδόφιλος...
Πλέον η Χιονάτη έχει μεγαλώσει και έχει φέρει στον κόσμο την κόρη της που έχει την ίδια ηλικία που είχε η ίδια πριν τόσα χρόνια. Η Χιονάτη φοβάται για την ασφάλεια της κόρης της μέσα στο κάστρο. Παράλληλα, θέλει να σκοτώσει απεγνωσμένα την μητριά της.
Σκοτεινή ιστορία γενικά. Πάρα πολύ καλή γραφή που με αιχμαλώτισε από την πρώτη σελίδα. Διάβασα και τις 40 σελίδες σε μια καθισιά. 😅
Πλέον η Χιονάτη έχει μεγαλώσει και έχει φέρει στον κόσμο την κόρη της που έχει την ίδια ηλικία που είχε η ίδια πριν τόσα χρόνια. Η Χιονάτη φοβάται για την ασφάλεια της κόρης της μέσα στο κάστρο. Παράλληλα, θέλει να σκοτώσει απεγνωσμένα την μητριά της.
Σκοτεινή ιστορία γενικά. Πάρα πολύ καλή γραφή που με αιχμαλώτισε από την πρώτη σελίδα. Διάβασα και τις 40 σελίδες σε μια καθισιά. 😅
June 19, 2022
I enjoy fairy tale retellings, and this new take on Snow White was well done and gorgeously illustrated, and available as a short freebie on tor.com. "Triquetra" plays on the triple goddess figure of Maiden/Mother/Crone in the story of a married Snow White, trapped in a loveless marriage; her young daughter; and her stepmother, whose villainhood is in question throughout the story. I enjoyed the ending tremendously.
February 9, 2022
Another free Tor short piece (story? novella? dunno) and for once, it really really did not work for me.
Dark, feminist themed fairy tale retelling short stories (or novellas or full length novels) were a huge thing in the 90s (maybe Angela Carter started it? Anyway I got a bunch of anthologies by Ellen Datlow and novels by Robin McKinley and Tanith Lee and so many others still in my shelves. The dark what-happens-next scenario of a fairy tale is not a new concept to me.
And this fell very short. The universe was odd, the poverty stricken wife of a prince and governor of a province counting coins to buy her daughter clothing and a kind of "small" universe, lots of foretold and omens, all very obvious. Tedious (to me).
Dark, feminist themed fairy tale retelling short stories (or novellas or full length novels) were a huge thing in the 90s (maybe Angela Carter started it? Anyway I got a bunch of anthologies by Ellen Datlow and novels by Robin McKinley and Tanith Lee and so many others still in my shelves. The dark what-happens-next scenario of a fairy tale is not a new concept to me.
And this fell very short. The universe was odd, the poverty stricken wife of a prince and governor of a province counting coins to buy her daughter clothing and a kind of "small" universe, lots of foretold and omens, all very obvious. Tedious (to me).
March 28, 2019
What happened to Snow White after she married the Prince? I appreciated the dark twist of the so-called happily ever after here, but the hazy character motivation and the ending left me feeling empty.
September 13, 2018
I was very pleased with this short story, as it invoked the essence of "Snow White" but created a far darker and complex story that echoed the current worries of modern times.
A couple of comments on my part. I'm not sure if I read this story wrong, but it seems as if all men are portrayed as evil or bad. Seems a bit undeserving to blanket cover all men this way, and I wonder just how many men did K. McDermott wrong to have her mind conjure up this dark view of the male half of our species. I hope she has found men less evil crossing her recent paths.
I rather enjoyed the internal drama (craziness/insanity maybe). Some seemed a bit forced, as I do not know many parents which do not love their children MORE than their spouses. It is obviously implied that this love was the wrong kind, yet really offered up nothing other than internal thoughts and "knowing" to the reader that things were destined to go badly. The ages involved are indeed a twist to the typical Disney version, and it muddles the mental picture a bit. I had always assumed both the Prince and Snow White were young adults/ teenagers.
I might be nitpicking a bit, because I did indeed like the story and the writing. But once a modern twist is introduced, it opens the door for nitpicking the transition from the original story to the new one. This aside, I think any reader will come away with a positive feeling about the read and appreciate the fine job McDermott did.
4 Stars
A couple of comments on my part. I'm not sure if I read this story wrong, but it seems as if all men are portrayed as evil or bad. Seems a bit undeserving to blanket cover all men this way, and I wonder just how many men did K. McDermott wrong to have her mind conjure up this dark view of the male half of our species. I hope she has found men less evil crossing her recent paths.
I rather enjoyed the internal drama (craziness/insanity maybe). Some seemed a bit forced, as I do not know many parents which do not love their children MORE than their spouses. It is obviously implied that this love was the wrong kind, yet really offered up nothing other than internal thoughts and "knowing" to the reader that things were destined to go badly. The ages involved are indeed a twist to the typical Disney version, and it muddles the mental picture a bit. I had always assumed both the Prince and Snow White were young adults/ teenagers.
I might be nitpicking a bit, because I did indeed like the story and the writing. But once a modern twist is introduced, it opens the door for nitpicking the transition from the original story to the new one. This aside, I think any reader will come away with a positive feeling about the read and appreciate the fine job McDermott did.
4 Stars
December 1, 2023
Here is Fairest. You remember, "the fairest of them all". As dictated by the mirror, mirror on the wall. That stepmother went all out to keep her crown . Even had beef with a preteen. Only to be awarded a dance. While wearing the hottest shoes filled with coals. A punishment delt out by Fairest's new husband.
In the Grimm fairytale collection. Snow White was beloved by all. Until that mirror reminded the queen of her competition.
In this short story, one explores the after in ever after. Boy that's not the half of it. There is ... it's a short read well worth your time. Cause i started rooting for the Stepmother
In the Grimm fairytale collection. Snow White was beloved by all. Until that mirror reminded the queen of her competition.
In this short story, one explores the after in ever after. Boy that's not the half of it. There is ... it's a short read well worth your time. Cause i started rooting for the Stepmother
January 30, 2019
A dark re-imagining of Snow White, Triquetra is a short story that explores what life is like for the heroine after her marriage to the prince who isn't as charming as she once found him as a child. I loved the atmosphere of this story, and although it covers some very dark topics, I was glad that--in my opinion--there was no more detail regarding it than necessary to tell the story. I found the dynamic between Fairest and her Stepmother interesting and tense, and the description of the mirror and scenes regarding it and magic were done so well, as well as the build-up of Fairest's paranoia and anxieties over her and her daughter's safety in the castle. To keep this spoiler-free, I will simply say that I did appreciate that the ending was not as grim as the rest of the story.
Triquetra is available for free on Tor.com with the option to purchase it, which is a huge bonus in my book. Also features a beautiful cover.
Triquetra is available for free on Tor.com with the option to purchase it, which is a huge bonus in my book. Also features a beautiful cover.
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