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As Pure As Snow
Korman, Niagara knows its share of tragedy. When the town’s defining steel factory burns down and kills close to eight hundred unfortunate souls, a hole sears itself into the town’s history and exists like a scab on the outskirts of the city.
Years later, Brooklyn Toomes must grapple with the everlasting debris of the burnt remains – both in an emotional and in a horrifically physical sense. What lurks in the shadows of the blackened factory becomes entangled in the lives of Korman’s residents: the documentary filmmaker in search for answers, two foreign siblings – the victims of civil war, a mayor on the cusp of re-election, and a woman named Rose Wilson, one-hundred-and-four years old, whose strained relationship with her great-granddaughter is matched only by the relation she has to the brooding figure that has lain dormant in the decaying factory for over seventy years.
Will the dark secrets of the past be revealed in time? Or will ignorance lead to further tragedy?
Years later, Brooklyn Toomes must grapple with the everlasting debris of the burnt remains – both in an emotional and in a horrifically physical sense. What lurks in the shadows of the blackened factory becomes entangled in the lives of Korman’s residents: the documentary filmmaker in search for answers, two foreign siblings – the victims of civil war, a mayor on the cusp of re-election, and a woman named Rose Wilson, one-hundred-and-four years old, whose strained relationship with her great-granddaughter is matched only by the relation she has to the brooding figure that has lain dormant in the decaying factory for over seventy years.
Will the dark secrets of the past be revealed in time? Or will ignorance lead to further tragedy?
247 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 10, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
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July 3, 2022You can tell that Cory Maddalena has a film background! Reading Pure As Snow, you can visualize everything - Korman, the factory, the cold, the people, and even the more fantastical elements all come alive. Cory has a real talent for storytelling and I can’t wait to read more. 👏
October 26, 2022
As Pure As Snow - Cory Maddalena
I am so excited to talk about this read on the surface of what the story is and analytically what was just done well! As Pure As Snow is a novel about dark secrets and discovery. We are open to finding out about a tragic incident in a burnt-down steel factory with too many fatalities to sit properly in your seat.
This book has a dynamic of many characters and interweaves them well, but the main one of interest is 104-year-old Rose Wilson.
Rose Wilson is on the hunt to find secrets from past generations and rekindle ideas lost in the tragic internal debris.
As far as setting and descriptors from the beginning, I as a reader felt as if I had spawned into the world and caught glimpse of the world the author was creating instantaneously. It was so refreshing to feel as if I were a part of the world. With the complexity of the background, flashbacks, and present plot, the author did a great job of not making the reader think too hard about where they were or who they were with.
If you go into depth about Cory Maddalena, the extraordinary creator of this book, you would know that he has a background in video and film. This book falls nothing short of using that experience to advantage. To have that factor play into a cohesive and fluid writing style, you make sparks fly!
This story has a lot of interpretation factors to it as well. The open-ended aspect of a lot of the scenes is great because as the main character is uncovering ideas and secrets, the reader feels as if they are right alongside them.
The internal and external haunts throughout the book of people and setting are intriguing. There was one particular scene that sent literal chills down my spine, but no spoilers here!
I definitely believe this is a book for anyone interested in wanting to actually be on the floor flipping through pages as if there is no tomorrow.
Time, tragedy, fatality in secrecy… the amount of elements I could pull from this book is whimsical and could come off as overwhelming, but they all play such a crucial part and work together so well!
I am so excited to talk about this read on the surface of what the story is and analytically what was just done well! As Pure As Snow is a novel about dark secrets and discovery. We are open to finding out about a tragic incident in a burnt-down steel factory with too many fatalities to sit properly in your seat.
This book has a dynamic of many characters and interweaves them well, but the main one of interest is 104-year-old Rose Wilson.
Rose Wilson is on the hunt to find secrets from past generations and rekindle ideas lost in the tragic internal debris.
As far as setting and descriptors from the beginning, I as a reader felt as if I had spawned into the world and caught glimpse of the world the author was creating instantaneously. It was so refreshing to feel as if I were a part of the world. With the complexity of the background, flashbacks, and present plot, the author did a great job of not making the reader think too hard about where they were or who they were with.
If you go into depth about Cory Maddalena, the extraordinary creator of this book, you would know that he has a background in video and film. This book falls nothing short of using that experience to advantage. To have that factor play into a cohesive and fluid writing style, you make sparks fly!
This story has a lot of interpretation factors to it as well. The open-ended aspect of a lot of the scenes is great because as the main character is uncovering ideas and secrets, the reader feels as if they are right alongside them.
The internal and external haunts throughout the book of people and setting are intriguing. There was one particular scene that sent literal chills down my spine, but no spoilers here!
I definitely believe this is a book for anyone interested in wanting to actually be on the floor flipping through pages as if there is no tomorrow.
Time, tragedy, fatality in secrecy… the amount of elements I could pull from this book is whimsical and could come off as overwhelming, but they all play such a crucial part and work together so well!
September 20, 2022
I loved this. Maybe I’m a bit biased because Cory is a friend but I enjoyed his storytelling back in uni for his films and original YouTube content; I also enjoyed it now with As Pure As Snow.
It was overall wonderful how the story built to this climax that allowed so many options to choose for an ending that kept me guessing. How there’s so many references around film made my heart sing and feel nostalgic for when he and I were in film class. The small details that allowed me to read it with his film style in mind was like watching it in my mind’s eye.
I went into it open to the writing choice of not using quotations due to my love of Sally Rooney’s writing. If I hadn’t read Rooney first, this would have been a struggle as it was for the first time reading without quotations. Now that I have adjusted to the style I could just got along for the ride.
It felt timeless with his diverse characters and world issues like racism, immigration, labour laws, workers’ rights and sprinkled with real touching moments between friends, like with Brooklyn and her friends Jan, Julie and Connor. Also, lovely moments between family like Brooklyn and her dad or Rose and Jennifer. Of course the moments between fathers and daughters hit closer to home for me (my dad’s passing 2 year anniversary is coming up a couple weeks).
Maddalena grossed me out a little (in the good way, haha) with gore/graphic violence one scene and made me tear up another. I definitely didn’t expect that latter but it was exactly what I wanted from those scenes.
The writing only gets stronger and better throughout the book to the point I was dog-earring and highlighting some great quotes. What can I say, but I highly recommend! If this sounds interesting then check out this new debut from just this past May by my buddy, Cory Maddalena.
It was overall wonderful how the story built to this climax that allowed so many options to choose for an ending that kept me guessing. How there’s so many references around film made my heart sing and feel nostalgic for when he and I were in film class. The small details that allowed me to read it with his film style in mind was like watching it in my mind’s eye.
I went into it open to the writing choice of not using quotations due to my love of Sally Rooney’s writing. If I hadn’t read Rooney first, this would have been a struggle as it was for the first time reading without quotations. Now that I have adjusted to the style I could just got along for the ride.
It felt timeless with his diverse characters and world issues like racism, immigration, labour laws, workers’ rights and sprinkled with real touching moments between friends, like with Brooklyn and her friends Jan, Julie and Connor. Also, lovely moments between family like Brooklyn and her dad or Rose and Jennifer. Of course the moments between fathers and daughters hit closer to home for me (my dad’s passing 2 year anniversary is coming up a couple weeks).
Maddalena grossed me out a little (in the good way, haha) with gore/graphic violence one scene and made me tear up another. I definitely didn’t expect that latter but it was exactly what I wanted from those scenes.
The writing only gets stronger and better throughout the book to the point I was dog-earring and highlighting some great quotes. What can I say, but I highly recommend! If this sounds interesting then check out this new debut from just this past May by my buddy, Cory Maddalena.
July 10, 2022
There are so many layers and metaphors in this story, which I can’t really unpack here but it’s the kind of story you can have endless conversations about.
The novel is insightful as it provides multiple perspectives and different shades of heartache also with a modern Mary Shelley twist that makes you question humanity's priorities while also feeling infuriated that political leaders never seem to learn from history.
Poetically written with imagery that places you in the moment with each character, this debut novel is captivating. It creatively highlights humanity's weaknesses, e.g. its tendency to cover up its mistakes no matter how glaringly obvious they are and its struggle to accept anything or anyone slightly different, all while keeping you engaged, wondering what will happen next.
"...like some pulling force that demanded to be seen, to be heard, to be acknowledged"
This is how the novel functions. It pulls you to the important issues while the image of the factory haunts you much like it haunts the town itself. You end up feeling as though you are a citizen of the town as well.
100% recommend.
The novel is insightful as it provides multiple perspectives and different shades of heartache also with a modern Mary Shelley twist that makes you question humanity's priorities while also feeling infuriated that political leaders never seem to learn from history.
Poetically written with imagery that places you in the moment with each character, this debut novel is captivating. It creatively highlights humanity's weaknesses, e.g. its tendency to cover up its mistakes no matter how glaringly obvious they are and its struggle to accept anything or anyone slightly different, all while keeping you engaged, wondering what will happen next.
"...like some pulling force that demanded to be seen, to be heard, to be acknowledged"
This is how the novel functions. It pulls you to the important issues while the image of the factory haunts you much like it haunts the town itself. You end up feeling as though you are a citizen of the town as well.
100% recommend.
May 13, 2022
If this is Maddalena's debut I can't wait too read his second, third and seasoned writer books. He already has such a handle on creating three dimensional characters, an artistic style of writing, and great sense for suspense and mystery. I couldn't put this book down. I wanted to know what was going to happen next! It's hard to write a review without spoiling anything but I really don't want to give anything away - this book was a joy to uncover each page.
August 12, 2022
"As Pure As Snow" is an intriguing novel, and it delivers as promised. Emotional trauma and environmental disaster happens, which places lives at stake and causes secrets to emerge. The characters are super fleshed out, and every one of them is very intriguing; I couldn't help but love them all. I loved this book and couldn't put it down!
August 8, 2022
An excellent book comprised of interesting characters, an intriguing setting, and a diverse network of themes for readers to ponder. I can't wait to get my hands on everything else that Cory Maddalena writes!
December 31, 2022
it would have been five stars
The story line and characters were exquisite but the abandonment of simple grammatical rules greatly detracted from the reading experience. The difficulty of discerning which character was talking greatly diminished the fluidity of the story.
The story line and characters were exquisite but the abandonment of simple grammatical rules greatly detracted from the reading experience. The difficulty of discerning which character was talking greatly diminished the fluidity of the story.
May 12, 2022
Could not stop reading this……👍🙌👏🏻
Terrific accomplishment for a first time author!
Terrific accomplishment for a first time author!
May 16, 2022
This is storytelling that keeps you on the edge of your seat.
A real triumph for a debut novel.
A real triumph for a debut novel.
October 17, 2022
Great story with a impact on important and relevant topics of the past and present.
April 19, 2023
Fantastic read
Amazingly well written. Believable characters. I could have done without the mild profanity. Heartbreaking and exhilarating but a read needed by all.
Amazingly well written. Believable characters. I could have done without the mild profanity. Heartbreaking and exhilarating but a read needed by all.
May 25, 2026
Decent book. Racism play is a bit too overt.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews