The description of this book seemed right up my alley, but this one ultimately did not work for me. The structural editing left much to be desired

Sadly, this one was a DNF at 60% for me. It just didn't live up to it's summation and potential. I couldn't click with the plot and the characters. There were too many events flying by that it made it impossible to figure out what was important and what wasn't and there was practically no character development.

I won't review elsewhere.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC of White as Witching!

A dark Snow White re-telling that will leave you speechless. Incredible prose and detailed world-building, this re-telling completely revamps Snow White with witches, magic, fae, and more. I have to admit- I went into this completely not expecting to be WOWed and I was sorely mistaken because the "WOW" factor of this book is off the charts. I really enjoyed this book and can't wait to add it to my shelf.

Was this a quick, easy, and enjoyable read? Yep! Was there too much 'tell' and not enough 'show' for the character's development to be realistic? Did events major events happen way too quickly to have any real impact on the reader? Yep and yep!

Listen, if you're looking for an emotionally charged, deep novel that will really make you think, this is not it. But if you're looking for a fun, easy read to kill some time and you don't want to do a lot of thinking, this will do the job.

A dark and haunting retelling of a fairytale classic Brother Grimm Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
The story was well written and I felt the pace of the story was perfect whilst also being fast paced.
I enjoyed all the world building as well.
I loved the character development and growth throughout the story. I wish the romance had been built up a little more as it did kind of feel a little forced.
This retelling is definitely a darker version while I still felt it was In the YA category.
This was a quick read and I was able to read it in a day and I did definitely enjoy this story.

It had great promise and it sounded as if it was right up my alley but for some reason I couldn't click with it, I'm not sure what it was but It just wasn't for me.

White as Witching
Fantasy, Sci-fi
Katherine Buel  
⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is a great retelling of Snow White. It's dark in places but also shares the message of love and hope conquering all.

The pacing itself was good but I wish everything was a little bit more fleshed out and developed. Some characters are only included very briefly but even the main characters could benefit from more details and backstories etc.

The world building wasn't very detailed and I think this is partly due to the assumption that everyone already knows about the story of Snow White and while a lot of people do, this is a retelling and includes fae characters and magic so that extra world building is definitely needed.

That being said I did like the little twists, the types of magic used and the writing style as a whole.

This book definitely has a solid foundation and a good plot so it has potential to be even better.

*Thank you to @netgalley and the publishers for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review*

A story full of angst, mortal enemies and self discovery.

This story was beautifully written, from the elegant throes of court to the grungy villages of the peasants, I was enamoured with this world. The imagery of both the fairie kingdom and the Forest was rich, almost nutritious, as the way it was described so intricate that I could imagine every stone, branch or leaf.

Both Snow and Red are strong characters to follow, focusing on how they’ve both adapted to their surroundings and how different they turned out to how they probably would if their parents hadn’t been killed. Red, who is now harsh and brash, honest and almost rude but caring and wise. Snow, who is quiet and thoughtful, stubborn and cunning, sometimes selfish but unintentionally or not in a malicious sort of way. It was a harmonious balance between the sisters, they responded to each others energy.

I felt sad for the witch queen, it’s clear she has had some struggles through her youth and was misguided by the dark forces at hand to being lead down the wrong path then categorically disposed of not long after. However her treatment of young girls and her own family cannot go unpunished and I am glad for her demise toward the end.

I enjoyed that there was romance in this story - Bregas, the beautiful Fae male, is someone I’d fall in with too - and that it didn’t eclipse the main plot and moral of the story. Snow was once destined to be beautiful, that was taken away and yet she still found love, won her kingdom and people or creatures didn’t see her worth in her face, but in her heart and what she showed of her mind. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and sometimes it is not a factor at all, when Snow regained her beauty I was thankful that she wasn’t joyful of it nor did it then influence her next steps. Overall a fun and enjoyable read.

Rich, lush, and so magical. I adore White as Witching and love the retelling aspects mingled with the inclusion of magic and amazing witches. I love this version of the story and how sinister this story gets at times.

A dark and whimsical retelling that left me wanting just a bit more.

Readers will quickly get situated in this world as it leans heavily into the Grimm inspired story. We follow Snow several years after she's fled from royalty after witnessing the brutal murder of her father at the hands of her Aunt. Time and distance propels Snow to find a way back into the castle to seek revenge and claim her throne. What follows is a brooding and angst filled story full of twist and turns.

I thought White as Witching was overall a wonderful read. The pacing was perfection, the characters are likable and relatable, and the world is dark and whimsical. There was something about the overall story that felt off though. Often we were told the motivation of each character but I think the writing was lacking in showing or making the reader feel it. The Bones are really good here, but for my liking a bit of nuance would have made this a stronger read.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-arc of this book.

I picked this up and read it on one sitting because I literally couldn’t put it down. I haven’t had a book keep me up all night in ages!

I love retellings and this gave me all that in spades! It combines the stories of Snow White and the seven dwarfs, and Snow White and Rose Red (an even older iteration from the one written by the Brothers Grimm). We get to see the evil queen, the mirror on the wall, the dwarves, the crone, the huntsman, the poisoned apple, the glass coffin and the bear! There’s even a small reference to Baba Yaga but I’ll let you discover that yourself.

The story is done really marvellously and twisted in many ways that you don’t see coming. You’d think you’d know the ending because duh, but I was truly blown away! This is YA but my favourite kind - dark and twisty. It is very hard to fault this - there’s just one niggly little thing about the writing in the beginning that I didn’t like but can’t say because spoilers. All in all I loved it so I’m giving it a 4.75/5 stars.

This book needed more development overall. It wasn’t bad, but it reads like an early draft, in that everything is underdone - the world is underestablished, the characters underdeveloped, the plot flimsy and saccharine in the end. I wish this had gone through a few more rounds of edits

I really enjoyed this book. I hope the author continues to write more books in the future. I can't wait to see what the author releases in the future.

ARC through NetGalley

I thoroughly enjoyed this. It is somewhat of a Snow White retelling, but with some added quirks. I thought the story moved at a good pace, and had good descriptions. I did feel like the prose changed at one point, which ended up being ok, but it took me a second to understand. This is not adult, this is young adult, which I didn’t realize, and so there is romance, but it’s a fade to black. There are many times where time in the story moves quickly, and I’ve read books where that is done poorly, and this is not one of those. I felt like I understood how time moved within the book and was never lost in that. Again, this was a fun one and I think be enjoyed by many!

There are a few darker themes in this book, so please take that into account when reading. I’d classify this as upper YA, and nothing less.

I received this ARC in exchange for a honest review, via NetGalley, and I would like to start by thanking everyone involved in allowing me early access.

I feel I have some trouble rating fantasy, as it is a genre I don’t read much often, but I want to explore more. I would say this book is somewhere between 4 and 5 stars. I loved it a lot while reading!

TW: death, cannibalism

White as witching is a Snow White retelling and I’m here for all retellings, people. I’ve been loving these books lately and this is extremely well made and perfect for spooky season. It’s way darker than the Disney version (which, as a matter of a fact, I’m not aware if is the original or not) but I loved every second of it, even the more gross parts 😂 I think the story unfold in a nice way, everything made sense and kept the reader interested until the end. The pacing was well achieved for such a small book (under 200 pages). We get setting, conflict and resolution and nothing felt rushed, as some other endings have felt for me in longer narratives.

The book is more than a mere fantasy, it has an amazing character growth and a beautiful message. I was just somewhat let down by the fact that the dwarfs only appear closer to the end. Still, it made perfect sense and I wouldn’t change it, it’s just a personal note. If you are looking for a well construct small book for spooky season, look no more! This one is it.

This review will also be available on my Goodreads profile and next week, on my Instagram account - @cat.literary.world

This story follows Snow, who lived in hiding for seven years with half a burnt face. After she was taken to Lyric, her aunt who killed her family, she wants to help the other girls. This story is interesting that makes you want to keep reading. Especially the many twists that you probably will not see coming. I have not expected so many twists but they all seemed suitable. It was fast paced but I never had the feeling something was too fast or missing. However, the ending seemed a bit too rushed but it was a sweet and lovable ending, I liked the relationship between red and snow, and snow and Bregas. But i wished more of their interaction with each other. I also would have liked more about Red*s past after the incident 7 years ago, as i had the feeling it was just teased but never fully explained. Overall, it is an interesting fantasy story with a beautiful love story.

Unfortunately, I ended up feeling more neutral about this one than I hoped based on the incredibly intriguing synopsis that gave major adult fantasy snow white retelling vibes. I would have loved for this story to have gone darker, and for me, it hovered too close to the young adult line for me to get pulled into the story at this stage in my reading journey! I can see those transitioning from young adult to adult fantasy really enjoying it.

This book is perfect for spooky season.

Going into it, I didn't realize it was a Snow White retelling with added magic. The added magic gave Snow more strength than I've ever seen her have. She's been on the run for 7 years following the murder of her father. While in hiding, she makes sure not to use her magic so her aunt, Lyric can't find her.
When she returns to the castle, she is haunted by memories of her family and fear of what Lyric is doing to the other girls chosen in the Selection.
The Dwarfs only speak in riddles that confuse and anger her in a way that only riddles can. She is forced to make decisions that will change the course of her life.

As I was reading this, I did feel like it was leading to a sequel; and while I am glad that it didn't, I did feel that the ending was rushed. I had to read it a few times to really understand what was happening.

This is a retelling of Snow White. And what a retelling it was.

When she was seven years old, Snow sees her family die one after the other at the hands of her aunt, the Witch-Queen Lyric. Every year since Snow escaped, the Queen calls for a Selection of five girls to be brought the castle. The girls are never seen again, but they are rumored to have married into noble families, and lived new lives of luxury. Snow doesn't believe a word of the rumors. She has to see the events after the Selection for herself, and find an opportunity to take her revenge.

I was hooked from the premise alone, and after I started the first page, I could not put the book down. I devoured it all in one night. The author writes a book that is easy to read, but really grips you with its pace. I loved it.

Unfortunately, I found a few aspects of this book that were repetitive, and that affected my experience with the book. There were also some plots I found underdeveloped, and that was really unfortunate as that could have made for a stronger book.

All the same, I enjoyed this book, and I give it 3.75 stars.

Thanks for the e-arc, Netgalley!

This dark fairytale retelling was really addicting and I really enjoyed it. It combined fantasy with fairytales such as the dwarves, the mirror, Snow White and probably more that I completely missed.
Gala (or Snow White) who I've just realised is named after a type of apple, is in hiding in a rural village called Thistledown with her guardian Halen and crazy goat Prickle. As a child, her family was killed by her aunt Lyric who is queen. A burn on one side of her face is supposed to hide her and it has worked for years until the Selection arrives in her village, something that has never happened before.
The Selection is a process where five girls from all over the kingdom are chosen to go to the palace under the ruse of becoming ladies and finding a suitable husband. This idea is quickly dismissed once the High Fae Hunter, the queen's right-hand man, selects Gala when she purposely reveals her magic to protect a young girl in her village.
The descriptive and vivid imagery created a lush setting for this dark tale and I really enjoyed the plot. It was swift, with reasonably long time jumps in between each chapter and although this rushes some books, I found that Katherine Buet's book allowed for the tale to happen more organically and the story did not feel dragged out and unnecessarily long.
The romantic journey Gala goes on was organic and I think the two characters found comfort and safety within each other.
Overall, I'm trying to be slightly vague as the story is best appreciated by reading it for yourself. I would definitely recommend reading this novel if you are after a new fairytale retelling with fae, witches and demons

Thank you for the eARC! I thoroughly enjoyed it