Snow Gothics

It is a snowy day here and I was thinking more about how I characterized Cover of Snow by Jenny Milchman. I called it a "snow gothic" and it made think more about the characteristics of such a book. Is it just snow? Or is it more than that?

I recently read the second book in MJ McGrath's Edie Kiglatuk series. This one is set in Alaska where Edie has gone to cheer on and help her ex-husband during a dog race. But, first she finds the body of a child on the land of the Old Believers, a group that left Russia over a dispute over a matter of Russian Orthodox dogma and iconography. Snow is a big part of the novel and in fact, there is a dramatic scene when Edie, Sammy, her ex-husband and her policeman friend are trapped out in a blizzard in terrible cold.

This book is clearly not a snow gothic. Edie lives in the cold--she considers Alaska "warm" and this is a fascinating but pretty straightforward mystery. The fascinating part is learning the ways of people who grew up in the snow and cold and how they adapt to it.

On the other hand, Beneath the Shadows by Sara Foster is clearly a snow gothic. It is set in the English moors in a very small town. The protagonist, Grace, has moved to the home town of her husband from London. He disappears one day, leaving their baby in a carriage at their front door and never returns. Grace lives in the town but is not of the town.

The townspeople share old myths and there may or may not be a ghost. And, Grace never is really sure who she can trust. But what really makes this a snow gothic is the palpable sense of unease that the snow signals. if you go out you may never return just like her missing husband. She is alone, surrounded by people who might be friendly and helpful, but she cannot really trust any of them. The dark sky brings snow and danger because it is quiet but it can trap you either inside or out.

Snow, then, is very important to creating atmosphere and the sense of danger and unease that drives the book and makes it so engrossing and enveloping.