What an apt title. Snow features in this novel like a true master of suspense. It weaves the story together like a pro. Ireland's landscape is atmospheric in any season, but snow makes the rural town in Ireland feel even more remote.
This remoteness is the perfect setting of John Banville's latest novel. The story takes place in 1957. It starts with the body of a priest in a library and a detective unwilling to return to small town Ireland to solve the murder. The cast of characters are like actors in a play. It feels like an overdone Agatha Christie novel, but the plot never falters and I found the novel impossible to put down because I couldn't wait to find out whodunnit.
What I liked most about the novel is that Banville doesn't shy away from heavy subjects such as the divide between Catholics and Protestants and the struggle with the IRA. The historical setting fits this novel perfectly, as does the small town environment and its people. You have to be ready to face the hard-hitting subjects head-on if you'd like to enjoy this novel.
It met my expectations of murder mystery perfectly. It had the perfect cast of characters and a fantastic historical setting.
Many thanks to the publisher Faber and Netgalley for providing me with a review copy!
5 stars
Statistics:
Date read: September 27, 2020
Date published: October 1, 2020
Publisher: Faber
Format: eBook
Pages: 352
Genre: Historical Fiction
My Number of Books Read by this Author: 1
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