Snow

 I realized I forgot to place this one before Godzilla, but it's okay- accidentally overlooked it in the chronological syllabus assignments.

Overall, I did enjoy Snow- the plot was intriguing, the characters were interesting, and I wanted very badly to understand what was going on with the evil snow that it kept me turning pages. The writing was easy to follow and very smooth, which I definitely enjoyed. Where Snow lost me though, was the inclusion of elements that I would almost call cliche. You have the main character, Todd, that opens the story up earnestly enough, trying to get back to his ex wife and son for the holidays. Then he meets Kate, an attractive, smart, and dry humor woman that I can't help but roll my eyes at because I know exactly where this is going to end up.

Similarly, we have the whole interlude with Charlie and his sister Cody within the church. I almost closed the book when Charlie was introduced, if I'm being honest. I found myself thinking, verbatim, "Oh boy, here we go with the crazed religious cult weirdo." They're a staple in most horror stories, you know the one I'm talking about. And even if you don't, you can believe that Charlie is a poster boy for it. It's the whole narrative of "I'm God's Chosen" and being a manipulative, overzealous bastard, who tricks his sister into believing that he's some higher power.

Of course there are other stereotypes present throughout the book- including Todd, the deadbeat dad that forgets all his woes upon meeting Kate, the sarcastic, divorced love interest, and others like the older couple and the two young lovers with a baby on the way. In personal opinion, Shawna should have been the main character. She had a lot more of my interest than Todd did at any given point, especially when the book opens with such a dynamic scene involving her. When we went from the prologue to Todd at an airport, I almost thought that I had read something completely different, and was disappointed because I didn't know if we would get to see Shawna again.

Well, of course Shawna had to die- in a very gruesome and horrible way appropriate to horror. And of course the two actual leads had to survive, despite being thrust into a situation where they really had no business being. I suppose you could chalk it up to the poetry of how no one in the town was meant to survive, so Shawna had to die to ensure that- but she seemed more the natural lead that the figure of Todd we were given. 

I feel like I'm ragging on this book a lot for having genuinely enjoyed it. The writing style was quick and pleasant to read, and the monsters were original, even if I did have more questions (of course) as to their origins and general presence. The use of snow as a means of horror is beautiful- taking this quiet, scenic material and using it to harbor terror and gore was a smart decision to do. Like The Thing it places the characters in a forced isolation that the audience can't help but feel too.