Libby Ames's Reviews > The Serpent's Shadow

For entertainment and clever rendering of a fairy tale, The Serpent's Shadow deserves four stars. The writing is not profound or life changing, but an excellent means for escape.

I began this book with reluctance, feeling a little tired of fairy tale retellings. I know it's shocking, but even I can have too much of a good thing. However, in spite of my overdose, I was still impressed with Lackey's presentation of Snow White. Her representation was all I most appreciate in a good retelling. The story was set in an accurately presented Edwardian England (minus all the magic and other fantastical details). Also, elements of the fairy tale were recognizable, but cleverly blended into new surroundings. For example, the traditional seven dwarfs were replaced by seven domesticated Indian animals serving both as pets and Indian gods in turn. A clever twist is always greatly appreciated.

So, other than my guilt over the amount of fluff I've been reading, I really enjoyed this one. In my defense, it wasn't entirely fluff. It inspired me to check out a book about Hinduism and the gods of India, so some education is taking place.