Blog Tour-Shadows on Snow by Starla Huchton

Title: Shadows on Snow    
Author: Starla Huchton
Series: Stand Alone
Genre: Fantasy /YA
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: Nov 3 2014
Edition/Formats: eBook & Print

Blurb/Synopsis:
Once upon a time, a dark evil crept into my kingdom, stealing
my loved ones and the happy life I knew. The world turned
against me, and I swore to become stronger, to keep myself
safe.
Once upon a time, there was a handsome prince, hair dark as
ebony, skin as pure as the freshly driven snow, and I became
the only one who stood between him and death.
Once upon a time, our stories intertwined, and now, healing
my heart may be the only way to save us all from the evil that threatens to destroy what little we
have left.

Book Links

Amazon
Goodreads

Excerpt

“You’ve grown up much since last we met,” she said as she circled me.
I closed my eyes and prepared to summon another memory for the mimicry of the evening. “Who
shall I be tonight, Godmother? There was a lovely woman in the village a few weeks past that—”
Her wand struck me across my nose, and I winced.
“You’ll do no such thing, silly girl,” she said. “It’s a masked ball and you’re far more beautiful than you
think.”
My knees wobbled at the idea. “But I can’t go as my true self, Godmother. If the king sees me—”
“It’s been ten years, child. He wouldn’t know you now.”
Grimacing, I tried to come up with another argument, but the threat of her wand across my nose
again stayed my tongue.
“Now then,” she said, rolling her shoulders. “What will it be tonight? The other ladies, did you see any
of their gowns before you left?”
I considered it. “A few. Plenty of wintery colors there. Silvers and golds, of course, and light blue is
very fashionable at the moment. None so bold as to wear red, but I imagine there will be come Yule, as
it won’t be seen as an affront to the ruling house of Sericea to wear their colors then.”
She paused in her pacing and scrutinized every inch of my figure. She’d done so before, but I was
considerably more well-endowed than last she saw me at thirteen years. Fairies give no consideration
to humanity’s discomfort with nudity, however, and so I stood there for several minutes, naked as the
day I was born while she assessed my appearance.
“Though a deep scarlet would suit your coloring well, I think perhaps you’re right about the potential
for insult. As such, a nice emerald green will do nicely on you.” She closed her eyes and summoned
her magic. Sky blue sprinkles of light rose from the ground and gathered in the air around her.
Directing them all with beautiful, graceful motions, they danced in time to the soft tune she hummed
under her breath. Fairy magic was unlike anything else in the world. One could not blink or even try
to look away from the sight.
“The memory of summer... the warmth of life in the sun... the whisper of wind through leaves... stolen
kisses from a lover...” Her words were little more than gentle breaths, but echoed from every corner of
the clearing.
The gathered magic twirled in the air, then shifted, wrapping itself around me as a soft blanket. A stiff
wind lifted my hair, spinning and weaving it as only fairy magic could. My skin prickled as it absorbed
the remaining illumination.

Shadows on Snow by Starla Huchton
“Open your eyes, child, and see the beauty you are.”
I frowned. “I do not wish for beauty, Godmother. I wish for strength.”
“Strength comes in many forms. Beauty is but one.”
“You’ve been speaking with Delphine, I see,” I said as I opened my eyes. Air stuck in my throat as
I beheld myself in the conjured mirror before me. Indeed, I was as beautiful as she said. My plain
brown hair was piled in astounding knots and waves, my cheeks flushed with a healthy glow, and my
lips red as holly berries. Even my plain brown eyes were painted with swirls of green to match my
dress, transforming them into something far more extraordinary.
It was all I could do not to cry.
I turned from the mirror, not able to bear another second of looking at myself this way. Even though I
regularly wore a face not my own, this appearance, this horrifying embodiment of temptation, felt like
a greater lie than any glamour I’d ever thought to put on. That reflection was not me.
Gentle fingers lifted my chin, forcing me to look into my godmother’s eyes. “Of all the things you
could fear, you fear yourself the most. You must not. Others cannot take this from you. Your spirit
shines through any spell you weave. Own that. Be proud of it. Your true face is more than how others
see you, and those that know your heart will never be fooled by your magic.” She took me by the
shoulders and turned me to the mirror once more. “There is power in beauty, but there is greater
power in love. That is what you see before you. Never turn away from it.”

Author Information

A geek of all trades, Starla Huchton has been crafting stories in

various genres since 2007. Her first novel, The Dreamer’s Thread,

was released as a full cast audiobook podcast, becoming a double-
nominee and finalist for the 2010 Parsec Awards. After releasing

short fiction of steampunk, noir fantasy, and other varieties, she

released the first three books of the Sci-Fi Romance Endure series

in 2013. All three books of the Evolution series, a New Adult

Superhero Romance series, were released in 2014, as well as a

Steampunk Fantasy novel, Master of Myth (the Antigone’s Wrath

series, book 1), which was the first place winner of the Crested

Butte Writers’ contest, The Sandy, in 2012. Shadows on Snow, a

gender-flipped retelling of Snow White, releases in November

2014.

Review

This was my first time reading

a book by Starla Huchton. It was 

an amazing take on an old 

tale.  You won't be disappointed!

Carol gave Shadows on Snow