Maria Alexander

Sixteen-year-old Charity Jones is a genius. She is also the victim of bullies for her smarts, her weight, her biracial heritage, and her skepticism which doesn’t play well in this small Conservative Christian town and school. After a particularly rough day, she is furious to discover that her liberal parents have brought a young seemingly homeless boy, Aiden, to move in with them. However, he quickly wins her trust and then her heart.

Then she learns who his father is and why he has run show more away. And why they are all now in danger from someone just about everyone loves but who is not who they think he is. Aiden is his heir and he will destroy anyone who gets in his way or, perhaps, just for fun. Fortunately, he can only leave his home on one day of the year; unfortunately he has lots of minions willing to do the dirty work for him. And if they fail, well, that one day is fast approaching. Ho ho ho no!

When I first saw Snowed by author Maria Alexander on Netgalley, I wasn’t interested. The cover didn’t grab me, I had never heard of the publisher Raw Dog Screaming Press (although, if this is typical of their offerings, I’ll be looking to get more from them in the future), and I’m not really much of a horror fan. Still, it was the time of year when I’m looking for new and original Christmas tales to entertain me through the season and I decided what the heck, it’s short so I’ll give it a try.

I started it at bedtime figuring if nothing else, it might put me to sleep. – Big mistake. All night, it was just one more chapter, one more page, one more paragraph. I finished it just as the sun was coming up. Turns out, Snowed is one heck of a page-turner with some great YA characters you will definitely want to root for or against and one very very evil villain. There’s plenty of action, a bit of romance, teenaged angst, and even some humour to break up the tension.

So if you’ve already had it up to here with Christmas muzak at the mall, schmaltzy Christmas tv shows, just all around Christmas cheer, maybe what you need is some Christmas horror. On the downside, after immersing yourself in the story, the cliffhanger ending may seem like one giant humbug (but don’t do anything to your ipad to get yourself on the naughty list because there is a sequel coming). Be warned, however, after reading Snowed, you may never look at Christmas or good ol’ Saint Nick the same way again.

Thanks to Netgalley and Raw Dog Screaming Press for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review show less

This was entirely not what I expected--in a good way. It started out much like many other YA novels, then took a sharp turn and never looked back. I loved that Charity is smart and clever and bi-racial and all the things heroines usually aren't. She falls in love, but it doesn't make her IQ drop in the process. The mythological aspect with Aiden is awesome and unique. I don't like cliff-hangers, but the epilogue kept it from being too much of one. Things are in motion for the next book, not show more just stalled in a heart-pounding moment. I also really liked Charity's friends--they are just an awesome group of people. Really enjoyable and a fun, exciting read show less

Maria Alexander has written a top-notch YA novel. The book's heroine, Charity Jones, is an intrepid, fierce 16-year-old who, at the beginning of the tale, is coping with an increasingly troubled family life and prejudicial backlash at school because of her skepticism about God. Although the story seems a bit emphatic in a vague, anti-christian way, the message is quickly dropped as it develops from a teen-angst tale into a taut monster mystery. The story is smart and polished. It takes a show more popular myth and blends it with its less savory origins, then plops the whole thing down into the middle of Smalltown U.S.A. "Snowed" is a Christmas story that fuses adventure with soft horror in a way that reminds one of the movie "Gremlins". Extremely readable, Alexander's writing promises some great novels to come for young adult readers who like gothic, fantasy and soft horror. show less

"He is the claws. The Keeper of sin. A very bad son. We must...please...the father"
Alexander's holiday cheer is smashing. It won't give you a chill of horror, but keeps you rocking in your seat, as you read eagerly to see what will happen next. Take everything you know about the evilness of Santa and place it in a box. "Snowed" has a new twist on the Krampus spirit and to think the REVENGE we'll just have to wait until the snow falls again to find out how it will spill.