Sophie Masson, Hunter’s Moon, Random House, 1 June 2015, $19.99 (pbk), 336pp., ISBN 978 0 85798 603 0
A reworking of the Snow White tale, Hunter’s Moon protagonist Bianca Dalmatin lives a glamorous life as heir to a department store empire, only marred by a loneliness that seems sated when she meets Lucian Montresor at the beginning of the novel. Her beautiful step mother, Lady Belladonna, seems to Bianca to be a close confidante and mentor but we readers are immediately suspicious of her intentions, especially when Bianca is named ‘Fairest Lady’ by the national media.
This novel is engaging and pacey – Sophie Masson’s style is confident and contemporary while still retaining that ‘other worldness’ of a fairy tale. I don’t think this appropriation of a fairy tale is sophisticated enough for in depth analysis but certainly stands up as leisure reading for the junior secondary market.
Reviewed by Angie Holst
