Maria AlexanderRecensioni

"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.

I received an ARC of this novel. I have to say the cover art is beautiful and intriguing. It draws you in. However what the cover art does inspire differs dramatically from the novel itself.

I wanted to like this book. However the character's themselves are completely unlikeable. The main character is a complete self centered, egotistical, narcissist. I couldn't stand her at all. The book strongly stereotypes different kinds of people. It is extremely biased. To the point it is actually offensive.

It wasn't well thought out or delivered. It was jumbled together. The story was so outlandish at times. Like the author forgot to set the scene. I just can't with this book.

There are just too many things wrong with it.

Sixteen-year-old Charity Jones is bullied for being bi-racial and a skeptic. When her mother brings home a teen runaway, and her worst enemy becomes brutally slain, her life doesn’t begin to change as much as a battle wages for her fight.
It is very easy to understand why Alexander’s YA novel is nominated for so many awards. She has the ability to carry both the YA market and an adult audience along on a supernatural fantasy. Her surprise ending comes as a mixed surprise, yet she’s satisficed readers and set herself up nicely to write a sequel. -Review can be found at Le Coeur de l'Artiste http://www.djadamson.com/le-coeur-de-lartiste/archives/03-2017

I really enjoyed this book. It had a few things thrown in that it could have done without, but all in all it's a great combination of loveable characters, a very unique twist to a certain "snowy" holiday. If you love mystery, a bit of romance and fantasy. I'd definitely recommend. A++

This book was a lot different than I originally thought it would be, but in a good and unexpected way. I thought it was going to be a thriller/mystery murder novel, but it turned out to be so much more. It also was surprisingly themed for the holidays, which was a twist I never would have seen coming.
The main character, Charity, was a biracial girl who wasn't very popular at her new school, she loves math and science, especially building robots. She has a very select few friends and it seems like the rest of the school either ignores her or bullies her. One day she comes home and her mother has brought home a client that will now be staying with them. This new guest is a boy around Charity's age, with a strange accent, and (of course) very attractive. Charity finds him extremely strange, but she's resigned to dealing with him for however long necessary. charity and This guest, Aiden, hit it off and a romance starts between the two. However, CHarity's brother and Aiden butt heads, which ends in an altercation that leads Charity's brother in jail.
Aiden arrives in this town and the same day he starts school with charity, a brutal murder is committed at the end of that school day, and this boy that was murdered, just so happens to be one of CHarity's main bully's. Charity finds the body and is haunted by it, but she also took a picture of the body before running to find help. This picture plays a huge key role in discovering the killer later on in the book.
There is a big portion of the book where charity and her friends are looking for the killer/monster who killed the boy, and they eventually do succeed, barely. thing take a turn for the very weird at this point, going from a thriller murder book, to a fantasy thriller. The killer wasn't actually a real person, but some sort of... demon or other evil creature. It also happens to be one of Aiden's many siblings. Turns out, Aiden isn't some weird runaway trying to escape from his mob boss father, but he's the only (mostly) human son of Krampus, or more commonly known as: Santa Claus. And santa isn't so nice and is coming for blood, Aiden's blood and anyone who stands in his way.
It's a weird twist, but it's also a fairly compelling read. Overall, I'd probably recommend taking it out from the library or borrowing it for a little something different, but I don't necessarily think I would spend the money to buy my own copy.

Glad I had saved 'Snowed' for this time of the year - although I had forgotten what it was really about and turned out to be more perfect than I thought. A tale in which Maria Alexander lifts a corner of the veil on Sinterklaas, Krampus & Santa.

Obstacle number one COULD HAVE BEEN the romance part, yet it did not bother me at all (people who know me might not believe it haha)! Stereotyping the characters was something which made me stumble more. First I wanted to give it the benefit of the doubt... yet everything seemed to be carefully chosen. Too careful.

Was it really necessary to stress on it that Charity and her brother biracial? The blurb says it's part of why she's bullied at school. Though I didn't see any of that. More likely cos she's a nerd. Her views are different. Skin color doesn't seem to matter here. Yet again, when her brother is sent to juvie, it is mentioned again. Whyyyyy???

It didn't stop there. I can sum up a list of situations where I felt stereotyping was ruining the moment. Look at me: I have colored hair and I love math... yet I am not Asian and I do not consider myself an artist.

I truly want to love this story. It's fabulous! But sadly those stereotypes really spoiled the fun for me...½

I’ll admit, I chose this book based on the cover. Well, I received a free review copy from LibraryThing, but my request was because of the cover art. It is eery and wonderful.

I am not a huge fantasy fan, but I could not put this book down. Charity, the main character, was someone I could relate to, even though I am not a STEM person or a skeptical. I was bullied for being different back in high school. I am unfamiliar with Krampus, having only just learned about him last year thanks to American Dad, and I thought the way Maria Alexander retold his story, and Santa’s, was quite interesting. The ending was a disappointment. I’m all for cliff-hangers, but I think I would have preferred the author to stop at the end of the final chapter and not added an epilogue. There is a LOT of cussing, so if you’re put off by swearing, this might be hard to read. I’m not typically a fan of swearing, but it does make the characters more believable.

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 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

I didn't know that much about this book when I started reading, so I was in for a surprise when I found out who Aidan really was and what family he came from.

Charity Jones is not your typical teenager girl - she's a science genius and popular target for bullying at her school. However, when her mother brings home Aidan, a homeless boy, everything changes. The self-conscious girl can't believe there's actually someone interested in her, and soon she experiences her first true love. However, a happy end is not meant to be. First, there's Charity's brother, a drug dealer and overall mean character, who blames Charity and Aidan for his failures. But even more dangerous is the evil father Aidan fled from - and who is determined to bring his son home. Also, Aidan seems to have some secrets of his own, and when a monster starts terrorizing the neighborhood which shares the same startling blue eyes as Aidan, Charity doesn't know whom to trust any longer. With the help of her equally misfit friends, she is determined to solve the puzzle, unaware of the deadly danger they get themselves in.

* the following may contain spoilers *
I really really loved the outcome of the plot, as I had no idea about Aidan's origin, which features one of my favorite evil creatures. I also liked the concept of the 'split personality' of Aidan's father, making him the perfect yin and yang of Christmas.

The one thing I would criticize about this book was the writing style. While it seems to fit the way teenagers think and talk perfectly (I guess), it slightly got on my nerves sometimes. However, I hope this will not label the book as YA only, as the plot itself should please older readers as well.

The ending - clever idea to stop when it was the most exciting and only add a final, more comforting chapter after the epilogue - may hint at a sequel, but not necessarily so. I'd definitely appreciate to read more about Charity and Aidan. However, a kind of prequel explaining the details of Aidan's background and the reasons for his father's turn to evil would be even better.

A somewhat different and therefore recommended read for the season...

(I chose to read this book - all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased)

What a strange twist in this book. I really did like it and was very original, just has me still scratching my head a bit.
Charity Jones has a huge problem fitting in. She's bullied for her unpopular views but is tough enough to stand up for what she believes in. Her and a group of friends start a Skeptics Club where she can just be herself. Her mother brings home a foster child, a boy Charity's age named Aidan. He seems from another planet and will tell no one where he's from or about his family. Aidan comes to Charity's rescue a few times-showing signs of mind control which has her head spinning. She's immediately attracted to him but is somewhat frightened by things she's seen him do.
Grisly attacks and a murder take place that obviously derives from something not human. Charity and her friends set out to hunt this beast before they become victims. Strange that these attacks begin right after Aidan gets there. Is there a link? Who is this guy?
Well, you'll never believe me even if I put in on here-you'll have to read it for yourself!

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 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

I was really excited about this book. It seemed like a YA book filled with the potential to be something great. However, when I received the book, I was a bit disappointed with the writing style. This read like something I would have written in high school. On the other hand, there's still a little bit of intrigue that keeps the reader guessing and the story moving. The characters are different and if you don't mind reading something a little rough here and there then I'd say give this book a try.

Early Reviewer. This is a great YA novel, which I, being well past my YA years, thoroughly enjoyed. I thought the portrayal of school life was nicely observed without being critical of the issues encountered (bullying, drug taking etc). The characters were well constructed and formed clearly in my mind, with the main group of friends being really likable, particularly the super intelligent central character, Charity. The normal school/family/love/angst everyday life of the teenagers gradually morphs into fantasy in a creative way, pulling in winter myths and legends taking me on the first part of a journey which I am keen to continue. Here lies the only down side for me - I really like stories to have an end and am frustrated at having to await the writing of the next novel to find out what happens. However, perhaps this story is worth it.

Too dense and grim a start

There are few words for how bone-chillingly cool I found this story. Charity is awesome! Bonus points for Doc Martin and Cage the Elephant nods.

I received a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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 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.