The Veil of Snows
Grade 4-8.  This sequel begins some years after A City in Winter (Viking, 1996) ended. The queen, now a young woman, worries over the fate of her missing husband and watches in dismay as her kingdom is distracted and corrupted by the foolish games and amusements of the vulgar Tookisheims, a large and powerful family of Usurper supporters. After his defeat, the Usurper disappeared into the Veil of Snows, the far distant and icy mountains, and now the queen's husband has disappeared while leading an army in the same area. All signs point to the Usurper's return, and this is in fact what happens. Once again, full-page color paintings illustrate pivotal moments in the story but with one jarring note?the text specifically describes how the queen's hair had darkened from its youthful golden to a dark chesnut color, but the illustrations still show her with shimmering golden hair. The Veil of Snows is unremittingly sad, as it is told decades after the events in question by a loyal soldier who loved and guarded the queen until her untimely death at the hands of enemy soldiers. However, it ends with a ray of hope, and a definite need for a sequel, when the narrator, as an old man, sees the queen's husband and son, now fully grown, riding together at the head of a vast army descending at last from the Veil of Snows. This poignant and sophisticated fairy tale will appeal to those who enjoyed A City in Winter, and will create demand for a sequel to complete the story.?Susan L. Rogers, Chestnut Hill Academy, PACopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.