***This book was reviewed by independent request.

Meredith’s Reflections of Queen Snow White is an alchemical expansion of the beloved children’s fairytale ‘Snow White’. Decades have passed since Prince Charming woke Snow White, and her wicked stepmother was overthrown. The wedding of Snow White’s daughter Raven is approaching, but all Snow White can think about is the passing of her husband. For the past year, she has been in a deep depression, mourning what was.

One day she flees the bustle of the castle, escaping into a sealed wing. At the top of an abandoned tower, Snow White finds the magic mirror once used by her stepmother. The mirror wakens at her approach, and draws her into its depths. With its first vision, the mirror takes her back to her childhood, to right before her stepmother joined the family. Subsequent visions carry Snow White through the defining moments of her life, building upon and expanding the known story.

This was a beautifully wrought tale of learning to work with one’s Shadow, that part of our psyche we prefer to keep hidden. It is our darkest parts and deepest wounds. Facing one’s Shadow is a grueling endeavour, yet it can grant the greatest growth and transformation, as it frees energy once used to keep these things hidden. As the mirror itself tells Snow White, it can only reflect what is already within. What her stepmother saw was the ugliness of her own soul, and she was too weak and mean-spirited to learn from it and heal. Snow White, on the other hand, displays great courage as she faces vision after vision in an intense journey experience that shows her she has all the strength she needs to carry on without her husband, and heals wounds borne since childhood.

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