Available in issue 32 of Grimdark Magazine, Jude Reid’s short story Snow White, Green Mantle is a sharp, bloody tale of desperation and survival in a world turned upside down. In a gloomy, run-down village on the edge of the woods, hunter Fionn is hired to do what the headman can’t, to take his daughter into the forest and slit her throat. She doesn’t relish the job but in a life always lived on the move, the prospect of earning a warm bed for the night is enough to get her to agree to it. Once in the woods, however, she soon learns that there’s more to the headman’s daughter than she realised, and the creatures who live away from the feeble light of humanity – the Othermen, who have reclaimed the world for themselves – want the girl for their own reasons.
Told in a candid, no-nonsense first person, this starts off feeling like a bleak, modern (in tone, not setting) sort of fairy tale and only gets darker from there on in, as Reid develops both the narrative and the sinister setting in which it takes place. This is a world where the lines between reality and mythology have blurred, and not in favour of mankind, where the forest hides both terrible dangers and remnants of a safer, happier past. Fionn’s life and the world she inhabits are sketched out in subtle, evocative details which reveal few concrete truths but hint at an intriguing darkness, right up until there’s no need for hints, and the gory truth of the story is revealed in shocking fashion.
This is ‘grimdark’ fiction at its impactful best, exploring everyday darkness through the lens of fantasy – in this case more of the fairy tale variety than anything epic or overtly magical – and pitting ordinary people against impossible situations. It’s an uncomfortable read in some respects, but a fascinating one, stripping back most of the usual fantasy cliches and focusing instead on two women doing what they have to in order to survive in a world where everything is stacked against them. Short, bleak and bloody, it’s cleverly constructed and beautifully told, and well worth checking out. Just don’t expect a happy ending.
See also: other reviews and interviews featuring Jude Reid.
You can find Snow White, Green Mantle (alongside several other short stories) in Grimdark Magazine issue 32. Check out the links below* to buy your copy:
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