White Fox by Sara Faring is a young adult mystery, following two girls as they look for their missing mother ten years after her disappearance.

An exciting novel that is an unexpected thrill as it lures in the reader.

Slow & Steady

What Faring does very well with White Fox is the pacing. It is a steady journey for the reader, one that opens with the girls. The story builds up their personalities, reflecting on the loss of their mother who vanished in the night. Ten years later, the girls return home to their Mediterranean island and are left with a clue that their mother may be alive.

Faring creates tension by highlighting just how different these girls are. However, it is the script, White Fox, that went missing with their mother that highlights the mystery, raising the tension.

There is so much rising tension in the story to make it intriguing. Faring builds up the mysterious and chilling atmosphere with her details and descriptions. Faring uses detail to make White Fox sounds mysterious, luring the reader into the life of Mirielle Foix.

However, Faring’s word choice, such as naming the forest the Delirium Forest, allows the eerie atmosphere to resonate off the pages. It is Faring’s language that sucks in the reader, creating an alluring mystery.

Interludes

However, while Faring has a great atmosphere and steady pace, there are times when the story is less than engaging and times when it shines.

The interludes featuring pieces of the script are the most noteworthy aspects of the story. They paint a fantastical look at their mother’s life and the men in it. It is up to the girls to decipher the meaning of the text, and the reader is intrigued by it as well.

The script of White Fox is the most curious part of the storytelling because it gives the reader an idea of who their mother was and guided the girls on their journey to discover just who their mother was. They were too young to know her and now they are discovering they did not know her at all. Once again, this leads to a notable rise in tension and mystery, building up the eerie atmosphere.

Final Thoughts

There is no doubt that Faring has a way with language and storytelling, but her characterization is lacking. Manon and Thaïs are wholly unlikable, making the reader unable to connect to them genuinely. Yes, the reader can sympathize with them, but overall, their dynamic, how they belittle one another takes sibling discord to another level. It just prevents the reader from investing in them.

Nevertheless, they do grow as characters which the reader can appreciate. And coupled with the mystery, White Fox is a compelling narrative.

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Product Details:

Pub Date: September 22, 2020	Page Count: 432pp	Age Range: 15 & Over
ISBN: 978-1-2503-0452-0	Publisher: Imprint	List Price: $18.99