Perfect Love Story

Sylvie Budzinski

Snow Falling

By Jane Villanueva

When my all-time favorite TV show was made into a novel, I knew I just had to read it. Jane the Virgin is a popular show involving romance, mystery, crime, and family values, and was adapted into Snow Falling, which is set in 1902. I was slightly disappointed in the basic and somewhat elementary writing, though it was still a good storyline that was interesting and easy to follow.

The story starts on Josephine’s 21st birthday and is told by a wise narrator. She has just finished celebrating with her mom and abuela--it includes some spanish dialect--when she receives a knock on her door. It is a kind policeman warning her to stay inside since there has been some crime in the city. They have a magical first meeting, and the story then fast forwards to 2 years later when Josephine and the policeman, Martin, are dating. They get engaged, and their relationship seems to be going well. That is until she encounters Rake, the owner of the hotel she works at. He is very handsome, and she recalls when she met him 5 years ago; they had an extraordinary conversation and kissed. Back in the present, she talks to him again and feels a connection, but she knows she could never betray Martin. Shortly after this, Josephine is on her way to talk to Martin, but from afar she sees him hugging another woman, and in a seemingly loving way. On her way back into the hotel, she stumbles upon Rake again, and feeling insecure about her relationship, she goes into an empty room with him, and he convinces her to have champagne with him. She ends up spending the night with them, and a few weeks later, while she is feeling nauseous and tired, her mom and abuela tell her she is likely pregnant. But of course, her abuela is very religious and is extremely disappointed in Josephine for what she did before being married. “Her abeula urged” (76) for Jane to think about her horrible--in her grandma’s eyes--actions.

Unfortunately, unless you watched and enjoyed Jane the Virgin, I would not recommend this book. The writing seems immature and inexperienced. I feel like what makes the book interesting is the relationship between the show and Snow Falling, so if you have not seen the show, it may be boring. The story feels somewhat rushed, as if it has limited time to get to the climax.

The reason why I did enjoy this book was following the love story between Josephine and Martin. Near the beginning of the novel, to set the scene, Josephine’s mom said, “You have your wonderful Martin and that’s all that’s important” (37). It is so captivating to see all the obstacles they face after this, starting with Josephine getting pregnant in the first place. One thing included in both the tv series and the novel is the symbolism of snow. It represents Josephine and Martin’s love. It shows up first on their first meeting, on her birthday, when it snows on them as the kiss for the first time. Then, later in the novel, after she goes through the hardest choice of her life, choosing to be with Rake or Martin, she kisses Michael again, and it snows then as well. In all the big moments with him in Josephine’s life, it always snows.

I would recommend this book to anyone who watched and loved Jane the Virgin. The plot lines are very similar, and all the characters are the same, but with slightly different names. Many of the iconic lanes of the show were included in the show, one being, “Be brave” spoken by Rake/ Rafael, was written into the book. This was probably my favorite element of the writing. Also, this would be perfect for people who enjoy telenovelas, because of the elements of romance, crime and conflict, and family values.