Tagline: A cold-blooded killer.
Back tagline: Let it snow, let it snow, let it…
Summary: Heather feels cold all the time. Alone. Her guardian hates her. He’d like to see her dead. He’d like all her money. But for now he settles for controlling it, and making Heather’s life miserable.
Poor little rich girl, just like Cinderella…
Then the gorgeous, ice-blond guy shows up at the crummy restaurant where Heather works after school. He understands about Heather. He’s her Prince Charming. No one can get to Heather now.
Heather feels so safe. So loved. So warm…
First impressions: Is this actually gonna have anything to do with a snowman, or is that Prince Charming’s nickname because he has ice-blonde hair?? Maybe he’s a snowman come to life! I am definitely intrigued. The cover is a bit whatever, I like that font though. Let’s read!
Recap
Roll call:
Heather – Our protagonist who hates her uncle.
Ben – Heather’s boyfriend.
Snowman – A white-haired boy who Heather falls for.
Uncle James – Heather’s super mean uncle.
Aunt Belle – Heather’s timid, fragile aunt.
We begin with our protagonist, 16-year-old Heather, fantasising about killing her mean old Uncle James [Of course, we don’t know it’s imaginary until after Stine’s signature fake-out chapter ending]. In her daydream, he’s just finished fixing a leak on the roof of their house when he orders her to hold the ladder steady while he climbs down. Instead, Heather imagines herself pulling the ladder away from the roof and walking off, letting him freeze to death [She really wants him to suffer!]. Then, deciding that’s not good enough for the likes of Uncle James, she fantasises the same scenario except this time, she waits for him to be fully on the ladder before she yanks it away from the roof:
Heather enjoy the terrified look on his face, the way he gripped the top rung so tightly, even though the ladder was about to carry him down to his death.
[Wow, she really hates this man hahaha]. She’s brought out of fantasy land by boyfriend Ben, who wants to know what she’s thinking about because she seems 1,000 miles away as they’re tongue wrestling in his car [Wow, she’s really fantasising about killing her uncle while making out with her boyfriend hahahaha]. He wonders if she’s thinking about dinner, but Heather bravely [Or stupidly] tells him who she’s dreaming about:
“You’re kissing me and you’re thinking about your uncle James! How come? Does he kiss better than I do?”
[Hahahahah I like James]. She admits why she was thinking about her uncle, and Ben is totally cool with it and they quickly start pashing again. Heather feels guilty that she was thinking about her uncle and wonders if she’s growing tired of Ben, but then decides her hatred for Uncle James is affecting her feelings for everyone else. As she kisses him ‘hungrily’ [I bet those windows are fogging up hehe], someone starts banging on the passenger window – It’s Uncle James!
The raging man flings open the door and drags Heather out because what will the neighbours think of her ‘”Parked here like a tramp in broad daylight — “‘ [Lol calm down m8], and besides, it’s time she left to work [And for some backstory!].
As Heather follows her uncle to the house, we learn that her parents died when she was three, leaving her ‘a ton of money in a trust fund’ that her guardian, Uncle James, won’t even let her touch. Uncle James thinks he’s teaching her responsibility and self-discipline, which is why she works as a waitress in a coffee shop at the mall. She hates her job, since it’s so boring and makes it hard to keep up with her schoolwork, but hates Uncle James even more, who she believes is ‘deliberately making her life hard and miserable’ [Ugh poor Heather].
Uncle James turns back with a weird smile as he watches Ben leave, and Heather realises it’s his way of celebrating his little victory. Angry, she squeezes the lighter in her pocket that used to belong to her father – she carries it everywhere, finding comfort in having something he use to own [Cute!]. But it doesn’t help calm her anger right now, and next thing she knows she’s screaming ‘“I hate you!”’ at Uncle James, who just says she’s a disturbed young lady who needs help [Ugh, fuck off, Uncle James].
While at work, Heather’s friend Kim stops by. She mentions calling the house and getting yelled at by Uncle James because Heather was at work, which is why she’s here now, but the girls immediately start talking about Heather’s job and financial issues, so we have no idea why Kim was looking for her in the first place [I guess she’s just there for some exposition!].
Anyway, Heather really hates working at the coffee shop and even though she’s got $3,000 in a checking account, Uncle James apparently won’t let her touch that either – not even for school expenses [Why is he so damn controlling?]. He says she has to save the $3,000, but doesn’t explain what for, so that’s why she has to work [Where’d the $3,000 come from though? It’s not part of the trust fund from what I can tell, and it’s not saved up from her work?].
On top of that, Heather thinks Uncle James has been spending some of the money from her trust fund after he came home last week with a new computer. She saw on the receipt that he paid with cash, and since he doesn’t have that type of money lying around, it’s the only explanation she can come up with [I have no idea how trust funds work. Can a guardian just take money out of it as they wish?]. Heather can’t access the trust fund until she’s 18, so she’s still got two more years of this bullshit to deal with. Then her boss yells at her to get to work, so Kim leaves and as Heather heads to a booth to take some orders, a young man grabs her arm to get her attention:
Heather stared at the boy, waiting for her heart to stop pounding. He had the most amazing hair. It was pure white. Not blond. Not silver. Pure white. It was parted in the middle and fell in waves down to his collar.
It was even more startling because the boy’s features were dark. His skin was ruddy, almost tanned. His eyes were dark brown. He had the most adorable cleft in his chin.
[Pure white, huh. Does he have albinism? Or is it dyed? Is he an old man?] Heather thinks he might be the most handsome guy she’s ever seen and thinks his hair is sooo00OOoo0OO000oooO amazing. As they get to chatting, she learns he’s just moved to town and goes to the same school. She asks what homeroom he’s in but he claims to have forgotten the teacher’s name and just offers a vague ‘”The tall teacher”’. Heather asks if he means Mr. Louper and the boy quickly agrees, even though Heather knows Mr. Louper’s homeroom is for sophomores [He hasn’t told Heather his age or year level, so I’m not sure how she’s worked out he’s not a sophomore].
Then they swap names and he introduces himself as Snowman [Ur fkn joking hahahaha]. The nickname isn’t because of his white-blonde hair though, but because he’s ‘”cold as ice”’ [Lol OK, Snowman]. As she continues her shift while he eats, she can’t stop thinking about Snowman and feels drawn to him; not just because of his incredibly good looks, but because he seems like a nice guy. When it’s time to pay though, his wallet is nowhere to be found [Suss!], so Heather offers to pay and he can reimburse her tomorrow at school [Girl, what are you doing?!]. Snowman has a better idea though, and asks her out for Saturday night, which Heather eagerly agrees to [But what about your boyfriend, Heather?].
As Heather walks to her car after work, Ben rocks up because he missed her [Aww Ben], and Heather feels bad for making a date with Snowman [I can’t take him seriously with that nickname hahaha]. As she drives him home, he asks if he wants to go to a party on Saturday night, but Heather lies about being forced to visit some cousins.
She’s a terrible liar though and Ben is clearly not buying it, so she invites him along to make it more believable. Luckily for her, Ben doesn’t think Uncle James would enjoy that very much, so declines the offer. Heather still feels bad about lying to him though, and after pulling into his driveway, she pulls him in for a cheeky pash, noticing how his kiss seems needier and more desperate somehow. She’s not thinking about her uncle this time though though – she’s thinking about Snowman [Oh, Heather].
That night, Heather dreams about killing Uncle James once more. This time, they’re sledding down a steep hill, and at the last second Heather jumps off and the sled goes crashing into a tree with Uncle James still on it:
The loud crack she heard was the sound of her uncle’s head hitting the tree trunk.
The impact split his head in two, and his body went flying backwards, up high in the air.
[She’s got a great imagination, I’ll give her that!]. Saturday night rolls around and as Heather waits for Snowman to arrive, Uncle James picks a fight, as usual. Her Aunt Belle’s not much help, since Uncle James is ‘even more of a bully to Heather’s poor, frail aunt’, and Heather suspects she hates her husband just as much as Heather does but is ‘too afraid of him to admit it’ [Poor Aunt Belle and Heather :(]. In their old photo albums, Aunt Belle seemed so lively and full of spirit when she was younger, but now it’s clear that over time, Uncle James has just ‘bullied her and bossed her till she has no spirit left at all’ [Can Uncle James die already plz].
As Heather gets ready upstairs, she remembers fondly how Snowman stopped by work the previous night and alleviated her fears about him meeting Uncle James. Snowman knows how to handle adults and is sure Uncle James will be eating from his hand in no time. Then Snowman disappeared while Heather went to clean some booths, and instead of a tip, he’d left a drawing of a snowman with a heart next to it, which Heather thinks is super sweet [I’d rather money lol].
Snowman arrives and Uncle James gets to the door first [Uh oh]. Snowman introduces himself as Bill Jeffers [A much better name than Snowman], and as expected, Uncle James is super rude, making fun of Snowman’s hair, the car he’s driving, and even asking what his father does. Snowman’s father is dead and handles Uncle James’ questions well, confessing he’s had white hair his whole life, he’s borrowed the car from a friend, and his dad is dead. The ensuing awkwardness of the last revelation shuts Uncle James up until Heather and Snowman are walking out the door:
“What should I say if your boyfriend calls?” Uncle James said. “You remember Ben, don’t you?”
[Hahahaha he’s such an ass. He does have a point there though]. Heather just tells him goodnight and heads to Snowman’s car, hoping he’s not upset by her uncle’s behaviour. Snowman reveals his dad was similar, so he knows how to handle Uncle James, much to Heather’s relief [Neither of them even mention the whole Ben thing, which I think is weird]. As they head to the dance club, Snowman notices a car tailing them with their brights on and suspects they’re being followed [Uh oh. Could it be Ben?].
Snowman speeds off and quickly loses their pursuer, but then admits maybe it was just someone driving too close with their brights accidentally on instead. He seems embarrassed by his actions, so Heather doesn’t press any further. Then Snowman suggests they just go somewhere to hang out and talk instead of going to a dance club, and Heather realises he must be struggling financially. Heather doesn’t mind paying her share, since it’s only fair anyway [I agree with the sentiment, because no-one should ever expect their date/partner to pay for them, but in this case, I think Heather should have an issue because he already owes her money and the whole point of this date was to pay her back… It’s suss to me], and off they go.
We cut to Monday morning at school, and Heather’s trying to find Snowman at Mr. Louper’s homeroom before classes start. She asks a girl if Bill Jeffers is in there, but the girl doesn’t recognise that name and hasn’t seen any guy with white hair in there before [Susssssss!]. Assuming Snowman was just confused, being new to school and all [You’re way too trusting, Heather], she heads off and bumps into Ben.
Ben confronts her about lying to him and going on a date with another boy on Saturday night, revealing Uncle James told him. He feels betrayed but instead of apologising, Heather gets mad that Uncle James told Ben about her business [Heather, please, you’e at fault here].
Throughout the day, Heather can’t stop thinking about how good her date with Snowman went and we learn what went down. After dancing for hours, they got some Chinese food and talked, and she was surprised by how comfortable she was around him, as if they were old friends. She had told him all about her strict upbringing under Uncle James and even confessed to her murderous fantasies [She’s way too open about how she wants to kill her uncle lol].
Snowman had also confided about his own troubled upbringing, with his mother devoting all her time to work so they could afford to survive after his father died. She’s currently working two jobs to make ends meet and has no time for Snowman or his little brother, so Snowman had even offered to quit school and get a job, but since he’s in his final year, his mother convinced him to stay [I’m sure he’s lying, I’m just not sure why yet]. After he took her home, they’d shared a kiss.
It’s lunch time at school now and Heather can’t wait to tell Kim all about Snowman, but Kim wants to talk about Ben instead. It turns out he’d called Kim on Sunday for information about who Heather was on a date with the previous night, and Kim’s mad on Heather’s behalf that Uncle James squealed like that [Is it really that surprising though? It’s exactly what I would have expected him to do]. Instead of confronting her uncle, Heather plans to not bring the subject up altogether, because that’ll really piss him off [Good thinking!].
Sure enough, at dinner that night, Uncle James is the one to bring up Heather’s date with Snowman. Heather plays it cool, not letting him get her riled up like he wants. She eventually excuses herself from the table, but her plate is still full, so Uncle James demands she finishes her dinner. Heather argues that she’s too old to be told off like this and heads for the front door, but Uncle James leaps up and grabs her arm. He jerks her back and she stumbles, her back hitting the corner of the dining table as she falls [Call Child Protection Services!].
He apologises grudgingly and feigns a sore stomach to make Heather feel bad for spoiling his dinner [OK…], and Heather heads off to work. It’s the first time he’s ever hurt her physically [Which I’m not sure is true, because in the chapter where she had the dream about killing him on the sled, she says the only time he’s ever actually touched her was accidental or ‘the times he had slapped her face in anger’. So was that a lie, since it was part of a dream when we learned that information, or has Stine just not proofread?], and even though she knows it was an accident, she still feels frightened nonetheless.
Throughout her shift, Heather realises she wants to keep dating Ben, but she also wants to keep seeing Snowman too, so she calls Ben as soon as she gets home and apologises for lying to him and lays it all out on the table after she admits she wants him back:
“I want to go out with Snowman, too” she said.
“Who?”
“Another boy.”
Silence.
“Come on, Ben,” she said finally. “I’m being totally honest with you.”
“What am I supposed to say — thank you?” he snapped sarcastically.
“Ben — “
“It’s my turn to be honest, Heather. Don’t call me anymore. Goode-bye.”
[Good for you, Ben! Heather’s entitlement here really pisses me off. Like, she expects Ben to be fine with it and really doesn’t seem that apologetic in the first place lol]. The next night, Snowman comes into work and Heather slips him another free meal [This is such a red flag, Heather. Open your eyes!]. She brings up the whole homeroom thing from the day before and he’s super suss about it, saying they moved him to a different one since that one was a sophomore homeroom. Work gets super busy before he can tell her who’s homeroom he’s in now, and once again he leaves a drawing of a snowman in place of a tip, along with a note asking her to meet him at the park Saturday afternoon [Stick with Ben, Heather, I beg you!].
As she drives home after work, she thinks someone’s following her and suspects it might be Ben in his mother’s car. She heads to his house, wanting to know for sure since it’s so dark and she can’t make out who’s behind the wheel, and sure enough, the driveway’s empty. She pulls into it and her pursuer speeds off before she can get a good look at the number plate [Ben, plz don’t get all stalkery on me!]. Heather rings Ben’s doorbell but there’s no answer, and peeking through the window, her suspicions that no-one’s home are confirmed.
Saturday rolls around and at the park, Snowman leads Heather into the woods to ‘”a secret place”’ he knows. Heather asks how he has a secret place when he just moved here, but Snowman is super mysterious about it and tells her he likes that she’s so trusting [Omg Heather, get out of there! He’s literally dropping hints that he can’t be trusted!].
They eventually reach a clearing deep within the woods and start building a snowman. At one point, Heather thinks she sees someone watching them from behind a tree in the forest [I bet it’s Ben. Hopefully wasn’t him in the car though]. When she looks again there’s no-one there, so she decides it was just her imagination [I mean you already know someone followed you, why’s it so farfetched that someone’s watching you again?].
After the snowman’s complete, they share another passionate kiss and Snowman tells Heather he likes her and claims this is their special place now [Cute, but I don’t trust this guy]. They head off as it starts to get dark, but before leaving the clearing, Snowman decides to knock the snowman’s head off [After all their hard work to put it together?! What was the reason, Snowman?].
On Wednesday night after work, Heather and Snowman are sitting in her car as she tells him about the the new Volvo Uncle James has just bought, now even more positive he’s stealing from her trust fund. Then Snowman suddenly asks why she’s never invited him over for dinner [Huh? Have you even been listening to her nonstop complaints about her uncle, Snowman? Also, why hasn’t he ever invited Heather over?]. He’s confident he can handle Uncle James, so they agree that he can come to dinner next Wednesday. We also learn Heather misses Ben and hopes they can be friends, but he’s been ignoring her calls and walks the other way whenever she tries to approach him at school [Well don’t lie to his face and date someone behind his back xx].
The next Wednesday, Uncle James waits until he’s finished his own food before giving Snowman the third degree. His main issue tonight is how eagerly Snowman wolfs down his food, something Heather’s also noticed whenever she sees Snowman eat, but assumes due to his financial issues that he doesn’t get to eat proper meals that often [He’s a hungry hungry hippo]. We learn that Snowman’s mother works long shifts as a nurse, but to Uncle James, that’s no excuse not to have dinner on the table every night [Uncle James can fuck right off lol]. Eventually, Uncle James tells Snowman not to get any ideas about Heather:
“Because Heather is going to come into a great deal of money some day,” Uncle James said, ignoring them both, unwilling to stop until he had finished his complete speech. “And believe me, Burt, or Bill, or whatever your name is, she’s going to end up with someone from her own class. Not some white-haired freak who’s mother can’t even put dinner on the table.”
[He’s such a dick, but he’s got a good point. Snowman has definitely been mooching off of Heather’s kindness. That last line though hahahahahaha]. Snowman isn’t impressed and jumps to his feet, Uncle James also rising to meet the challenge, but Snowman’s face changes back to it’s normal emotionless expression as he thanks Aunt Belle for dinner and leaves. Heather chases after him and out in the snow, he tells her he’s not bothered by what Uncle James said; he’s got bigger issues to worry about.
After some prompting from Heather, he reluctantly tells her about his little brother, Eddie, being really sick and needing an urgent operation that’ll cost $2,000 [Wow, the audacity. I knew he was dodgy! Don’t fall for it, Heather!]. His mother is a private nurse and cares for an old lady at an apartment, not for a hospital, so can’t get a discount. He continues that his mum couldn’t get a loan and seems really embarrassed about showing so much emotion and vulnerability [He’s faking it, Heather! Don’t be an idiot!] and Heather quickly offers $2,000 from her checking account [For fuck’s sake, Heather]. Heather says he can pay her back whenever, but Snowman thanks her for her kindness and refuses to accept her money [This is literally all part of his ploy, how can she not see that?!] before heading home.
About a week later, Heather’s at work chatting to Kim about how she and Uncle James haven’t said a word to each other since that awful dinner when Snowman strolls in [I bet it’s to ask for Heather’s money]. Kim introduces herself, [Wait, they haven’t met yet? Snowman apparently goes to school with them, so surely Heather would have introduced them there already? Although Snowman being at school hasn’t been mentioned for a while, so maybe Heather hasn’t seen him around? If that’s the case, why isn’t she suss about that? It’s extremely sketchy], and Snowman seems really nervous and jumpy. Heather tells him to meet her at her car when her shift ends so they can talk.
Inside Heather’s car 20 minutes later, Snowman tells her Eddie’s operation can’t wait any longer and he asks for the $2,000 she offered the other night [He makes out like it’s so000Ooo00ooooOoo0o hard for him to even ask, but it’s so obvious to me that he’s lying and I hate that Heather is so quick to help him]. Heather writes a check right then and there [Why was she complaining at the start of the book that Uncle James won’t let her touch the $3,000 in her checking account if it’s this easy for her to spend it…] and he promises to pay her back real soon [Pretty sure he still owes her money for a few dinners at her work as well lol].
A few nights later, Heather’s leaving for work when she sees Ben walking up her driveway. He tells her he misses her, and she admits she misses him too, surprised at how easily it is to fall back into their old banter as they talk. The real reason he’s here is revealed when he he asks ‘“Are you still dating that guy?”’, which makes Heather realise she hasn’t seen Snowman since she gave him the money [Of course she hasn’t lol]. She’d even tried to phone him to find out about Eddie, but the idiot has never asked for his number and ‘Information had no listing for a Jeffers’ in town [Of course they don’t lol].
Anyway, Ben says there’s probably no point in talking then, but Heather tells him she’d like to be friends and suggest they meet Saturday afternoon to talk about everything.
At work that night, Heather realises how little she truly knows about Snowman. Besides not having his number, she doesn’t know where he lives either because he always comes to her work or her house. She also realises she’s never seen him at school [See?! So many red flags!], and as she heads for her car after work, she finds Snowman waiting for her with a big grin on his face. He explains that because she really helped him out the other night, he’s returned the favour:
“I told you I could handle your uncle, right?”
“Yes, you said that, but — what do you mean?”
His smile returned. His eyes seemed to light up.
“I killed him, Heather. I killed him. For you.”
Heather thinks he’s joking, but Snowman says ‘“You always think it’s going to be hard. But it never is”’ [Has he murdered before?!] and explains how he used his scarf to strangle Uncle James. He claims it’s real wool, which means it’s so soft that it doesn’t leave marks and everyone will think Uncle James just had a heart attack [Is that actually plausible? I feel like it’s not…]. Heather thinks it’s some horrible joke, so Snowman offers to prove it if she takes him back to her place, and off they go!
Upon arrival, Heather spots the ambulance and her uncle’s covered body and realises Snowman was telling the truth [Why would he admit to the murder though? Like, just in case Heather turned against him, which she’ll surely do?]. Heather runs up to Aunt Belle on the porch and embraces her, noticing for the first time that ‘her aunt smelled like lilacs from the toilet water she used’ [Toilet water? What?….OK I looked it up, it’s just the literal translation of eau de toilette. I was worried for a bit there hahaha]. Snowman walks up to support Aunt Belle too, and as he hugs her, he gives Heather a look the chills her to her core:
It wasn’t an expression of remorse. It wasn’t an expression that said, “Sorry I’ve caused your aunt this pain.”
It was an expression of triumph. Of amusement.
I told you so. That’s what Snowman’s face was saying.
Heather is furious as Aunt Belle explains that while she and Uncle James were cooking dinner, he thought he heard a knock at the door and went to check. When he didn’t return, she found him dead on the porch. The paramedics explain they’ll have to call a funeral parlour to remove the body, so Heather, Aunt Belle and Snowman head inside to do so. Once Uncle James has been removed, Aunt Belle thanks Snowman for his kindness and Heather walks him to the door, wanting to get him out of there as soon as possible.
Heather confronts him about killing her uncle, but Snowman’s all like ‘”I did it for you”’ and doesn’t understand why she’s mad, since she’s always on about how she wants Uncle James to die [TBH it is practically all she talks about]. Heather tells him she has to tell the police, but Snowman just laughs in her face, pulls out the check and threatens to tell the police she paid him to murder Uncle James if she does [Ooooooooooh. I knew he was lying about his little brother, but was this the whole reason he wanted her money? As collateral against her? If so, why? Just so he could murder someone?].
Snowman reveals he doesn’t have a brother, his mother’s not a nurse and he doesn’t go to Heather’s school [I can’t believe she missed all the red flags], and explains that as long as he has the check, there’s no way the police would believe her over him [Heather really fucked herself over here, lol. Idiot], especially because everyone knows how much she hated her uncle – even her best friends would testify about that:
He planned it. He planned it all. He tricked me into writing that check so that he could implicate me in the murder he planned to commit. How could he be so evil? She thought.
[The only theory I have is that he’s a serial killer who targets vulnerable women to help him decide who to murder, which I think is a pretty cool concept]. Snowman then leaves the house, telling Heather they’re in this together as he departs.
Uncle James’ funeral is Saturday and Heather’s surprised to see how many people show up, including Kim and Ben [We love supportive friends!]. She’s not very pleased to see Snowman, the murderer himself, comforting Aunt Belle once again, but there’s nothing she can really do.
Later that night, the black car that followed her the other night pulls into the drive way and two official-looking men jump out. They introduce themselves as FBI agents and would like to ask Heather a few questions about William Jeffers. Scared about being incriminated in the murder if Snowman finds out she’d told them anything, Heather plays dumb, but does mention that a boy with white hair, like they describe, stopped by her work a few weeks ago [I feel like if she got to the police first, they’d be more inclined to believe her about being blackmailed, but I guess it’d be a very risky move on her part, so I can see why she’s lying to them]. As they leave, she asks why they’re after William Jeffers and the agents reveal that ‘”He killed his father”’.
We jump to three weeks later now and Heather’s living her best life, with full control of her trust fund thanks to Aunt Belle. Adding to her good spirits is that she hasn’t seen Snowman since Uncle James’ funeral and that she’s quitting her job, with tonight being her last shift [Richie Rich! I wish I didn’t have to work lol :’(]. It’s all too good to be true though, because Snowman’s waiting at her car when she finishes her final shift.
After demanding to know what she told the FBI, he extorts another $2,000 check from her, one he can spend this time, agreeing that Heather will never see or hear from him again once it clears [Don’t trust him, Heather!]. After Heather angrily tells him he needs help, he exclaims that he helps himself before comparing his own sucky home life to hers:
“You think your uncle was such a bad dude? You should’ve grown up in my house. You should’ve grown up with my dad. I can tell you about a bad dude, Heather. I can tell you about having it rough at home. I’ve got the scars to prove it. Deep scars. Real scars. Not mental scars. Real scars.”
“Snowman, please — “
“Your uncle ever beat you?”
“No. He — “
”Your uncle ever take a bicycle chain from the garage and beat you with it till you were bleeding?”
“Snowman — “
“Your uncle ever tie you to a tree and leave you outside all night because you talked back to him?”
“Oh, how awful — “
“I don’t need help, Heather. You needed help, and I helped you.” He waved the check in front of her face. “And now you’re helping me back.”
[Oof, that’s a bit dark for a Point Horror!]. After pulling her in for one last goodbye kiss, Snowman departs and we cut to a week later. Heather’s in her room on the phone to Kim, talking about how she’s back dating Ben again [Wowwww, Ben. I hope he made her work for it!]. Aunt Belle calls her down to dinner and Heather’s surprised to see that there’s three places set at the table. Aunt Belle informs her they’re having ‘“a surprise guest”’ just as the doorbell rings, and Heather gets the shock of her life when she opens it to find Snowman standing there [That dirty little liar]. Apparently he’d called earlier, and good old Aunt Belle invited him for dinner [Bless her little cotton socks].
Aunt Belle heads to bed after dinner, and the real reason for Snowman’s visit is revealed – he wants $5,000 in cash, and then he really will disappear [Doubt it]. Without any other feasible option, Heather cuts school the next morning to withdraw the money from her bank, lying to the teller that she’ll bring in a note from her aunt authorising it this afternoon [Are bank tellers allowed to be this nosy? The trust fund is in Heather’s name, after all. She’s not of legal age though, so I guess that’s why?]. After giving Snowman the money, Heather spends the day driving around and napping in her car.
When she finally goes home that night, she notices a light on in the room above the garage and Aunt Belle reveals she rented it out this afternoon [No prizes for guessing who’s living there lol]. Bill Jeffers paid her $400 this afternoon – ‘”that’s two full months’ rent”’ [I wish my rent was that cheap lollll. In today’s currency, that’s only USD 382.49 per month, which is still a good deal! I wonder if it’s a single room or a full apartment thing though?].
A few nights later, Ben’s over at Heather’s place as she fills him in on the whole Snowman fiasco. Even though Snowman’s already wanted for his father’s murder, Heather’s confident that after she stupidly handed over so much money, Snowman will still be able to incriminate her. Ben realises that the check Snowman’s using as collateral is the only thing tying Heather to Uncle James’ murder, since $5,000 was handed over in cash and Heather could argue the second $2,000 check was stolen, and they decide their best course of action is to sneak into Snowman’s room and steal the check from his shirt pocket, where he’d gloated about keeping it forever earlier in the book.
So half an hour after the light goes out in Snowman’s room, the pair enter the garage and sneak up to Snowman’s room. Unfortunately they whisper a lot and make way too much noise [At one point, Heather even wishes they’d brought a flashlight with them… Idiot], so while they’re fumbling around in the dark towards Snowman’s bed, he’s able to turn on the lights from behind them and whack Ben in the head with a tire iron [Noooooo, not my Ben!].
With Ben unconscious, Snowman ties Heather’s hands up and forces her back into the house to get her keys before he drives her car to the park they’ve visited earlier in the book. As he drags her through the woods to the secret spot where they built the snowman, Heather begs him to let her go and promises to pay him anything he wants, but Snowman just knocks her unconscious as soon as they get to the clearing [Omfg he’s going to bury her inside a snowman, isn’t he?!??! Amazing!]. Heather wakes up sometime later, unable to move or see:
She heard a scraping sound from somewhere outside the shell she was in. She could feel tapping and pounding on her back.
A familiar thudding sound.
The sound of snow being packed.
It was so cold, so dark in here.
And suddenly she realised where she was.
I’m packed in snow.
He’s packed me in snow. I’m inside a snowman.
[I love this hahahahaha this is hilarious!]. Soon, she doesn’t hear any more noise and realises Snowman must have left. Determined not to die, Heather manages to loosen the restraints on her wrists enough to allow her to pull her father’s lighter from her pocket [That’s good thinking, Heather! I was wondering if that lighter would have a payoff or if it was just character development]. She points it away from her and towards the snow and eventually manages to get it working. Burning holes through the frozen prison, she finally breaks free, but the ordeal isn’t over yet – Snowman’s still there, and he’s got his scarf pulled taut in his hands [Uh oh!]!
As he begins to wrap it around her neck, Heather ignites the lighter again and Snowman’s coat catches alight. The usually emotionless Snowman screams in fright and begs for help, but Heather’s too busy thinking up puns to assist him:
He’s actually lost his cool, she thought.
[Hahahahaha good one, Heather. So fkn stupid]. Snowman jumps into the snow to extinguish the flames as two police cars rock up. The police rush over, along with Ben, who reveals he was watching Snowman and Heather that afternoon he first took her here and guessed this is where he would have taken her tonight. Heather’s soooo000oooO0oO grateful that he was stalking her that day and wraps her arms around him [I won’t fault Ben for this dodgy behaviour since he’s a great guy and it basically saved her life. He was probably just doing it to scope out his competition anyway. #TeamBen!].
Snowman is badly burnt but will survive, and Heather’s relieved to see his coat and shirt, along with the collateral check, have all burned away [Luckyyyyyyy!]. The book ends with Heather and Ben walking back towards her car, but it wouldn’t be a Point Horror without one last appropriately themed realisation/pun from our protagonist as Heather realises this all could have been avoided if she didn’t hate Uncle James so much:
“It’s like I was frozen with hate. But not anymore. Not ever again.”
[Wow, no bad guy monologue?!? I am shooketh].
Final Thoughts
This was a super fun read, even if it was incredibly stupid at times. Heather was well-fleshed out and likeable and I was really rooting for her the whole time and wanted her to come out on top against both Uncle James and Snowman. I wasn’t even too bothered by her stupidity, like handing over $2,000 to someone she barely knows, not realising he actually didn’t go to her school and never thinking to get her new boyfriend’s number or address. Looking back now, Heather’s a complete idiot. But she was still a believable character – I think it all just came down to Snowman being something new and exciting in her life that she wanted to trust in him.
It’s weird that there was no bad guy monologue though – it would have been nice to know why Snowman chose Heather as a victim, and how he even found out about her. At least we found out his motivations though!
As I was getting closer to the end, I was waiting for the book’s title to tie into the story, hoping it wasn’t because of Bill Jeffers’ stupid nickname, but that snowman thing at the end was 100% worth the wait and is definitely one of my favourite Point Horror moments so far. Could this be Stine’s best non-Fear Street Point Horror?!
88 snowmen prisons out of 109!
