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Title: Exceptional writing, ridiculous ending.
Review: This book is beautifully written and translated. The most compelling aspect of "Smilla's Sense of Snow" is clearly Smilla herself - an intelligent, fascinating, but also cynical character, who is often as emotionally cold as the snow she "smells". Hoeg has done a wonderful job of creating an intriguing and believable character. As a Swede, I also appreciated the sense of melancholy, which is so very Scandinavian, and I find, an often rather depressing element in the book. As a writer, however, I was not very impressed with the plot. (Worms and meteorites, indeed!) Also, many of the love scenes - if you can call them that! - appear to be more the exercise of bodily functions (one physically impossible!) than acts of affection. This may, of course, only be a reflection of Smilla's emotional paralysis. All in all, a beautifully written book that is strong on characterization and social issues, but weak on plotting.
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