Inspired by this thread.
More than a decade ago, and probably closer to two decades, I read a fantasy novel that had a young woman as the protagonist. At least, I think it was a woman. I’m not entirely certain.
The only thing I remember about the novel came near the end, when the heroine was climbing to the summit of a magical mountain. She came to a part of the slope that was covered with snow. It wasn’t only snow, though – it was a kind of magical, colored snow that blanketed the terrain in a patchwork rainbow. When the heroine tried to walk through the snow, she was assaulted… and… uh, here’s where my memory is even foggier. I think the snow transformed into another object entirely, or had a harmful effect, depending on its color. I want to say that orange and red snow was very hot, green snow was poisonous, and so on and whatever.
This has been driving me crazy for the past couple years. Does anybody know what novel I’m thinking of?