Is Netflix's The Snow Girl based on a true story?

The Snow Girl is one of Netflix's most popular shows right now, but is the thriller based on a true story?

Netflix's newest series, The Snow Girl, focuses on the disappearance Amaya Martin, the daughter of Anan and Alvero Martin. Once the news of her disappearance gets discovered by an intern at a local paper, she quickly decides to take matters into her own hands.

The mysterious disappearance and the nefarious details of the case are all too reminiscent of similarly disturbing stories that have happened in real life, much like in Netflix's other new popular series, The Glory. This specificity leaves viewers begging the question - is The Snow Girl based on a true story?

After investigating, we share what we know about the origin of the series, and whether or not the contents of it hold up in real life. 

Is The Snow Girl based on a true story?

The original title of the Spanish series, La Chica de Nieve, was originally made in six episodes for Netflix. After picking up some traction, the show re-released with an English title, where audiences from all over the globe were able to experience the chilling story of the disappearance of Amaya. It turns out that the story, while not based on real-life events, it is based on a novel by Javier Castillo.

Javier's novel, originally named La Chica de Nieve, was originally published in 2020 - and people devoured it. In fact, the book currently has over 3,000 five-star reviews on Amazon, so it's no wonder offers to make this novel into a series came rolling in for Javier. 

Although the story of Amaya going missing in Malaga isn't based on a true story, Javier certainly tells a vivid picture in The Snow Girl. The synopsis from Netflix reads: “Malaga, 2010, Three Wise Men parade. The most magical moment of the year turns into a nightmare for the Martín family when their daughter Amaya disappears in the crowd." "Miren, a trainee journalist, begins an investigation parallel to that of Inspector Millán that will awaken aspects of her past that she would have liked to forget. With the help of her journalist colleague Eduardo, Miren won’t stop until she finds the girl," it continues.

The most major difference between the series and the book is that, while the series takes place in Malaga in 2010, the novel takes place in New York City much earlier, in 1998. The names from the book to are different as well - Amaya is the girl's name in the series, and in the novel her name is Kiera.

While the show isn't based on a true story it's still very much worth the watch and is shaping up to be one of the best new Netflix shows this year.