On the fringes of the Great Spice Road, Maia Tamarin works as a seamstress in her father's shop. She dreams of becoming the best tailor in the land, but as a girl, the best she can hope for is to marry well. When a royal messenger summons her ailing father, once a tailor of renown, to court, Maia poses as his son and travels to the Summer Palace in his place. She knows her life is forfeit if her secret is discovered, but she’ll take that risk to save her family and achieve her dream of becoming the imperial tailor. There's just one catch: Maia is one of twelve tailors vying for the job.
Backstabbing and lies run rampant as the tailors compete in challenges to prove their artistry and skill. Maia's task is further complicated when she draws the unwelcome attention of the court enchanter, Edan, whose piercing eyes seem to see straight through her disguise.
And nothing could have prepared her for the final challenge: to sew three magic gowns for the emperor's reluctant bride-to-be: from the laughter of the sun, the tears of the moon, and the blood of stars. With this impossible task before her, she embarks on a journey to the far reaches of the kingdom, seeking the sun, the moon, and the stars, and finding more than she ever could have imagined.
Spin the Dawn manages to fit so much into its 387 pages. From the very beginning, we are swept into Maia's life at her father's shop, into a world that suddenly expands in possibilities with the arrival of an imperial official. Maia soon finds herself in a competition of skill...and guile, and then another, even more thrilling quest spanning the entire continent.
I love the world and atmosphere created by this novel. It's an adventure told from Maia’s perspective as she experiences it, but at the same time there's also a sense that she is recounting the events as well, bringing a fairy-tale-esque quality to the story. Descriptions of the magic, the dressmaking, and journey are rich in detail, and the world--the land, culture, and institutions--incorporates elements of real history while having its own. Lim seamlessly weaves in bits and pieces of various legends and fables (some of which you might be able to tell from the synopsis, others more subtle) while creating her own unique plotline.
I especially loved reading Maia's quest for the laughter of the sun, the tears of the moon, and the blood of stars, and how each task tested her will and changed her. And the novel is set up perfectly for its sequel, Unravel the Dusk, which is coming out this July. I can’t wait to read the next stage of Maia's journey, and crossing my fingers that we learn more about some of the secondary characters...Lady Sarnai, Emperor Khanujin, even Edan. And I have a feeling that there is a lot more history to unravel...
Happy reading!
Amy
P.S. Isn't the cover stunning?
Find Spin the Dawn in the Monroe County Library System, Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and Goodreads.
Spin the Dawn manages to fit so much into its 387 pages. From the very beginning, we are swept into Maia's life at her father's shop, into a world that suddenly expands in possibilities with the arrival of an imperial official. Maia soon finds herself in a competition of skill...and guile, and then another, even more thrilling quest spanning the entire continent.
I love the world and atmosphere created by this novel. It's an adventure told from Maia’s perspective as she experiences it, but at the same time there's also a sense that she is recounting the events as well, bringing a fairy-tale-esque quality to the story. Descriptions of the magic, the dressmaking, and journey are rich in detail, and the world--the land, culture, and institutions--incorporates elements of real history while having its own. Lim seamlessly weaves in bits and pieces of various legends and fables (some of which you might be able to tell from the synopsis, others more subtle) while creating her own unique plotline.
I especially loved reading Maia's quest for the laughter of the sun, the tears of the moon, and the blood of stars, and how each task tested her will and changed her. And the novel is set up perfectly for its sequel, Unravel the Dusk, which is coming out this July. I can’t wait to read the next stage of Maia's journey, and crossing my fingers that we learn more about some of the secondary characters...Lady Sarnai, Emperor Khanujin, even Edan. And I have a feeling that there is a lot more history to unravel...
Happy reading!
Amy
P.S. Isn't the cover stunning?
Find Spin the Dawn in the Monroe County Library System, Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and Goodreads.
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