Review of Spindle's End

Goodreads Summary: "All the creatures of the forest and field and riverbank knew the infant was special. She was the princess, spirited away from the evil fairy Pernicia on her name-day. But the curse was cast: Rosie was fated to prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel and fall into a poisoned sleep-a slumber from which no one would be able to rouse her."

For those of you that follow Typing Tiara you'll know already that I've only just begun to get into retellings, and both of them that I have read and loved were retellings of classic literature not fairy tales. In fact, I've only ever read one fairy tale retelling and at the time I wasn't even aware of the fairy tale that was being retold! Therefore I consider Spindle's End, a retelling of Sleeping Beauty, to be my first.

Normally this is the point in the review where I'd start gushing about the main characters but when it comes to main characters this novel isn't exactly easy to pinpoint due to the way that it is told. However, the character's whom I loved the most are as follows: Katriona, Rosie and Aunt. It was around these three women, specifically Katriona and Rosie that the novel revolves.

Though I know the story of Sleeping Beauty well enough, I can't put my finger on where I first read or heard the fairy tale itself. I know the basics but its not a fairy tale I would consider myself an authority on. In that regard I cannot tell you how well this interpretation keeps to the original fairy tale, only that in my eyes it read as if it were a fairy tale. Not a retelling so much as the fairy tale itself. If that makes any sense.

For those of you used to action-packed YA that goes by in a flash Spindle's End will be something different. Its narration is like that of an actual fairy tale with little dialogue, the story itself is told almost completely through narration as if the story is being told to you instead of occuring as you read it. This form of narration results in Spindle's End being a slower-paced book, still delicious to read, just not devour in a single sitting. Or at least I wasn't able to. Its a book you linger over. Filled with poetic prose, beautiful imagery and a fascinating world.

Rating: 3/5