top of page
Writer's pictureThe Bossy Bookworm

Review of Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

ICYMI: This five-star retelling of the story of Rumpelstiltskin offers kickass female protagonists, haunting twists and turns, wonderful, signature Novik oddities, and unexpected heart.

I'm getting ready to begin reading the third installment in Naomi Novik's Scholomance series and I realized I haven't posted a stand-alone review of some of Novik's other standout fantasy novels, including this Bossy five-star read.

In Spinning Silver, Miryem comes from a family of moneylenders who are on the verge of being unable to provide for themselves any longer. So Miryem sets herself the task of collecting the debts owed to her family, earning her the reputation of being able to spin silver into gold.

When a foolish boast forces Miryem into a position of meeting the tsar's impossible challenge, she finds that the mysterious tsar isn't what he seems. The swirl of events draws other innocent young women into Miryem's complicated web and toward potential ruin for all of them.

Spinning Silver is a creatively and fully reimagined version of Rumpelstiltskin, but Novik goes well above and beyond that fairy tale. Novik's story offers endless odd, lovely, unexpected, and complex elements.

The magical and irresistible tale includes protagonists with kickass girl power; multiple and haunting twists and turns I was eager to ride out with the characters; and a magic touch in telling a well-known story with more heart that I would have imagined.

Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book?

I mentioned Spinning Silver in the Greedy Reading List Six Magical Fairy Tales Grown-Ups Will Love.

Check out my reviews of Lessons One and Two in the Scholomance series, A Deadly Education and The Last Graduate--and stay tuned for my review of Lesson Three, The Golden Enclaves.

Comments


bottom of page