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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
!! REVIEW OF WHOLE SERIES !!
spin the dawn is a captivating ya story of faith, familial love and courage. it follows the protagonist, maia tamarin, an exquisite tailor as she fights for her kingdom, a'landi. told from childhood that though she was a talented weaver, she would not be able to follow in her father's footsteps since she's a girl. determined to prove everybody wrong, given the opportunity, she disguises herself as a boy and competes in a trial against eleven other tailors to be the imperial tailor of a'landi. as part of the trial, when she's tasked with the challenge of sewing the dresses of the sun, the moon and the stars, maia embarks on a perilous journey with a mysterious enchanter to fulfil her dreams.
the winning feature of this book is the forceful determination of the protagonist, maia tamarin. her strength of character and devotion to her family is so deep, she sacrifices herself to her
duties. i was personally moved by her courage and determination. the other characters play their part well in aiding maia, and the plot moves along smoothly; though at times, it might feel like something is missing.
unravel the dusk, the sequel, takes us on another brillant quest as maia sets out to regain herself or surrender to the demons she's lost herself to. it might get tedious at times, feeling as though maia's change was dragged out too long. the undertones of romance, though bewitching at first, slowly fizzled out and left me wanting more. however, the conclusion was befitting that of a good ya fantasy. to say i was enchanted till the very end would be underwhelming the truth of my captivation with this duology.
for a debut novel, the author has done a great job with world-building and the culture of the fictional land of a'landi was indeed intriguing. with six crimson cranes set in the same universe, i'm eagerly awaiting future expansions of the spin the dawn verse.
rating — 8/10
spin the dawn is a captivating ya story of faith, familial love and courage. it follows the protagonist, maia tamarin, an exquisite tailor as she fights for her kingdom, a'landi. told from childhood that though she was a talented weaver, she would not be able to follow in her father's footsteps since she's a girl. determined to prove everybody wrong, given the opportunity, she disguises herself as a boy and competes in a trial against eleven other tailors to be the imperial tailor of a'landi. as part of the trial, when she's tasked with the challenge of sewing the dresses of the sun, the moon and the stars, maia embarks on a perilous journey with a mysterious enchanter to fulfil her dreams.
the winning feature of this book is the forceful determination of the protagonist, maia tamarin. her strength of character and devotion to her family is so deep, she sacrifices herself to her
duties. i was personally moved by her courage and determination. the other characters play their part well in aiding maia, and the plot moves along smoothly; though at times, it might feel like something is missing.
unravel the dusk, the sequel, takes us on another brillant quest as maia sets out to regain herself or surrender to the demons she's lost herself to. it might get tedious at times, feeling as though maia's change was dragged out too long. the undertones of romance, though bewitching at first, slowly fizzled out and left me wanting more. however, the conclusion was befitting that of a good ya fantasy. to say i was enchanted till the very end would be underwhelming the truth of my captivation with this duology.
for a debut novel, the author has done a great job with world-building and the culture of the fictional land of a'landi was indeed intriguing. with six crimson cranes set in the same universe, i'm eagerly awaiting future expansions of the spin the dawn verse.
rating — 8/10
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Oh, how I love magic and fashion and a strong FMC and an interesting story… This book was made for me tbh. One could say it was tailored for me, hehe. No jokes now, I enjoyed it so much!
I’m having such a serious moment of, did I read the same book as these other people who gave five stars and are gushing over how amazing the tale was? Ugh.
I had such high hopes for this story after first coming across it years ago, but why is it that books marketed as Mulan retellings have a way of disappointing me?
I guess one of the biggest problems I had with this book was the pacing. Not even pacing with separate events, but the pacing between even sentences and paragraphs always felt rushed. Interactions felt like they could’ve been fleshed out more, but weren’t, more details could have been given but instead were skipped and brushed over. You know speed reading, where you read super fast and jump over unimportant words? That’s what it felt like the author was doing, except speed writing instead. It’s not often that I think a book should be longer, but this one could definitely use a longer page count. I’d love to have seen the competition fleshed out more—I was surprised by how short it was. The competition could have also been so much more exciting if, again, more details and nuance had been added in.
Also, why are the girls in these Mulan retellings always terrible at hiding their gender? Surely not every person who gets close enough to her is observant to tell. And surely said girl should be more skilled at keeping her identity under wraps. Every time a person sOmEhOw finds out, wait, she’s a girl! They go, “Oh don’t worry. I’ll keep your secret. + some blackmail if they’re feeling fancy. Plenty of women have disguised themselves as men in wars over the centuries, and most of them weren’t found out at all unless it was through unavoidable circumstances, like after death or medical treatment after injury. Like, come on, Maia.
Is it weird that I didn’t particularly like any of the characters in this story? They kind of just… existed. Like cardboard cutouts. I don’t even have a character that I can point to as least unlikeable because absolutely no one stood out to me. Even Maia, who I should feel close with since she narrated the story, feels like an uninteresting mop of sludge. Again, maybe it’s the author’s rush rush rush on details and emotion, but I felt like any strong feelings and emotions from Maia were always glossed over when I would have liked to see them delved into. Even her struggles with the three dresses trial felt eh. I didn’t feel any sense of fear for her even though she was going through these perilous challenges. In fact, I didn’t feel any tension throughout the story even though there was supposed to be tension throughout. The emotional arc of the story just isn’t built up well.
I should mention the romance, too. Or how about the intense dislike I had over it? Did the author just whip up a romance for the sake of a romance? Edan literally swoops out of nowhere, is stalkerish, arrogant (and not in the funny way), and annoying. I didn’t feel endeared to him at all, and trust me, I didn’t feel any more endeared to him later on either. I’m not even sure how this romance happened.
But let’s just say I accept that Maia likes Edan and Edan likes Maia. They dated for less than a month, right? And then by the end of it, they’re both “I love you. Always.” I don’t know about you, but when I date a boy, I didn’t say “I love you” barely a month into the date, much less always. I don’t think I even thought much about whether or not I loved him, because I didn’t. I realize this isn’t really an instant romance because it’s not like they started falling head over heels for each other the moment they met, but they?? are too in deep for each other way too soon?? Especially when the foundation of the romance felt undeveloped as hell?? It was just so unrealistic that I took so many screenshots of the pages where Maia and Eden were confessing their undying love for each other. Things got even better when it turns out they’ve barely been together for a month and already throwing their lives away for each other, and not only that, but also throwing sap at my face like Maia telling me that she can’t live without Edan and gAh stab me with a sewing needle.
I had such high hopes for this story after first coming across it years ago, but why is it that books marketed as Mulan retellings have a way of disappointing me?
I guess one of the biggest problems I had with this book was the pacing. Not even pacing with separate events, but the pacing between even sentences and paragraphs always felt rushed. Interactions felt like they could’ve been fleshed out more, but weren’t, more details could have been given but instead were skipped and brushed over. You know speed reading, where you read super fast and jump over unimportant words? That’s what it felt like the author was doing, except speed writing instead. It’s not often that I think a book should be longer, but this one could definitely use a longer page count. I’d love to have seen the competition fleshed out more—I was surprised by how short it was. The competition could have also been so much more exciting if, again, more details and nuance had been added in.
Also, why are the girls in these Mulan retellings always terrible at hiding their gender? Surely not every person who gets close enough to her is observant to tell. And surely said girl should be more skilled at keeping her identity under wraps. Every time a person sOmEhOw finds out, wait, she’s a girl! They go, “Oh don’t worry. I’ll keep your secret. + some blackmail if they’re feeling fancy. Plenty of women have disguised themselves as men in wars over the centuries, and most of them weren’t found out at all unless it was through unavoidable circumstances, like after death or medical treatment after injury. Like, come on, Maia.
Is it weird that I didn’t particularly like any of the characters in this story? They kind of just… existed. Like cardboard cutouts. I don’t even have a character that I can point to as least unlikeable because absolutely no one stood out to me. Even Maia, who I should feel close with since she narrated the story, feels like an uninteresting mop of sludge. Again, maybe it’s the author’s rush rush rush on details and emotion, but I felt like any strong feelings and emotions from Maia were always glossed over when I would have liked to see them delved into. Even her struggles with the three dresses trial felt eh. I didn’t feel any sense of fear for her even though she was going through these perilous challenges. In fact, I didn’t feel any tension throughout the story even though there was supposed to be tension throughout. The emotional arc of the story just isn’t built up well.
I should mention the romance, too. Or how about the intense dislike I had over it? Did the author just whip up a romance for the sake of a romance? Edan literally swoops out of nowhere, is stalkerish, arrogant (and not in the funny way), and annoying. I didn’t feel endeared to him at all, and trust me, I didn’t feel any more endeared to him later on either. I’m not even sure how this romance happened.
But let’s just say I accept that Maia likes Edan and Edan likes Maia. They dated for less than a month, right? And then by the end of it, they’re both “I love you. Always.” I don’t know about you, but when I date a boy, I didn’t say “I love you” barely a month into the date, much less always. I don’t think I even thought much about whether or not I loved him, because I didn’t. I realize this isn’t really an instant romance because it’s not like they started falling head over heels for each other the moment they met, but they?? are too in deep for each other way too soon?? Especially when the foundation of the romance felt undeveloped as hell?? It was just so unrealistic that I took so many screenshots of the pages where Maia and Eden were confessing their undying love for each other. Things got even better when it turns out they’ve barely been together for a month and already throwing their lives away for each other, and not only that, but also throwing sap at my face like Maia telling me that she can’t live without Edan and gAh stab me with a sewing needle.
3.5 stars
I actually enjoyed this. And I would say I mostly liked the romance. Mostly. I liked it a little less towards the end. Also, the fact that he's like 500 years old is making me a little uncomfortable. I've never been so aware of an MMC being alive for half-a-millennium. I'm like, go after girls your own age, man.
Pre-read *⁀➷
My first Elizabeth Lim book! I'm 40 pages in and I liikkkeeee it!
I actually enjoyed this. And I would say I mostly liked the romance. Mostly. I liked it a little less towards the end. Also, the fact that he's like 500 years old is making me a little uncomfortable. I've never been so aware of an MMC being alive for half-a-millennium. I'm like, go after girls your own age, man.
Pre-read *⁀➷
My first Elizabeth Lim book! I'm 40 pages in and I liikkkeeee it!
This book took me by surprise. I didn't even know I had it, just decided to open it to pass time and there my weekend.
As marketed, the book is like a love child of Mulan and Project Runway. That means there's a lot of this:
A lot of fashion drama:
And throw in a reluctant bride that wants a dress made from the laughter of the sun, the tears of the moon, and the blood of stars.
10/10 would recommend!
As marketed, the book is like a love child of Mulan and Project Runway. That means there's a lot of this:
A lot of fashion drama:
And throw in a reluctant bride that wants a dress made from the laughter of the sun, the tears of the moon, and the blood of stars.
10/10 would recommend!
4.5⭐️
I have been putting off reading this book for so long and now i can finally ask myself: WHY THE FUCK DID YOU DO THIS TO YOURSELF, HUH? WAIT THAT MUCH TIME?
This book was legit amazing.
I have loved every part of it, despite the reviews i have read saying it was not as good from the beginning of the journey on and to that I say, I respectfully disagree.
The trials, the journey and then the romance??? This book is a fucking PACKAGE. Honeslty made me excited to read fantasy again and that feels so good
I have been putting off reading this book for so long and now i can finally ask myself: WHY THE FUCK DID YOU DO THIS TO YOURSELF, HUH? WAIT THAT MUCH TIME?
This book was legit amazing.
I have loved every part of it, despite the reviews i have read saying it was not as good from the beginning of the journey on and to that I say, I respectfully disagree.
The trials, the journey and then the romance??? This book is a fucking PACKAGE. Honeslty made me excited to read fantasy again and that feels so good
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
// v mild spoilers
the beginning was kind of slow personnally but it picked up towards the middle. i liked the magical scissors & their tie in to the dresses she was sowing. but the developpment of her relationship was cute so...
the beginning was kind of slow personnally but it picked up towards the middle. i liked the magical scissors & their tie in to the dresses she was sowing. but the developpment of her relationship was cute so...
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Okay well that was crazy. Who knew a book about sewing would be that exciting. So GOOD.