Book completed

[eve_prime]

Spindle's End, by Robin McKinley. Reread. In this book, she retells the tale of Sleeping Beauty, with a bunch of strong female characters and some surprises. The premise is that at the christening, a 15-year-old girl from the remote edge of the kingdom, who lives with her fairy aunt and who is told that she's a fairy too but doesn't yet believe it, finds herself entrusted with the infant princess and told to flee, flee, and save the baby. So baby Rosie grows up far from the court, believing she's just the cousin and niece of the two fairies, and apprenticing herself to the village blacksmith, while everyone worries about that princess whom no one has seen in public since the christening, and what will happen when the princess turns 21 and pricks her finger on that magic spindle.

I rather prefer the first half of the book, which covers the first 20 years of Rosie's life, over the last half, which covers the last year of her life and the many-chapters-long battle with the evil fairy. I still like the whole thing overall, though.

Comments

[claidheamhmor]

That sounds pretty interesting...

[eve_prime]

Have you read any of her books? Jonathan's been a fan of "The Blue Sword" and "The Hero and the Crown" since childhood; they're great! I also like her "Rose Daughter," which is one of her two retellings of "Beauty and the Beast," and I can't remember the other.

[claidheamhmor]

I haven't but they do sound interesting.

[eve_prime]

I'm sure you have a long to-be-read list, but these are fun.