Review – A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow

Posted October 5, 2021 by Carole in Reviews / 9 Comments

I received this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Review – A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. HarrowA Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow
Series: Fractured Fables #1
Published by Macmillan Audio on October 5, 2021
Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, LGBTQ+
Length: 3 hours 20 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Publisher
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five-stars

USA Today bestselling author Alix E. Harrow's A Spindle Splintered brings her patented charm to a new version of a classic story. Featuring Arthur Rackham's original illustrations for The Sleeping Beauty, fractured and reimagined.

“A vivid, subversive and feminist reimagining of Sleeping Beauty, where implacable destiny is no match for courage, sisterhood, stubbornness and a good working knowledge of fairy tales.” —Katherine Arden

It's Zinnia Gray's twenty-first birthday, which is extra-special because it's the last birthday she'll ever have. When she was young, an industrial accident left Zinnia with a rare condition. Not much is known about her illness, just that no-one has lived past twenty-one.

Her best friend Charm is intent on making Zinnia's last birthday special with a full sleeping beauty experience, complete with a tower and a spinning wheel. But when Zinnia pricks her finger, something strange and unexpected happens, and she finds herself falling through worlds, with another sleeping beauty, just as desperate to escape her fate.

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

I enjoyed this audiobook so much that I have already listened to it twice! I adored Alix E. Harrow’s first book, The Ten Thousand Doors of January, so I was eager to give her newest offering a try even though I don’t usually rush to pick up fairy tale retellings. This was such a fantastic twist on Sleeping Beauty’s tale and the characters were utterly amazing. I found this story to be entertaining and thought-provoking from beginning to end.

Zinnia Gray is turning twenty-one at the opening of the story. That wouldn’t be such a big deal except for the fact that Zinnia has a rare disorder that will most likely kill her before she makes it to her next birthday. Her best friend, Charm, decides to throw her a Sleeping Beauty party complete with a spinning wheel. When Zinnia pricks her finger on the spindle, she is thrust into another world where Sleeping Beauty’s life is as desperate as her own.

I loved the characters in this book. Zinnia was such a strong character. Her life has had a lot of challenges but I felt like her outlook was as positive as could be expected. I love that she wanted to help Primrose change her life and was able to rally others to make that happen. I felt like Zinnia showed a lot of growth during this story by learning to fight for herself and others. I also thought that the supporting characters were all expertly crafted, likable, and added a lot to the story.

Amy Landon did a wonderful job with the narration of this book. I loved the way that she was able to bring Zinnia’s character to life. She added a lot of excitement and emotion to the story. This was just a really great listen!

I would highly recommend this story to others. The writing was superb and I really liked the modern elements brought into the tale. I thought that the multi-verse was well done and I liked what it brought to the story. I will definitely be reading more of Alix E. Harrow’s work in the future.

I received a digital review copy of this audiobook from Macmillan Audio via NetGalley.

9 responses to “Review – A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow

  1. What an intriguing premise! I wouldn’t think of the Sleeping Beauty story to have too much room for retelling but this sounds interesting.