Review | Spin The Dawn

Spin The Dawn

By: Elizabeth Lim

Overall Rating: ★★★★★

Maia Tamarin dreams of becoming the greatest tailor in the land, but as a girl, the best she can hope for is to marry well. When a royal messenger summons her ailing father, once a tailor of renown, to court, Maia poses as a boy and takes his place. She knows her life is forfeit if her secret is discovered, but she’ll take that risk to achieve her dream and save her family from ruin. There’s just one catch: Maia is one of twelve tailors vying for the job.

Of course, Maia gets caught, and all hell breaks loose. She’s sent on a daunting, epic journey on behalf of the King and takes along a magical sidekick in hopes of making it out alive.

Theme Song

TL;DR

Spin the Dawn is a Disney fairytale wrapped up in an EPIC fantasy box. If you love Mulan, Cinderella, Aladdin, or any of the Disney classics, you’ll love Lim’s take with her Project Runway twist. Just know you’ll have to wait for Fall 2020 for Book 2!

The Good

Disney Vibes

There are MAGICAL GLASS SLIPPERS, a MAGICAL CARPET RIDE, and a high-key reference to a trapped GENIE. Mix it all together with the “girl becomes boy to get what she wants” trope and you have all the makings of an awesome Disney fairytale-esque story. Not going to lie, the first 12 pages or so are the first 5 minutes of any Disney movie, so prepare for the tragic backstory and lots of tears.

The Questing

It doesn’t take long for Maia to be discovered and for her epic journey to begin. I loved every second of her trials. They’re high-stakes, full of magic, and INTENSE. I felt like I was on my own quest to find magical fabrics for dresses. You won’t be disappointed with Maia or her tasks.

The Romance

This is definitely a slow-burner and I wasn’t disappointed with the lack of smut. There are kisses and swoon-worthy moments and I was here for all of it. It’s refreshing to have a YA book that has cute love stories without millions of smut scenes. The romance level is appropriate for the book and I was content with the cute overload.

The Bad

That Reveal Though

I was really sad that Maia was found out so early on. I would have preferred it to be true to Mulan – or even She’s the Man/Twelfth Night/Every other “Girl becomes Boy” story – to see how that would have affected the plot and love story. It was perfect just the way it was, but of course if there is one thing I am going to think about it’s the what ifs. 

The Ugly Truth

If you love fantasy, fashion, and/or fairy tales you will love Spin the Dawn! I would highly recommend bumping this up on your TBR list.

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Have you read this book? If so, what did you think of it? Will you be adding it to your reading list soon?

Review | Aurora Rising Is The Breakfast Club In Space

Aurora Rising (Aurora Cycle #1) 

By: Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Overall Rating: ★★★★★

“They’re not the heroes we deserve. They’re just the ones we could find. Nobody panic.”

It’s the year 2380, Tyler Jones finds a derelict space craft and manages to rescue one Aurora Jie-Lin O’Malley from the wreckage. Auri is 200+ years old, has some freaky mind powers, and apparently, her only hope of survival is to hitch a ride with Ty and his crew. Ty’s crew isn’t the optimal squad. So, naturally, there’s in-fighting, tons of drama, sabotage, teen feels, and all the sarcasm one can possibly want in 400 pages.

Theme Song

TL;DR:

When it comes to modern sci-fi stories, I didn’t think I would find anything that I loved as much as The Illuminae Files, but guess what? Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman knocked my socks off with Aurora Rising, and it’s my favorite read of the year so far. It’s sassy, humorous, fast-paced, full of amazing characters, and just 100% SPACE-TASTIC. If you love any of the following, you’re sure to love Aurora: The Breakfast Club, The Guardians of the Galaxy, Dramas/Soap Operas (BUT IN SPACE). Do yourself a favor and read this book as soon as humanly possible. And then recommend it to everyone you know!

The Good

Squad 312 – The Delinquents You Didn’t Know You Needed

THIS BAND OF MISFITS IS LITERALLY EVERYTHING YOU NEED IN LIFE. Okay, enough of the caps, but I needed to get my point across. Squad 312 is a mix of the Breakfast Club gang, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and every Star Trek crew out there. Which means one thing: they are the most sarcastic, lovable weirdos to fly across the galaxy. There is a character for everyone to root for (and mine are Tyler and Finian just so we’re clear.)

Was I Actually Watching A Space Soap Opera?

This book starts off with a bang – literally – and does not slow down. It’s so action packed, I felt like I was watching a space drama. There are space battles, human vs. alien fist fights, squad drama, heists, and some glitzy intergalactic paaartaaayys. It had me on the edge of my seat from page one and I fell off said metaphorical chair multiple times.  Then I died at the end and was revived by thinking of book 2. If you’re looking for something to keep you reading into the early hours of the morning – you’ve got it!

The Intergalactic World

The Milky Way is a big place and Kaufman & Kristoff make it their own. There’s a new first contact, new alien species (hallelujah for hot space Legolas), crazy space languages, and a fresh take on Warp Speed and space travel! To my fellow space nerds, be sure to keep an eye open for other Easter eggs I’m sure I missed.

The Ending

Jay is notorious for not believing in happy endings and some of that shines through at the end of book 1 (Amie must be the ray of sunshine in this duo). The bittersweet cliffhanger gave me a heart attack and who knew it was possible to have ALL THE FEELS  in less than two pages.

The Bad

Angsty Teen Romance

*Le sigh*. Am I getting too old for the angst?! I found myself not digging the romance elements of this story. I’m going to blame this one on me, though because everything else is just SO. GOOD. But, still. This would have been a 5-star read even without the bizarre love stuff.

The Ugly Truth

I have one thing to say: READ AURORA RISING. It’s an amazing beginning to a sci-fi series and I need book 2 like yesterday!

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Have you read this book? If so, what did you think of it? If not, will you be adding it to your TBR?