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.
Talk To Me
Have you read this book? If so, what did you think of it? Will you be adding it to your reading list soon?
Read By Dev 