Spin the Dawn Blog Tour Review + Favourite Quotes + Giveaway

Mulan meets Project Runway is the perfect way to describe YA Fantasy Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim!

A huge THANK YOU to Fantastic Flying Book Club for letting me participate in the tour for Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim! Check out FFBC’s website to sign up to be a tour host!

ABOUT THE BOOK

Title: Spin the Dawn
Author: Elizabeth Lim
Published by: Knopf
Publication date: July 9, 2019
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy

Synopsis:

Project Runway meets Mulan in this sweeping YA fantasy about a young girl who poses as a boy to compete for the role of imperial tailor and embarks on an impossible journey to sew three magic dresses, from the sun, the moon, and the stars.

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.

Backstabbing and lies run rampant as the tailors compete in challenges to prove their artistry and skill. Maia’s task is further complicated when she draws the attention of the court magician, Edan, whose piercing eyes seem to see straight through her disguise.

And nothing could have prepared her for the final challenge: to sew three magic gowns for the emperor’s reluctant bride-to-be, from the laughter of the sun, the tears of the moon, and the blood of stars. With this impossible task before her, she embarks on a journey to the far reaches of the kingdom, seeking the sun, the moon, and the stars, and finding more than she ever could have imagined.

REVIEW

I loved every second of this book. I read it in a day and a half if that tells you anything! The pacing was perfect, the story line clear and concise, and the characters well developed. I am so glad I had the chance to participate in this tour!

Maia takes the place of her father in a competition to become the emperor’s new Master tailor. As she pretends to be her younger brother Keton, home from the war a broken man, Maia realizes that the competition she’s found herself in is not going to be an easy one. With the help of some magic scissors, an unlikely ally, and schear luck Maia finds herself on an impossible journey. I loved Maia’s character. She’s naive but brave and fights so hard to show off her true talent all on her own merit. She completes incredible tasks and grows so much throughout the story. She is a different person by the end of the book than she was at the beginning and I thought that her character arc was so well done. I can’t wait for book 2 because I need to know where Maia’s path leads to next!

Edan is the mysterious Enchanter. He is definitely one of my favorite characters in this one. He is so interesting and his fascination with Maia’s abilities keeps you guessing whether or not you can truly trust him. When he goes on a journey with Maia against the king’s wishes you start to learn just where Edan comes from and some of the secrets he keeps. There’s so much that you learn about him by the end that you can’t help but fall in love with him. He’s literally tall, dark, and handsome!

Bring on book two!!!

FAVORITE QUOTES

AUTHOR BIO

Elizabeth Lim grew up on a hearty staple of fairy tales, myths, and songs. Her passion for storytelling began around age 10, when she started writing fanfics for Sailor Moon, Sweet Valley, and Star Wars, and posted them online to discover, “Wow, people actually read my stuff. And that’s kinda cool!” But after one of her teachers told her she had “too much voice” in her essays, Elizabeth took a break from creative writing to focus on not flunking English.

Over the years, Elizabeth became a film and video game composer, and even went so far as to get a doctorate in music composition. But she always missed writing, and turned to penning stories when she needed a breather from grad school. One day, she decided to write and finish a novel — for kicks, at first, then things became serious — and she hasn’t looked back since.

Elizabeth loves classic film scores, books with a good romance, food (she currently has a soft spot for arepas and Ethiopian food), the color turquoise, overcast skies, English muffins, cycling, and baking. She lives in New York City with her husband.

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