NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “One of the year’s strongest fantasy novels” (NPR), an imaginative retelling of the Rumpelstiltskin fairy tale from the bestselling author of Uprooted.NEBULA AND HUGO AWARD FINALIST • NAMED ONE OF PASTE’S BEST FANTASY BOOKS OF THE DECADE • NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY AND ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New York … LIBRARY AND ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New York Times Book Review • NPR • Time • Tordotcom • Popsugar • Vox • Vulture • Paste • Bustle • Library Journal
With the Nebula Award–winning Uprooted, Naomi Novik opened a brilliant new chapter in an already acclaimed career, delving into the magic of fairy tales to craft a love story that was both timeless and utterly of the now. Spinning Silver draws readers deeper into this glittering realm of fantasy, where the boundary between wonder and terror is thinner than a breath, and safety can be stolen as quickly as a kiss.
Miryem is the daughter and granddaughter of moneylenders, but her father’s inability to collect his debts has left his family on the edge of poverty—until Miryem takes matters into her own hands. Hardening her heart, the young woman sets out to claim what is owed and soon gains a reputation for being able to turn silver into gold. When an ill-advised boast draws the attention of the king of the Staryk—grim fey creatures who seem more ice than flesh—Miryem’s fate, and that of two kingdoms, will be forever altered. She will face an impossible challenge and, along with two unlikely allies, uncover a secret that threatens to consume the lands of humans and Staryk alike.
Praise for Spinning Silver
“A perfect tale . . . A big and meaty novel, rich in both ideas and people, with the vastness of Tolkien and the empathy and joy in daily life of Le Guin.”—The New York Times Book Review
“Gorgeous, complex, and magical . . . This is the kind of book that one might wish to inhabit forever.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Cool and clever and . . . dire and wonderful.”—Laini Taylor, author of Strange the Dreamer
“The Rumpelstiltskin fairy tale has never been as captivating. . . . Spinning Silver further cements [Novik’s] place as one of the genre greats.”—Paste
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fresh ideas great story plots, did buy more of her books and enjoyed them!
So well done. I was swept away.
Beautifully written.
Loved this tale about a somewhat jaded money-lenders daughter. The “practical” child rarely gets the love. https://www.cgockelwrites.com/2020/04/12/book-review-semiosis-and-interference/
This was supposed to be a Rapunzel story, but it was a story of two worlds that kind of meet in certain parts. This was a story about characters who can travel to the other world through water, or through a mirror, by looking at their reflection they will self-transport. This story wil take you to a different time, not exactly similar, not exactly parallel, but different. I think you might like this book. Hold on to your warm cloak, and keep some firewood handy.
It’s a challenging read at first, with many points of view and a really horrific world / life for the main protagonists. Unpredictable (a good thing). Happy ever after? Yep, just not the way you might expect. And I really liked them all.
This is the second Naomi Novik book I’ve read and I didn’t want to put it down. It’s not only creative, it’s unique; while on the one hand having fantasy series after series after series is fatiguing, and I look for stand alone novels – I wish there were more to read about this world and these characters!
This book took my breath away, it is all about intense magical powers that door you in, with a strange world ana good ending. My favorite book in a long long time.
Unexpectedly wonderful adult fairytale
I got this book on a lark and was taken aback at how the story was told—all in the first person, but from multiple points of view. But not only did the storytelling work for this book, the novel itself was a wonderful retelling of old Slavic folk stories (mostly Polish, I guess). And while this was a fairytale, the themes were very adult: spousal and child abuse, racial prejudice, female subjugation, genocide, forced marriage, and just the basic brutality of the world. But as any fairytale, Spinning Silver focused on love and justice. Well done. The story will stay with me for a long time. Thank you.
This book was absolutely magical. From the moment I picked it up until the last page, I didn’t want it to end. The only thing I am upset about is how long it sat on my shelf before I actually started reading it! A must read!
Brilliant retelling of a classic fairytale. Wonderful in every way.
A winner, bringing old time myths to life. Set in eastern Europe, it combines believable characters and situations with magical creatures.A very interesting spin on rumplestilskin or turning something into money. We see the main character,a jew taking over the money lending job from her father so they won’t all starve. The challenges the characters face bond real troubles with the mystical. I enjoyed every moment in this world.
This book not only entertained me, but gave me an insight into Polish folktales. The folktales of a culture are a great resource for insight into the culture itself for, at least formerly and I still believe this to be true, they form the outlook and expectations of the people, from childhood on.
It’s worth reading for that alone, but the story is also uplifting, more uplifting than I expect the folk-literature actually is.
Naomi Novak at her best gives unexpected depth and very different messages to classic fairy tales. This is Naomi at her best. The story of turning silver to gold becomes a tale of clashing cultures, while providing unexpected development of characters we thought we knew. It also becomes a coming of age story for young women of unexpected strengths.
I love fairy tale retellings and this one did not disappoint! 3 strong female protagonists to follow, root for, admire, and fall in love with! It kept me up late a few nights because I had to find out what would happen next.
This book hits all the fairy tale points – in new and twisted ways. I enjoyed it immensely.
What an amazing take on a classic tale! Can’t recommend this book enough to all my literature lover friends!
Beautifully written–with a fantastic ending.
Best book I read this year!
Slow start but really engaging after the first few chapters. Great fantasy. Strong female characters.