Spin the Dawn (Blood of Stars, #1)

by Elizabeth Lim

Project Runway meets Mulan in this sweeping fantasy about a teenage 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. And don’t miss Elizabeth Lim’s new novel, the instant New York Times bestseller, Six Crimson Cranes!

“All the cutthroat competition of a runway fashion reality show and the thrilling exploits of an epic quest." —The Washington Post

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 makes the ultimate sacrifice and poses as a boy to take 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 in a cutthroat competition 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 unthinkable final challenge: to sew three magic gowns for the emperor's reluctant bride-to-be, from the sun, the moon, and the 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.
 
Steeped in Chinese culture, sizzling with forbidden romance, and shimmering with magic, this fantasy novel is not to be missed.

"This is a white-knuckle read." —Tamora Pierce, #1 New York Times Bestselling author of Tempests and Slaughter

• ISBN10: 0525647007
• ISBN13: 9780525647003
• Publish Date: 9 July 2019
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 15 May 2023
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Random House USA Inc
• Imprint: Knopf Books for Young Readers
• Format: Hardcover (Library Binding)
• Pages: 416
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780525647003

Reviews

[Beth C.]

That whole "Don't judge a book by its cover" adage? I do. A lot of the time. And this cover is what initially drew my eye to investigate further. Having read the synopsis, I was intrigued enough to start reading - and I'm so glad I did! A great story, with action and adventure and romance and magic...and djinn. But not the typical "genie in a bottle" that so many stories speak of.

And the main character, Maia, is a strong, determined, smart young woman who is only trying to take care of her family, and ends up taking on more than she expects. She shows that sometimes, being strong is just having enough determination to keep putting one foot in front of the other, no matter what may come at you.

Overall, I really enjoyed this story. It reminded me so much of an old-fashioned fairy tale - in all the best ways. I definitely will be looking forward to book #2.

[Veronica 🦦]

Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim

A+ | A spectacular and solid fantasy novel that has everything I love: magic, a protagonist I can connect with, side characters that feel human, a romance that is actually believable and developed rather than shoved down my throat, an actual journey.

Where do I begin?

This book is marketed as Mulan meets Project Runway. However, it’s so much more than that. Yes, it has elements of both with the whole taking her father’s place after an imperial summons and the competition to design clothes. However, about 30% of the way in, it shifts to another direction - our protagonist, Maia, is sent on this impossible journey to craft three mythological dresses that had once been made for a goddess. She’s joined by the endearing Edan, the Emperor’s Enchanter. It has elements of The One Thousand and One Nights/The Arabian Nights and imperial China mixed into the fray.

I adored Maia. I adored Edan. I adored Lady Sarnai.

Each one of these characters felt human with real feelings, especially Lady Sarnai. I focus on her because she could have easily become this one-dimensional character that I could care less about, but she didn’t. Instead, I want to know more about this young woman - what are her motives? Why does she act the way she does? Believe in the things she believes in? What was her childhood like? Look, I know I’m focusing on Lady Sarnai here, but I can’t help it. She’s interesting. She reminds me of Empress Tanashiri/Danashiri from Empress Ki who was a character I honestly enjoyed more than Seung Nyang.

I love complex characters and it was so refreshing to see here.

As for Maia? God, where do I begin aside from reiterating how much I adored her?

I do. I adore Maia because she feels so real. She actually has a personality! It isn’t just filial piety that drives her to impersonate her brother, but her own desire to shatter the glass ceiling. Both are equally important to her. She never forgets either reason while she’s there in the imperial palace. Also, the fact that she makes mistakes is just an entire chef kiss moods. She’s funny and passionate and a hard worker. She could have easily won the competition if she used the magic she had at her disposal, but she didn’t once she knew what she had in her grasp. I have to admire her for it because she believed in herself and in her abilities so much.

Still, did I find myself shaking my head at her? Did I get annoyed with her? Oh absolutely. There were those moments when I rolled my eyes, to be honest. But still, the fact that I didn’t spend the majority of this book rolling my eyes is a good thing.

And by God, Edan? I loved him. He is enchanting and humorous and oh so imperfect. He is respectful, protective, and sweet, but also loves to tease Maia. When we first meet him, I honestly thought he was an ass - an arrogant ass who definitely needed to be smacked with a slipper. However, as the pages went on and we got to spend more time with him through Maia’s eyes, he turned out to be a good cookie. His story honestly pulled at my slightly blackened heart and

The relationship in this novel is a not a slow-burn, but it’s not all-consuming wildfire love that gets shoved down our throats, either. It’s a realistic relationship because it was built on friendship and trust and banter. It’s been a long time since I watched *Empress Ki*, but the relationship here sort of reminded me of Seung Nyang and Wang Yu’s relationship - at least before shit went down and she had to become Toghon Temur's concubine. It’s one of those relationships that I can cheer on, rather than roll my eyes at every time they confess their feelings for each other.

And we can’t forget about the worldbuilding.

One of the most essential things in fantasy is to have good worldbuilding - a universe that has weight to it. Any piece of fantasy media that has good worldbuilding gets a gold star in my book and it gets another if that fantasy is inspired by Asia - be it East Asia, South East Asia, South Asia, Central Asia, or the Middle East.

Spin the Dawn gets both of these gold stars. It’s definitely influenced by China which is just so refreshing to see. It felt like I was reading a novelization of a really, really, REALLY good Chinese historical drama with fantasy lovingly placed into it.

If you’re looking for a well-written fantasy with compelling characters, this is the book for you.

Thank you to Random House Children’s, Knopf Books for Young Readers, and NetGalley for providing me with an ebook version of ARC. I received this in exchange for a review. My opinions are my own.

[tweetybugshouse]

Wow this story was woven into the best of fairytales and adventure that i read since i devoured The Crown’s Game. We have a young lady that desperately wants to be the emperors tailor but that path is blocked to her since she is female. Then her father is given the opportunity and she strives off as a boy to save the honor of her family and hopefully to prove herself enough so she can achieve her dream.

At the heart of the story is Maia wanting to be the best she can be, to prove she just as good as the men in this field. Also is Maia discovering more about herself and the roots of her family. She meets this mysterious enchanter, she given the impossible task of weaving three dresses out of essentially fairytales, and also she forced to make an impossible decision at the end of this book one.

I can hardly wait for the next book i need to know how Maia and Edna are going to overcome this impossible obstacle that has been thrown in their path. I need to know how Maia does now that she woven these amazing dresses, is the emerpeor going to fulfill her dreams? Also how does Maia family do now that her brother been healed from his wounds and her farther does he continue in being able to make his shop thrive?

We don’t even have a blurb to tide us over tell the next book? Your going to want to devour this one it got great pacing, solid characters, and vivid imagery of the world this story is based in.

[Amber (The Literary Phoenix)]

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
I really, really, really like this book.

I was so surprised by it. At the time of writing this review (January 29th! I’m dying, waiting for everyone else to be able to read it!) it’s currently at a well-deserved 4.53 stars on Goodreads. I’m so happy for Elizabeth Lim and I hope the rating stays high. This book is pitched as Mulan meets Project Runway, and that description is doing is a huge disservice. It is Mulan in as far as she’s a girl disguised as a boy, and it’s Project Runway only because she makes dresses. So know that, then get that description out of your mind.

Okay. So Spin the Dawn is a fantastic adventure across all sorts of terrain to gather the laughter of the sun, the tears of the moon, and the blood of the stars to weave into dresses that were originally meant for a goddess. This story takes inspiration from One Thousand and One Nights and weaves it into a Chinese-themed adventure story. There’s a sweet romance, a strong heroine, a great sibling relationship, the echoes of war. I mean, this book has EVERYTHING. I found myself thinking of Aladdin, The Poppy War, Children of Blood and Bone, and so many other fantastic, inspiring, imaginative, intense stories. Spin the Dawn far exceeded my expectations and I want you all to go add it to your TBR.

Seriously. I’ll wait.

Outside of a writing style that effortless wrapped me into the story, Elizabeth Lim has created characters who you love and grieve for. Out protagonist, Maia, is a sweet, strong, talented young tailor in a world that doesn’t accept women as Master Craftsmen. She disguises herself for both necessity (to save her family’s business) and pride (because she knows she has the skills of a Master Craftsman). I loved Maia’s determination, but also her kindness. She’s not a typical cocky heroine who wants to prove her meddle – she’s a sweet girl who has confidence and loves her family.

The love interest, Edan, is a similar situation. He starts off as this teasing, standoffish character but it’s easy to fall in love with him as the story progresses. There’s a depth of history in Edan, and I’m desperately hoping to see more of this character in the rest of the trilogy. In Edan we see magic and regret and we learn the lines between history and mythology. His tales are always fascinating – the only thing I regret about his character is that the more we learn, the less mysterious and grand he seems.

I also want to say a little about the love story – I neither loved it nor hated it. Maia’s emotions and Elizabeth Lim’s writing are deep and lovely. Some of the dialogue is a little cheesy between lovers, but otherwise, I came to enjoy the moments Maia stole with her beau. There’s one scene where he brings her flowers that was absolutely adorable.

With an exciting story, fantastic writing, compelling characters, and an ending that will leave you screaming at the page… Spin the Dawn is one of the must-reads of 2019. I enjoyed this book immensely, and I’m on edge waiting for the rest of the trilogy.