ARC Review: Spindle

Title: Spindle Author: Shonna Slayton

Published: October 4, 2016

Source: Netgalley 

Synopsis:

Set during the Industrial Revolution, Sleeping Beauty's happily ever after isn't the end of the story...
In a world where fairies lurk and curses linger, love can bleed like the prick of a finger.
Briar Rose knows her life will never be a fairy tale. She’s raising her siblings on her own, her wages at the spinning mill have been cut, and the boy she thought she had a future with has eyes for someone else. Most days it feels like her best friend, Henry Prince, is the only one in her corner…though with his endless flirty jokes, how can she ever take him seriously?
When a mysterious peddler offers her a “magic” spindle that could make her more money, sneaking it into the mill seems worth the risk. But then one by one, her fellow spinner girls come down with the mysterious sleeping sickness—and Briar’s not immune.
If Briar wants to save the girls—and herself—she’ll have to start believing in fairy tales…and in the power of a prince’s kiss.

My Review: 

Spindle is a retelling of the classic Sleeping beauty but with a twist, Aurora was real and it is now years later and set during the Industrial Revolution.

This book was interesting. The writing was good and the story was told well, it was just very hard to get into. I found myself losing focus and interest throughout the book because nothing was happening. It was not filled with action and adventure like I would’ve hoped.

Instead, it was filled with the same cycle of working at the mill, being with her roommates and then going home to take care of her siblings on the weekend.

There were a few times that broke the monotony of the story, but it was mostly the same throughout.

Briar annoyed me. She was either pining away for Wheeler, the one who got away, or stressing over the mill and her family. I get that she is 17 years old with a lot of responsibility on her shoulders, but make a damn decision on what you want to do instead of just thinking about it over and over again. I cannot stand when people don’t make a decision and just wallow instead.

Other than her wallowing, Briar was a really strong character. She took on responsibility for three young children when her parents passed away and has been doing everything to keep them safe since then. That takes a lot and I wish that was more of her character instead of a wishy washy teenager.

All in all, this book was good. The writing was interesting even though the spin of the story didn’t appeal to me. I wish Briar was a little stronger than she was, but hey, she was a 17 year old during the Industrial Revolution, there wasn’t much she could do.