Project Runway meets Mulan in this sweeping 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.
Spoilers ahead.
This book is such a delight to read, with an intriguing plot that I've never before seen and a way with words that truly makes it an easy book to read and an enchanting one to listen to as well.

The main plot sees our main character Maia take part in a competition and then being tasked to make three dresses made from the sun, the moon and the stars and then journeying through the country she lives with Edan to find these things -and it is an incredibly compulsive read that takes you on a journey with them which leaves you feeling emotional and holding your breath.

Beautifully written with descriptive writing and flowing prose, this book gives you a world and people that take you in from the beginning of the book - the descriptions of the places they travel and the people they meet are stunning throughout. The romance from 'enemies' to lovers is tropey, yes, but did I love it? Heck yes I did, and it's done so elegantly - Lim is an astonishing writer.

This book is a beautiful read, with stunning characterisation and gorgeous world building that really makes for incredible reading - I need to get myself the sequel as soon as possible as I need to know what happens next to Maia and this world.

5/5.

(I received an ARC from NetGalley for honest review).

Thank you to Netgalley, Elizabeth Lim and Hodder & Stoughton for and advanced readers copy of this book!

I don’t even know where to start. I absolutely adored this book! I really enjoyed the consistent pace of the storyline, there was never a dull moment and I definitely struggled to put it down!

The characters were perfect for the story, I felt like I knew them personally, they were witty, clever and so easy to connect with.

I was hooked from chapter one, and I cannot wait to read the second book! I need it, now!

Also, can we just all appreciate how GORGEOUS this cover is?!

I would highly recommend this book to those who have a love of YA Fantasy with an interesting magic system and the cutest love story!

This is a bit more YA than I'm used to but I liked it enough to want to continue with the series.

Maia lives ina very patriachle society where women arent allowed to work. She has to disguise herself as a man to gain the opportunity to follow her dream of being a tailor. Then there's the fantasy element of her magic scissors and the fantastic gowns she needs to make.

Character wise - Maia is a bit of an odd one as she's rescued a lot. It is only towards the end that she starts to show a little grit and determination. Edan on the other hand is the pragmatic yet dashing one - I really liked him and I liked the development of their relationship.

I am curious to see how the story develops in the second book and how the loose threads are tied and resolved.

This book didn't wow me as much as I thought it would. Others said I was in for quite a ride and that the story was amazing, but I found it lacking. It was good, just not my taste.

I couldn't get into the writing style. It was simple and at times it felt like the other was trying to hard to make things sound magical. The story didn't flow forward and that really bothered me. I could have finshed this book much sooner if not for the writing. It still didn't take me too long because it's an easy story and only 392 pages. I started on chapter 4 this morning and five hours later I am writing this review after I finished the book.

The story is simple and many hardships are easily overcome. The characters are a bit bland and could have been much more detailed. The story is amusing enough to keep reading.

The romance or more the build up to the romance was spectacular! I love it when an author uses the slow burn well and makes me go al "KISS ALREADY" and Lim most certainly managed to make me scream that.

Edon and Maia make a great combination. Edon brings out the worst in Maia and she the best in him. When they are together the story seemed so much more colorful and vibrant. It's just too bad no one pops off the page if it's just Maia telling you about people.

The book really feels like Maia is telling the tale after she has experienced it and that took away some of the magic for me. I wasn't as invested in the story, because I kept having the feeling nothing too bad would be happening or she wouldn't be around to tell the tale.

All in all, Spin the Dawn is a decent book and I'm quite sure many will love it. If you're looking for a fairly simple story then this is definitely a book for you. It gets three stars for me, because I have read much better books than this but also much worse so I'm keeping it in the middle.

Project Runway meets Mulan was accurate indeed.


The first half of the book went surprisingly fast. The pace was great and there was never a dull moment. I didn't expect the competition to move so quickly.

The second half of the book was packed with even more action as Maia goes on a journey and I was completely hooked and invested in Maia's story.

It took me a while to connect with the other characters but in the second half my love for Eden, the Lord Enchanter, grew.

The writing and descriptions were beautiful. I loved how the clothing was described, it made me wish Maia could make something for me!

I think this book ended off well, and I am most definitely looking forward to the sequel. I am filled with anticipation for what is in store for Maia and Edan and I would love to learn more about Lady Sarnai.

What an excellent and fascinating story!
Great storytelling and world building, interesting and fleshed out characters, a plot that kept me hooked
I cant wait to read the next book in this series, this one is strongly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Weaving an epic tale as intricate as embroidery, SPIN THE DAWN is a magic-infused, romantic fantasy that will enchant you.

Lim creates a beautiful world suffused with Chinese influence. Undeterred heroine Maia must face bandits, demons, ghosts of old, finicky brides, tricky competitors and of course lots of sewing, all of which is gorgeously written, characterised and paced. The overall tapestry of this book is a vibrant, magical story sure to spin you around its pinkie finger as easily as thread.

WILL I READ ON? Yes.

I actually enjoyed it! I got a nasty surprise when I discovered that it is written from first person point of view but it is well written. At least the tense used is past.

I am really tired of the 1000000 year old "boys" and extremely young girls trope but despite that I enjoyed this one!

Elizabeth Lim knows how to weave words and the result is spectacular. I cannot wait to read the sequel.

I really, really enjoyed this book (also, have you seen that cover??)

Spin the Dawn is a story about a girl who disguises herself as her crippled brother to compete to become the Emperor's Tailor and save her family's honour. Think Mulan with a needle and thread. Except, no sooner has she proven herself than she is set the task of creating three impossible dresses, using the laughter of the sun, the tears of the moon, and the blood of the stars.

There was a lot to like about this book. The setting was rich and vibrant, the characters unique and sympathetic (whether you liked them or not), and the plot engaging, with fairytale undertones. One of the things that made me like Maia was that despite dressing up as a man, and being a strong female character in her own right, she was also very feminine and I appreciated the balance.

It might sound silly, but another good thing about this book was that the romance was a slow burn. It was nice that, like Maia, I wasn't sure about the guy at first, but he slowly grows on you (and the main character) until they fall in love in what feels like a fairly natural way, and a way that works as part of the plot, rather than feeling like an afterthought.

My one negative comment about the story is that I'm annoyed that I have to wait a few monthsuntil book two comes out. But I *will* be reading it. I have to know...

If you like strong female characters (that aren't just blokes in dresses), slow burn romances, and epic fairy tales, then you'll probably enjoy this book. I give it four out of five spools of thread.

(I was given a free copy of this book by Net Galley in exchange for my honest review, and even if I *had* been enchanted into giving a positive review, I'm too busy waiting for the sequel to care)

You had me at Mulan. You had me at Project Runway. You had me at fantasy. You had me with this cover. Spin the Dawn did not disappoint me! I loved it and absolutely flew through it. I'm a huge sucker for a forbidden love trope and a bit of magic too so Spin The Dawn was the full package for me.

Spin the Dawn keeps up a consistent speedy tempo, has excellent characters that you love and love to hate. Character development is strong, especially with our MC Maia.

It's really not going to be long until I dive into book 2!

5 magical stars - the blood of them, in fact.

Thanks to NetGalley, Hodder & Stoughton and Elizabeth Lim for an eArc copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This story was incredible and i enjoyed every single minute!

The characters are so easy to like. The world building is spectacular and the different cultures were lovely to read about.

The pace of this book was perfect and i easily finihed it in one sitting.

Bring on the next book

*I was given an arc of Spin the Dawn in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton and Elizabeth Lim*

Spin the Dawn follows Maia, who comes from a long line of tailors. After the death of her mother, the family tailoring business begins to struggle. This is pushed further by the ongoing war, in which Maia’s two older brothers Sendo and Finlei are enlisted. Her youngest brother Keton runs away to also join the war and to hopefully find their brothers. Keton is the only brother that returns and he comes back not able to walk.

Not long after Maia’s father, who has lost his touch of tailoring, is requested to join a competition to become the next imperial tailor. As he is not able to and only men are allowed to take the position Keton must take his place. Keton was never much of a tailor and so to bring honour back to her family, Maia pretends to be her brother so she can compete.

After making it through the competition, Maia is given one last challenge. The impossible task of creating three dresses from the laughter of the sun, the tears of the moon, and the blood of stars.

I have waited so long for this book to be available in the UK. Ever since I first saw people talking about it online I knew I needed to read it. Mulan meets project runway, yes please.

Spin the Dawn was everything I thought it would be and more. The story was beautifully rich and when it got around the halfway point I was surprised at how much deeper it could go.

I’ve always been a huge fan of books that have great attention to detail when it comes to clothing and this book is by far the best so far. I loved being able to vividly picture the garments that the tailors were creating and just thinking about a dress that may include the blood of stars was extremely exciting.

Character-wise this book was also very strong. I really loved Maia and the fact that no matter what challenge was thrown her way she would take it head-on. She was determined, selfless and courageous. The best type of YA female lead.

I can’t not talk about Edan and just how much I loved him. The chemistry between him and Maia was electric and any time they got closer I felt myself getting a little giddy. Oh and obviously he is a completely swoon-worthy heartthrob. I wouldn’t have expected anything else.

The magical elements were fascinating and the ways in which they were interwoven was vital to the story. Let’s just say there is a certain magical object of which I was completely intrigued by and I need to know more. It’s a good job there’s a second book so I can do just that.

Spin the Dawn had me hooked from the get-go. I had been in a huge reading slump before this and it was taking me weeks to finish a book. I finished this in just over two days and could not put it down.

Now I am pondering over what will happen next in this world of mystifying magic and gorgeous garments. Looks like I need to get reading book two right this second.

With Thanks to Elizabeth Lim and Hodder & Stoughton, for an advanced readers copy of this book.

This story was incredible! I loved every single minute of it.

The plot sucks you in from the first page and wraps you in a blend of charming characters, beautiful world building, and intriguing cultures. Edan and Maia are brilliant characters, ones you really love reading about. The author uses a blend of Asian and Eastern European folk law during the book, an interesting mix that I don't think I've come across before.

It was skilfully written, and kept a constant pace with no slow moments which meant I finished this one very fast, and I need the sequel like yesterday.

Lastly to address the reason I have an arc this far after publication. This AMAZING new cover! It's so eye catching, I liked the first cover but this one is definitely a huge step up. I really wish it was available in hardback, I really want one for my shelf, maybe that's just a UK thing.

Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim tells the story of a girl who would do absolutely everything for her family and those she love. Disguised as a boy, Maia travels to the Summer Palace with the hope of getting the position as the emperor’s tailor. But Maia is naive to think she could just waltz through the gates and claim the spot as imperial tailor. In order to reach her goal, Maia must undergo several seemingly impossible tasks and the longer she stays at the court, the more she understands that not everything is as it seems to be.

I really enjoyed reading this book. It was fast paced, emotional and with a beautiful and interesting take on mythology I wasn’t very familiar with going in. The romance sub-plot is absolutely adorable and while I would’ve wanted the romance to be a bit more slowburn, it fit the main plot perfectly. However, even though I liked both the plot and all characters, what I like most about Spin the Dawn is the writing.

It’s hard to describe but Spin the Dawn felt a lot like reading one of Tamora Pierce’s books and that’s high praise coming from me since Tamora Pierce is one of my absolute favorite authors and I don’t compare other authors with her easily. So, if you are a fan of Tamora Pierce: you should read this book now! And for you other unfortunate souls who have yet to discover the brilliance of Tamora Pierce, you too should add this to your tbr because this is one of those YA fantasy books you don’t want to risk forgetting about!

***I received an ARC of this book through NetGalley (thank you Hodder & Stoughton) in exchange for a honest review.***

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for providing me with an eArc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book captivated me from the very beginning and kept my interest all the way through.

I've read several books set in China and this one stood out among the rest of them with Maia. I thought it was great that out of her parents children (Maia being the only girl) Maia was the strong one and I certainly got that from the story.

This book was well written and the world building was phenomenal. I will definitely be reading more of this author

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

Firstly, this cover is so so beautiful.

A loose retelling of Mulan. When her father is summoned to the palace to become the imperial tailor, Maia risks her life by posing as a boy and taking his place. The catch? She is one of 12 tailors vying for the coveted position.

From there she embarks on an impossible journey with Edan, the emperor’s enchanter. Her challenge is to sew three magic dresses: one from the laughter of the sun, one from the tears of the moon and the last from the blood of suns.

What a delightful read!

This is the second Mulan centred book I’ve read from Lim - she also wrote the Disney twisted tale, Reflection.

But this one is much more fun.

I loved the angle that this retelling took - the concept was fresh and exciting. Or maybe I just really love beautiful clothes and wish I could wear the dress made from the blood of the stars... who knows?

The story begins with a competition, a trope I adore. However, I thought it would span more of the book than it did and felt that it was over too soon. That’s not to say that the ‘journey’ portion of the book was disappointing because it wasn’t.

I also enjoyed the development of Maria’s character. She starts off as fairly wispy but by the end of the book she’s much more headstrong and determined.

If you also enjoy romance, this book has it. It’s not a steamy type of romance, which is fine because I don’t care much for that. It’s the type that’s full of snarky and witty banter, and not PDA heavy (ie. the type that’s, in my opinion, not cringe). Basically it was right up my street.

I definitely want to see how this series ends!

A book packed full of magic, secrets, suspense, adventure, betrayal, and romance, Spin The Dawn is a beautiful fantasy!

I was excited to read this because Project Runway x Mulan sounded amazing, but in the end it just wasn’t for me.

I felt that the story structure just wasn’t one I enjoyed—I really liked the competition element, but it went too quickly and I didn’t feel that the stakes were high enough to keep me interested. I also thought it would take up much more of the book, so I was surprised when the story took a turn in a different direction.

I liked the writing style a lot—I would definitely read something else by this author, but this story was just not for me in the end.

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for providing me with an eArc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A story about family, about doing what you need to do to survive, and more importantly, about doing the impossible - Spin the Dawn is a really fresh retelling of Mulan, and I really enjoyed it. The description of Project Runway meets Mulan is really obvious in the first part of this book, whilst the second part deals with a journey, and a budding romance.

Maia dreams of being the best tailor in the land - but she's female. She can't hope for anything other than to marry well. When a royal messenger summons her father to court, Maia knows this could be her chance to get what she wants. Disguised as a man, she travels to the place in her father's stead to compete for the position of Imperial Tailor.

Nothing in the world could prepare her for the real challenge that faces her in the palace - she needs to make three magical dresses for the emperor's wife-to-be; one made from the blood of the stars, one from the laughter of the sun, and one from the tears of the moon.

A journey must take place in order for her to find the magical items she needs to make these dresses, and she's accompanied by the court enchanter - Maia needs to keep her disguise, and her wits, about her if she's going to make it back and be victorious.

I loved this book , but I definitely prefered the competition aspect more than the journey, if I'm honest. The journey did come with some fun elements though, and I did enjoy the romance that was building. Overall, I was left super excited for the next book, and I can't wait to read more by Elizabeth Lim.

When i started reading this book I didn't have a lot expectations, i like to go in blind, without reading sneak peeks or other reviews, that allows me to enjoy a book. This book was no exception. I really liked the setting and the ambience of the story. i have to say, i liked the first part of the story more than the second, Maia's trials in the palace and all its intrigues, the use of the scissors, the mystery of Edan. the second goes deep into the characterization, but the other trials are not, in my opinion, comparable to the ones of the first part, they're too easily resolved, there is no challenge for Maia. The end is intriguing, and completely unexpected for me, and something that makes me want to read the second book the moment i finish the first.