Gold, She Spins

Gold, She Spins, by Avery Maitland, is a remixed Rumpelstiltskin adventure. I loved the world here, a slightly twisted fairy-tale setting. Magic runs wild in the forest of Brightsoll, but in nearby Ely Citadel, a strict religion, a growing understanding of alchemy, and a capriciously cruel king have driven all magic out.

Rhona is a human girl, a firstborn child promised and given to a selfish wizard, in exchange for magical favors. She can also do magic, although she needs to follow a code of demanding payment for wishes granted. The magical rules were a bit vague, which kept the story moving along. Rhona can also do clever social magic, using a different name and a serving-girl’s dress to become a different kind of invisible. Bretan is a trainee alchemist, but ends up being taken on at the king’s alchemist and tasked with creating gold.

I really enjoyed this novel’s world of alchemy and magic, but I didn’t quite buy the romance as much. Rhona is a fully developed character, she was skilled, capable, connected and brave. And Bretan, her love interest, was there too. I didn’t quite see what she saw in him, which didn’t help me follow their romance. Without revealing too much of the plot, Rhona does a lot for him, because he pretty much always needs her help. While this helped develop Rhona further, and connected well with the original story, it wasn’t a really attractive characteristic in Bretan.

This is a clever, steamy revision of the classic fairy tale.