A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Horrow is a great novella for fans of a fairytale reimagining of Sleeping Beauty. Zinnia Gray has a rare illness that doctors don’t know much about, except that others with the same illness have not lived past age 21. For Zinnia’s 21st birthday, her best friend, Charm, plans a special celebration for Zinnia with a complete sleeping beauty experience. The birthday party takes place in a tower with a spinning wheel. Zinnia pricks her finger on the spinning wheel and she finds herself in another world with a young woman hopeful to change the course of her destiny.

Alix takes a historic fairytale and turns it into a modern telling of the story. Zinnia pulls at my heart strings; to be such a young woman fighting a rare illness that has her, and her parents, feeling like death is constantly at her back door is agonizing. Her best friend, Charm, is an amazing friend determined to save Zinnia’s life by solving the mystery of her illness. The conclusion of the story was terrific. A satisfying, yet unexpected ending, with a beautiful revelation. I love seeing characters grow.

The hardcover edition of this book is a work of art. There are beautiful black and white images throughout the pages.

I have photos and additional information that I'm unable to include here. It can all be found on my blog, in the link below.
A Book And A Dog ( )

A Spindle Shattered is a fantastic feminist re-telling of the "Sleeping Beauty" fable. Beautifully written and brimming with pop-culture references, a thing I love, this was a fantastic read. I was absolutely captivated by Zinnia, narrator and protagonist, her strength, her inventiveness, her bravery, and by her best friend Charm and her fierce loyalty and protectiveness. Strong women taking back the narrative and writing their own scripts, in a fairy-tale setting. What's not to like? ( )

Zinnia Gray is terminally ill and just turned 21 when she finds herself in the castle of a real Sleeping Beauty. The story is one part The Fault in our Stars and one part Gaiman's The Sleeper and the Spindle. I loved the author's other books, but by its very nature this slip of a novel doesn’t give the reader enough time to feel too attached. ( )

Ultimately, I found this story disappointing. Having read Alix Harrow's Starling House, I was expecting to love her fractured fairytales. I only finished it because it was so short, and because the story itself really was interesting. I struggled through it, though, because I struggled to relate to the characters. I also felt like at times it was trying to hard to push an agenda, which usually turns me off. Maybe if I had read this first, I would have enjoyed it more, not having such high standards. ( )

I really enjoy the Fractured Fables series. The first one I read was actually #2, and I enjoyed it so much that it made me want to come back and read #1 to see how it all started.

Zinnia Gray is not expected to live past the age of 21, due to her illness. When her best friend Charm creates a super special Sleeping Beauty experience for her -- spinning wheel included -- Zinnia finds that pricking her finger has a very different effect on her than in the fairy tale. Rather than falling asleep, she is transported into another dimension and another Sleeping Beauty's story. Together she and Sleeping Beauty try their darnedest to both escape their fates and rewrite their stories.

This was a fun, quick read, and I love that it is an empowering feminist take on the traditional fairy tale. I look forward to reading more in this series! ( )