Spindle Fire (Spindle Fire Series #1)

by Lexa Hillyer

Overview

“As the truths behind the faerie legends were revealed, I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough.”—Kendare Blake, author of New York Times bestselling novel Three Dark Crowns

“Absorbing. Poetic. Lexa Hillyer draws the walls between dreams and reality with shimmering grace and phrases of such beauty I had to read many of them twice.” —Jodi Lynn Anderson, author of Tiger Lily

“With its engaging heroines and delicious prose, Spindle Fire pulled me into a richly detailed world full of intrigue and magic.” —Amy Ewing, New York Times bestselling author of the Lone City trilogy

Half sisters Isabelle and Aurora are polar opposites: Isabelle is the king’s headstrong illegitimate daughter, whose sight was tithed by faeries; Aurora, beautiful and sheltered, was tithed her sense of touch and voice on the same day. Despite their differences, the sisters have always been extremely close.

And then everything changes, with a single drop of Aurora’s blood, a Faerie Queen who is preparing for war, a strange and enchanting dream realm—and a sleep so deep it cannot be broken.

Perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas and Leigh Bardugo, Spindle Fire is a tour-de-force fantasy set in the dwindling, deliciously corrupt world of the fae and featuring two truly unforgettable heroines.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062440877
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	04/11/2017
Series:	Spindle Fire Series , #1
Pages:	368
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.30(h) x 1.00(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Lexa Hillyer is the cofounder of Glasstown Entertainment, a former YA editor, and the author of Proof of Forever and the Spindle Fire duology. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband and their daughter. www.lexahillyer.com

Editorial Reviews

03/27/2017
In Hillyer’s (Proof of Forever) inventive take on Sleeping Beauty, 16-year-old Princess Aurora of Deluce cannot speak or feel, and her older half-sister, Isbe, is blind—these senses were “tithed” by fairies when they were babies. Aurora is to be married to Prince Phillip of Aubin, forging an alliance between their kingdoms, but when Philip and his brother Edward are murdered, it’s suspected to be the work of the faerie queen Malfleur, who is planning war. Aurora will now be wed to a third prince, William, and Isbe is to be sent to a convent. When Isbe runs away, Aurora goes after her, happening upon a cottage where she pricks her finger on a spindle and is transported to a dreamland called Sommeil, while a sleeping sickness sweeps her own kingdom. Now Isbe must save Aurora. Aurora and Isbe are no delicate flowers, and Hillyer’s depiction of Isbe’s blindness is especially resonant. There is romance, but it’s the devotion between these sisters that makes this story sing and that will leave readers eager to continue their story. Ages 14–up. Agent: Stephen Barbara, Inkwell Management. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

Inventing a distinctively gritty netherworld that weaves reality with shimmering magic and smoky-mirrored illusions, Hillyer’s writing is freshly vivid....An innovative take on magic and the price of transformation, this will tempt readers to reach for Book 2—and expect some answers.” — Kirkus Reviews

“This story is characterized by lovely, introspective prose; readers looking for action may be best served elsewhere, but those who appreciate a beautifully written journey into the hearts of two sisters will find much to relish here.” — Booklist

“With its engaging heroines and delicious prose, Spindle Fire pulled me into a richly detailed world full of intrigue and magic. Lexa Hillyer has created a refreshing take on a classic tale, one that traps you in its spell and doesn’t let go.” — Amy Ewing, New York Times bestselling author of the Lone City trilogy

“Absorbing. Poetic. In Spindle Fire, Lexa Hillyer draws the walls between dreams and reality with shimmering grace…and phrases of such beauty I had to read many of them twice.” — Jodi Lynn Anderson, author of Tiger Lily

“The writing is lovely, the sisters indomitable, and as the truths behind the faerie legends were revealed, I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough.” — Kendare Blake, author of New York Times bestselling novel Three Dark Crowns

“Aurora and Isbe are no delicate flowers, and Hillyer’s depiction of Isbe’s blindness is especially resonant. There is romance, but it’s the devotion between these sisters that makes this story sing and that will leave readers eager to continue their story.” — Publishers Weekly

“The author, an award-winning poet, has created a lush, lyrical backdrop for the memorable characters in this sinister fairytale retelling that will have teen fantasy fans waiting with bated breath for the conclusion of Aurora and Isabelle’s story.” — Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

From the Publisher

With its engaging heroines and delicious prose, Spindle Fire pulled me into a richly detailed world full of intrigue and magic. Lexa Hillyer has created a refreshing take on a classic tale, one that traps you in its spell and doesn’t let go.

Amy Ewing

Absorbing. Poetic. In Spindle Fire, Lexa Hillyer draws the walls between dreams and reality with shimmering grace…and phrases of such beauty I had to read many of them twice.

Jodi Lynn Anderson

This story is characterized by lovely, introspective prose; readers looking for action may be best served elsewhere, but those who appreciate a beautifully written journey into the hearts of two sisters will find much to relish here.

Booklist

The writing is lovely, the sisters indomitable, and as the truths behind the faerie legends were revealed, I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough.

Kendare Blake

The author, an award-winning poet, has created a lush, lyrical backdrop for the memorable characters in this sinister fairytale retelling that will have teen fantasy fans waiting with bated breath for the conclusion of Aurora and Isabelle’s story.

Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

This story is characterized by lovely, introspective prose; readers looking for action may be best served elsewhere, but those who appreciate a beautifully written journey into the hearts of two sisters will find much to relish here.

Booklist

03/01/2017
Gr 7 Up—Sisters Aurora and Isabelle have always been close, even though Isabelle is reviled as the king's stubborn illegitimate daughter and beautiful Aurora is poised to marry the prince and become a dutiful queen. They even have their own secret language; they must, for faeries took Isbe's sight and Aurora's voice when both were small. After a moment of anger between them causes Isbe to run away, Aurora pursues her, only to be caught in the magic web of a faerie queen thought long dead. Tensions rise as Isbe desperately works to save her sister while beginning to see the larger magical forces at work, and the women start to understand the powerful ways they can shape their own futures. While there isn't much new ground covered here, fantasy fans and fractured fairy tale lovers will easily fall into Isbe and Aurora's world. Fast-paced and full of mystery, danger, and romance, this title will appeal to voracious and reluctant readers alike. Aurora and Isbe grow from sheltered palace dwellers to strong women becoming aware of their own ignorance and the ways they have been manipulated. A cliff-hanger ending leaves the futures of several characters unknown, and readers will surely want to find out the fates of the two heroines, their love interests, and the corrupt fae who rule the land. VERDICT A strong addition to the fantasy/fairy-tale/romance genre, and a great pick for those who can't get enough of it.—Kelsey Johnson-Kaiser, St. Paul Public Library

School Library Journal

2017-01-17
An innovative take on "Sleeping Beauty," this first novel in a two-book arc weaves the tale of polar-opposite half sisters facing a dark threat from a mysteriously diabolical faerie queen. Although headstrong Isabelle, the king's illegitimate daughter, is blind and beautiful princess Aurora cannot speak and has no sense of touch, the two white girls share a close, complicated relationship. After Aurora pricks her finger on a spindle, Isabelle must travel widely, seeking a prince to wake her sister and to ally two kingdoms against Malfleur and her ominous army. Recognizable fairy-tale references blend with radical departures (christening faeries cruelly "tithe" senses such as sight and speech in exchange for gifts of beauty and grace). This present-tense narrative unfolds through alternating points of view (including Isabelle's, Aurora's, Malfleur's, and that of Malfleur's mysterious twin, Belcoeur), depicting complex characters and thorny sibling relationships within an equally complex plot. Inventing a distinctively gritty netherworld that weaves reality with shimmering magic and smoky-mirrored illusions, Hillyer's writing is freshly vivid. Unfortunately, plotting in the second part of the book spins out of control, entangling readers in a web of too many unresolved questions (who is Isabelle's mother, what does Malfleur really want, which romantic partnerships will be fulfilled?), and the book ends abruptly, without closure. An innovative take on magic and the price of transformation, this will tempt readers to reach for Book 2—and expect some answers. (Fantasy. 14 & up)

Kirkus Reviews