Spindle's End

"Robin McKinley has written a lot of fairy tale retellings. Rose Daughter is still one of my favourite Beauty-and-the-Beasts. Spindle’s End is just a great Sleeping Beauty story. It starts with the fairy godmother, who is very young, acquiring the princess just as she has been cursed, and having to keep her safe. The fairy godmother is about thirteen, and the princess – Rosie – is a newborn. The fairy godmother spirits Rosie away to avoid the curse. You really feel for this girl! She’s trying to get back home. And she can talk to animals, that’s her main gift. As she grows up, she becomes not very princess-like: she’s not terribly attractive, and she works as a horse doctor. But meanwhile, the curse is looking for her, and eventually, it all comes together. It’s really well done, it’s one of my very favourite retellings. And there are talking animals, which I’m a sucker for in anything. Yes, not the old-school, ‘oh my god, the prince did what?’ kind! In fact, the prince does show up, but he falls in love with the wrong person. I don’t want to say too much for spoilers, but it hangs together very well, and gets into some surreal territory – it’s delightful. And no horrible content warnings need apply, as they probably do to the original Sleeping Beauty, which is dark as hell. Yes absolutely! And changing who is involved: what if this story happened to someone else? Or what if I just focus on a different character – which gets us Maleficent , and a lot of others, where it’s about the evil godmother or the good godmother or whoever. And what if this is not the princess of legend? What if this story is happening to someone who is different? Older or wiser or a different gender… There are lots of modern retellings that turn the story on its head, and focus on different parts of the narrative."