REVIEW: The Sevenfold Spell by Tia Nevitt

ISBN 9781426890604

Genre: Fantasy, Fantasy Romance

(c) September 2010, Carina Press

Tia Nevitt's website

Rating: 4 stars

Available at Carina Press (ebook) on September 27. Also available at Powells.

Tia Nevitt makes an amazing retelling of the famous story of Sleeping Beauty from the perspective of one of the common people in the kingdom--a spinster who owns the spinning wheel. Her story fleshes out the fairy tale, adding depth and value to the well-known tale. The virtues of sacrifice and doing good deeds are also reinforced.

Talia is a spinster and she and her mother make their living from spinning thread, a livelihood which was snatched from them when the king made the proclamation to burn all the spinning wheels in the kingdom, in a bid to save the little princess from the curse sixteen years hence. Little did Talia know that she was to play a significant role when the time of reckoning arrived...

First off, I have to say that this story is more of a fantasy with a sprinkling of romance. I have to admit to feeling puzzled by Talia's behavior toward Willard (a suitor) at the start, but I realize she was behaving like any teenage girl, a teenage girl who wasn't attractive and who saw Willard as her last chance of being married and having a family. However, she did mature over the years, and we see this in her actions and in her words, in the maturity of her thinking and in the way she mended her relations with her mother.

Talia's mother was a noteworthy secondary character. I love her spirit in loving and defending her daughter, especially toward the end. 

The Sevenfold Spell gives us a different perspective on how the king's proclamation had affected the common people, thus rounding out the tale. I like Ms. Nevitt's take on this because while there are many retellings, none gave the people a voice, the ones who were most affected as a result of the curse. That while the princess lived in luxury in the palace or singing and playing with woodland animals in a little cottage in the forest, hidden by her godmothers, women like Talia, who had no one to rely on but themselves, suffered. And while this story serves a good revisit into the fairy tale, it is not intended for children.

Reviewed by Carol

Note: This book is provided courtesy of the publisher/author.


Book Summary: 

Have you ever wondered what happens to the other people in the fairy tale?

Things look grim for Talia and her mother. By royal proclamation, the constables and those annoying "good" fairies have taken away their livelihood by confiscating their spinning wheel. Something to do with a curse on the princess, they said. 

Not every young lady has a fairy godmother rushing to her rescue.

Without the promise of an income from spinning, Talia's prospects for marriage disappear, and she and her mother face destitution. Past caring about breaking an arbitrary and cruel law, rebellious Talia determines to build a new spinning wheel, the only one in the nation—which plays right into the evil fairy's diabolical plan. Talia discovers that finding a happy ending requires sacrifice. But is it a sacrifice she's willing to make?