Content levels
Trigger warnings
Heroine archetypes
Protagonist archetypes
Tropes
Themes
Synopsis
The evil fairy Pernicia has set a curse on Princess Briar-Rose: she is fated to prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel and fall into an endless, poisoned sleep. Katriona, a young fairy, kidnaps the princess in order to save her; she and her aunt raise the child in their small village, where no one knows her true identity. But Pernicia is looking for her, intent on revenge for a defeat four hundred years old. Robin McKinley's masterful version of Sleeping Beauty is, like all of her work, a remarkable literary feat.
Is Spindle's End appropriate for my child?
Suitable for most readers 10 and up.
A gentle, slow-paced Sleeping Beauty retelling where the princess is raised in hiding by fairies in a pastoral village. Contains mild magical peril and a curse, but violence is minimal and age-appropriate for middle grade readers.
What to know going in
This book has mild violence, no sexual content, and clean language. Content notes include abandonment.
Who'll love this
Readers who love fairy tales with a twist will enjoy this cozy story about a girl raised by fairies who doesn't know she's a princess under a curse.