lynseyisreading's review
3.0
Although on the surface the concept and ideas behind Crewel are original and intriguing, the flat characterisations made this book a let-down for me. Especially as I'd seen many favourable reviews for it beforehand, which always raises expectations.
It could be best described as a kind of alternate-reality, Matrix-style story, only with much more in the way of pretty dresses and make-up, and less butt-kicking and slow-mo martial arts sequences. I was initially very interested in the Spinsters and their ability to weave reality, and that remains my favourite part of the book, that whole idea. But unfortunately, the rest of the nearly 400 pages were much less inspiring and original, and had a lot of the clichés and plot devices found in so many YA reads.
Essentially, a 'Spinster's' job is to maintain and weave the very fabric and matter of Arras (Arras is Crewel's entire world made up of four sectors) on great looms—making small alterations, moving important people and dignitaries from one sector to another, or removing other, weaker threads (people) or deviants altogether, also known as 'ripping" them, all in an effort to keep the peace and smooth-sailing uniformity intact, as ordered by the Guild. On top of that, there's segregation in force, tight population control and regulations on behaviour and, to a certain extent, free thought. In general, it's a world where, unless you step out of line, it's actually quite peaceful. There's no violence, no wars, people are expected to marry by 18 and start families and live happily ever after. Which is fine, except the whole point of dystopian fiction is to drop you as a reader into a highly uncomfortable, often terrifying, situation, and to really give you that sense of dread, or perhaps just a feeling of righteous indignation, depending on the setting/situation. Unfortunately, Crewel never got deep enough to affect me on that kind of level. I never felt afraid for Adelice—she was in a position of power, after all. That lack of excitement dulled my enjoyment of what looked to be such a promising book, and overall I felt there were many missed opportunities here in favour of overused tropes; Adelice finding out she's the 'chosen one', mean, nasty, power-hungry people trying to control her 'awesome powers', and of course, since this is a YA, a couple of 'hot boys' falling all over themselves to get near her.
I am baffled as to why authors continue with the love triangle idea since I know no one (no one) who really, actively searches for this plot device, and yet I know dozens (do-zens) of people that will mark a book as a DO NOT READ at the mere mention of one. In this case, we were delivered two equally...I'm going to say 'adequate', love interests, although neither of them set my world on fire (far from it). As for the romance between Adelice and the one she chose, it was just blah. It had potential, but it quickly became forced and contrived. We went from one kiss to "I will not live without you. You are my heart," literally overnight.
As protagonists go, Adelice wasn't wholly unlikeable. Neither entirely weak nor truly strong of character, she was easily led and manipulated by those around her and showed little ability to think for herself. Had it not been for her parents' wishes that she hide her gift or attempt to run, she likely would have accepted her lot as another sheep in the flock with nary a complaint.
I also didn't find any of the bad guys very threatening. Maela was particularly one-dimensional; the trademark ageing beauty in a position of power, lashing out at the young upstart through petty, female jealousy and no other motivations. She was weak and inconsistent as a villain.
So to sum up, averaging out the original premise (which I honestly did enjoy), combined with the more unoriginal elements, I've ended up with the middle-of-the-road rating of 3 stars. While I didn't hate the book (although I confess I didn't realise quite how much of it I'd disliked until writing my review) I also didn't love it and wouldn't necessarily recommend it as a good example of YA dystopian fiction. Still, it perhaps would suit younger readers (who are, of course, its intended audience- not 32-year old grumpy cows like me) as they may get more of a kick out of the dressing up, attending balls, and love triangle elements than I did.
3 Stars ★★★
ARC provided for an honest review.
It could be best described as a kind of alternate-reality, Matrix-style story, only with much more in the way of pretty dresses and make-up, and less butt-kicking and slow-mo martial arts sequences. I was initially very interested in the Spinsters and their ability to weave reality, and that remains my favourite part of the book, that whole idea. But unfortunately, the rest of the nearly 400 pages were much less inspiring and original, and had a lot of the clichés and plot devices found in so many YA reads.
Essentially, a 'Spinster's' job is to maintain and weave the very fabric and matter of Arras (Arras is Crewel's entire world made up of four sectors) on great looms—making small alterations, moving important people and dignitaries from one sector to another, or removing other, weaker threads (people) or deviants altogether, also known as 'ripping" them, all in an effort to keep the peace and smooth-sailing uniformity intact, as ordered by the Guild. On top of that, there's segregation in force, tight population control and regulations on behaviour and, to a certain extent, free thought. In general, it's a world where, unless you step out of line, it's actually quite peaceful. There's no violence, no wars, people are expected to marry by 18 and start families and live happily ever after. Which is fine, except the whole point of dystopian fiction is to drop you as a reader into a highly uncomfortable, often terrifying, situation, and to really give you that sense of dread, or perhaps just a feeling of righteous indignation, depending on the setting/situation. Unfortunately, Crewel never got deep enough to affect me on that kind of level. I never felt afraid for Adelice—she was in a position of power, after all. That lack of excitement dulled my enjoyment of what looked to be such a promising book, and overall I felt there were many missed opportunities here in favour of overused tropes; Adelice finding out she's the 'chosen one', mean, nasty, power-hungry people trying to control her 'awesome powers', and of course, since this is a YA, a couple of 'hot boys' falling all over themselves to get near her.
I am baffled as to why authors continue with the love triangle idea since I know no one (no one) who really, actively searches for this plot device, and yet I know dozens (do-zens) of people that will mark a book as a DO NOT READ at the mere mention of one. In this case, we were delivered two equally...I'm going to say 'adequate', love interests, although neither of them set my world on fire (far from it). As for the romance between Adelice and the one she chose, it was just blah. It had potential, but it quickly became forced and contrived. We went from one kiss to "I will not live without you. You are my heart," literally overnight.
As protagonists go, Adelice wasn't wholly unlikeable. Neither entirely weak nor truly strong of character, she was easily led and manipulated by those around her and showed little ability to think for herself. Had it not been for her parents' wishes that she hide her gift or attempt to run, she likely would have accepted her lot as another sheep in the flock with nary a complaint.
I also didn't find any of the bad guys very threatening. Maela was particularly one-dimensional; the trademark ageing beauty in a position of power, lashing out at the young upstart through petty, female jealousy and no other motivations. She was weak and inconsistent as a villain.
So to sum up, averaging out the original premise (which I honestly did enjoy), combined with the more unoriginal elements, I've ended up with the middle-of-the-road rating of 3 stars. While I didn't hate the book (although I confess I didn't realise quite how much of it I'd disliked until writing my review) I also didn't love it and wouldn't necessarily recommend it as a good example of YA dystopian fiction. Still, it perhaps would suit younger readers (who are, of course, its intended audience- not 32-year old grumpy cows like me) as they may get more of a kick out of the dressing up, attending balls, and love triangle elements than I did.
3 Stars ★★★
ARC provided for an honest review.
ssung's review
3.0
i am pleasantly surprised. everything about the blurb and the moderately corny pun in the series name and the very storyline setup was out to make me think it was another slightly tedious YA love triangle fantasy but nope, it turned out to be a rather pleasant read. hooray for finishing book one so late after buying i can jump right into book 2.
vs2018's review
5.0
Wow.. That's all I have to say after reading this book. Not only was I taken into an entirely new world, but the detail and description was incredible. I found myself swept away into Arras and when Loricel explained how the world came to be and the concept of earth... I can't wait to get my hands on the next one.
erinarkin20's review
5.0
My review here will most likely not do this story justice so if you are even remotely interested in this book just trust me and go read it now.
There are a number of reasons why I was unable to put this book down and they mostly revolve around the characters. The goods ones, the bad ones and even the ones who fall somewhere in the middle.
The main character, Adelice, is probably one of my favorites. She is smart, sarcastic, and tough. Although she is in an impossible situation, she doesn't give up and just cry about it. Don't get me wrong, if it were me I would probably have curled up in a ball somewhere and cried all of the tears. Instead, she tries to figure out who she can trust and starts to build some relationships. I love her honesty and the fact that she just can't help her sarcastic remarks to Cormac.
The dystopian piece to this story is slow to be revealed. Initially there are bits and pieces - the book opens by going over the testing that Adelice has been participating in along with her options as a 16 year old girl in the world they live in once testing is complete. As the story progresses and we learn more about Adelice, we also learn more about Arras - the world they live in. I love the idea that they are living in a world where Spinsters control time and everything through threads and looms. Little does everyone know that Adelice has a gift that makes her extra special in this regard....no spoilers.
The other characters enhance the story as well. Erik and Jost are solid love interests and there is more revealed about Jost than Erik....I think I might have liked it to be the other way around so hopefully that will happen in the next book. There is a love triangle here and I am interested to see how this plays out in the next book considering how this one ended but for those that don't enjoy that aspect, know that it doesn't become the focal point of the story.
Cormac and Maela are interesting "bad guys". Both are focused on the power they want and trying to figure out a way to use Adelice to get it. I think I respect Cormac more only because he was pretty up front with Adelice about things - he was still a complete a-hole but still...I am very interested to see what he does next and how Maela fits into it.
Overall a great book one for this series and I am very much looking forward to the next one. I recommend this to anyone who likes a great heroine and an interesting story.
There are a number of reasons why I was unable to put this book down and they mostly revolve around the characters. The goods ones, the bad ones and even the ones who fall somewhere in the middle.
The main character, Adelice, is probably one of my favorites. She is smart, sarcastic, and tough. Although she is in an impossible situation, she doesn't give up and just cry about it. Don't get me wrong, if it were me I would probably have curled up in a ball somewhere and cried all of the tears. Instead, she tries to figure out who she can trust and starts to build some relationships. I love her honesty and the fact that she just can't help her sarcastic remarks to Cormac.
The dystopian piece to this story is slow to be revealed. Initially there are bits and pieces - the book opens by going over the testing that Adelice has been participating in along with her options as a 16 year old girl in the world they live in once testing is complete. As the story progresses and we learn more about Adelice, we also learn more about Arras - the world they live in. I love the idea that they are living in a world where Spinsters control time and everything through threads and looms. Little does everyone know that Adelice has a gift that makes her extra special in this regard....no spoilers.
The other characters enhance the story as well. Erik and Jost are solid love interests and there is more revealed about Jost than Erik....I think I might have liked it to be the other way around so hopefully that will happen in the next book. There is a love triangle here and I am interested to see how this plays out in the next book considering how this one ended but for those that don't enjoy that aspect, know that it doesn't become the focal point of the story.
Cormac and Maela are interesting "bad guys". Both are focused on the power they want and trying to figure out a way to use Adelice to get it. I think I respect Cormac more only because he was pretty up front with Adelice about things - he was still a complete a-hole but still...I am very interested to see what he does next and how Maela fits into it.
Overall a great book one for this series and I am very much looking forward to the next one. I recommend this to anyone who likes a great heroine and an interesting story.
lexieb's review
4.0
more of a 3.5, I think. loved the creativity (seriously, the concept is insanely unique), really liked the heroine when she wasn't putting down other girls, and liked the writing, but not a fan of the love triangle or the portrayal of women. for a book that tries so hard to vocally oppose the patriarchy and the oppressed role of women, it can be terribly misogynistic.
estefaniaesba's review against another edition
4.0
Es bueno, de todas las distopias que he leido me parece que tiene una de las tramas más interesantes! Me ha encantado!
fictionalkate's review
5.0
Crewel is probably the book that I’ve been most looking forward to reading this year – and it did not disappoint.
In the land of Arras, the position of Spinster is one of the most coveted roles by young girls everywhere. But not for Adelice Lewys. Since she was five years old her parents have been training her to be incapable, awkward and artless.
But even with their careful instruction, the Guild discover Adelice’s potential and come for her to take her away. In amongst the fancy outfits and balls, the life of a Spinster isn’t all it appears. They have the power to control the weather and create landscape but “ripping” or removing people and places is also a task that falls to them.
This book is… so much more than I expected. The world created is incredible. The fabric of the entire land is controlled and maintained on looms. Golden threads control time and with just a snip entire towns could be ripped from existence. I found it fascinating and to be entirely honest I’m still trying to wrap my head about how incredible the world crafting is.
The segregation of the population was an interesting idea – at sixteen, people are required to get courtship appointments. Purity standards are enforced for all citizens prior to marriage which must occur before the age of eighteen. Parents are assigned how many children they are able to have, when they can have them and what gender their children will be. Citizens with female children live in separate parts of town than those with male children… and because of this Adelice is naive to the world as a whole. It was great that the reader can learn about the world as Adelice herself learns how everything works.
Adelice is my kind of character. She’s feisty and caring, intelligent but at the same time she isn’t smart enough to keep her head down. She reminded me a lot of characters like Tris from Divergent and to a lesser extent, Katniss from the Hunger Games. I really liked how she developed throughout the novel.
The other characters were just as interesting as Adelice. Sleazy old politicians with a thirst for power and young women, confused aestheticians, rival Spinsters and love interests – there is a wide range of supporting characters and they all have interesting back stories. The way they interact Adelice was great to read but this being a first person narrator we didn’t get to see much of how they interact with each other. For those whose back-stories we got to see I couldn’t believe how cruel some of their pasts were… it was brilliant.
The only downside to this novel was there is so much world building and build-up that I was a little let down by the amount of action. But I can’t wait to read the next book in the series now that everything has been set up and see just how everything unfolds.
In the land of Arras, the position of Spinster is one of the most coveted roles by young girls everywhere. But not for Adelice Lewys. Since she was five years old her parents have been training her to be incapable, awkward and artless.
But even with their careful instruction, the Guild discover Adelice’s potential and come for her to take her away. In amongst the fancy outfits and balls, the life of a Spinster isn’t all it appears. They have the power to control the weather and create landscape but “ripping” or removing people and places is also a task that falls to them.
This book is… so much more than I expected. The world created is incredible. The fabric of the entire land is controlled and maintained on looms. Golden threads control time and with just a snip entire towns could be ripped from existence. I found it fascinating and to be entirely honest I’m still trying to wrap my head about how incredible the world crafting is.
The segregation of the population was an interesting idea – at sixteen, people are required to get courtship appointments. Purity standards are enforced for all citizens prior to marriage which must occur before the age of eighteen. Parents are assigned how many children they are able to have, when they can have them and what gender their children will be. Citizens with female children live in separate parts of town than those with male children… and because of this Adelice is naive to the world as a whole. It was great that the reader can learn about the world as Adelice herself learns how everything works.
Adelice is my kind of character. She’s feisty and caring, intelligent but at the same time she isn’t smart enough to keep her head down. She reminded me a lot of characters like Tris from Divergent and to a lesser extent, Katniss from the Hunger Games. I really liked how she developed throughout the novel.
The other characters were just as interesting as Adelice. Sleazy old politicians with a thirst for power and young women, confused aestheticians, rival Spinsters and love interests – there is a wide range of supporting characters and they all have interesting back stories. The way they interact Adelice was great to read but this being a first person narrator we didn’t get to see much of how they interact with each other. For those whose back-stories we got to see I couldn’t believe how cruel some of their pasts were… it was brilliant.
The only downside to this novel was there is so much world building and build-up that I was a little let down by the amount of action. But I can’t wait to read the next book in the series now that everything has been set up and see just how everything unfolds.
cami1107's review against another edition
1.0
The empty personality of the characters and the lack of plot twists detract from the originality of the story that, if it were not for the bad writing of the author, would have been better.
La vacía personalidad de los personajes y la falta de giros argumentales desmeritan la originalidad de la historia que, si no fuera por la mala escritura de la autora, hubiera sido mejor.
La vacía personalidad de los personajes y la falta de giros argumentales desmeritan la originalidad de la historia que, si no fuera por la mala escritura de la autora, hubiera sido mejor.
bookkat's review
3.0
I had really given up on young adult dystopian books as they seemed to be rehashing familiar material, and often not particularly well. I was pleasantly surprised by Crewel. I like the use of language in the book, including a recasting of the term 'spinster', without losing its old meaning. My major annoyance was the abrupt ending, pegging it clearly as the first of a trilogy