Real Rating: 3.5 - 3.75 stars

On the one hand, I know as a tween I would've eaten up this morbid story and all its gruesome details. And I certainly didn't see part of the twist coming. But that part of the twist certainly was left unresolved as the book ended— and rather abruptly—with no sign that this is a series rather than a standalone. I can see a tween audience enjoying this book, but the story itself felt uneven in which parts to expands on. Ultimately I'm left hesitant to recommend in Reader's Advisory, but I think with time the author could develop stronger storytelling that would change that for future releases. The actual voice was right for the age group though.

The Spindle of Fate by Aimee Lin is a middle-grade fantasy novel heavily inspired by Chinese mythology. Our protagonist, Evie Mei, is a plucky twelve-year-old who's world gets turned upside down when a talking monkey arrives to tell her that her now-deceased mother was the head of a guild of magical weavers. I loved the world-building, the characters, and the heart that this book contained.

I really enjoyed this. More than I thought I was going to at first.

It started out feeling almost childish in tone and content. The characters felt very young and immature. But then once the story gets going, Evie Mei first gets an infusion of hope and determination, overcomes a series of obstacles, then eventually learns that she can't always get what she wants and has to learn to let go. At that point it feels aimed at a much older reader than it did in the beginning.

There is a lot more gore and heavy themes than I was intially expecting, and a lot more exploring grief and letting go.

I was a little taken aback by the twist at the very end, and I'm not sure how I feel about the ending emotional tone of play nice now, get revenge later. It feels like it undermines a lot of the lessons learned along the way. I assume it's setting up another story but I'm not sure if I will read it or not.

Thanks to Feiwel and Friends for providing an early copy for review.

The Spindle of Fate follows Evie, whose mother is presumed dead when her car is found but her body is not. 

While this story shifts pretty quickly to Evie realizing her mom isn't dead and actually needs her help, I think the depiction of grief in a young child was well written. As someone who lost a parent as an adult, I found myself feeling and understanding Evie's frustration with ease. 

Evie is a great main character for this age range; she's strong and stubbron, and even with her complicated relationship with her mother, she is willing to do whatever it takes to get her back. 

This is a great middle-grade read; it is fast-paced and entertaining. It's an easy book to read in one sitting. The Chinese mythology makes the story interesting and unique. I could see fans of Percy Jackson enjoying this as well.

Aimee Lee tells a compelling story about Evie, a girl whose mom just died. She's still trying to process her death when a talking monkey shows up at her house to tell her that her mom is not dead, she's being held in the underworld as a hostage and she's the head of a magical guild of weavers that can change people's fates. Naturally, Evie goes to rescue her mom and she can't go alone. None of the magical guild people are willing to go with her, so she ends up with a guy who seems inexperienced and kind of clueless. The trip to the underworld is perilous and scary. Will Evie be able to find her mom in time? It's a fun story to read with connections to Chinese folklore and themes of familial love and commitment. It's probably best suited for middle school and up.

I’m always interested in various cultures and their mythologies and traditions, especially things like the underworld. While this is not my first brush with the concept of Diyu, I found it to be a fresh and entertaining modern take of the Chinese afterlife. Evie is struggling with denial and grief. Her mother died ten days ago and they didn’t exactly see eye to eye. She is a young teenager who still had much to learn from her mother but she never imagined that this would include the existence of several Guilds , secret societies that work to make the world better, including the Weavers, whom her mother was the leader of and able to use a mystical item called the Spindle of Fate to change peoples destinies . When a mischievous monkey demon shows a up and claims that he kidnapped Evie’s mom and took her to Diyu before her time, Evie will literally face any and all dangers , terror and tortures of the afterlife to explore the levels in search of her mom and bring her home. There are some quirky gags, ironic humor, and a lot of tricks and thrills. At the heart though this is the coming of age quest of a young lady who finds she has been to critical and taken her mother for granted and will do anything above and beyond Human abilities to find her and make things right, a deep and achingly too familiar concept for many of us who wish we had more time with those we love. The story is fast paced and clever but heartfelt and truly embodies the struggle we go through to accept our losses and how it changes us and helps us grow.

This was an amazing book but it gets very dark! We follow Evie as she tried to find her Mom in hell. Every level has a different terror and lost souls. You will be on the edge of your seat through out the entire book.

The Spindle of Fate is a middle grade fantasy adventure steeped in Chinese mythology. Evie has just lost her mom, her little sister is despondent, her dad is struggling to hold it together, and no one has even remembered her birthday. It feels like a stupid thing to care about, but grief is strange. But then a monkey appears in Evie’s mom’s sewing workshop with a gift that’s from her mom. And suddenly Evie has the option to try to save her using a magic red thread of fate.

This novel is perfect for fans of Percy Jackson. It’s got humor mixed with serious emotion, a rich fantasy world right under the nose of the “real world,” and a cast of interesting characters who fill out the world. The characters have a depth of motivation beyond the basics. They are the driving force for the story, along with the classic big bad battles, sneaking into forbidden places, and outsmarting tricksters. Anyone interested in Chinese mythology and fun adventures will enjoy this read.

Very disappointed in this. Poor character development, badly explained cultural elements. Everything just "works out" - little true struggle and everything is resolved easily. Give this one a pass.

This was a terrific middle grade fantasy adventure based on Chinese mythology! I've read several in this genre, and think that this is one of the best ones. The premise was interesting and covered a wide range of themes including family, loss of a parent, grief, love, and friendship. I couldn't put it down!

The Chinese underworld was so fascinating with it's different floors/levels and quite scary. I love the folklore pieces woven into the main storyline and kept rooting for Evie to be reunited with her Weaver mother.

So many interesting aspects and definitely set it up to be a series! I'm looking forward to learning more about this world in future installments.

Recommended for ages 10+.

I’ve read a couple of other middle grade books in which someone must journey into the underworld to save a family member or the world, but what makes this story fresh and different is the complex relationship between Evie and her mom. While Evie’s mom was alive, she complained about her, wasn’t interested in her mom’s work, and felt that her mom didn’t understand her at all.

As Evie learns about her mom’s secret life as the leader of a magical Guild, she starts to rethink things she took for granted. Perhaps there was a lot more to her mom than she knew. And if she has a chance to save her, Evie realizes she desperately wants to take it.

I also like the boy who comes with her on her quest. He’s a bit goofy, but the story doesn’t lean too far into that goofiness. He has knowledge and abilities that help Evie, but he provides some comedic relief, too.

Another great element of this book is that her mom’s magic is through sewing. She can sew messages that appear on special fabric in someone else’s possession. She can use thread in magical ways. I loved how this was used in the resolution of the story.

Readers who enjoyed Dragon Warrior by Katie Zhao or Theo Tan and the Fox Spirit by Jesse Q. Sutanto will enjoy another chance to delve into Chinese mythology and celebrate family connections.

This was so much fun! I think I connected with the book much more than other middle grades because there were so many nods to a childhood I’m familiar with. So many references that I remember and the kids feel natural.
The story was entertaining because of the main character but overall was very sad. Funny but with serious undertones.
I can’t wait to try more from this author!

This is a middle grade fantasy book about a girl going to the Chinese underworld to save her mother. It was overall enjoyable, but ultimately forgettable. The ending came on kind of fast and definitely leaves room for more. The characters actually go to Hell, and the book doesn't really shy away from what that can be like, so some parts may not be suitable for younger readers. If there is another book, I'll check it out.

CW: mentions of covid, car crash, drowning, death, death of a parent, murder, a whole lot of blood, the kids literally go to Hell

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy.

Thank you to Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group and Aimee Lim for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

When you literally go through hell for your family.

This is a great middle grade fantasy that can span multiple ages. The complicated relationship she has with her mother is something that many people probably can relate to. I related very much to the Evie Mae, because as a child, I too spent a lot of time rejecting the things my parents would teach me. As an adult I see the importance of many lessons and the beauty of traditions they did their best to hand down to me, despite my resistance. The thought of possibly never being able to have their lessons, their wisdom taken from me too soon, and having the thought of their love and comfort taken from my life, I would also travel through all the levels of hell for a chance at it again.

I really wanted to love this book. I will say that I think our oldest daughter will love this book. But it just fell a little flat for me.

I love the premise and world building. I love how the friendships are done. I love the adventure to find mom aspect. I think the main character is a very fun middle grade heroine. It has a very Alice in Wonderland vibe, which I liked as well.

I think maybe it just needed to be polished off more for me? I'm not sure. I think I just wanted... more from this book. The ending was a little abrupt too, but laid the groundwork for the sequel.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of this book. This review is voluntarily written and the thoughts and opinions contained in this review are my own.

I unfortunately wasn’t able to finish the book in time, but i absolutely loved the chapters I got to read! This book was categorized as a graphic novel somehow, and it’s not. So it unfortunately took longer to read than a graphic novel would. I will be buying the physical copy and editing my review when I finish the book.

I was drawn to the cover of this book. It's gorgeous.
Evie has lost her mom, and during her grief, she receives a message... from her mom telling her she's not dead, she's trapped in the netherworld. Evie discovered that there was more to her seamstress mother than she thought. Her father does not speak Chinese and has never learned of such a secret, so Evie seeks help from those who may understand what is going on. The council is too afraid to face the terrifying maze... that is actually filled with bureaucracy. Instead of a story towards only magic lore, we are presented one with nasty greedy creatures with cooperation vibes. There are directors and bosses to complain to, making it unique and fun to read. 
The ending was not what I wanted, but it gave me a hint that this is not a standalone.

Thank you NetGalley and Publisher for this e-arc.

Imgur link goes to Instagram Graphic scheduled for June 5th
Blog post goes live June 7th
Will be discussed in upcoming Youtube Wrapup


TL;DR: This was good but not super memorable. I think the cover is more memorable than the contents of the actual story.
Source: NetGalley, Thank you very much to the publisher!

Plot: Evie has to travel to the Underworld who has to save her mother who may or may not be dead. The final two twists or so were fun but it’s fairly straightforward as far as plot goes.
Characters: Very thin, and I think this was ultimately my issue. Everything except Evie was very, very surface level or a shadow of a character.
Setting: The settings were never super detailed for me or well drawn, but you could definitely get a sense of place from them.
Fantasy: This primarily takes place in the Chinese underworld which would definitely be a fun new thing for a middle grade kid to enjoy if they’ve never read it! I have unfortunately so it wasn’t anything wildly new but I can see a MG reader eating it up.

Thoughts:

The Spindle of Fate is the story of Evie Mei whose mother recently died. While doing an errand for her Father in their tailor shop below the apartment she finds a talking Monkey who informs her that it’s possible her Mother may not be dead and that her Mother was also the leader of a group of magical weavers. From there Evie seeks out the group, which includes her Aunt and then proceeds into the Underworld to find and rescue her Mother.

I’ll go ahead and say the most memorable part of this for me is probably the cover. The plot is fairly familiar, I’ve seen the like in Middle-Grade books before and it’s almost always a winner, but the execution here was not my favorite. The story really relies on you caring about if Evie Mei finds her mother and it moved so quickly and Evie was honestly fairly unlikeable so I couldn’t exactly connect enough to care. In addition all our side characters were SO thin, I wish we had more. Especially of Kevin, he was a gem and I wanted so much more of him and his story.

I finished this one and though ‘Huh. Well that was neat.’ and honestly forgot about it for a few days. I can see this working well for a new middle grade reader so I wouldn’t say it’s a total miss. However, I strongly disliked the sequel setup on this one, and Evie was just not my favorite type of character with no others around her to redeem the story.

3 out of 5 Spindles

I'm a baby when it comes to mother and daughter relationships, so when I tell you I had to swallow down tears--I mean it. Between dealing with grief, believing your mother is alive, and going to Diyu to pull off one of the most dangerous rescues--Evie doesn't know when to give up. I loved her spirit and how determined she is to save her mother.

Evie is devastated when her mom dies in a drowning accident. But she is stunned when a mysterious scroll claims her mother is still alive but stuck in Diyu (a Chinese version of hell.) The only person willing to go with her through Diyu to rescue her mother is another kid, Kevin. Together they enter Diyu and begin their search.
I really enjoyed this book. Evie is a determined and likeable character, and Kevin turns out to have unexpected strengths. The story is well written. Their quest is suspenseful and fast paced. The family dynamics are also done in a pleasing way.
I received this book in exchange for a review from Netgalley and Macmillan's Children's. I received no compensation for my review. All opinions are my own.