IMO Uprooted was a stronger storytelling experience. The protagonist was more likable and I really felt what she was going through more than with Spinning Silver.
That's so funny taht I felt the opposite. Miriam's problems were so much more interesting to me...although I admit I hate the romance tropes in Uprooted, and that hurt it a lot for me.
I also LOVE Spinning Silver! These characters, the atmosphere and the setting... LOVE it!! And I am also totally into the original fairy tail Rumpelstiltskin!
I just started Uprooted I'm really enjoying. I'll start Spinning Silver next so I can compare them. So far I really like it. Along with Hobb she is the only writer that I really who writes in first person.
the first half of uprooted was a five star for me, but after Agnieszka left it ruined the whole book, I thought the pacing was so slow and the story fell apart. the romance also really bothered me, I think that just because the author acknowledges that it's creepy for a 17/18 year old to get together with a 120+ year old, doesn't mean it's NOT creepy when they get together. maybe it could have worked if she spent more time developing a friendship (still creepy), but she spent so much of the book trying to get into the politics that any chance of liking the dragon was gone. also I completely agree about the magic system in uprooted, it really frustrated me as well. I'm all for ambiguity, but the wood being redeemed and half explained absolutely bewildered me. I haven't actually read spinning silver because I didn't like uprooted, but after your video I'll give it a shot!
@@Bookborn , the Temeraire series is great. The first book is a bit rough in regards to story structure, but I think it comes with the territory at times for some series because the remainder of the series is solid.
Totally agree with you! I picked up Spinning Silver somewhat by chance , very impressed, thought about it a lot; I'm probably going to re-read it. Then I read Uprooted and was disappointed.
Can you talk about your retellings in general in another video? I really love retellings and I am still looking for some great books based on fairy tales!
Shoot I don't know if I've read enough fairtytale retellings to do an entire video! I will say I LOVED "Keturah and Lord Death", although that's more fairytale than fairytale retelling. I know a lot of people like "Cinder" (a cyborg cinderella story) and the others in that series. I only read Cinder, it was a little too YA for me, but if that doesn't bother you, you might like it. Oh wait I'm thinking of more lol. I read Boy, Snow, Bird by Helen Oyemi which is a magical realism retelling. The ending disappointed me a bit but I still really enjoyed it (that author has other magical realism retellings as well, I think she has a hansel and gretel one but I haven't read it).
@@Bookborn Thank you for those recommendations! I am so in love with retellings right now! Actually, I am still not sure if I want to continue the Lunar Chronicles because Cinder was a bit disappointing for me... :/ However, I really adore your video! ;)
@@v.s.4900 I didn't enjoy Cinder either! It's the only one I read, I just know it's popular. I feel like it had such a great premise but fell so short.
You should definitely read “Daughter of the Forest”, it is a retelling of the Six Swans, set in medieval Ireland. I read this as a teenager ages ago, but this is not YA (warning it does deal with rape). This was one of the books where I almost didn’t sleep because I wanted to continue reading.
So I've only read Spinning Silver so far and really liked it (I don't do stars but if I would I'd probably give it like a 4/5 cause while it was great I had some problems - tho mostly personal taste stuff). I bought Uprooted in Audible and I'll probably listen to it soon enough (currently listening to Stormlight Archive again and we have the new Dresden book coming out so probably after all that stuff) but the premise sound a little bit less interesting then Spinning Silver so I doubt I'll like it more. Also am very interested in the new book by her coming out soon and I'll probably give that one a try as well in the near future
So I just finished Spinning Silver and I loved it! I was wondering whether to start Uprooted or not, but the type of relationship you described is a big red flag for me, so I think I'll pass for now... Thanks!
@@Bookborn I'm finishing up Shattered Sea by Joe Abercrombie. She's next on my list. I'm getting worn out by grim dark lol. I did hear her new trilogy is grim though. I saw your chat with Jimmy! I really enjoyed it. I'm just like you I can't audiobook 😂 When I'm trying to figure things out youtube is my last resort.
@@currangill430 YES THANK YOU lol I always want an article and not a video! I love abercrombie but he's about the only grimdark i like. It gets too heavy for me too fast. I'm basic. Sometimes I just like happy 😂
The author does a good job of showing the struggle against poverty and having to live off nature. However the principal male characters are appalling. I don't want to include any spoilers so I'll just say that ending was confusing and not satisfying. Other than a few minor people, I find it hard to find any likable "heroes" Spinning Silver has received some acclaim, so I'll just have to put it down to individual taste.
You know what, as a female I often just focus on the female characterization. But now that you mention it...I can see that it might be frustrating that there isn't a single hero male character in there. Although...the feminist side of me is like "that's sooo many fantasy books I have to read with just male characters and crappy female ones...not bad to have it switched on its head." I can definitely see how it's a matter of taste, though. Most people love Uprooted and it did nothing for me.
I find your opinion very interesting because for me it is the complete opposite. I hated the romance in spinning silver because it seemed so artificial and unnecessary. But I really love both books and am excited to read more of her. ☺️
Tbh my romance opinions are always very weird and not popular; and from what I've heard, yours is definitely the more common opinion lol! I heard mixed reviews about her Education one (A Dangerous Education or something like that?) Have you read it?
That’s interesting, for me it was the opposite！I read both of them a while ago so my memory is a bit hazy and I found that I loved Uprooted more. I can’t even remember much about the antagonist in Spinning Silver, but the Woods in Uprooted was special. The Dragon reminded me a tiny bit of Howl in Howl’s moving castle actually haha but I like Howl better. I didn’t like the romance in either to be honest but I disliked it more in Uprooted because it was so jarring. I preferred the one person’s perspective in Uprooted compared to head hopping between all the different characters, which was a bit distracting. Because of this I wanted to skip over some bits and get to the character I cared about more. I finished Uprooted in a day, but Spinning silver I finished over a much longer period, mainly because I wasn’t as interested in all the characters.
Oooh super interesting! I have to ask - are you normally a huge adult fantasy reader? Because I feel the things you didn't like about Spinning Silver are the exact things I liked 😂 Like I'm used to multiple perspectives, so I really liked that in the story. And I do agree the forest was AWESOME...I just wish we got so much more of it!
@@Bookborn You are correct, I do have a preference towards adult fantasy over other genres 😂. But the fantasy genre is huge in itself. I’m looking at my bookshelf and I find that most of my favourites are the ones are inspired by history and mythology with a touch of fantasy. Even those that are set in an absolutely new made up world, they tend to be very reminiscent of our world at different points in time, but use this as a way to explore different themes - so not just hero/heroine defeats baddie + gets together with love interest. That’s a very interesting point! I did feel Uprooted was more...fantasy fantasy (high fantasy??) and Spinning Silver more fairy tale inspired (you mentioned soft magic). So technically I should like Spinning Silver more by my description above, but for some reason Uprooted just drew me in and didn’t let me go until the very end. Very very few books have done this to me. I usually don’t mind multiple perspectives, so I guess it’s more of a pet peeve here that maybe dragged it down for me. I didn’t like the multiple perspectives using first person narration. Each time I would start to get drawn into the story of one of the three main characters, the perspective would suddenly switch. And there were a few perspectives that were a bit confusing because they were such minor characters that I didn’t really care for them at all, e.g. the poor girl’s younger brother, and the old handmaid (and I can’t remember exactly but were there any chapters of the Tsar?). This does have the advantage of broadening the setting though. I liked Miryam and the Tsarina the most, so I wished the story focused more on them! It’s so interesting looking at the personal preferences of different readers and how different storytelling styles affects us! 😆
![Original Fairytale Uprooted by Naomi Novik | Book Review | Overbooked [CC]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/QFrQns3_25c/mqdefault.jpg)
IMO Uprooted was a stronger storytelling experience. The protagonist was more likable and I really felt what she was going through more than with Spinning Silver.
That's so funny taht I felt the opposite. Miriam's problems were so much more interesting to me...although I admit I hate the romance tropes in Uprooted, and that hurt it a lot for me.
I also LOVE Spinning Silver! These characters, the atmosphere and the setting... LOVE it!! And I am also totally into the original fairy tail Rumpelstiltskin!
Yeah it just felt super fresh to me and I just loved Miryem!
Just finished Spinning Silver. I loved all of the female characters and also the family bonds that were portrayed.
It's such a good book! I agree about the family bonds. They did a good job showing different kinds of relationships.
I just started Uprooted I'm really enjoying. I'll start Spinning Silver next so I can compare them. So far I really like it. Along with Hobb she is the only writer that I really who writes in first person.
I, too, just finished Uprooted and loved it. Will read the Spinning Silver soon.
the first half of uprooted was a five star for me, but after Agnieszka left it ruined the whole book, I thought the pacing was so slow and the story fell apart. the romance also really bothered me, I think that just because the author acknowledges that it's creepy for a 17/18 year old to get together with a 120+ year old, doesn't mean it's NOT creepy when they get together. maybe it could have worked if she spent more time developing a friendship (still creepy), but she spent so much of the book trying to get into the politics that any chance of liking the dragon was gone.
also I completely agree about the magic system in uprooted, it really frustrated me as well. I'm all for ambiguity, but the wood being redeemed and half explained absolutely bewildered me. I haven't actually read spinning silver because I didn't like uprooted, but after your video I'll give it a shot!
Yeah it's such a common trope and I don't get it at all. Like if he's old...at least make him nice or funny for heavens sakes!
I couldn’t agree more! I LOVED Spinning Silver - and liked Uprooted.
Good luck with moving.
Both these books are fantastic in my opinion. For sure different than most books I enjoy/read.
I certainly really enjoyed Spinning Silver! I need to try Novik's other series but haven't gotten around to it yet.
@@Bookborn , the Temeraire series is great. The first book is a bit rough in regards to story structure, but I think it comes with the territory at times for some series because the remainder of the series is solid.
I loved the characters in spinning silver
Me too! The three women were just so great, although I connected most with Miryem.
Totally agree with you! I picked up Spinning Silver somewhat by chance , very impressed, thought about it a lot; I'm probably going to re-read it. Then I read Uprooted and was disappointed.
So few people feel like us lol it's usually the other way around. Gad I have someone on the Spinning Silver side.
Can you talk about your retellings in general in another video? I really love retellings and I am still looking for some great books based on fairy tales!
Shoot I don't know if I've read enough fairtytale retellings to do an entire video! I will say I LOVED "Keturah and Lord Death", although that's more fairytale than fairytale retelling. I know a lot of people like "Cinder" (a cyborg cinderella story) and the others in that series. I only read Cinder, it was a little too YA for me, but if that doesn't bother you, you might like it.
Oh wait I'm thinking of more lol. I read Boy, Snow, Bird by Helen Oyemi which is a magical realism retelling. The ending disappointed me a bit but I still really enjoyed it (that author has other magical realism retellings as well, I think she has a hansel and gretel one but I haven't read it).
@@Bookborn Thank you for those recommendations! I am so in love with retellings right now!
Actually, I am still not sure if I want to continue the Lunar Chronicles because Cinder was a bit disappointing for me... :/
However, I really adore your video! ;)
@@v.s.4900 I didn't enjoy Cinder either! It's the only one I read, I just know it's popular. I feel like it had such a great premise but fell so short.
You should definitely read “Daughter of the Forest”, it is a retelling of the Six Swans, set in medieval Ireland. I read this as a teenager ages ago, but this is not YA (warning it does deal with rape). This was one of the books where I almost didn’t sleep because I wanted to continue reading.
So I've only read Spinning Silver so far and really liked it (I don't do stars but if I would I'd probably give it like a 4/5 cause while it was great I had some problems - tho mostly personal taste stuff).
I bought Uprooted in Audible and I'll probably listen to it soon enough (currently listening to Stormlight Archive again and we have the new Dresden book coming out so probably after all that stuff) but the premise sound a little bit less interesting then Spinning Silver so I doubt I'll like it more.
Also am very interested in the new book by her coming out soon and I'll probably give that one a try as well in the near future
Come back and report what you think to compare the two! I'm rereading Oathbringer right now too :)
So I just finished Spinning Silver and I loved it! I was wondering whether to start Uprooted or not, but the type of relationship you described is a big red flag for me, so I think I'll pass for now... Thanks!
Uprooted is so so much better imo but up to you x
Taking a break from grim dark thought she would be a good author for that
Yes, she isn't grimdark! Did you like the books?
@@Bookborn I'm finishing up Shattered Sea by Joe Abercrombie. She's next on my list. I'm getting worn out by grim dark lol. I did hear her new trilogy is grim though.
I saw your chat with Jimmy! I really enjoyed it. I'm just like you I can't audiobook 😂 When I'm trying to figure things out youtube is my last resort.
@@Bookborn
-HIs Majesty's Dragon
-SPinning SIlver
-Uprooted
-A Deadly Education (this is the grim book)
Those are the books I bought by her.
@@currangill430 YES THANK YOU lol I always want an article and not a video!
I love abercrombie but he's about the only grimdark i like. It gets too heavy for me too fast. I'm basic. Sometimes I just like happy 😂
@@Bookborn I just read the first page. I really like her prose even though it's first person
The author does a good job of showing the struggle against poverty and having to live off nature. However the principal male characters are appalling.
I don't want to include any spoilers so I'll just say that ending was confusing and not satisfying. Other than a few minor people, I find it hard to find any likable "heroes"
Spinning Silver has received some acclaim, so I'll just have to put it down to individual taste.
You know what, as a female I often just focus on the female characterization. But now that you mention it...I can see that it might be frustrating that there isn't a single hero male character in there. Although...the feminist side of me is like "that's sooo many fantasy books I have to read with just male characters and crappy female ones...not bad to have it switched on its head."
I can definitely see how it's a matter of taste, though. Most people love Uprooted and it did nothing for me.
I find your opinion very interesting because for me it is the complete opposite. I hated the romance in spinning silver because it seemed so artificial and unnecessary. But I really love both books and am excited to read more of her. ☺️
Tbh my romance opinions are always very weird and not popular; and from what I've heard, yours is definitely the more common opinion lol! I heard mixed reviews about her Education one (A Dangerous Education or something like that?) Have you read it?
That’s interesting, for me it was the opposite！I read both of them a while ago so my memory is a bit hazy and I found that I loved Uprooted more. I can’t even remember much about the antagonist in Spinning Silver, but the Woods in Uprooted was special. The Dragon reminded me a tiny bit of Howl in Howl’s moving castle actually haha but I like Howl better.
I didn’t like the romance in either to be honest but I disliked it more in Uprooted because it was so jarring.
I preferred the one person’s perspective in Uprooted compared to head hopping between all the different characters, which was a bit distracting. Because of this I wanted to skip over some bits and get to the character I cared about more.
I finished Uprooted in a day, but Spinning silver I finished over a much longer period, mainly because I wasn’t as interested in all the characters.
Oooh super interesting! I have to ask - are you normally a huge adult fantasy reader? Because I feel the things you didn't like about Spinning Silver are the exact things I liked 😂 Like I'm used to multiple perspectives, so I really liked that in the story.
And I do agree the forest was AWESOME...I just wish we got so much more of it!
@@Bookborn You are correct, I do have a preference towards adult fantasy over other genres 😂. But the fantasy genre is huge in itself. I’m looking at my bookshelf and I find that most of my favourites are the ones are inspired by history and mythology with a touch of fantasy. Even those that are set in an absolutely new made up world, they tend to be very reminiscent of our world at different points in time, but use this as a way to explore different themes - so not just hero/heroine defeats baddie + gets together with love interest.
That’s a very interesting point! I did feel Uprooted was more...fantasy fantasy (high fantasy??) and Spinning Silver more fairy tale inspired (you mentioned soft magic). So technically I should like Spinning Silver more by my description above, but for some reason Uprooted just drew me in and didn’t let me go until the very end. Very very few books have done this to me.
I usually don’t mind multiple perspectives, so I guess it’s more of a pet peeve here that maybe dragged it down for me. I didn’t like the multiple perspectives using first person narration. Each time I would start to get drawn into the story of one of the three main characters, the perspective would suddenly switch. And there were a few perspectives that were a bit confusing because they were such minor characters that I didn’t really care for them at all, e.g. the poor girl’s younger brother, and the old handmaid (and I can’t remember exactly but were there any chapters of the Tsar?). This does have the advantage of broadening the setting though. I liked Miryam and the Tsarina the most, so I wished the story focused more on them!
It’s so interesting looking at the personal preferences of different readers and how different storytelling styles affects us! 😆