Reading Order
Spinning Silver Reading Order
Naomi Novik's Spinning Silver (2018) is a complete standalone dark fantasy novel. There is no sequel. The novel is a fairy tale retelling drawing on the Rumpelstiltskin story and Russian folklore, following Miryem, a Jewish moneylender's daughter who discovers she can turn silver into gold — which attracts the attention of the Staryk king, a being of winter who has been taking girls who fail his test. The novel has multiple POV characters and is set in a medieval Russia-inspired world.
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Spinning Silver
Complete Spinning Silver Book List
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Spinning Silver
Naomi Novik·2018·Standalone — Miryem discovers she can turn silver into gold, which attracts the Staryk king; multiple POV fairy tale retelling inspired by Russian Jewish folklore
Spinning Silver — Frequently Asked Questions
Is Spinning Silver a standalone?
Yes — Spinning Silver is a complete standalone novel with no sequels or prequels. Naomi Novik has written other fantasy (Uprooted, the Scholomance trilogy), but Spinning Silver is entirely independent.
Is Spinning Silver a retelling of Rumpelstiltskin?
Spinning Silver draws on the Rumpelstiltskin fairy tale — the idea of a girl who must spin straw into gold — but Novik transforms it significantly. Miryem turns silver into gold through her skill as a moneylender, not through magic, and the Staryk king is a far more developed figure than Rumpelstiltskin. The novel also draws heavily on Russian and Jewish folklore.
Is Spinning Silver similar to Uprooted?
Both Spinning Silver and Uprooted are standalone dark fairy tales by Naomi Novik drawing on Eastern European folklore. Uprooted draws more on Polish folklore; Spinning Silver draws on Russian and Jewish folklore. Spinning Silver has a larger cast of POV characters and a more complex plot structure. Both won the Hugo Award for Best Novel.
Is Spinning Silver appropriate for all ages?
Spinning Silver is dark fairy tale for adult readers — it deals with danger, violence (within the fairy tale register), and adult relationships. The novel is generally appropriate for readers 14 and up, with the caveat that the threats in the novel are genuinely threatening rather than softened.
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