Spinning a tale without the spinner

OK. So. Obviously, I was not expecting some hotted-up, Once Upon A Time-style sorcerer, with or without scales (though considering Naomi Novik's Once-y take on Beauty and the Beast in Uprooted, there was some room for hope). But something along the more traditional line? Gnome? Goblin? To (reluctantly) quote Shrek, "curly-toed weirdo"? C'mon, is it too much to ask from a novel called Spinning Silver, where the inspirational fairy tale is referenced in the very first sentence?

Surely, even a normal person must find it a bit odd that a novel which takes inspiration from the story of Rumplestiltskin or Rumpelstiltskin (the latter spelling seems to be more common, although as a Oncer I stubbornly stick to the first one) fails to include any version of the title character. Granted, there are other interesting aspects of the story - like, say The Frog King, it's a fairy tale hearteningly devoid of a moral. The heroine doesn't achieve happiness by being good or kind but through sheer dumb luck, and strangely enough seems perfectly content with being hitched to the mercenary king who threatened to kill her three times if she didn't fulfil an impossible task. "Marry a bastard and you can still be happy" - now that is a message I can get behind. But remove the helpful but malevolent gold-spinner from the mix, and you're not left with much of a plot - or of anything. Nice as it is to see elements of the story pop up in new contexts in Spinning Silver - Ooh, there's the ring and necklace! Wow, three questions a day, that's classy, it's not even from the Grimm version! - they also remind you of the one element that is missing. This is my only major gripe, but me being me, it is major.

Spinning Silver is best enjoyed as an entirely independent tale with folklore and fairy-tale touches. As such, it is immensely readable, and just as good as Uprooted. Though I think Uprooted is my personal favourite, as it delivered on the sorcerer front, Spinning Silver is more ambitious in a way, as it's told from the point of view of multiple characters. Miryem is the granddaughter of a successful moneylender, and the daughter of a rubbish one. Her father being too kind-hearted to squeeze his clients, who duly take advantage of him, Miryem's family live in poverty while the people her father's lent money to prosper and look down on their benefactor at the same time. When she's sixteen, Miryem finally has enough and takes over the reins. She proves superb at making money, and saves her parents from penury - not that they're very happy about it, as it involves her becoming tough and hard-hearted. Refreshingly, the novel is very much on Miryem's side here. The villagers who complain about her are a whingey lot, and you gradually realise the reason they treated her father like dirt wasn't only because he was a moneylender, but because he is a Jew. But the hostile villagers aren't the only problem. The country - fairy-taley Russia-something (plus Lithuania? The name used for it is "Lithvas") - is plagued by the Staryk, inhabitants of a magical winter kingdom who go on raids for gold and leave cold and destruction in their wake. The Staryk King overhears a conversation where Miryem's father claims she can turn silver into gold, and makes her an offer she is in no position to refuse. Three times he leaves her silver from his kingdom. She must return the same amount of gold to him or die. If she succeeds, he will marry her.

Luckily, the Staryk silver has magical properties and proves valuable. With the help of a silversmith who hopes to marry her cousin, Miryem hawks an exquisite ring, then a necklace, then a crown, to the Duke of the nearest large town (where her grandfather lives). These items make his mousy, neglected daughter Irina seem entrancing, and give him hope of being able to marry her off to the Tsar himself. The only problem is, the outwardly young and handsome Tsar is an even worse bet marriage-wise than the Staryk King.

The third heroine of the story, besides Miryem and Irina, is Wanda, who becomes Miryem's servant when Wanda's father can't pay his debt. She seems simple compared to her wily mistress, but does in fact have a lot of good peasant common sense. Favourably disposed to Miryem, and even more to Miryem's kindly parents, Wanda and in time her brothers have an important part to play when it comes to helping Miryem - and, indirectly, Irina - out of what appears to be a hopeless situation.

Miryem and Irina are good, resourceful heroines, but seeing as they are seventeen at most when the story takes place, they are almost over-capable. I can buy Miryem being so sharp and bright, but when Irina proves to be a master political plotter who can outwit the whole of the Tsar's court I did think Novik overstrained the "sisters are doing it for themselves" theme a bit. The book blurb hints that the heroines may find love, and at one point I thought Miryem and Irina would fall for each other - they are quite alike in many ways. That's not the way the story goes, though, and I confess I was quite grateful that the two super-girls were allowed some interest in the opposite sex. I think my favourite of the heroine bunch is Wanda - also strong and capable, but in a more stolid, believable way, and with a touching affection for those who show affection to her.

With well-drawn characters, fascinating settings - among them the Staryk's land, where Miryem has to wrap her head around an alien culture, and the witch's house that exists in the Staryk land and the non-magic world at the same time - and a twisting plot, there's a lot to like about Spinning Silver. Also, the Staryk King - though no Sarkan or Solya - is a great deal more appealing than Katherine Arden's version of the Winter King and makes for a more than passable villain (or is he?). But although he has some Rumple-like traits - like always keeping his side of a bargain - the function he fills in the story is essentially the one of the gold-mad king. He may not reveal his name, but I'm pretty sure that there's one we can rule out.