The Crimson Thread

The Crimson Thread is a retelling of Rumplestiltskin, written by Suzanne Weyn, in the Once Upon a Time series published by Simon Pulse.

I personally love this series. I’m behind a few, but I absolutely adore retold fairy tales. I still have fun watching old Disney movies. I just love the whole fairy-tale genre, to tell you the truth. From the sweeter and romantic to the darker and magical, to all variations in between. Honestly. Lol.

Anyway, my favorites in the Once Upon a Time series are The Storyteller’s Daughter (Cameron Dokey), Snow (Tracy Lynn), and The Rose Bride (Nancy Holder) – but I love them all in varying degrees.

The Crimson Thread takes the tale of Rumplestiltskin (one of the creepier stories for me as a kid, I’d say) and twists it into a story of an Irish immigrant family in New York in 1880. The main character’s name is Bridget (though so not to confuse you if you read the back of the book, she changes her name to the more Americanized Bertie) and her family realizes before long that employers aren’t welcoming the Irish too happily. In order to make ends meet, Bridget takes a job as a seamstress for a tycoon’s family. And when, after her father’s reckless boasting, she is tasked with creating beautiful gowns to help save her employer’s business – the enigmatic, mysterious Ray Stalls (who also lives in the more down-trodden area her family resides) helps her do so with an old spinning wheel. But what will be his price?

Okay, so you already know that I enjoy fairy tales – but this, like Suzanne Weyn’s other Once Upon a Time offerings, takes a lot of elements of a different, real-world time period and incorporates an almost too realistic setting to an old, creepy fantasy tale. However, I found that it actually worked.

I really liked Bridget’s character and I quickly found myself caring for her and her family. Ray Stalls came across much more human than I would have expected, yet I liked the portrayal. The story moved at a swift pace and I was never once bored.

In the end, I found The Crimson Thread to be a clever (loved the last two paragraphs), witty, and page-turning retelling with a nice, subtle magical element. And even though I tend to like my fairy-tales to have more, well, fairies… I highly recommend Suzanne Weyn’s different, refreshing approach in The Crimson Thread.