For some reason, 2019 seems to be the year of the girl-has-to-dress-up-as-a-boy-because-reasons books. I've read a few books in the last couple of years with this trope, to varying success. Flame in the Mist was mediocre, Walk on Earth a Stranger was really good (let's not talk about the awful sequels), and Under a Painted Sky is, in my opinion, underrated.

But then 2019 came. So far, I have three books on my shelves (all OwlCrate books, which is another conversation entirely) that revolve around the trope of a girl dressing up as a boy for some reason. The first I read was Crown of Feathers, a book I was looking forward to but ended up not enjoying. The reason the main character in that book cross-dresses felt very contrived to me. We Hunt the Flame is still sitting on my shelves, but I plan on reading it in August so we'll see.

As far as Spin the Dawn is concerned, what initially drew me in was the fantastic cover. The description of this as a cross between Mulan and Project Runway didn't actually do anything for me, but I liked that the main character is a seamstress and I like books with competitions, so I decided to pick it up and give it a shot.

I ended up really enjoying this book. I wouldn't say it's a new all-time favorite, but I couldn't stop reading it. I loved how the author interpreted myth and fairy tale from her culture. I see some critical reviews calling this a watered-down Mulan, and I just don't agree. This is a completely different story. The ONLY similarity between this and the legend of Mulan is that a girl poses as a boy. That's it. It would be like me saying that every book with a cross-dressing girl is a Mulan rip-off.

I enjoy Maia as a character. She doesn't always make the decisions I would make, but her motives are pure and I can't fault her wanting to protect her family.
Edan is interesting, but I wish I knew more about him. Perhaps if this had been dual-perspective and we could've seen his POV I would've connected to his character a bit more, but I still enjoyed him.
The romance does happen a little quickly. I would've liked a bit more banter and conflict between them before they get together. At the same time, I enjoyed their relationship.

My one big issue with this book is that I wanted more. I actually feel like it's almost two different books--the first half is the competition and the second is more of a quest storyline with her and Edan going out on their own. I feel like that first half could've been its own book, with more of the political intrigue and then the relationship between Maia and Edan could've been a little more slow-burn. Then the quest could've been the second book, and the third could be the aftermath of everything that happened there.

The main critique that I've seen is people upset with the fact that this book doesn't have more discussion about gender identity with Maia exploring how she feels about dressing and being perceived as a man. It didn't bother me, but I do understand where reviewers are coming from.

I will definitely read the sequel when it's released next year and look forward to the author's subsequent books.