Spin

In ancient Greece Arachne challenged the gods with her weaving skill so they turned her into a spider. Nina Allan's 'Spin' weaves Greek mythology, science fiction and alternate history into Layla Vargas' journey across an alternate modern Greece. Layla is a surrogate for Arachne so fate and destiny, powers of prophecy and possibly those gods are implicit in her story and those of people she meets. In Nina Allan's re-imagining of the Arachne myth, Layla, a weaver of extraordinary talent, leaves home to make her own way in life. She heads to Atoll City in a modern alternate Greece, attracting the interest of an old lady along the way. The old lady informs Layla that she knew her mother, and of the gift the woman once possessed. A gift that brought tragedy on Layla's family. A gift that Layla too possesses.