Mechanical Heart - Sarah Pennington (Golden Braids Release Day Review!)

The Golden Braids co-release continues!

Breen is walled in—by the walls of the clock tower where she works.  By her fear that others won’t accept her.  By her fear of herself.  What is she, now that she has a mechanical heart?  Is she still human?  Is she still alive?

Prince Josiah has a thing about knocking down barriers.  The social barriers that separate him from the lower classes.  The political barriers that keep him from changing the world the way he, as prince, feels responsible to do.  But can he surmount the barriers that keep Breen in her tower, even with the help of his sister Grace and the inventor Luis?  And can he keep her safe when it becomes clear that something far more sinister than a bad work contract is in play?

Mildly Spoilery Review (Read at Your Own Risk!)

Mechanical Heart is a Rapunzel/Hunchback of Notre Dame retelling in a steampunk world. It has an engaging world, political maneuvering, and colorful magic, but the real strength of this story is definitely in the characters.  I love their voices.  Luis is probably my favorite, whether he’s helplessly trying to keep Josiah from doing Yet Another Crazy Thing or he’s inventing something to save the day.  He tries to be the voice of reason, but he’s such a faithful friend that he lets Josiah drag him into all sorts of trouble.

Breen is also great.  She’s very stubborn, and even though her situation is difficult she doesn’t let herself drown in angst.  I love the scene at the beginning when she just refuses to talk to Josiah, because she doesn’t want to lie but doesn’t think he will leave if he hears the truth.  And she’s clever, an inventor in her own right and a force to be reckoned with.

Other high points: Parliamentary debates about legalizing blood alchemy.  (If you like both fantasy and politics you’ll see why I enjoy these.)  Josiah wrestling with everything he does.  (When you first meet him you think he’s overbearing… and he is, but he’s also engaging and unintentionally funny.)  The new ending!  (I read this story as a beta too, and seeing how the story has grown and changed was really fun!)

If you’re a fan of steampunk, nineteenth century politics, friendship, or convoluted magic plots, you’ll enjoy this book!

Buy the book here.

Add it on Goodreads here.

Sarah Pennington

 

Sarah Pennington has been writing stories since before she actually knew how to write, and she has no intention of stopping anytime soon. She is perpetually in the middle of writing at least one or two novels, most of which are in the fantasy and fairy tale retelling genres. Sarah's first published work, Blood in the Snow, received a perfect score and Special Unicorn status in Rooglewood Press's Five Poisoned Apples contest. When she isn't writing, she enjoys knitting, photography, and trying to conquer her massive to-be-read list.

Find her online at: Website || Blog || Second Blog || Goodreads || Facebook || Amazon 

I have a review of Sarah’s Blood in the Snow, an Asian Snow White tale, which you can find here.

Golden Braids

The Golden Braids co-release is all about Rapunzel, all the time!  Tomorrow we’ll have Meredith Leigh Burton’s Rebekah’s Refuge.

To see the full blog tour schedule or enter giveaways, go here.

Here are the rest of the stops for August 7th:

Knitted By God's Plan - Five Reasons to Read
Light and Shadows - Five Reasons to Read
Dreams and Dragons - Writing Deaf Characters
Reviews
Reality Reflected + Mini Interview!
The Page Dreamer
The Labyrinth + Mini Interview!
The World of a Writer
Interviews
To be a Shennachie - Sarah
Guest Posts
Dragonpen Press - Why Nomances