THE CLOCKWORK CROWN by Beth Cato

A Clockwork Dagger Novel, Book 2

Harper Voyage

June 9^th, 2015

978-0-06-231398-0

Fantasy Steampunk

Paperback

Reviewed by Dawn (love2read28@gmail.com)

Obtained by Publisher

3.5 Hearts

Octavia Leander has survived an assassination and being captured by the Wasters, now on the run with Clockwork Dagger Alonzo Garrett, she has to figure out her growing powers and get some answers. The truth may rest with The Lady’s Tree, the source of her healing power but it’s in the one place they don’t want to go, the Waste. It’s a place where an evil spell transformed it to the barren place until a few people went there to lay claim to it in the last century or so. Now with bloody battles waging between the Wasters, who want independence from the royal court and the royal court who are determined to keep the waste under their thumb, both factions need Octavia’s powers to succeed. On the run, with a motley crew of allies and companions, Octavia has to evade killers in a world that with one false step will ignite into a bloody civil wart that will decimate the world she knows it.

THE CLOCKWORK CROWN is an engaging, entertaining read that will keep you on your toes from the very beginning. I didn’t read the first book so I was fearful I wouldn’t be able to understand some of the storyline but the author does a great job in making sure you are caught up and didn’t keep me confused with past mentions of the first book. I do highly recommend reading the first book before this one. I think it will give a better overview of how these two main characters end up together and on the run. That said, this is one fast paced story that leaves you breathless till the very end. I loved the different steampunk elements mentioned here like the giant mechanical animals that fight in an arena for sport. Add in familiar elements of this genre and you get a satisfying read from start to finish. I normally don’t go for this type of book but this duology just drew me in and captured my imagination. I liked the characters the best I think. Octavia is an engaging, independent woman who is determined to figure out why her powers are transforming. ‘Why now? Why her?’ is the theme through the second book and why do these two factions (Wasters and the Royal Court) need her so badly? Those questions and more are answered in THE CLOCKWORK CROWN to my satisfaction and delight.

It’s the cast of characters that just thrilled me to pieces. They are varied and quite entertaining. We get to see more of Octavia and Alonzo’s relationship, meet Alonzo’s family and meet some new people that I feel should have their own spin-off (calling for Miss Percival’s medician academy please). The author does an amazing job in capturing their individual personalities perfectly and made them intriguing as well as highly enjoyable as well. I was quite enthralled with all of them and felt the author does a great job in keeping the pace moving forward yet doesn’t get the story bogged down in details or with too many characters. There was a nice balance between the two that I felt made this book stand out wonderfully.

THE CLOCKWORK DAGGER is a fun, action packed story that will leave you scrambling for more. After initially disappointed that there were only 2 books in this series, I found the author has some novellas set in this wonderful world she created that I was thrilled to grab to read. Beth Cato delivers a delightful finish to Octavia’s story in a way that hit all my love buttons. If you enjoy a series that incorporates steampunk with fantasy and turns the genre on its ear with a fresh take on it then you will really enjoy this series. I am going to read book one first then this one again to really get a sense of who Octavia is and how she met Alonzo, the dashing Clockwork Dagger of the Royal Court. I bet that book is just as thrilling as this one.

This is an objective review and not an endorsement