Scan barcode
A review by angelfish257
The Clockwork Girl by Anna Mazzola
5.0
I thoroughly enjoyed this book - it has a creeping feeling of unease from the start, beginning in the seedier parts of Paris but continuing in the house of Dr Reinhart and ultimately, all the way to the Palace of Versailles.
I empathised with Madeleine, trying desperately to escape her brothel madam Mother's clutches and create a better life for herself and her nephew - desperation can make people do things they would not normally consider, and this is how Madeleine agrees to become a police spy - for the promise of an opportunity to escape her current existence.
When she joins Dr Reinhart's household as a maid and companion for his convent-educated daughter, the claustrophobic feeling and unsettling atmosphere intensifies - how does he make the strange mechanical beasts so lifelike? What is he trying to create so secretly?
Outside the house, children are disappearing and the city is in turmoil as the people start to riot and Madeleine's fears for her nephew Emile grow .
Even once the mechanical beasts come to the attention of King Louis and the household moves to the Louvre and are then invited to Versailles, it is clear corruption is at every level and the patriarchy rules with an iron fist - a woman's value is determined by what she can do or provide to a man. To this end, it was interesting to get the perspective of Mme Pompadour, for whom scheming and trying to keep her position at court is the life she chose but what does the future hold?
I found I really cared for the characters of Dr Reinhart's household and was fully invested in their story - there are twists and turns I wasn't expecting, which kept me gripped right to the end. This is a dark and mysterious tale, a thoroughly good read.
I empathised with Madeleine, trying desperately to escape her brothel madam Mother's clutches and create a better life for herself and her nephew - desperation can make people do things they would not normally consider, and this is how Madeleine agrees to become a police spy - for the promise of an opportunity to escape her current existence.
When she joins Dr Reinhart's household as a maid and companion for his convent-educated daughter, the claustrophobic feeling and unsettling atmosphere intensifies - how does he make the strange mechanical beasts so lifelike? What is he trying to create so secretly?
Outside the house, children are disappearing and the city is in turmoil as the people start to riot and Madeleine's fears for her nephew Emile grow .
Even once the mechanical beasts come to the attention of King Louis and the household moves to the Louvre and are then invited to Versailles, it is clear corruption is at every level and the patriarchy rules with an iron fist - a woman's value is determined by what she can do or provide to a man. To this end, it was interesting to get the perspective of Mme Pompadour, for whom scheming and trying to keep her position at court is the life she chose but what does the future hold?
I found I really cared for the characters of Dr Reinhart's household and was fully invested in their story - there are twists and turns I wasn't expecting, which kept me gripped right to the end. This is a dark and mysterious tale, a thoroughly good read.