Mechanica by Betsy Cornwell - ADVISABLE

Cornwell, Betsy Mechanica, 307 pages.  Clarion Books, 2015.  $18.  Content: G.

Magic has been outlawed in Esting, but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t secret little vestiges of it left hiding here and there.  First Nicolette’s beloved mother died, and then her Father died in a small uprising.  Now Nicolette has been a slave to her stepmother and stepsisters for years, until she discovers her mother’s secret workshop – a place full of the wonders her mother left behind.  Nicolette tries to learn all that she can of the wonders so that she can create her own, but her steps discover her projects and rename her Mechanica as a jeer and punishment.

Just when I think I may be tired of reworked fairy tales, along comes someone like Cornwell who has another intelligent, imaginative look at the classic.  Show this to fans of Cinder who are waiting breathlessly for the last in the series to be published.

MS, HS – ADVISABLE.  Cindy, Library Teacher