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Puppet: A Retelling of Pinocchio
Penelope lives in a world of advanced technology but many claim society has yet to catch up. Marionettes have advanced in the form of robots; lifelike creations remote controlled to perform super human tasks.
When Penelope makes a deal with Jed, a marionette-obsessed scientist, she doesn’t fully realize what she’s getting herself into. In order for Jed to take her away from the orphanage she lives in, she must first agree to undergo his experiments and tests, ultimately creating something no one ever dreamed possible; the first living marionette.
As Jed shows off his scientific creation to the world, concerns arise surrounding Penelope’s abilities and what she’s capable of doing. Ordered to somehow lessen her abilities, Jed makes a desperate attempt to change Penelope to make her more human, more vulnerable. After Penelope lies to the officials about her past, Jed makes sure it’s the last one she’ll ever utter. The truth is now the only thing she is capable of telling.
As Penelope struggles with her past, her disturbingly new present, and her uncertain future, she is thrust into a magically twisted world of mayhem in search of the one thing she wants, but knows she can never have. The chance to be just a girl again. To be normal. To be real.
When Penelope makes a deal with Jed, a marionette-obsessed scientist, she doesn’t fully realize what she’s getting herself into. In order for Jed to take her away from the orphanage she lives in, she must first agree to undergo his experiments and tests, ultimately creating something no one ever dreamed possible; the first living marionette.
As Jed shows off his scientific creation to the world, concerns arise surrounding Penelope’s abilities and what she’s capable of doing. Ordered to somehow lessen her abilities, Jed makes a desperate attempt to change Penelope to make her more human, more vulnerable. After Penelope lies to the officials about her past, Jed makes sure it’s the last one she’ll ever utter. The truth is now the only thing she is capable of telling.
As Penelope struggles with her past, her disturbingly new present, and her uncertain future, she is thrust into a magically twisted world of mayhem in search of the one thing she wants, but knows she can never have. The chance to be just a girl again. To be normal. To be real.
246 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 17, 2014
5 people want to read
About the author
Pauline C. Harris
8 books45 followersPauline C. Harris is the author of middle grade and young adult science fiction novels and published her first book at the age of fourteen. She's currently working toward a degree in English. Other than writing, her time is consumed mainly by reading, playing the violin, watching old black and white movies, and trying to survive her college classes.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
December 27, 2015
3.5*
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Pen is adopted by scientist Jed and his son James, Jed is fascinated by marionettes and Pen agrees for Jed to experiment on her, turning her into a living marionette but with far superior skills. Once the authorities learn of her, she is deemed dangerous and taken into custody to be used by the authorities, however she is part of a much bigger plan, one that puts her in considerable danger as well as those she loves.
This was actually much better than I initially thought it was going to be. The writing was a bit disjointed but overall I really enjoyed the authors style and would certainly be keen to pick up something by her in the future. The pacing started off very slowly and it took until quarter of the way through to feel as though things were happening, once they did though there was a lot going on and it kept me fairly engaged until the end.
Most of the things that didn't quite work for me came from the threadbare world building. There is so much that is left out of the story, the world that it's set in is never explained and although it was clearly set in modern times you're given no details as to how society is living (apart from the marionette/robots), the economy, government, the prisons, etc, so it's hard to get a feel for how the story really fits in.
Although the love story between James and Pen is quite sweet, I didn't feel it really added anything much overall and it would have felt more believable for them to continued to develop their friendship as brother/adopted sister.
A nicely paced read that glosses over too many of the details which would have made for something a little less superficial.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Pen is adopted by scientist Jed and his son James, Jed is fascinated by marionettes and Pen agrees for Jed to experiment on her, turning her into a living marionette but with far superior skills. Once the authorities learn of her, she is deemed dangerous and taken into custody to be used by the authorities, however she is part of a much bigger plan, one that puts her in considerable danger as well as those she loves.
This was actually much better than I initially thought it was going to be. The writing was a bit disjointed but overall I really enjoyed the authors style and would certainly be keen to pick up something by her in the future. The pacing started off very slowly and it took until quarter of the way through to feel as though things were happening, once they did though there was a lot going on and it kept me fairly engaged until the end.
Most of the things that didn't quite work for me came from the threadbare world building. There is so much that is left out of the story, the world that it's set in is never explained and although it was clearly set in modern times you're given no details as to how society is living (apart from the marionette/robots), the economy, government, the prisons, etc, so it's hard to get a feel for how the story really fits in.
Although the love story between James and Pen is quite sweet, I didn't feel it really added anything much overall and it would have felt more believable for them to continued to develop their friendship as brother/adopted sister.
A nicely paced read that glosses over too many of the details which would have made for something a little less superficial.
January 7, 2017
I received a free copy on netgalley for an honest review.
This book was really cute!
I thought the plot was very original and super interesting.
At points it did seem a little too rushed. I don't really understand how some books can drag some scenes out and then be really quick when it's time for an action scene.
I also feel this book was a little too preachy in the religious sense for me.
Not everyone has the same religion so it can be a bit annoying to see a book almost surrounded by it. It really wasn't necessary to put religion into it at all. It's not like her cross was that important.
But other than that it was very cute and original
This book was really cute!
I thought the plot was very original and super interesting.
At points it did seem a little too rushed. I don't really understand how some books can drag some scenes out and then be really quick when it's time for an action scene.
I also feel this book was a little too preachy in the religious sense for me.
Not everyone has the same religion so it can be a bit annoying to see a book almost surrounded by it. It really wasn't necessary to put religion into it at all. It's not like her cross was that important.
But other than that it was very cute and original
Did not finish
February 8, 2015I couldn't get into this. I didn't have any concern for the characters, didn't care about them really. And wasn't sure what type of world this was taking place in, dystopian, futuristic? Not sure. Since I didn't finish it, I will not give it a star rating.
January 9, 2019
Decent
This was a sweet, quick read. But for some reason I felt disappointed the whole time reading it. It was a good book, but missed a lot of potential. I'm glad I finally read it though, just wished there had been more to it.
This was a sweet, quick read. But for some reason I felt disappointed the whole time reading it. It was a good book, but missed a lot of potential. I'm glad I finally read it though, just wished there had been more to it.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews