What do you think?
Rate this book
Clockwork Dagger #2.5
Wings of Sorrow and Bone
From the author of The Clockwork Dagger comes an exciting novella set in the same world…
After being rescued by Octavia Leander from the slums of Caskentia, Rivka Stout is adjusting to her new life in Tamarania. But it’s hard for a blossoming machinist like herself to fit in with proper society, and she’d much rather be tinkering with her tools than at a hoity-toity party any day.
When Rivka stumbles into a laboratory run by the powerful Balthazar Cody, she also discovers a sinister plot involving chimera gremlins and the violent Arena game Warriors. The innocent creatures will end up hurt, or worse, if Rivka doesn’t find a way to stop Mr. Cody. And to do that means she will have to rely on some unexpected new friends.
After being rescued by Octavia Leander from the slums of Caskentia, Rivka Stout is adjusting to her new life in Tamarania. But it’s hard for a blossoming machinist like herself to fit in with proper society, and she’d much rather be tinkering with her tools than at a hoity-toity party any day.
When Rivka stumbles into a laboratory run by the powerful Balthazar Cody, she also discovers a sinister plot involving chimera gremlins and the violent Arena game Warriors. The innocent creatures will end up hurt, or worse, if Rivka doesn’t find a way to stop Mr. Cody. And to do that means she will have to rely on some unexpected new friends.
96 pages, Unknown Binding
First published November 10, 2015
13 people are currently reading
243 people want to read
About the author
Beth Cato
132 books666 followersBeth Cato hails from Hanford, California, but currently writes and bakes cookies in Red Wing, Minnesota. She usually has one or two cats in close orbit. A 2015 Nebula finalist, she is the author of the cozy mystery CHEDDAR LUCK NEXT TIME as well as fantasy like A THOUSAND RECIPES FOR REVENGE. Her short stories can be found in publications ranging from Beneath Ceaseless Skies to Uncanny Magazine. In 2019 and 2022, she won the Rhysling Award for short speculative poetry. Her website BethCato.com includes not only a vast bibliography, but a treasure trove of recipes for delectable goodies. Find her on BlueSky as @BethCato and Instagram as @catocatsandcheese.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
August 23, 2016
2.5 stars - Metaphorosis Reviews
Rivka Stout, a recent transplant to Tamarania, is adjusting to life in her grandmother's house, and its strict social requirements. When she encounters a cruel laboratory run by a cold-hearted businessman, she vows to set its tortured captives free with the help of her chance companion the self-centered Tatiana. A close tie-in to the Clockwork Dagger series.
I'm a strong believer that artists should be judged on merit - on product, not personality. We're all human, though, and information seeps in despite what we might like. I 'met' a well-known SFF writer on a bulletin board, for example, and found him to be a thorough-going jerk. It's taken all the joy out of reading his generally light-hearted books.
My experience with Beth Cato has gone in the other direction. I first noticed her name when we shared a table of contents, and after that, I felt she came across as a really nice person. When her book Clockwork Dagger came out, I wanted to pick it up , but it didn't sound like my kind of thing. When I saw Wings of Sorrow and Bone available for free, I snapped that up instead.
I'm sorry to say I was right; it's not my kind of thing. The plot is nice (animal friendly), and Cato includes a plug for pet adoption at the end - things that are dear to my heart, and a reinforcement of the whole niceness idea. I wanted to like the book. But I didn't. It's not bad, but it's not novel or exciting, either. The prose is workable, but the plot feels very 'by the numbers'. Even from a young adult book, which this clearly is, I expect a little more subtlety and depth. Here, almost every move, every decision, felt programmed and formulaic. A pinch of element A, a dash of element b, add situation C, stir thoroughly.
It doesn't help that the story is so clearly told in the shadow of a larger story, which does in fact turn out to be Clockwork Dagger. Maybe they're better read in the other order. Maybe not; the story has other flaws, even if you know all the characters it so frequently mentions. More than anything, this reads like an awkward tie-in, interesting only to devoted fans of the main work. In places, there's no more than a quick, summary stab at motivations. The protagonist, teenaged Rivka, sees evil, and immediately assumes it's her personal responsibility to fix it. That's definitely how the formula works, but it works best when there's at least a fig leaf for why.
While the setup is interesting, the prose is clumsy in places. Secondary characters are thin, verging on caricature. In short, it's just not convincing. I still think Cato seems like a very nice person, but I'm afraid her writing isn't to my taste.
This is a pleasant, animal-welfare oriented story, undermined by a reliance on formula. If you're already a Clockwork Dagger fan, you'll undoubtedly like this closely related story. If you're not, I recommend you start there, not here.
Rivka Stout, a recent transplant to Tamarania, is adjusting to life in her grandmother's house, and its strict social requirements. When she encounters a cruel laboratory run by a cold-hearted businessman, she vows to set its tortured captives free with the help of her chance companion the self-centered Tatiana. A close tie-in to the Clockwork Dagger series.
I'm a strong believer that artists should be judged on merit - on product, not personality. We're all human, though, and information seeps in despite what we might like. I 'met' a well-known SFF writer on a bulletin board, for example, and found him to be a thorough-going jerk. It's taken all the joy out of reading his generally light-hearted books.
My experience with Beth Cato has gone in the other direction. I first noticed her name when we shared a table of contents, and after that, I felt she came across as a really nice person. When her book Clockwork Dagger came out, I wanted to pick it up , but it didn't sound like my kind of thing. When I saw Wings of Sorrow and Bone available for free, I snapped that up instead.
I'm sorry to say I was right; it's not my kind of thing. The plot is nice (animal friendly), and Cato includes a plug for pet adoption at the end - things that are dear to my heart, and a reinforcement of the whole niceness idea. I wanted to like the book. But I didn't. It's not bad, but it's not novel or exciting, either. The prose is workable, but the plot feels very 'by the numbers'. Even from a young adult book, which this clearly is, I expect a little more subtlety and depth. Here, almost every move, every decision, felt programmed and formulaic. A pinch of element A, a dash of element b, add situation C, stir thoroughly.
It doesn't help that the story is so clearly told in the shadow of a larger story, which does in fact turn out to be Clockwork Dagger. Maybe they're better read in the other order. Maybe not; the story has other flaws, even if you know all the characters it so frequently mentions. More than anything, this reads like an awkward tie-in, interesting only to devoted fans of the main work. In places, there's no more than a quick, summary stab at motivations. The protagonist, teenaged Rivka, sees evil, and immediately assumes it's her personal responsibility to fix it. That's definitely how the formula works, but it works best when there's at least a fig leaf for why.
While the setup is interesting, the prose is clumsy in places. Secondary characters are thin, verging on caricature. In short, it's just not convincing. I still think Cato seems like a very nice person, but I'm afraid her writing isn't to my taste.
This is a pleasant, animal-welfare oriented story, undermined by a reliance on formula. If you're already a Clockwork Dagger fan, you'll undoubtedly like this closely related story. If you're not, I recommend you start there, not here.
November 17, 2015
Originally published at Reading Reality
I absolutely adored the Clockwork Dagger duology. The second book of the pair, The Clockwork Crown, is a contender for my best of the year list. The only reason that both books aren’t on the list is that The Clockwork Dagger was published in 2014, but I was late to the party.
If you like steampunk and skullduggery mixed with your magic and fantasy, this series is awesome.
So when I saw this postquel (that needs to be a word) listed on Edelweiss, I was all in. I call it a postquel because it isn’t a sequel. Wings of Sorrow and Bone isn’t a whole separate take on this world. Instead it’s more of a tying up of a loose end from the original story.
That being said, this could still serve as an introduction, or more likely a taste-whetter, for the series as a whole. The main characters in Wings were introduced in the main sequence, but not featured. This is sort of a what happens after because of the consequences of the main story. Of course, it has more depth if you’ve read Dagger and Crown. And why wouldn’t you? They are, as I said, positively awesome.
Wings of Sorrow and Bone takes place in Tamarania, the rich and sophisticated country that has managed to sit outside the long and devastating war between Caskentia and the Dallowmen. There are two links between Wings and the main series. One is Viola Stout, who traveled as Medician Octavia Leander’s companion during the main series. Viola is also the secret heir to the disputed Caskentian throne, and has hidden her identity her entire life. With her recently discovered granddaughter, Rivka Stout, Viola is now living safely in Tamarania, and trying to turn her street-urchin granddaughter into a lady.
All Rivka wants is to be a machinist. She has a way with machines, and absolutely no facility for noble small talk or feminine frippery. Escaping from a dull society partner and her grandmother’s watchful eye, Rivka finds herself in the company Tatiana Garret. Tatiana is the younger sister of Alonzo Garret, the hero of Dagger and Crown. Alonzo is assisting the great medician Octavia Leander as she runs for her life. He’s also fallen in love with her.
And his selfish little sister is absolutely pissed that she isn’t getting enough of his attention. So she kidnaps Leander and ships her back to Caskentia as freight. Garret follows on a stolen mecha warrior, and that story barrels towards its conclusion.
But Tatiana is still in Tamarania, still feeling put upon, and the owner and trainer of the mecha her brother stole is still angry at the loss of his property. Tatiana is still looking for a way to get her own way in something. Rivka just wants to escape the party.
Together the young women find themselves in the mecha laboratory, watching as living animals, adorably ugly little gremlins. are experimented upon and having their parts amputated in order for the owner of the Arena to build a newer, bigger and even more deadly gremlin/mecha warrior to replace the one that Alonzo Garret stole.
All Tatiana seems to see is a way to be the center of everyone’s attention, by becoming the first female mecha rider.
All Rivka sees is a whole laboratory full of living, breathing, feeling, intelligent little animals, who are being sadistically tortured in order to create an even bigger, more intelligent and more feeling gremlin/mecha hybrid, one whose only fate is to die in that Arena.
But not if Rivka, with some surprising help from Tatiana, can find a way to bring it all down, and soon.
Escape Rating B+: This story is short, but packs a satisfying wallop at the end. However, there’s a bit of a stutter in the middle.
The plot that Rivka hatches, with the help of her grandmother Viola and the reluctant assistance of Tatiana, is actually quite clever. Stealing a mecha is not the answer. As the story makes all too clear, Alonzo Garret’s theft of the one gremlin/mecha warrior has only induced the Arena owner Cody, and all of his competitors, to make larger and more dangerous mecha constructs. And the bigger the mecha, the more little gremlins have to be sacrificed to provide the parts.
Rivka wants to save all the gremlins, the little ones who have lost their limbs or wings, and the great big one who is being trained to be a killer. She can’t steal them all, and she can’t buy them all. Her answer to the problem is ingenious. And successful.
It’s her use of Tatiana as an ally, and Tatiana’s very deliberate use of Rivka, that gave me fits. I like Rivka a lot. She’s self-sufficient and smart, and learned to survive in a school of very hard knocks. She loves her grandmother but just doesn’t know how to be the person her grandmother wants her to be. And she’s an absolutely brilliant mechanist.
Tatiana is a selfish little user throughout the story. As she was in Clockwork Crown. Tatiana is all about Tatiana, and she doesn’t care who she steps on or steps over as long as she gets her way. Where Rivka is a likeable protagonist, Tatiana is absolutely not. That Rivka and her grandmother get Tatiana on board with their plan is amazing. That they do it by creating a role that feeds her narcissism was necessary but still left me wanting to slap Tatiana upside the head with a clue-by-four.
And the ending of Wings of Sorrow and Bone still brought a smile to my face.
I absolutely adored the Clockwork Dagger duology. The second book of the pair, The Clockwork Crown, is a contender for my best of the year list. The only reason that both books aren’t on the list is that The Clockwork Dagger was published in 2014, but I was late to the party.
If you like steampunk and skullduggery mixed with your magic and fantasy, this series is awesome.
So when I saw this postquel (that needs to be a word) listed on Edelweiss, I was all in. I call it a postquel because it isn’t a sequel. Wings of Sorrow and Bone isn’t a whole separate take on this world. Instead it’s more of a tying up of a loose end from the original story.
That being said, this could still serve as an introduction, or more likely a taste-whetter, for the series as a whole. The main characters in Wings were introduced in the main sequence, but not featured. This is sort of a what happens after because of the consequences of the main story. Of course, it has more depth if you’ve read Dagger and Crown. And why wouldn’t you? They are, as I said, positively awesome.
Wings of Sorrow and Bone takes place in Tamarania, the rich and sophisticated country that has managed to sit outside the long and devastating war between Caskentia and the Dallowmen. There are two links between Wings and the main series. One is Viola Stout, who traveled as Medician Octavia Leander’s companion during the main series. Viola is also the secret heir to the disputed Caskentian throne, and has hidden her identity her entire life. With her recently discovered granddaughter, Rivka Stout, Viola is now living safely in Tamarania, and trying to turn her street-urchin granddaughter into a lady.
All Rivka wants is to be a machinist. She has a way with machines, and absolutely no facility for noble small talk or feminine frippery. Escaping from a dull society partner and her grandmother’s watchful eye, Rivka finds herself in the company Tatiana Garret. Tatiana is the younger sister of Alonzo Garret, the hero of Dagger and Crown. Alonzo is assisting the great medician Octavia Leander as she runs for her life. He’s also fallen in love with her.
And his selfish little sister is absolutely pissed that she isn’t getting enough of his attention. So she kidnaps Leander and ships her back to Caskentia as freight. Garret follows on a stolen mecha warrior, and that story barrels towards its conclusion.
But Tatiana is still in Tamarania, still feeling put upon, and the owner and trainer of the mecha her brother stole is still angry at the loss of his property. Tatiana is still looking for a way to get her own way in something. Rivka just wants to escape the party.
Together the young women find themselves in the mecha laboratory, watching as living animals, adorably ugly little gremlins. are experimented upon and having their parts amputated in order for the owner of the Arena to build a newer, bigger and even more deadly gremlin/mecha warrior to replace the one that Alonzo Garret stole.
All Tatiana seems to see is a way to be the center of everyone’s attention, by becoming the first female mecha rider.
All Rivka sees is a whole laboratory full of living, breathing, feeling, intelligent little animals, who are being sadistically tortured in order to create an even bigger, more intelligent and more feeling gremlin/mecha hybrid, one whose only fate is to die in that Arena.
But not if Rivka, with some surprising help from Tatiana, can find a way to bring it all down, and soon.
Escape Rating B+: This story is short, but packs a satisfying wallop at the end. However, there’s a bit of a stutter in the middle.
The plot that Rivka hatches, with the help of her grandmother Viola and the reluctant assistance of Tatiana, is actually quite clever. Stealing a mecha is not the answer. As the story makes all too clear, Alonzo Garret’s theft of the one gremlin/mecha warrior has only induced the Arena owner Cody, and all of his competitors, to make larger and more dangerous mecha constructs. And the bigger the mecha, the more little gremlins have to be sacrificed to provide the parts.
Rivka wants to save all the gremlins, the little ones who have lost their limbs or wings, and the great big one who is being trained to be a killer. She can’t steal them all, and she can’t buy them all. Her answer to the problem is ingenious. And successful.
It’s her use of Tatiana as an ally, and Tatiana’s very deliberate use of Rivka, that gave me fits. I like Rivka a lot. She’s self-sufficient and smart, and learned to survive in a school of very hard knocks. She loves her grandmother but just doesn’t know how to be the person her grandmother wants her to be. And she’s an absolutely brilliant mechanist.
Tatiana is a selfish little user throughout the story. As she was in Clockwork Crown. Tatiana is all about Tatiana, and she doesn’t care who she steps on or steps over as long as she gets her way. Where Rivka is a likeable protagonist, Tatiana is absolutely not. That Rivka and her grandmother get Tatiana on board with their plan is amazing. That they do it by creating a role that feeds her narcissism was necessary but still left me wanting to slap Tatiana upside the head with a clue-by-four.
And the ending of Wings of Sorrow and Bone still brought a smile to my face.
June 13, 2017
Picked this up because it was nominated for a Nebula. Fairly inoffensive all in all, but just when it looks like it might take off it fizzles out completely.
Callous politician wants to create a chimera (think giant goblin with mechanical appendages) for his fighting arena. In order to do this, he has to harvest body parts of lots of smaller gremlins. Scrappy protagonist finds about it and sets out to stop him because TEH POOR GREMLINS! I guess it'll do as a conflict if there's nothing else to hand, but unless you have some kind of gremlin fetish, it's not gonna put you on the edge of your seat.
Only major problem is that the characters don't really seem to match the world they are in. Backstory of the protagonist is that she was tricked into building parts for a bomb that was then used to kill a few hundred people including her family, yet she is completely flabbergasted that someone would do bad things to gremlins. Writing is also a bit too much show and tell, but in the end probably still would have given two stars.
However, just when it looks like the plot might take off, for some reason the writing switches from telling us what's happening to giving a summary of events instead. It's like the author suddenly realized that it's supposed to be a novella and everything needs to get wrapped up in the next twenty pages. Anyway, whatever tension there is just evaporates.
Callous politician wants to create a chimera (think giant goblin with mechanical appendages) for his fighting arena. In order to do this, he has to harvest body parts of lots of smaller gremlins. Scrappy protagonist finds about it and sets out to stop him because TEH POOR GREMLINS! I guess it'll do as a conflict if there's nothing else to hand, but unless you have some kind of gremlin fetish, it's not gonna put you on the edge of your seat.
Only major problem is that the characters don't really seem to match the world they are in. Backstory of the protagonist is that she was tricked into building parts for a bomb that was then used to kill a few hundred people including her family, yet she is completely flabbergasted that someone would do bad things to gremlins. Writing is also a bit too much show and tell, but in the end probably still would have given two stars.
However, just when it looks like the plot might take off, for some reason the writing switches from telling us what's happening to giving a summary of events instead. It's like the author suddenly realized that it's supposed to be a novella and everything needs to get wrapped up in the next twenty pages. Anyway, whatever tension there is just evaporates.
December 22, 2015
I love the Victorian/steampunk setting of Cato's Clockwork Dagger universe, and this story was a fun read.
January 30, 2016
a little bit weaker than the other books of this fabulous author, but still some steampunk.
July 30, 2016
This is a great jumping point or prequel if BCato decides to write a spin off. Gremlins? Yes please!
November 25, 2017
The misused, abused gremlins weren't forgotten after The Clockwork Crown! Ends at 59%, though.
Rivka makes a fine lead character in this novella. Her self-consciousness (she has a harelip, which draws even more negative attention in fashionable Tamarania, where such disfigurements are correctable, than back in war-scarred Caskentia) is overridden by conscience and determination as she confronts the cruel reality of how august/"innovator" Cody makes behemoth chimeras, and does something about it. Tatiana Garret, with her ambitions and manipulativeness, is an interesting choice for prime confederate, and an apprentice medician torn by what he is ordered to do makes a third. Their solution (well in progress at the tale's end) may be a bit too easily/quickly accomplished, but is believable in principle.
SPOILER
ETA: I was surprised to realize I was only at 59% when the main story ended. I'm not certain how many pages that is, but a lot fewer than 149! There's an excerpt from The Clockwork Dagger after. At least it didn't cost much. I was trying to figure out how the two short stories could each say 40-50 pages, yet Deep Roots, the collection of all three shorter Clockwork-universe tales, only total about 200 pages. Well, now I know!
Rivka makes a fine lead character in this novella. Her self-consciousness (she has a harelip, which draws even more negative attention in fashionable Tamarania, where such disfigurements are correctable, than back in war-scarred Caskentia) is overridden by conscience and determination as she confronts the cruel reality of how august/"innovator" Cody makes behemoth chimeras, and does something about it. Tatiana Garret, with her ambitions and manipulativeness, is an interesting choice for prime confederate, and an apprentice medician torn by what he is ordered to do makes a third. Their solution (well in progress at the tale's end) may be a bit too easily/quickly accomplished, but is believable in principle.
SPOILER
ETA: I was surprised to realize I was only at 59% when the main story ended. I'm not certain how many pages that is, but a lot fewer than 149! There's an excerpt from The Clockwork Dagger after. At least it didn't cost much. I was trying to figure out how the two short stories could each say 40-50 pages, yet Deep Roots, the collection of all three shorter Clockwork-universe tales, only total about 200 pages. Well, now I know!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 19, 2017
This novella was definitely worth reading! This follows a few of the minor characters from the series as they endeavor to save the Gremlins from mistreatment. I really enjoyed Rivka's point of view and the friendships that were built! This does contain spoilers for the second book so read it after 😊
December 16, 2018
A steampunk/chimera morality tale in novella form. Nothing really that subtle. People that harm animals are bad. People that protect animals are good. Some good writing and the world seems like it could be the setting of a more interesting/complicated story (perhaps it is in the other novels in this series).
May 6, 2020
A novella of the Clockwork Dagger series taking place after the two novels. I loved it. It features two of the minor characters from the novels and wraps up one of the dangling threads from the novels.
May 15, 2017
Highly entertaining
Well written with strong characters and a colorful world. I was sad when I realized I was done. Will buy more from the author.
Well written with strong characters and a colorful world. I was sad when I realized I was done. Will buy more from the author.
July 2, 2018
Very delightful super short easy read! I love the way Cato takes this story and how she uses these side characters to explore more about this unique steampunk world.
November 22, 2020
And we find out what happens to Rivka from the last book : )
November 11, 2015
3.5 stars
Wings of Sorrow and Bone is set a few months after the end of The Clockwork Crown and features two teenaged girls introduced in that book. Rivka Stout and Tatiana Garret are unlikely pair, a Mean Girl and a misfit, brought together by a common acquaintance and eventually a common goal. The two meet at a party hosted by Balthazar Cody, a Tamaranian councilman and the creator of the city's arena games. After sneaking away from the festivities, the two discover Cody's workshop where gremlins are kept in cages and used for parts for the giant chimera Cody is building for the next match.
Rivka relates to the gremlins, having been a victim of abuse herself. Though her life has improved, she still has a cleft lip and wants to be a machinist, so she doesn't fit in with her grandmother's society friends. If that's not enough, she's from Caskentia so the science-loving Tamaranians assume she's uneducated even before her accent marks her as poor. But Cody respects her mechanical ability and allows her into the workshop. Rivka plans to use that access to free the gremlins, but she'll need help from Tatiana, who has her own motivation for being there, as well as a young medition, to come up with a plan.
Cody, while not actually the villain in The Clockwork Crown, was never a sympathetic character so it's quite satisfying to see someone giving him a hard time. I also really loved the gremlins in both novels, so I was happy to see the issue addressed. However, I did feel like there was an excessive amount of Octavia name dropping in this story, which makes it hard to view it as a standalone.
I've always found the socio-economic insights into the different countries in Cato's fictional world fascinating. Octavia touches on it in the books, but Rivka has a deeper understanding of the issues having lived in many different areas. I really enjoyed learning more about the world from her perspective. In that respect, this novella might provide a good introduction to the world of the Clockwork Dagger books, but I would not recommend reading it first. It makes too many references to the events in The Clockwork Crown not be spoilery.
I'm not aware of any plans to do so, but I could see Rivka starring in a spinoff series. She reminds me of Genevieve LaFoux who appears in all of Gail Carriger's series. Either way, I'm happy with the chance to return to this world and the gremlins and I enjoyed the novella.
Originally published at Goldilox and the Three Weres and based on a copy provided by the publisher.
Wings of Sorrow and Bone is set a few months after the end of The Clockwork Crown and features two teenaged girls introduced in that book. Rivka Stout and Tatiana Garret are unlikely pair, a Mean Girl and a misfit, brought together by a common acquaintance and eventually a common goal. The two meet at a party hosted by Balthazar Cody, a Tamaranian councilman and the creator of the city's arena games. After sneaking away from the festivities, the two discover Cody's workshop where gremlins are kept in cages and used for parts for the giant chimera Cody is building for the next match.
Rivka relates to the gremlins, having been a victim of abuse herself. Though her life has improved, she still has a cleft lip and wants to be a machinist, so she doesn't fit in with her grandmother's society friends. If that's not enough, she's from Caskentia so the science-loving Tamaranians assume she's uneducated even before her accent marks her as poor. But Cody respects her mechanical ability and allows her into the workshop. Rivka plans to use that access to free the gremlins, but she'll need help from Tatiana, who has her own motivation for being there, as well as a young medition, to come up with a plan.
Cody, while not actually the villain in The Clockwork Crown, was never a sympathetic character so it's quite satisfying to see someone giving him a hard time. I also really loved the gremlins in both novels, so I was happy to see the issue addressed. However, I did feel like there was an excessive amount of Octavia name dropping in this story, which makes it hard to view it as a standalone.
I've always found the socio-economic insights into the different countries in Cato's fictional world fascinating. Octavia touches on it in the books, but Rivka has a deeper understanding of the issues having lived in many different areas. I really enjoyed learning more about the world from her perspective. In that respect, this novella might provide a good introduction to the world of the Clockwork Dagger books, but I would not recommend reading it first. It makes too many references to the events in The Clockwork Crown not be spoilery.
I'm not aware of any plans to do so, but I could see Rivka starring in a spinoff series. She reminds me of Genevieve LaFoux who appears in all of Gail Carriger's series. Either way, I'm happy with the chance to return to this world and the gremlins and I enjoyed the novella.
Originally published at Goldilox and the Three Weres and based on a copy provided by the publisher.
Read
April 19, 2016Rivka loves machines, but she's a girl in a man's world. She's moved to the city to be with her grandmother, whose social circle involves the rich and famous. During a social event, Rivka makes a new friend, Tatiana, and as mischievous girls are wont to do, they find themselves somewhere they don't belong--in this case it's a basement room. It's not any basement room, however. Owner of said basement, Mr. Cody, is financing the creation of a chimera from mechanical parts and pieces of recently living gremlins.
The chimera is to slated fight in the arena, but to Rivka even worse than its gladiator destiny is the incredible cruelty necessary to create the beast in the first place. She has a co-conspirator in Tatiana, who can be suspicious and one-minded, but Rivka is able to win her over to the cause of fighting animal cruelty. But she's just a girl, what can she possibly do against a man so powerful as Mr. Cody?
WINGS OF SORROW AND BONE is a novella from the same world and people as CLOCKWORK DAGGER (Amazon), working as a side story to the main series. It's a self-contained novella that you can read without having read the other CLOCKWORK stories. Rivka and Tatiana are well-realized girls who find themselves in a scary situation that demands their attention. It might be harder for more sensitive kids to read because the subject matter of animal cruelty gets specific about dismemberment and the pain animals feel.
The story is short and moves quickly. The prose isn't perfectly fluid, but it works fine for the story. There isn't enough time for extensive world building, but that's the kind of thing left for the main series. Eventually the girls arrive at a clever solution to their problems and will teach kids that sometimes the answer isn't always where you expect it to be.
Recommended Age: 13+
Language: None
Violence: References to surgeries on helpless creatures
Sex: None
Find this and other reviews at Elitistbookreviews.com
The chimera is to slated fight in the arena, but to Rivka even worse than its gladiator destiny is the incredible cruelty necessary to create the beast in the first place. She has a co-conspirator in Tatiana, who can be suspicious and one-minded, but Rivka is able to win her over to the cause of fighting animal cruelty. But she's just a girl, what can she possibly do against a man so powerful as Mr. Cody?
WINGS OF SORROW AND BONE is a novella from the same world and people as CLOCKWORK DAGGER (Amazon), working as a side story to the main series. It's a self-contained novella that you can read without having read the other CLOCKWORK stories. Rivka and Tatiana are well-realized girls who find themselves in a scary situation that demands their attention. It might be harder for more sensitive kids to read because the subject matter of animal cruelty gets specific about dismemberment and the pain animals feel.
The story is short and moves quickly. The prose isn't perfectly fluid, but it works fine for the story. There isn't enough time for extensive world building, but that's the kind of thing left for the main series. Eventually the girls arrive at a clever solution to their problems and will teach kids that sometimes the answer isn't always where you expect it to be.
Recommended Age: 13+
Language: None
Violence: References to surgeries on helpless creatures
Sex: None
Find this and other reviews at Elitistbookreviews.com
November 7, 2015
Full disclosure: I’m friends with Beth Cato. She was one of my first interviews after I started blogging about sci-fi and fantasy last year and I’ve followed her from nervous debut author armed with cookies at her first release party through earning a Locus nomination for that debut, The Clockwork Dagger.
So yeah, I’m a little biased. Take that as you will.
But that doesn’t change that Wings of Sorrow and Bone is a nice dessert after the adventures of Octavia Leander wrapped up in The Clockwork Crown this summer.
Set in the same world as her Clockwork novels, Sorrow and Bone follows a pair of side characters from Crown as they work to help the captive gremlins of politician and scientist Balthazar Cody. The pair — the talented mechanic Rivka Stout, and Tatiana Garret, an ambitious girl living in the shadow of her brother Alonzo, discover Cody is experimenting on gremlins to create a giant mecha-gremlin chimera to fight in his bloodsports.
Joined by apprentice medician Broderick, they hatch a plan to disrupt his experiments and teach the people of Tamarania that the mischievous and destructive creatures are not to be feared. Teaming up with Rivka’s grandmother, publisher and princess-in-hiding Viola Stout, they publish a book about gremlins and the cruelty they experience.
Its animal-rights activism meets viral marketing in one clever novella. And it shows that while Octavia and Alonzo’s story from the Clockwork duology may be finished, there are still plenty of tales to be told in Caskentia and Tamarania.
So yeah, I’m a little biased. Take that as you will.
But that doesn’t change that Wings of Sorrow and Bone is a nice dessert after the adventures of Octavia Leander wrapped up in The Clockwork Crown this summer.
Set in the same world as her Clockwork novels, Sorrow and Bone follows a pair of side characters from Crown as they work to help the captive gremlins of politician and scientist Balthazar Cody. The pair — the talented mechanic Rivka Stout, and Tatiana Garret, an ambitious girl living in the shadow of her brother Alonzo, discover Cody is experimenting on gremlins to create a giant mecha-gremlin chimera to fight in his bloodsports.
Joined by apprentice medician Broderick, they hatch a plan to disrupt his experiments and teach the people of Tamarania that the mischievous and destructive creatures are not to be feared. Teaming up with Rivka’s grandmother, publisher and princess-in-hiding Viola Stout, they publish a book about gremlins and the cruelty they experience.
Its animal-rights activism meets viral marketing in one clever novella. And it shows that while Octavia and Alonzo’s story from the Clockwork duology may be finished, there are still plenty of tales to be told in Caskentia and Tamarania.
November 24, 2015
(
I received this book ARC free from Edelweiss.com by HarperCollins in exchange for my honest review
)
There is something to be said about a good book, it brings so much joy when you've other wise had a horrible day, or found out that your shore posting has been canned. (I'm in the military, navy, and I was suppose to be ashore a year...... goodbye normal.. :(..) This book was beautiful written. I could picture everything like I was right there with Rivka, trying to save the gremlins. I want a gremlins now. My heart was breaking for them.
I loved Rivka, such a strong girl. She knew the wrongness that was being done to the gremlins and she did not hesitate to put a plan in motion to fix it. She is the type of protagonist that I like, a will of steel, and stubborn like an OX.
This book was a fast read, it traps you in this intriguing world of magic and machine. I didn't read the books before, the first two in the Clockwork Dagger Duology series , but you don't need to, there is enough world building and background for you to understand and created the world that Rivka lives in. In saying that I am now going to go back and read the other books.
This book is marvelous and should be read either with the Clockwork Dagger series or as a stand along. There are so many emotions, so many feels and lessons to be explored that you will not put this book down once you've started. Rivka is the heroine that should be wrote about more, strong, smart, and sharp. She ended this book in a blaze of glory while giving Mr. Cody on last slap in the face.
Happy Reading
-E.A. Walsh
There is something to be said about a good book, it brings so much joy when you've other wise had a horrible day, or found out that your shore posting has been canned. (I'm in the military, navy, and I was suppose to be ashore a year...... goodbye normal.. :(..) This book was beautiful written. I could picture everything like I was right there with Rivka, trying to save the gremlins. I want a gremlins now. My heart was breaking for them.
I loved Rivka, such a strong girl. She knew the wrongness that was being done to the gremlins and she did not hesitate to put a plan in motion to fix it. She is the type of protagonist that I like, a will of steel, and stubborn like an OX.
This book was a fast read, it traps you in this intriguing world of magic and machine. I didn't read the books before, the first two in the Clockwork Dagger Duology series , but you don't need to, there is enough world building and background for you to understand and created the world that Rivka lives in. In saying that I am now going to go back and read the other books.
This book is marvelous and should be read either with the Clockwork Dagger series or as a stand along. There are so many emotions, so many feels and lessons to be explored that you will not put this book down once you've started. Rivka is the heroine that should be wrote about more, strong, smart, and sharp. She ended this book in a blaze of glory while giving Mr. Cody on last slap in the face.
Happy Reading
-E.A. Walsh
May 16, 2016
I did enjoy the duology by Cato about the Great lady and her medician.
This was a nice side story to that of the Clockwork Dagger duology, but instead of following Octavia in her pilgrimage throughout the warring nations, unsure who's trying to capture her to utilize her skills or simply assassinate her. Wings of Sorrow and Bone follows a young miss Rivka, blossoming mechanic who's been plucked from the dirty streets of Mercia and found her true family at last, with the robust Miss Stout.
High society is a whole different game than the tough streets of the capital. Rivka is still stumbling to prove herself. Will she be enticed by a slimy apprenticeship under a master mechanic at the behest of Mr. Cody and his arena or will she find a better way as Miss Leander once did? Is Tatiana a true friend or foe to Rivka, can she be trusted after her actions towards Miss lander? I believe Tatiana is making amends, but then again time will tell.
Truly a fun read, I had wished for more of course so if there is more to the story I will be rapt to read it. Thank you for the ARC copy!
http://www.onceuponatwilight.com/2016...
This was a nice side story to that of the Clockwork Dagger duology, but instead of following Octavia in her pilgrimage throughout the warring nations, unsure who's trying to capture her to utilize her skills or simply assassinate her. Wings of Sorrow and Bone follows a young miss Rivka, blossoming mechanic who's been plucked from the dirty streets of Mercia and found her true family at last, with the robust Miss Stout.
High society is a whole different game than the tough streets of the capital. Rivka is still stumbling to prove herself. Will she be enticed by a slimy apprenticeship under a master mechanic at the behest of Mr. Cody and his arena or will she find a better way as Miss Leander once did? Is Tatiana a true friend or foe to Rivka, can she be trusted after her actions towards Miss lander? I believe Tatiana is making amends, but then again time will tell.
Truly a fun read, I had wished for more of course so if there is more to the story I will be rapt to read it. Thank you for the ARC copy!
http://www.onceuponatwilight.com/2016...
November 11, 2015
Wings of Sorrow and Bone by Beth Cato
This book follows The Clockwork Dagger, The Clockwork Crown and The Deepest Poison, all of which I enjoyed. I thought the first book was a steampunk romance. Octavia Leander was the featured character in those books. This book follows the adventures of Octavia's romantic interest Alonzo Garret, younger sister Tatiana and a friend of Octavia and Alonzo, the mechanic Rivka.
Gremlin's are bat like creations of magic and technology. The creator, Mr. Cody, had no interest in the fact that his creatures had developed into thinking animals. His primary purpose seemed to be to create them to fight in his gladiatorial arena.
The two young ladies, Rivka and Tatiana initiate a quest to stop Mr. Cody and emancipate the Gremlins for very diverse reasons. Rivka is very likeable and Tatiana not so much. (I throw that in for a vocal critic of the idea that likeability of characters should not enter into the likeability of books. )
I enjoyed the book and highly recommend it.
This book follows The Clockwork Dagger, The Clockwork Crown and The Deepest Poison, all of which I enjoyed. I thought the first book was a steampunk romance. Octavia Leander was the featured character in those books. This book follows the adventures of Octavia's romantic interest Alonzo Garret, younger sister Tatiana and a friend of Octavia and Alonzo, the mechanic Rivka.
Gremlin's are bat like creations of magic and technology. The creator, Mr. Cody, had no interest in the fact that his creatures had developed into thinking animals. His primary purpose seemed to be to create them to fight in his gladiatorial arena.
The two young ladies, Rivka and Tatiana initiate a quest to stop Mr. Cody and emancipate the Gremlins for very diverse reasons. Rivka is very likeable and Tatiana not so much. (I throw that in for a vocal critic of the idea that likeability of characters should not enter into the likeability of books. )
I enjoyed the book and highly recommend it.
May 13, 2016
I did enjoy the duology by Cato about the Great lady and her medician.
This was a nice side story to that of the Clockwork Dagger duology, but instead of following Octavia in her pilgrimage throughout the warring nations, unsure who's trying to capture her to utilize her skills or simply assassinate her, this story follows a young miss Rivka. A blossoming mechanic who's been plucked from the dirty streets of Mercia and found her true family at last, with the robust Miss Stout.
High society is a whole different game than the tough streets of the capital. Rivka is still stumbling to prove herself. Will she be enticed by a slimy apprenticeship under a master mechanic at the behest of Mr. Cody and his arena or will she find a better way as Miss Leander once did?
Truly a fun read, I had wished for more of course so if there is more to the story I will be rapt to read it. Thank you for the ARC copy!
This was a nice side story to that of the Clockwork Dagger duology, but instead of following Octavia in her pilgrimage throughout the warring nations, unsure who's trying to capture her to utilize her skills or simply assassinate her, this story follows a young miss Rivka. A blossoming mechanic who's been plucked from the dirty streets of Mercia and found her true family at last, with the robust Miss Stout.
High society is a whole different game than the tough streets of the capital. Rivka is still stumbling to prove herself. Will she be enticed by a slimy apprenticeship under a master mechanic at the behest of Mr. Cody and his arena or will she find a better way as Miss Leander once did?
Truly a fun read, I had wished for more of course so if there is more to the story I will be rapt to read it. Thank you for the ARC copy!
March 5, 2016
With her recent Nebula nomination I had to ask for an egalley on this one. Luckily I get free books from Harper Voyager in return for honest reviews as I'm part of their Super Reader program, so that works out nicely. :)
Cato's novel A Clockwork Dagger was my introduction to her work, and I immediately fell in love with the gremlin Leaf and hoped to see more. Well, now we have a novella where the plight of the gremlins is the plot and great female leads to tell the story. Beth creates human characters that you would recognize on the street, everyday people who happen to be in extraordinary situations. (Ok, anything magic would be extraordinary to us, but c'mon!) ;)
And that's really why I think this novella has received such a prestigious nomination: quality deserves recognition, and Cato has quality in spades.
Cato's novel A Clockwork Dagger was my introduction to her work, and I immediately fell in love with the gremlin Leaf and hoped to see more. Well, now we have a novella where the plight of the gremlins is the plot and great female leads to tell the story. Beth creates human characters that you would recognize on the street, everyday people who happen to be in extraordinary situations. (Ok, anything magic would be extraordinary to us, but c'mon!) ;)
And that's really why I think this novella has received such a prestigious nomination: quality deserves recognition, and Cato has quality in spades.
February 12, 2017
Recently discovered this fabulous author
I've devoured all of Ms. Cato's books to date and they just keep getting better. She's becoming an automatic purchase author.
I've devoured all of Ms. Cato's books to date and they just keep getting better. She's becoming an automatic purchase author.
March 9, 2016
The world Cato developed in the Clockwork Dagger duology blends magic and science in unique and imaginative ways, but Wings of Sorrow and Bone deals with one of the more disturbing applications of this unusual mix. In Tamarania, a nation that largely reveres science and disdains magic, the politician Mr. Cody combines the two to create chimeras, unnatural creatures forged together from mechanical components and living parts taken from gremlins. read more
December 19, 2015
I have adored the Clockwork Dagger series so far, and to get to follow the progress of Rivka, Mrs. stout's u known granddaughter once she is in the care of her grandmother has been a joy. She will never be conventional and along with Alonzo's sister Tatiana, she challenges the man who is creating chimeras.
An interesting and well written book. I can't wait to see what happens next.
An interesting and well written book. I can't wait to see what happens next.
August 4, 2016
*Source* Publisher
*Genre* Steampunk, Fantasy
*Rating* 3.0
*Full Review Pending*
This goes along nicely with the rest of the trilogy. There are appearances by some secondary characters that were seen in Books 1 and 2. We could actually call this Rivka's fight for Gremlin's Rights.
*Published* November 10th 2015 by Harper Voyager Impulse
*Genre* Steampunk, Fantasy
*Rating* 3.0
*Full Review Pending*
This goes along nicely with the rest of the trilogy. There are appearances by some secondary characters that were seen in Books 1 and 2. We could actually call this Rivka's fight for Gremlin's Rights.
*Published* November 10th 2015 by Harper Voyager Impulse
May 30, 2016
Gremlins!
A short novella centering around Rivka & Tatiana, based in Tamarind. Rivka has been delivered to her Grandmother, and is getting used to becoming a part of society - whether she wants to or not. She meets Tatiana Garrett at a party, and both of their lives are changed.
A short novella centering around Rivka & Tatiana, based in Tamarind. Rivka has been delivered to her Grandmother, and is getting used to becoming a part of society - whether she wants to or not. She meets Tatiana Garrett at a party, and both of their lives are changed.
December 8, 2015
Another wild adventure into the world of the Clockwork Daggers, this time focused on gremlins and what our heroes will do to save them. Thrilling, fast-paced and pretty dang emotional.
Read
April 28, 2016I enjoy reading Beth Cato's books. Different kind of Fantasy but excellent read.
Read
June 5, 2016It mystifies me how this made it onto the Nebula Awards final ballot. Below average.
January 15, 2020
This should be required reading for everyone. Brilliant story.
I wish it was available to buy in a print version, as I would love to have a physical copy in my library.
I wish it was available to buy in a print version, as I would love to have a physical copy in my library.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews