Picking up the story a couple of years after the end of the Clockwork Fairy Kingdom. Dale's been resisting the fairies annual attempts to entice him back to work on their wonderful clockwork whilst he and Nora finish school. Nora's found a boyfriend, the perfectly normal Brett. But somehow the ring he offer's her feels 'slippery' and wrong, and Brett's instance it came from grandfather Eli, doesn't help, as Nora was never sure he was fully human.

There are also some byplays with the various fairies attempting different styles of community, but none of these really hold any interest, and aren't well developed. Kosta the dwarf skulks around the edges of the plot, again not really doing much. The action is all centred on Nora, and the wind-shaper. Nora's magic is much stronger than it was, but she's still stifled by the lack of any formal training. Meanwhile the abusive father Chris is back trying to be in the picture, and indeed manages to save the day. I'm not sure what point Cutter is making here, maybe that nobody, not even an abuser, is totally worthless...

Enjoyable, but somewhat short and lacking in details. ( )

I got this book as an Early Reviewer. I suppose it's important to note that I hadn't read the first book of this series.
I originally thought this was going to be a children's book, but as the story progressed it became more YA, because it was pretty dark. I found the plots and storylines really interesting and exciting, and found myself sucked in despite my original hesitance (because I thought it was a children's book and wasn't in the mood), and I couldn't put it down until it was done.
My main problems were that it seemed unfinished and minimally edited. There were a few grammatical errors and typos, which aren't too big of a deal but still kind of off-putting. The biggest problem I had was with Chris. His part was very hard to relate to--not in an "i'm just like that guy" way but in an "okay I get why he said these things" way. Also, his name was dropped in every sentence, which just got annoying--it made me feel like he was one of those people that talks in the 3rd person just to hear their name as often as possible. It was more annoying than it seems...many instances in which the word "he" or "him" or "his" could have been used, when he was the only person being referenced, and yet every other sentence said his name instead.
Lastly, I didn't like the completely unresolved feeling of the ending. I don't know how the last one ended, but if it could pick up 5 years later seeming like everything had originally been tied up, I don't see why this one had to end in the dead center of conflict. I suppose that's just me not liking cliff-hangers.

To end this on a good note, I really did think it was a very good book. I didn't want to like it but I did and I do intend on buying the next book because I need to know what happens next! The characters were complex and interesting, the creatures were exciting, and the fairy kingdoms were beautifully described. ( )

This was the first book that I have read in the Clockwork Fairy Kingdom series and I loved it. Now I have to go back and read the first one. Leah Cutter wrote this book in a way that you can start here and still understand everything that is going on. I love the "evil" fairy concept and I love the steampunk mix. The only problem is that it is a bit short at less than 200 pages and since I couldn't put it down, I finished it fast. ( )

This second volume picks up five years after the events in The Clockwork Fairy Kingdom. I have not had the opportunity to read that, but I will definitely be doing so as soon as possible. Without having read volume one, I was at somewhat of a loss with this book. There are some series that you can pick up in the middle and catch on rather quickly. This is not one of them. It took me the entire book to piece together who the characters were, other than who was a fairy, a dwarf, and a human. It was somewhat difficult to keep track of who the protagonists and antagonists are. Just when I felt like I was starting to get a good grip on the storyline, the book ended. The book ends at a logical place for a break for another installment; however, more development could have been done with the plot that is in this volume. With that being said, I did enjoy the storyline, and will be going back to read book one, and then read this one again. I liked the storyline with the twins, but found the character of Chris to be rather boring. This series is a good introduction to steampunk literature for YA audiences, although it can really be enjoyed by a variety of ages. My only caution would be to not read this one unless you have read book one.

*I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. ( )

From the first couple of paragraphs I remembered why I was so captivated by the first book. I really enjoy how the author has carried this story on from the last book. I really enjoy how I lose myself in Leah Cutter's work. I feel as though I am right there experiencing everything alongside Dale and Nora. I really enjoyed the ending and i am so glad that Nora has found what she has been looking for since she learnt she could do magic. ( )