I accepted a review copy of Child of Etherclaw, by Matty Roberts during it’s book tour with iRead Book Tours. It’s also been featured over on Sadie’s Spotlight. You can hop on over here for an excerpt and/or here for an author interview.
The bonds of family go well beyond blood.
But can those bonds hold when the blood itself carries a devastating secret?
Fenlee’s opal necklace had always radiated a certain warmth since her mother’s death. But now, at sixteen, her world begins to unravel as the stone sparks to life, revealing itself to be an otherworldly artifact of untold power.
Between her mechatronics studies at the academy and scavenging expeditions beneath the sprawling city of New Cascadia, Fenlee and her
adopted brother, Elliot, try to decipher the mysteries of her necklace and its link to events in Fenlee’s past.
But they’re not alone in their search.
Strange undercity dwellers offer cryptic warnings, drones track their movements, and deadly corporate agents lurk in the shadows. When tragedy rips Fenlee’s family apart, she must learn to use the artifact’s power to save those who are deeply precious to her. But nothing can prepare her for the dark truths that she will uncover on that journey…
“Lee,” Elliot mumbled. “I’m not who you think I am.”
What I appreciated most about this book was the myriad of representations. The main character is an amputee (without drama, it’s just her reality), there’s an adoptive family, found family, gender parity in a number of powerful characters, sexual and racial diversity, etc. But the writing is also very good, the cover is eye-catching, and I liked the characters a lot. I really felt the siblings’ love for one another.
I did think that the parental figure (and any apparent affection held toward them) was little more than contrivance, the side characters weren’t fleshed out well, the villain was a little cliched, there was some predictability, and just a few too many plot-convenient occurrences. But all in all, I’d be up for continuing the series.
Other Reviews:
Bluntly Bookish Book Review: Child of Etherclaw
