Book Review :: Puppet, by Pauline C. Harris…

Puppet by Pauline C. Harris
Published by Patchwork Press
on January 1st 1970
Genres: Fairy Tale, Fantasy, Young Adult
Pages: 246
Format: eBook
Source: NetGalley
Goodreads

Penelope never dreamed she’d become a superhuman experiment masquerading as a puppet. She never dreamed everything would be taken from her; even her ability to lie.Nor did she ever dream that she would become something so unreal.

Penelope lives in a world of advanced technology. 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.

Last updated on 6 April 2022

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What is Puppet by Pauline C Harris about?

Puppet is a retelling of the story of Pinocchio. Penelope is a 16-year-old orphan living in a time where technology has advanced so much that marionettes are not longer wooden puppets but rather lifelike robots, able to be controlled to perform superhuman tasks.

When Penelope (Pen) makes a deal with Jed, a scientist, that will get her out of the horrible orphanage she lives in and away from her past, she takes it, not quite knowing what she is getting herself into. Pen’s part of the deal is that she must undergo tests and experiments by Jed so that he can create what the world has never seen before: a living marionette.

With her new marionette abilities – speed, strength, etc – Penelope becomes of great interest to the scientists of the nation and is taken to a multitude of gatherings where her abilities as a living marionette are shown off.

The Administrators, however, are watching her, and are convinced that is a danger to society. Pen suddenly finds herself on the with Jed’s son, and her best friend, James, but they can’t run forever.

Captured by the Administrators and forced into a padded cell, Penelope discovers her role in the bigger picture, one that was kept hidden from her.

Now she doesn’t know who to trust, or who to turn to. All she wants is to be free. To be real.

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My thoughts on Puppet

At only 246 pages, it was a fast read and only took a few hours. I was intrigued by the concept, after reading the description on Net Galley and Goodreads, and for the most part, really enjoyed this retelling of the Pinocchio story.

Penelope as a character was mostly enjoyable, and I did think the book was really well written. I quite enjoyed how Penelope was sort of layered up. First, she’s turned into a living marionette, then this is added, and then that (I won’t say what they are in fear of spoiling something for you).

It made it more difficult for her each time, which made me think that the end was going to be something really hard to achieve, or it would be extremely character-building. But the end, I think, was too easy. It’s difficult to say more without giving anything away.

I did think one or two things were a little predictable, a few things I think weren’t detailed/descriptive enough – I wanted to know more -, and I did feel like I wanted more story in general.

It was very short, but I was really liking the characters and the concepts, so I wanted more. However, I did really enjoy it, and if you’re after a fairytale retelling, give Puppet by Pauline C Harris a go. It’s 3.5 stars from me.

Have you read Puppet by Pauline C Harris? What did you think?

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Thank you to Pauline C. Harris and Patchwork Press for sending me a free copy of this book via Net Galley for an honest review.