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lazygal's review against another edition
3.0
Another first-in-a-series, and pretty good about setting up the place/characters. Problem is, it's also pretty predictable. I'll have to get a few second opinions from my students before I decide to buy this one.
kellkie's review against another edition
4.0
After Petra's father, Mikal Kronos, has his eyes stolen from the prince of Bohemia, she and her mechanical spider leave their tiny town for Prague, convinced they can retrieve her father's eyes and restore some sense of peace to their family. She is aided along the way by friends with magical abilities and Gypsies -- whom she is originally told to avoid at all costs.
Petra learns that the clock her father built for the prince could easily be used as a weapon, and upon gaining access to the castle, is introduced to several interesting characters that both help and hinder her progress.
The plot moves quickly in this enjoyable story, and I couldn't help but want Astrophil (the spider) for my very own! A love of knowledge, a sprinkle of some real historical events and characters, and some interesting ways to use magic make this story a very fun read!
I'm eager to begin the second book in this series, The Celestial Globe.
Petra learns that the clock her father built for the prince could easily be used as a weapon, and upon gaining access to the castle, is introduced to several interesting characters that both help and hinder her progress.
The plot moves quickly in this enjoyable story, and I couldn't help but want Astrophil (the spider) for my very own! A love of knowledge, a sprinkle of some real historical events and characters, and some interesting ways to use magic make this story a very fun read!
I'm eager to begin the second book in this series, The Celestial Globe.
somewheregirl7's review against another edition
4.0
Petra Kronos is growing up in a world were magic is intertwined with every day life. Her father invents wonderous metalic creatures and has built the world's most magnificent clock for the prince of Bohemia. The Stavros Square Clock is more than beautiful, it can control the weather and thus wreak havoc. When the prince steals her father's eyes, Petra and her pet tin spider, Astrophil, set out on a quest to retrieve the eyes and stop the prince from using the clock to harm others.
Petra's world is at once familiar and strange, mixing historical people and places such as England and John Dee with a system of magical ability that is well thought out and detailed. This is a fun, quick read and the characters are both likable and sympathetic. The dastardly prince is hardly seen at all and most of the book is taken up with Petra's quest to regain her father's eyes. The dialogue is well down, descriptions vivid and well crafted and the pacing is good throughout. Because we see the prince so little he remains largely a caricature of evil, but other books in the series may fix that issue. I'll definitely be reading the next book.
Petra's world is at once familiar and strange, mixing historical people and places such as England and John Dee with a system of magical ability that is well thought out and detailed. This is a fun, quick read and the characters are both likable and sympathetic. The dastardly prince is hardly seen at all and most of the book is taken up with Petra's quest to regain her father's eyes. The dialogue is well down, descriptions vivid and well crafted and the pacing is good throughout. Because we see the prince so little he remains largely a caricature of evil, but other books in the series may fix that issue. I'll definitely be reading the next book.
deerlybeloved's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
The first book in the Kronos Chronicles, and the first book that captivated me as a child and has yet to release its hold. Petra stood as a testament to what I wanted to be, expressing a more traditionally masculine and overtly uncaring way of life and femininity than I ever got, and giving me the positive Roma representation I craved as a child.
The first book is slow, but tense, keeping you interested and wanting more, desperate to see if Petra's plan works out, and how. It throws a gruesome scene at you right off the at in the first chapter, a tortured man with no eyes, thrown to be picked up by his young daughter and his family.
It gives you a low fantasy world, set in 1600s Boehemia, filled with magic, intrigue, talking spiders, and very brave little girls.
The first book is slow, but tense, keeping you interested and wanting more, desperate to see if Petra's plan works out, and how. It throws a gruesome scene at you right off the at in the first chapter, a tortured man with no eyes, thrown to be picked up by his young daughter and his family.
It gives you a low fantasy world, set in 1600s Boehemia, filled with magic, intrigue, talking spiders, and very brave little girls.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Sexism, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
The book does touch briefly on Petra being neglected, not that she realized that's what it is. Her father is extremely neglectful of Petra being educated or having healthy habits, which she enjoys, but others comment on given that she is a young child. The Romani racial slur, "gypsy", is also used frequently, though characters are chastised for using it as it is considered a slur. Romani racism is also talked about and shown frequently, given the time period, and one of the main characters being Romani. Torture and violence are discussed, as well.daisycakesco's review against another edition
4.0
I very much enjoyed this, although I will admit it took me a few chapters to get hooked. It wasn't until Petra was in Prague that I really was hooked. A unique fairy-tale-ish story, with interesting characters (a woman who's skin seeps acid when she's really angry or sad!) and an adventurous plot.
tmdavis's review against another edition
5.0
Another Cybil finalist. This one was excellent. Even though it is the first in a series it doesn't end with a cliffhanger ending--the book is a self-contained story (which is a plus for me, since I have trouble remembering things from book to book if I don't read them back to back).
Mikal Kronos is commissioned to make a clock for Prince Rodolfo of Bohemia because Mikal has a special talent with metals--he can move them with his mind. When he finishes the clock, the prince decides that he wants Mikal's eyes. So he has Mikal's eyes gouged out and enspelled so that he can wear them (which means that he also had his own eyes gouged out, voluntarily, and enspelled so that he can wear them too). When the prince's men bring Mikal back home, Petra, his 12 year old daughter is horrified at his condition. Eventually, she decides (with the help of her tin spider, Astrophil) to go to the castle and steal her father's eyes back. In doing so, she meets up with a varied cast of characters from the gypsy boy Neel to the dye maker, Iris (who can be very acidic, literally).
I loved this book. The writing was tight and the characters were real and it was exactly the right length coming in at just over 250 pages. I can't wait to see what the author does with her next book. Petra does not know if she has magic or not but her father's payment for making the clock (and the clock, what an interesting concept) was for Petra to be schooled at the Academy where those with magic are taught how to use and control it. The author leaves us with the impression that Petra will have some type of magic but we aren't really sure what it will be--the only inclination we have in the book is that Petra teaches herself to talk to Astrophil using her mind. A++++
Mikal Kronos is commissioned to make a clock for Prince Rodolfo of Bohemia because Mikal has a special talent with metals--he can move them with his mind. When he finishes the clock, the prince decides that he wants Mikal's eyes. So he has Mikal's eyes gouged out and enspelled so that he can wear them (which means that he also had his own eyes gouged out, voluntarily, and enspelled so that he can wear them too). When the prince's men bring Mikal back home, Petra, his 12 year old daughter is horrified at his condition. Eventually, she decides (with the help of her tin spider, Astrophil) to go to the castle and steal her father's eyes back. In doing so, she meets up with a varied cast of characters from the gypsy boy Neel to the dye maker, Iris (who can be very acidic, literally).
I loved this book. The writing was tight and the characters were real and it was exactly the right length coming in at just over 250 pages. I can't wait to see what the author does with her next book. Petra does not know if she has magic or not but her father's payment for making the clock (and the clock, what an interesting concept) was for Petra to be schooled at the Academy where those with magic are taught how to use and control it. The author leaves us with the impression that Petra will have some type of magic but we aren't really sure what it will be--the only inclination we have in the book is that Petra teaches herself to talk to Astrophil using her mind. A++++
abigailbat's review against another edition
3.0
Mikal Kronos has a way with metal. When he creates a beautiful, potentially dangerous, clock for the prince, the prince repays him by stealing his eyes. Daughter Petra is appropriately horrified and promptly sets out for the castle in Prague to retrieve them.
I loved the rich setting and all the magical details, but something about this story didn't click with me. Maybe it's because I knew it was the first in a series. Still, there are great characters here and lots to explore in this new magical world based on Renaissance Czechoslovakia.
This title is on the 2008 Cybils shortlist for middle grade fantasy/sci-fi.
I loved the rich setting and all the magical details, but something about this story didn't click with me. Maybe it's because I knew it was the first in a series. Still, there are great characters here and lots to explore in this new magical world based on Renaissance Czechoslovakia.
This title is on the 2008 Cybils shortlist for middle grade fantasy/sci-fi.
sh543's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25