Review: The Clockwork Three by Matthew Kirby

Title: The Clockwork Three
Author: Matthew J. Kirby
Series: Stand-alone
Genre: Steampunk (Middle Grade)
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Three ordinary children are brought together by extraordinary events….

Giuseppe is an orphaned street musician from Italy, who was sold by his uncle to work as a slave for an evil padrone in the U.S. But when a mysterious green violin enters his life he begins to imagine a life of freedom.

Hannah is a soft-hearted, strong-willed girl from the tenements, who supports her family as a hotel maid when tragedy strikes and her father can no longer work. She learns about a hidden treasure, which she knows will save her family–if she can find it.

And Frederick, the talented and intense clockmaker’s apprentice, seeks to learn the truth about his mother while trying to forget the nightmares of the orphanage where she left him. He is determined to build an automaton and enter the clockmakers’ guild–if only he can create a working head.

Together, the three discover they have phenomenal power when they team up as friends, and that they can overcome even the darkest of fears.

It took about 100 pages for me to get into the book.  I enjoyed the characters and the story, but it started out a little slow.  In the end, though, I was really rooting for the characters as they overcame their obstacles.  The story doesn’t work out exactly how each of them plan, which is something I liked a lot.  Even though there are fantasy elements woven into the story, it felt and ended very realistically.

I’m excited to read more books by Matthew Kirby as he continues to write.  If they’re as good as this debut, then I know I won’t be disappointed.