Cogheart

I like it

Lily isn’t the polite young lady that society dictates she should be, even the prestigious school she was sent to made no difference, she wasn’t going to change for anyone. So she was glad when she was returned home only not so pleased about the reasoning behind it. Her father’s ship had crashed and he was presumed dead. This is the beginning of our adventure!I have to say, there was a lot of action and adventure in this book, and I totally loved it! There were times when I was sitting here biting my lip, wondering if they were going to make it, or if they had made a big mistake. I loved the little suspense that was created within it. I also loved that twist close to the end, sorry, all the twists close to the end. I only saw it when it was too late, right at the last minute it all clicked into place.Overall I completely and utterly adored this book and I am looking forward to reading the next book as soon as I get my hands on it! While it is aimed at children (I’d suggest about age 9+, it is a chapter book and does have lots of action in it) I still enjoyed it and I will never let age stop me from reading any book I want. You shouldn’t either!

Set in the skies above and the streets running through London, this scintillating story of clockworks, mechanimals, hybrids and humans is the book that will keep kids reading well past bed-times. It has to be hard for a young reader to step away from this fast-paced, perilous plot because as an adult, I found myself hurrying through a chore or four so that I could get back to the search for the oh-so-secret cogheart. Professor John’s airship was attacked and it seems the sole survivor is Malkin, the mechanimal fox that serves as family pet and pseudo-protector. He must get a message to John’s daughter, Lily, but even a creature as clever as he cannot make that journey alone. Slinking and thinking, Malkin has no idea he has been spotted. The teen-aged boy living above Townsend’s Horologist’s was having trouble sleeping and he spied the fox from his window. With a watchful eye, Robert realized the fox was a mechanimal and impulsively sought him out to see if he could be of assistance. He is his da’s apprentice, after all. Robert and Malkin are indeed an unlikely duo, but it is apparent that they must work together to get to Lily, because they are definitely being pursued. Mr. Creepy-Mirror-Eyes Scary-Face (not his real name) and his equally alarming pal are popping up everywhere and it soon becomes obvious that the four share the same goal but for very different reasons. One pair wants to protect Lily and provide comfort, the other is after the Professor’s greatest invention. When we finally meet Lily, and she pulls her little nose out of her beloved penny dreadful, we see a young lady that needs no protecting. But she’s no fool, so she is willing to let Robert and Malkin assist in her quest to obtain the elusive perpetual motion machine and to keep it safe from the heinous hybrids and whoever they are working for. Cogheart could be categorized as an epic action-adventure, but there are also some subtle, yet intriguing, conversations that provided unique points to ponder! I just loved everything about this book , a sheer pleasure 5⭐️ read.

Written by Grace, age 9This book is amazing! There is a mystery but it does get solved at some point in the book.Both children and adults should get to the shop [or order from Amazon!] and buy this book right away!Written by Ava, age 11This book has great description and detail and I like the idea of a mechanical fox. At the beginning, I wondered how her Dad went missing and it made me want to read on. Even though some events are confusing, this is a good book and I would recommend it.

I really enjoyed reading Cogheart, it had everything I wanted and more. Even though its been marketed as a book for younger readers, I think readers of all ages will enjoy this amazing story.The book is set in 1896 Victorian London and is about 13 years old Lily Grantham, whose life is turned upside down after finding out her father has been in an airship accident. Lily is determined to find her father still alive and find the secret invention made by her father, before the people who attacked her father find it. With the help of Robert, the clockmakers son and Malkin her mechanical fox, they have to face against time in this thrilling and gripping adventure.As soon as I read the description for Cogheart I was sold straight away and knew it would be something I would enjoy reading. There is also a lot of hype surrounding this book, which made me want to pick up this book even more and try it out for myself. If you have heard all the hype for Cogheart I can safely say that this book deserves it and more. Cogheart is a masterpiece from start to finish, once you start reading you will get swept away in to the story and you will never want to leave.Lily is a magnificent main character, you have so many sides to her, she is smart, determined, brave, resilient and much, much more. This makes reading about Lily and her adventures so gripping because she is fully developed and is a strong main character to have. Robert is also a good second character in Cogheart. I would of liked him to have a few more scenes in the shop with his father, just to flesh out his character a bit more. But for me the character that steals every scene is Malkin. Throughout the book I was always wanting him to be in every scene because he is such a unusual and brilliant character to have in the story.Peter Bunzl's writing in Cogheart is spot on, it is easily one of the best things about this book. He manages to create a wonderful world of a different Victorian London, but still manages to make it feel like home. I would of loved to live in this world with both humans and mechanic animals living side by side. The world building is really strong in this book and you can easily visualise the places and locations that bring this story to life.If you are looking for a book full of heart, emotion, adventure and mystery then I could not recommend Cogheart enough, because it has all that and more. Everyone needs to believe in the hype for this book because its amazing. I was so happy to find out that there will be a sequel coming out soon called Moonlocket. I cant wait to carry on the adventure and read more of Peter Bunzl's writing. This has to be one of my favourite reads of this year.I rate this book 5/5 stars

Cogheart was recommended to me by a teacher colleague who knew I as reading Clockwork (Philip Pullman) and thought it would link well. I read the blurb and thought it sounded interesting but neither my colleague or the blurb did it justice as it was a sensational read.The characters, from the main ones - Lily and Robert - to the mechanical servants are all believable and likeable and I was utterly engrossed in their journey. The setting, an alternative Victorian-esque era, was familiar and so vividly described that I felt immersed it while being different enough from our own to be captivated by the magic of it.A simply stunning read that I couldn't put down. Peter Bunzl has created a world and a story that are very special indeed.