A Clockwork Fairytale (Fantasy Romance) (Sorcerers of Arco: Book One) [Kindle Edition]

Helen Scott Taylor (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Her lyrical writing and amazing imagination give you characters you'll remember for a long time, along with stories that take you away into a land of magic that dazzles with danger and romance." Sandy M--The Good, The Bad and The Unread A+

"Ms. Taylor is a master storyteller,capturing the smallest details of world building and character development.Turk is a character I will not soon forget, and was balanced skillfully with the unrepentant and willful Melba. A fantastic book that will leave me searching the shelves for more from this gifted author." Virginia--Coffee Time Romance and More

Product Description

Highlights!



• A Victorian-style, historical fantasy world.


• Magical Earth Jinns, Foul Jinns and Silver Serpents.


• Clockwork devices powered by Jinns.


• A lost princess and the handsome young spymaster who finds her.


• First love, coming-of-age story.

Summary

Abandoned as a young child, plucky, seventeen-year-old Melba was raised like a boy to pick pockets and run messages in the poor outer circles of Royal Malverne Isle. But she longs to move up the criminal hierarchy and become a spy. When nineteen-year-old Turk, a spymaster and local folk hero, accepts her pledge to join his gang, she thinks the Great Earth Jinn has heard her prayer. With his exotic, dark southern looks and wealthy lifestyle in the inner circle, Turk fascinates her. Not only is he a famous spy, he also wields earth magic, and he teaches her to raise tiny, playful Jinns from flowers. But Turk is not who he seems. He follows the orders of a higher power and his master has secret plans for Melba, plans that make her a target of the evil Royal Victualler's foul magic, plans that challenge Melba and Turk's beliefs about life and duty, plans that tear them apart, just as they discover what it means to fall in love.

Excerpt

"What's down there?" Melba joined him. She picked up a stray beach pebble and dropped it into the dark hole beneath the metal grating. She listened for a plop but instead heard a strange whistling. Dark smoke streamed up through the metal grid. She stumbled back and would have landed on her backside, but Turk caught her. She hardly had time to right herself before something crashed up through the grating, sending it clattering aside. She and Turk ducked to avoid the flying metal and then he was dragging her back, pulling her close to his body and trying to shield her.

"Keep down." They ran back to the black circular opening of the drain they had come out of and clambered inside. Turk pushed her behind him and she crouched in the darkness, peering around his shoulder. A huge metal thing that looked to be half beast, half humanoid had climbed out of the pit beneath the grating. Its metal body was stained and dented and as it tried to raise itself from four legs to two, the old metal creaked and groaned, joints popping and tearing. The lower section of one of its upper limbs broke off and clattered to the stone floor, rivets tearing out where the joint had rusted.

"Great Earth Jinn," Melba whispered, "what is that thing?"

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Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 475 KB
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
• Language: English
• ASIN: B005JERQDG
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #84,452 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
  • #33 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Fiction > Children's Fiction > Historical Fiction > Europe

More About the Author

Helen Scott Taylor loves reading mythology, fantasy, and anything with a paranormal twist, so it was only natural she should write paranormal and fantasy romance. Her first novel The Magic Knot won the American Title contest, was a Golden Heart® finalist, and was chosen as one of Booklist's top ten romances of 2009. The second book in the series, The Phoenix Charm, was a Top Pick by RT Bookreviews magazine.

Helen resides in Southwest England near Plymouth with her husband, her son, two Shih Tzus, and a cat who rules the household with a velvet paw. With the rocky cliffs of the Atlantic coast to the south and the windswept expanse of Dartmoor to the west, she loves to walk in the countryside while she plots her stories. She believes deep within everyone there's a little magic. For more information visit www.helenscotttaylor.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Helen Scott Taylor is a must read!, September 7, 2011

By 

S. Marlow (Fresno, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Clockwork Fairytale (Fantasy Romance) (Sorcerers of Arco: Book One) (Kindle Edition)

I became a fan of Helen Scott Taylor with her first book, The Magic Knot. Her lyrical writing and amazing imagination give you characters you'll remember for a long time, along with stories that take you away into a land of magic that dazzles with danger and romance. Her new book, A Clockwork Fairytale, is no exception. The fact that it's a young adult book makes it that much more endearing, watching a young love blossom in the face of fear and a hunger never felt before.

Melba is running around the city picking pockets and filching food and whatever else is needed to survive -- all disguised as a boy. She's been in the care of Master Maddox her entire life, never knowing her parents or where she comes from. One night she's in the wrong place at the wrong time, and her life dramatically changes. Opportunity has given her the chance to spy for Master Turk, the best in the business, and she's determined not to waste this moment. Even at 17 she has high aspirations in the spy game, along with a will to get her where she wants to go. This night Turk is her savior, so maybe her luck has already started to change.

Deciding at the last minute to take Mel under his wing, Turk exchanges pledges with the lad and they head toward Mel's new home, one supplied to Turk by the Shining Brotherhood. It's not long, however, before things begin to unravel and Turk discovers he's harboring a girl - who is also the long-lost Princess Melbaline, no longer the abducted child but a young woman now on the cusp of a new life. Knowing his duty is to return Melba to her father, Turk, with the blessing of his master with the Brotherhood, begins to teach her how to be a lady and a princess and also how to bring forth her magic.

Once Melba's gender is no longer an issue and she's no longer a candidate for a spy, she begins to see the world differently - first the luxury of Turk's home and all that comes with it and then Turk himself. Her feelings and emotions are just blossoming and Turk is her knight in shining armor. What she doesn't know yet is who she is. There are those who would still do what it takes to keep her from the palace, so Turk trains her in secrecy. Their attraction grows over the course of the weeks they're together, but Turk knows Melba can never be his. Aside from the fact she's royalty, he's also never told her he's a monk with the Brotherhood.

When she learns what Turk has in store for her, Melba wants none of it, only desiring to stay with Turk. But her father awaits and the day comes when Melba returns home at last. And then the trouble truly begins. While she's known the fear and angst of living from hand to mouth, Melba has never known true fear at the hands of another. Being at the mercy of a man using magic for his own evil gains slowly turns into a nightmare for both Turk and Melba. But love prevails as they work together to right the wrongs that have hung over the royal house for so many years.

In and among this beautiful historical story is Earth magic, the raising of Jinns, a type of earth spirit, that are mostly used for good, but there's also someone who uses them for ill. Turk is thrown into confusion at the attitude of his master toward his need and want of Melba. Melba is just as confused as to why Turk would rather give her away to duty than stay with her. They take to the rooftops and the underments of the city to race against time and danger. There are inter-related characters who all take on very different personas throughout, quirky to crazy, and they're all quite interesting. Dante the Trash King is one I especially like.

If you've yet to read to Helen Scott Taylor's Magic Knot Fairies books, don't bypass the beginning of this new series. Helen Scott Taylor will become a favorite of yours too.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A suspenseful fairytale, September 16, 2011

By 

Mona Risk - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Clockwork Fairytale (Fantasy Romance) (Sorcerers of Arco: Book One) (Kindle Edition)

Helen Scott-Taylor weaves suspense, magic, and emotion in a lovely fairytale with endearing characters. Melba is an intrepid down-to-earth urchin, who turns into a lovely young woman, and later into an inexperienced yet noble princess. Turk, the charming spymaster who can't resist her appeal, is trying to discover his past, assess his present and choose his future. The evil Royal Victualler, Vittorio, with his foul magic, the mysterious Gregorio, Shining Brotherhood's Primate, and the plain-spoken Gwinnie, are some of the colorful secondary characters that make the little world of Malvern Isle come alive. Taylor's inimitable style will have you smile, laugh, cry and bite your nails, as you turn the pages to reach the end of this unique story.
By Mona Risk, award-winning author of Osiris' Missing Part

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I Liked It!, September 1, 2011

By 

Katherine Davies - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Clockwork Fairytale (Fantasy Romance) (Sorcerers of Arco: Book One) (Kindle Edition)

This was a bit different to Helen Scott Taylor's Magic Knot series, but the world building and characters were just as good and I enjoyed it. It is a historical style fantasy world with a Victorian feel with an interesting type of magic connected to the Earth and raising Jinns, sort of Earth spirits that can drive metal devices. It's a bit like steampunk but driven by Jinns. I loved Melba and Turk and really wanted them to get together. This is obviously the start of a series and I can't wait for the next one. I hope Dante the Trash King has a big part in the next book. He was an interesting and quite unusual character. If you like fantasy and magic with romance you'll like this.