The Puppetmaster's Apprentice

Starred review from August 31, 2020
DeSelm’s fantastical debut, an elegantly styled, gender-swapped retelling of “Pinocchio,” transports readers into a wood in which magic’s price must always be paid. Seven years before the story’s beginning, Pirouette was created under a blue moon, conjured of wood, forbidden magic, and her puppet master father’s wish for companionship. Now appearing to be 18 years old, she has become her father’s apprentice, lovingly carving marionettes to sell and to perform with, her origins a secret only she and her father know. Piro’s also a member of the town’s Maker’s Guild, a group of artisans and apprentices that are friends and chosen family. As she and her father rush to complete a large order of life-size wooden soldiers for the Margrave, their territory’s ruler, her father’s health deteriorates, and Piro must complete his work or suffer dire consequences. In addition to intricate details and nuanced characters and relationships, DeSelm aptly seeds the plot with a wealth of themes, among them the cycle of life and death, the unease of loneliness, and the necessity of reliance on others. Ages 14–up. Agent: Laura Crockett, TriadaUS Literary.