Sometimes the good things in life aren’t free in any sense of the word. Sacrifices must be made, choices must be followed, rules must be respected, and strings are usually attached to every decision you make. This is especially true for Penelope in Puppet, by Pauline C. Harris. Penelope is not a simple girl with a great life. She grew up in an orphanage, and because of bad choices she made for herself, she finds herself glued to that orphanage way past her 18th birthday. So when she sees Jed, a crazy genius scientist, and his son, James, walk into the orphanage, she puts on the best smile she can muster. After a few moments with them, her fake smile turns into one more genuine, and from that moment she is attached to this newfound family.
Unfortunately for Penelope, this amazing duo did not come to the orphanage to find a daughter, but a young girl to voluntarily participate in Jed’s new experiments to create super-humans. Jed calls it his living Marionettes experiment. Penelope agrees to this experiment to save herself from the punishment she’s going to have to endure at the orphanage. It isn’t until Jed starts testing on her that she starts to grow hesitant. She tried to overcome her fears, but in the midst of becoming this perfect super-human, she falters and endangers the people around her she has grown to love.
She starts to develop a plot that will help her escape and offer freedom to her and her new family. Sadly, things start to get complicated when the people she trusted the most turn out to be some of the puppeteers themselves. With nobody to trust, nowhere to run, and no choice in the matter, she is left with no strength. Penelope is a super-human, a living Marionette that is tied down by the strings she has been bound in.
This was a fascinating novel that reflected a different type of robot world domination, and for that I give it credit for creativity, but this novel also lacks in various aspects of the story. The lack of richness in the story is underwhelming. It starts off great, the characters are charismatic and interesting, but halfway through the novel everything starts to mesh. The scenes start to unfold simultaneously and characters start to have multiple personalities. I really did enjoy this story, but I wish it had more substance to really transport me into the world Pauline has imagined.
Rating: 6/10
Pub: October 24, 2014
Source: NetGalley
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