The Puppetmaster’s Apprentice

Pinocchio meets Frankenstein in this dark fairy tale retelling where a young girl is commissioned to build an assassin for a dark-hearted tyrant.

Impressed by the work of the puppetmaster and his apprentice, Tavia’s ruler, The Margrave, has ordered dozens of life-size marionette soldiers to be sent to Wolfspire Hall. When the orders for more soldiers come in with increasingly urgent deadlines, the puppetmaster’s health suffers and Pirouette, his daughter and protégé, is left to build in his stead. But there is something far more twisted brewing at Wolfspire—the Margrave’s son wants Pirouette to create an assassin. And he wants her to give it life.

With Tavia teetering on the brink of war and her father dying in the dungeons, Pirouette has no choice but to accept. Racing against the rise of the next blue moon—the magic that will bring her creations to life—she can't help but wonder, is she making a masterpiece...or a monster?

Content Tags:

Perfect for readers who want:

• Pinocchio retelling, but darker
• Dark fairy tale retellings
• Strong found family vibes
• Sweet friends-to-lovers romance
• Beautiful writing that feels like a fairy tale

Many thanks to Page Street Kids and Turn the Page Tours for a copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I’ve got to say, right upfront, that I never thought I needed a Pinocchio retelling. Honestly, it’s never really been a story that stood out to me or that I much cared about. But oh my gosh, how wrong was I?! More random retellings of lesser-written-about stories, please!

The Puppetmaster’s Apprentice is a dark fairy tale retelling of Pinocchio filled with beautiful prose, found family, and self-discovery about what it really means to be “real.”

There was just so much to love about this book that I don’t even know where to start. The characters were a ton of fun. The romance, albeit not the type that’s for me, was sweet, and I can definitely see people loving it (there were even times that caught me and made me go awwww). The only big sticking point I had was that the “plot twist” was so painfully obvious from the very beginning that I was disappointed that no one even had a thought about or suspected anything. That’s such a minor point, though, and it really didn’t impact my enjoyment of the story. If you go in not particularly expecting major surprises and just enjoying the story for what it is, I think this book is fantastic and a must-read for fans of retellings!

Move over Beauty and the Beast retellings; there’s a new story stepping into the spotlight … Pinocchio!

I have to say, I never imagined I’d ever type those words. When I think of retellings, it’s normally the traditionally popular ones like Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast, so it was kind of refreshing seeing something different being retold … and made darker! Because Pinocchio wasn’t dark enough.

DeSalm takes an already known and loved story, twisted it closer to a Grimm’s fairy tale (but not quite as gory, and more appropriate for a younger audience), and adds a ton of depth.

I mean, there’s obviously a lot of soul-searching that can take place when you take an inanimate object and give it life, right? That’s exactly what happens here. Piro knows exactly what she is, and she has to come to grips with not only keeping her secret (since her life and the life of the people she cares about depends on it), but also finding her own place in the world. Where does a puppet-turned-real really fit into human society? And what’s the bar for being a “real” person anyway? I loved the discussions this brought up and the way Piro really has to struggle with who she is and where she fits in the grand scheme of things.

One of Piro’s biggest challenge is how tied she is to her past, when she was just wood and before she was given life.

Of course, she already had life. It was just different. I really enjoyed the way this was done, with her remembering her past to some extent. This comes up in so many really interesting ways, like her ability to speak to the trees and puppets, which was a really nice touch! Of course, this poses its own problems, as she’s torn between two worlds: the world of before and the world she currently inhabits as a person. Plus, there’s also the little annoyance that every time she tells a lie, a splinter pushes out of her, usually causing her to bleed in sometimes inconvenient and hard-to-explain places.

It’s no secret that found family is one of my favorite tropes, and the found family in this is just *chef’s kiss*.

First, the connection between Piro and her father, Gep, is beautiful. Gep is, of course, the one who gives her life, to take the place of the baby he lost, and he sees her as real, as his daughter, and someone he would give anything for. As a parent, this relationship just totally pulls on my heartstrings, especially since I think it’s all too easy to just say Piro is “only” a puppet (even though she’s clearly alive).

More than just her father, though, Piro builds her own little family around the other makers in the town.

I love this dynamic! First, makers are obviously important to any community (even though certain figures seem to forget that … looking at you, Duke). But obviously, makers are important for each other, since their work depends heavily on each other. The way DeSalm writes this is just fabulous! The interactions between the makers is just fun and clearly belies their tight-knit relationship. Plus, they get to scheme together! I can’t say more than that, but so much yes to all of this!

Romance fans, rejoice! The romance in this is so sweet, yet not without its struggles.

I really enjoy the realness of this, even if this sort of romance isn’t really my “thing”. If you’re a romance buff, though, it doesn’t get much sweeter than this friends-to-lovers romance, where the young pair have to come together and figure out what the future holds for them together.

The romance isn’t all roses and sunshine, though, and I think that’s an important point. There are struggles and uncertainties and bumps in the road that threaten to derail the couple, which adds a thrilling level of realism, rather than making it too easy.

This book does not shy away from the darker side of fairy tales, but without being too gruesome about it.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Grimm’s fairy tales, but there are definitely moments in it that give me pause. The nice think about The Puppetmaster’s Apprentice is the way that it summons the same feel and atmosphere of Grimm’s fairy tales without those moments that might make those with weaker stomachs (like me) a little queasy.

There will be deaths and murder and underhandedness galore … but all offscreen, so you get to enjoy all the fun aftermath without having to get your hands … eyes? … dirty!

I like to call this “dark lite,” mostly because it’s really fun to say. Bad things happen, but you don’t get all the nitty-gritty details of it, while still having all the tension and goodness of a dark fairy tale. The Puppetmaster’s Apprentice is wildly accessible for people who are on both ends of the spectrum, who want something dark but not too dark. It falls in a cozy little place in the middle, with all the benefits of both.

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