Julia Mary Gibson

When Violet Blake discovers a Native American relic in the woods near her home, she little expects the changes that are about to take place in her own life. The flat copper hand seems to show her glimpses of the past. When a wish she makes while holding the hand comes true, she starts wondering if the hand really is magical -- and when it is taken from her, she is determined to do anything to get it back.

This book has a lot going for it, but it fell short in a few ways, for me. I thought the characterization was a little uneven, and the pacing dragged in the middle of the book. I did like the setting and period that the author chose for this story. All in all, an okay read, but not a great one.… (mer)

I received a copy from Netgalley.

Disappointing. I haven't read a lot of middle grade novels and I'm always looking for new things and this one sounded quite interesting so I put in request, if I got approved, great, if I didn't no big deal. I was approved. Started off interestingly enough, Violet was a mildly ingesting heroine with a clearly smart mind and seemed quite older than her twelve years.

But as the novel progressed I found it rather dull. The story was very slow and centres around Violet finding a mysterious copper hand with magical properties that she takes advantage of. The middle of the book was long winded and dull and while I think as a middle grade book some kids might like the freedom Violet seems to have (her mother has gone with her baby brother and her father barely seems to be around much) other reads, like I did might find it very dull and tedious. The story does pick up in the end when Violet realises some mistakes she's make in regards to the object she found and he she's used it and tries to rectify her actions but it felt like too little too late.

There was some mildly interesting mythology regarding the artefact Violet finds, it was well edited and the writing itself wasn't bad at all, the story was just rather dull. I'd be happy to let younger kids read this. I think it would interesting to see some book reports on what a younger mind thinks.

But personally, just not not for me. Thank you to Tor/Forge and Netgalley for the approval.… (mer)

Set in 1906,a young girl named Violet Blake has been having a hard time. Her mother decided to up and leave, taking Violet’s younger brother with her and not explaining to anyone where she was going or why. Violent eventually stumbles upon a mystical artifact, a copper hand, which she believes holds power and magic. It is something new and exciting and when it is take from her along with all hope that her mother will return, she is faced with what could be both life-changing and dangerous decisions.

This book is a gathering of layers of magic and fantasy with historical realism and overwhelming details of life in 1906 and the struggles for the peoples in that period. I found it to be both a bit overwhelming but also beautiful. This book is being marketed for a young adult audience but I really think that it reads a bit older and that is saying a lot as this is Julia Mary Gibson’s debut novel.

I found the plot to be hurtling forward at times and dragging at others which is why I have not given it a higher rating, but the characters are vibrant and the story overall is a powerful tale. I have seen that some reviewers took the realism and the historical aspects more to heart than the magic and fantastical elements of the story – which is fine. I think that this is one of those books that you can read as a realistic picture with some magic or as purely fantasy. It has a lot more depth than one originally thinks and that is why I enjoyed this book so much.… (mer)

While I understand that the main character, Violet, is twelve years old, the whole story came across as immature.

Perhaps twelve year olds were different in the early 1900's, but Violet acted overly mature in some scenes, then hopelessly childish in others. And the whole 'liar' thing fell flat. She starts the book telling us what a fantastic liar she is, then hardly lies throughout the book. When she does lie, it's even obvious to her how weak and easily broken the lie is. And her friend kept forgiving her lies like they were nothing. It kept making me think "What's the point?", and I couldn't find one.

It struck me as very odd that there were no repercussions for Violet bloodying the nose of the hateful favored Willis. Surely his father or someone in camp would have noticed! I also felt Violet's father must be a bit funny in the head, because he behaved very inconsistently through the course of the story.

There was one major plot error, the 'theft' that the late-plot conflict hinged upon. The keys were found BEFORE the accused was asked to deliver the purse to its owner (Chapter 23). (Which, with the obvious hate-mongering going on, was a foolish thing for our oh-so-wise mentor character to do.) Later in the story (Chapter 25), the keys were said to be found AFTER the accused had the purse in their possession.

Not a bad story overall, just a few too many inconsistencies for me to stay wrapped in the story.… (mer)