I love reading and like to keep an open mind about books I pick up. This book was some of those that intrigued me when I read the synopsis. I really liked the idea of a witch who could manipulate mechanical things. The story is well written and it’s easy to imagine the world where magic can help with technology. I connected with the main character in terms of not feeling like one belongs even when she always had. I totally got the trials for the new witches, it’s something I’ve read in books before. The ending of the book saddened me to find out that those who failed the trials were killed. Seemed a bit too much but maybe there’s something I missed that will be revealed in the next book.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Betsy Melanohttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngBetsy Melano2022-02-22 15:48:222022-02-22 17:56:39The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Betsy Melano
Hmm… where to begin. The Clockwork Witch was better than expected. I struggled at the beginning, it started off slow. So listen to me when I say don’t give up if you feel the same way. It’s worth touching it out. Arabella, the 7th daughter of Minerva who is the 7th daughter was thought to be the one who filled the prophecy that would change the way the witches in this story exist. Unfortunately though Arabella seems to be a dud. No magical powers. She’s a fascinating character to watch develop as the story goes on. At the same time you feel for her. She’s an outcast to her mother by lacking magical ability, an outcast to her father because she’s not a son. A sister that’s looked down upon by all in exception to Rowena. Her life is not easy and it makes her a target. One night she’s fascinated by machinery and the light she sees flying through it. Come to find out that could lead to her having magic after all. Unfortunately not a type of magic that’s accepted. It’s all about how she navigates her situation. Does it help her? Does it make her more vulnerable? Again when I say read it, even if you’re like me and think it’s starting slow. Push through it won’t disappoint. I’m now looking forward to book 2, when I wasn’t at 1st. The author turned me around!
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Beverly Place-Finniehttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngBeverly Place-Finnie2022-02-16 07:16:112022-02-16 07:16:11The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1)by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Beverly Finnie
I tried to love this book. It had so much potential but it never fully came to the point where I just loved it. I will say based on the world building aspect and the deep internal battles I will give it a solid 3 out of 5 stars.
As I was reading this book, I experienced a whole rainbow of emotions. The MC mother and older sisters angered me at their treatment of Arabella just because she failed at being magical which she had no control over. The relationship between her and her mother was one of extreme abuse and very degrading which led me to feel sadness for the MC.
I look forward to reading the second book in this series to see if we find answers to some of the questions left at the end of this book.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Lyndsay Witheyhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngLyndsay Withey2022-02-16 07:15:272022-02-16 07:15:27The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Lyndsay Withey
I was immediately engrossed in this book. The pace was steady and entertaining from start to end. I finished it in one day. What a fascinating story about magic, witches, and the struggles that they face from those that don’t understand them to their own. This is my first book from this author but I plan on reading others. Her style of writing is easy to read and very imaginative. If you’re on the fence about the book, take a leap of faith and read it. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Amber Howardhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngAmber Howard2022-02-16 07:14:532022-02-16 07:14:53The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Amber Poole
Arabella is the 7th daughter of the most powerful witch in the UK. So because of this, everyone was expecting her to be a powerful witch as well. As it turns out, Arabella has shown no signs of any kind of powers.
Arabella and her family attended an event where they were introduced to a big machine that can do calculations on its own. As soon as Arabella sees this machine, her magic kicks in. She sees magic in the machines.
Usually magic and technology do not mix but somehow Arabella can make it work.
This book hit all of the witch tropes with a splash of historical steampunk. The author took two popular topics and mashed them together. There were too many tropes. It was like the author purposely tried to hit them all right down to the names. The concept was great on it’s own so all the tropes were kind of overkill.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Santana Hickshttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngSantana Hicks2022-02-16 07:11:542022-02-16 07:11:54The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Santana Hicks
This was an enjoyable and engaging read which kept me happily turning the pages eager to be immersed in the story. Arabella is the seventh daughter of a seventh daughter, in a long line of gifted witches, but who has no magical talent herself. Even her disappointed family refer to her as a ‘brown bud’. Arabella then discovers an affinity for technomancy and her ability not only opens up the mechanical world’s mysteries but she can also manipulate them. Arabella is the first ever clockwork witch which is seen as unnatural in the witching world. As Arabella tries to get to grips with her new power she also has to deal with her family and peers judgement. To complicate her life further she then learns about ‘The Trials’, which she may or may not survive. The detailed world building along with the descriptive narrative brought the setting vividly alive for me, making me feel immersed in the story. I loved the main character, Arabella and found her a likeable and relatable heroine and enjoyed following her adventures as she came into her powers. The storyline was exciting and the plot had me hooked from start to finish.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Jennifer Gordonhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngJennifer Gordon2022-02-15 16:45:542022-02-15 18:02:12The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Jennifer Gordon
Arabella Sortilege is a young witch who lives in Victorian England, she is the youngest of a large family, a seventh daughter of a seventh daughter to be exact but she is the only one out of all her female relatives who has not shown an ounce of magical talent. She is known as a “brown bud” and she is a disappointment to those around her, leading to her being shunned because of it, her family make her complete the mundane tasks so that they don’t have to get their hands dirty and can spend more time practicing their art and interact with her as little as possible, all apart from one who is her best friend and the closest in age as well.
One day, the Sortilege family are invited to an event where an invention is unveiled and Arabella is fascinated with it, especially when she can see it all shining with an inner glow, all apart from an area in the centre, when she asks her sister about it, she finds out that it is magic she can sense, but not in any way which would be classed as normal, her sister advises her to stay quiet about what she has seen until they return home.
As the days go on, Arabella begins to notice that she can see other aspects of technology shining like magic, however, this leads to trouble and Arabella begins to feel like she finally understands what her sisters feel, apart from it is with an element, which is not natural. As events continue, Arabella’s secret comes out and she is even more trouble than before, she now has to face the judgement of those around her and the Trials which every young witch has to go through, to enable her to declare her Technomancy and the fact that she both understands and can manipulate machinery.
Will Arabella be able to stay out of harms way long enough to pass the Trials and be finally accepted into the family and develop her talents, or will the danger she faces stop her in her tracks, or will the judgement she faces be the most severe possible? This is a sci-fi fantasy where magic and technology combine in a coming of age tale of one young witch finding her place within a world where the rules are absolute and anything outside of them is considered an abomination.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2022-02-15 16:04:512022-02-15 17:59:21A Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
A great story with lots of conflict and high emotion. Arabella has grown up in the shadow of her powerful mother and 6 talented older sisters. Having displayed no witchy talents, she is an embarrassment to her mother, and basically ignored by most of her sisters. When her talents appear after everyone had given up hope, Arabella is bewildered and very curious. But, as her world functions around Technology vs. Witches, neither side respects her talent nor wants her anywhere near them. Arabella must find a way to develop her new powers without much support, and navigate those in the witchy world who think she is an abomination and call for her death.
Arabella is a loveable character, full of curiousity, and possessing humility and strength. As she learns who her allies are, and becomes more powerful at wielding her power, her confidence grows and limitations are exceeded. The friendship between she and her sister, Rowena, is a source of strength for her, and she finds love and support from her estranged brother as well. The ending of the story is exciting and made me want to start book 2 immediately!
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Erica Shoebridgehttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngErica Shoebridge2022-02-15 11:18:232022-02-15 17:43:45The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Erica Shoebridge
I thoroughly enjoyed this novel, and the way the author has woven the idea of magic and technology together to enhance witches around the world abilities. Arabella has a harder time proving herself to her Mother, who is the Grand Dame, than those of mundane society. I felt a connection to her, as the main character, as in my mind, she is the black sheep of her family, and really, of witches all together. She wants to make everyone proud, and happy to call her daughter, sister, friend, and will do everything to see to it that that is the case. It can feel a little long-winded at times, though.
The way the author wove new ideas with old ideas was brilliant, and the way she built up the characters throughout the novel was well done. I found that just when I felt a character was starting to lack sustenance, more information came to light, and the reader is pulled right back into this historical treat. You have some thoughts by the end of it that lead you to believe you’re in for another enjoyable adventure next time round too, which is nice. Truly a fun read, I held my breath on more than one occasion, and I look forward to reading the next installment. Well done!
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00AimstoReadhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngAimstoRead2022-02-15 07:40:392022-02-15 07:40:39The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Amy Brennan
I really enjoyed the world building and descriptions in this book. The idea of blending magic and technology is a new approach, and the theory of it is very interesting.
Where I had issues was the bullying and snarkiness in this book. Whether it be towards witches, sisters, daughters, neighbors, etc, there was a lot of nastiness towards people in this book. That treatment also led to Arabella being meek and immature, which would realistically be how an abused person could be…but it was to the point that it sometimes it was distracting from an otherwise very intriguing storyline and beautiful descriptions.
Overall, I really enjoyed the story and think it is a wonderful idea to blend magic and technology. The descriptions of how Arabella saw magic and that that is how other witches see it made it easy to picture in my head, exactly how the author envisioned it in their writing. I’ll follow future additions to this series!
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Shea Gilkersonhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngShea Gilkerson2022-02-15 07:38:472022-02-15 07:40:22The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Shea Gilkerson
I absolutely loved the plot of this book. The idea that the author had for this was amazing HOWEVER,I don’t think it came together in a good way. I felt very disconnected with the characters but I loved the power. I have always been addicted to witchcraft and this was very original. The plot of a young witch coming into her power after being destined to stay mortal. Luckily the female main character is the first of her kind and that was very intriguing. This story started out slow for me but it is a quick and easy read. Not a huge fan of the book overall but it does have amazing points. I need to read more from this author to recommend in the future. I liked this book, I did expect to love it.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Corine Lombardihttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngCorine Lombardi2022-02-14 07:24:542022-02-14 07:24:54The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Corine Lombardi-Quiles
I love reading and like to keep an open mind about books I pick up. This book was some of those that intrigued me when I read the synopsis. I really liked the idea of a witch who could manipulate mechanical things. The story is well written and it’s easy to imagine the world where magic can help with technology. I connected with the main character in terms of not feeling like one belongs even when she always had. I totally got the trials for the new witches, it’s something I’ve read in books before. The ending of the book saddened me to find out that those who failed the trials were killed. Seemed a bit too much but maybe there’s something I missed that will be revealed in the next book.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Betsy Melanohttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngBetsy Melano2022-02-13 21:19:272022-02-13 21:19:27The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Betsy Melano
This was an interesting book. Kick-ass women, like Arabella, in the form of witches in a power struggle over who gets to be in the society of witches. If you’re not, you are dead, that is all. Now, I can’t tell you much, you’re going to have to read it. The characters are very relatable. Many sisters to annoy you, who can’t relate? An older brother to help keep an eye on things. The plot has a couple of choppy spots. It’s a quick weekend read that will make you smile and maybe even giggle. I recommend this.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Shelly Kittellhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngShelly Kittell2022-02-12 07:59:072022-02-12 07:59:07The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Shelly Kittell
The Clockwork Witch is the first book in The Clockwork Chronicles series. I enjoyed the Steampunk fantasy setting with the main character, Arabella, discovering that she does not have any typical witchcraft power but instead the power of technomancy. The book is written for a YA audience, but adults can enjoy it. The story is good, and I liked the concept. I enjoyed this book and am curious about where the story will go in the second book in the series.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Sheri Schraderhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngSheri Schrader2022-02-12 07:52:252022-02-12 07:52:25The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Sheri Schrader
The Clockwork Witch is the first book in The Clockwork Chronicles series. I enjoyed the Steampunk fantasy setting with the main character, Arabella, discovering that she does not have any typical witchcraft power but instead the power of technomancy. The book is written for a YA audience, but adults can enjoy it. The story is good, and I liked the concept. I enjoyed this book and am curious about where the story will go in the second book in the series.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Sheri Schraderhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngSheri Schrader2022-02-12 07:52:092022-02-12 07:52:09The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Sheri Schrader
Welcome to Victorian England. Delve into the paranormal. There are witches, and family dynamics. There are societal groups run by women, and matriarchal family patterns. The emergence of technology as we know it begins to collide with the magical world. Is there a way for magic and science to work together?
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Alison Risherhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngAlison Risher2022-02-05 14:10:342022-02-05 14:10:34The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Alison Risher
I initially started reading this book as I was intrigued by the plot of magic mixed with science. It felt a little different to a lot of books within this genre that I have read lately. The Book wasn’t at all what I expected. It had a much darker feel than I thought I would so, although that just added to the intrigue of the book. Surprisingly I didn’t really click with the main character however there were enough other things going on in the book that instill found it enjoyable. I thought this was a good start to a new series and it left me wondering what was to come in Book 2.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Kerry Bakerhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngKerry Baker2022-02-05 07:27:102022-02-05 07:27:10The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Kerry Baker
In all honest I wanted to love this book. The premises is brilliant and I was looking forward reading it. I unfortunately couldn’t find connect with the characters and they had little substance to them. I will say the authors descrptive style was canny but would be better with a bit more embraliahment.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Piperhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngPiper2022-02-03 07:47:452022-02-03 07:47:45The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Piper Foster
I love all things having to do with witches and magical beings so I was absolutely excited to give this book a try. This book lived up to all expectations having read it in two days or mostly nights. I do not recommend reading this late because you will definitely get sucked in and may find yourself losing sleep over having to find out what happens next.
We start out meeting Arabella the seventh daughter of a seventh witch who has seemed to do nothing except embarrassing her extremely gifted witching bloodline. Called a brown bud for lack of revealing any magical talent or affinity whatsoever it seems the heard prophecy may not be about Arabella at all. This all changes when for the first time Arabella is around working machinery and she sees the glow which is the tell tale sign of magical ability. As she now must prove to her family what she can do with her technomancy power and now her future seems more uncertain than before. Will the council acknowledge this new magical power or will it result in Arabella’s death if she cannot manifest other normal abilities?
This book is a force to be reckoned with and unfortunately my good nights sleep was the loser. From the world Ms. Sonnier builds to the characters she describes and their interactions are phenomenal. This is an amazing book written by an amazing author and I for one can not wait to read the second book in this series!
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Vanessa Wattshttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngVanessa Watts2022-02-03 07:28:432022-02-03 07:28:43The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Vanessa Watts
The Clockwork Witch is the first instalment in The Clockwork Chronicles series by Michelle D. Sonnier. This is my first read from this author, so I was intrigued by what the story would be like. It turned out to be a fun read- a young adult story with sci-fi elements, all wrapped up in steampunk/gaslight fantasy. This was such an original and creative story with magic, witches, wonderful world building, prophecy, threats, danger, and some illustrations sprinkled through to highlight the story. Arabella is a great character, a witch with technomancy magic- which makes her a bit of an outcast in the witching world. But with her ability to manipulate all things mechanical, a prophecy, and a little danger, things are about to get interesting. A great start to this imaginative series… looking forward to seeing what comes next. Happy Reading!
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Angela Hayeshttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngAngela Hayes2022-02-02 07:50:412022-02-02 07:50:41The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book #1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by Angela Hayes
Quite an interesting read! This may have been my first historical mixed with magic read. I really enjoyed the book and the authors perspectives. There was a perfect balance of happy, peril, mystery, and definitely had me turning the pages quickly! The plot flowed nicely and didn’t give me the start, stop, start feeling! Was grateful for the lack of cliffhanger. I was overall just impressed and intrigued with the author’s writing style and look forward to finding more from her!
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00April McCoyhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngApril McCoy2022-02-02 07:28:172022-02-02 07:28:17The Clockwork Witch (The Clockwork Chronicles Book 1) by Michelle D. Sonnier – Review by April McCoy
We may request cookies to be set on your device. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website.
Click on the different category headings to find out more. You can also change some of your preferences. Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer.
Essential Website Cookies
These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with services available through our website and to use some of its features.
Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refuseing them will have impact how our site functions. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. But this will always prompt you to accept/refuse cookies when revisiting our site.
We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain.
We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. You can check these in your browser security settings.
Google Analytics Cookies
These cookies collect information that is used either in aggregate form to help us understand how our website is being used or how effective our marketing campaigns are, or to help us customize our website and application for you in order to enhance your experience.
If you do not want that we track your visit to our site you can disable tracking in your browser here:
Other external services
We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. Changes will take effect once you reload the page.
Google Webfont Settings:
Google Map Settings:
Google reCaptcha Settings:
Vimeo and Youtube video embeds:
Other cookies
The following cookies are also needed - You can choose if you want to allow them:
Privacy Policy
You can read about our cookies and privacy settings in detail on our Privacy Policy Page.