Blog Tour: Venturess by Betsy Cornwell

Thank you to Rockstar Book Tours for allowing me to participate in the Venturess Blog Tour! I am happy to showcase Venturess by Betsy Cornwell, which is a companion novel to Mechanica. If you are looking for a fairytale retelling of Cinderella merged with steampunk, check out both novels.

Title: Venturess
Author: Betsy Cornwell
Pub. Date: August 1, 2017
Publisher: Clarion Books
Pages: 320
Source/format: ARC from Emma from Miss Print
Formats: Hardcover, eBook
Find it: Amazon, Barnes&Noble, iBooks, TBD, Goodreads

Rating: ☆☆☆☆

Synopsis:

Young inventor Nicolette Lampton is living her own fairy tale happy ending. She's free of her horrible step-family, running a successful business, and is uninterested in marrying the handsome prince, Fin. Instead, she, Fin, and their friend Caro venture to the lush land of Faerie, where they seek to put an end to the bloody war their kingdom is waging. Mechanical armies and dark magic await them as they uncover devastating secrets about the past and fight for a real, lasting happily-ever-after for two troubled countries—and for themselves.

M Y  T H O U G H T S

Nicolette Lampton finally moves away from her stepmother and her stepsisters to open up her own workshop. While everything seems like a happily ever after for Nicolette, everything doesn't seem how it looks. King Corsin is not faring well as his health declines. Fin ends up getting injured while Fitz plots a plan for the people of Esting to fight against the Fey in Faerie. Nicolette ends up embarking on a journey to Faerie with Caro and Fin in order to safe both worlds from rampage and war.

The friendship between Nicolette, Caro and Fin is perfect. They are three peas in a pod. Betsy Cornwell extends Mechanica, which is a retelling of Cinderella, into something more! She transports readers to a magical world of Faerie. However, I wish readers explore the world of Faerie more before the war broke out. Just like Mechanica, Cornwell focuses on the friendship between the trio instead of focusing on romantic relationships. Jules, the mechanical horse, makes an reappearance and readers are introduced to new characters such as Captain Wheelock and Talis, the Fey leader.

Nicolette is a strong woman and doesn't follow the norms. She is independent and doesn't need anyone to help her be who she is. She finds the value of pants while other fashionable ladies would not be caught dead in something so pratical. Two thirds into the novel, readers will run into a plot twist which definitely caught me off guard. Also, Venturess answered my question from Mechanica about what the Ashes are. Readers get a better understanding of the Faerie world even if it's slightly unpleasant.

Venturess is a dazzling story fusing steampunk and fairytales. If you haven't read Mechanica yet, pick it up as soon as you can. Dive into Venturess right after and enjoy the magic!

ALSO BY BETSY CORNWELL

Title: Mechanica
Author: Betsy Cornwell
Pub. Date: August 25, 2015
Publisher: Clarion Books (HMH)
Pages: 320
Formats: Hardcover, eBook
Find it: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Goodreads

Synopsis:

Nicolette’s awful stepsisters call her “Mechanica” to demean her, but the nickname fits: she learned to be an inventor at her mother’s knee. Her mom is gone now, though, and the Steps have turned her into a servant in her own home.

But on her sixteenth birthday, Nicolette discovers a secret workshop in the cellar and begins to dare to imagine a new life for herself. Could the mysterious books and tools hidden there—and the mechanical menagerie, led by a tiny metal horse named Jules—be the key to escaping her dreary existence? With a technological exposition and royal ball on the horizon, the timing might just be perfect for Nicolette to earn her freedom at last.

Gorgeous prose and themes of social justice and family shine in this richly imagined Cinderella retelling about an indomitable inventor who finds her prince . . . but realizes she doesn't want a fairy tale happy ending after all.

ABOUT BETSY CORNWELL


Hi! I'm Betsy Cornwell, an American writer and teacher living in a stove-heated cottage in west Ireland, together with my horse trainer spouse, a small herd of dairy goats, and an increasing number of other animals. I write fiction and nonfiction and blog about Irish folklore, travel, wild food, goats (of course!), homesteading, and growing up.

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GIVEAWAY

3 winners will receive a finished copy of VENTURESS. US Only. Nicole's Novel Reads is not responsible for books lost or damaged in the mail. Good Luck!

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BLOG TOUR SCHEDULE

WEEK ONE

7/24/2017 - Two Chicks on Books - Interview
7/25/2017 - Here's to Happy Endings - Review
7/26/2017 - BookHounds YA - Guest Post
7/27/2017 - The Book Nut - Interview
7/28/2017 - jrsbookreviews - Review

WEEK TWO

7/31/2017 - Nicole's Novel Reads - Review
8/1/2017 - Novel Novice - Guest Post
8/2/2017 - History from a Woman's Perspective - Review
8/3/2017 - YA Book Madness - Interview
8/4/2017 - Sarcasm & Lemons - Review