A Heart for Copper was fun little piece. I wish it were longer, but I like the idea and the interactive nature of the book.

A HEART FOR COPPER is a "choose your own adventure" style book, taking you through the different choices that Copper must make in her life. While this format is somewhat distracting, having to flip back & forth through the book, the story still manages to flow well.

Created by William, Copper is an automaton who is now given the chance for life. But this chance, brought about by Clockwork Magic, is not only dangerous and illegal, it also forces Copper to immediately make choices that will forever change her life. Does she give William the key her her mechanical heart, choosing to stay with him? Or does she go off on her own, keeping the key, to discover who she is as a person. Both bittersweet and questioning, this is not your "Happily Ever After" story, and romance is not guaranteed.

I enjoyed these book, but my one major gripe is one that some people may consider to be a spoiler, though the book will still be enjoyable even knowing this detail. (Spoiler Warning given on posted reviews online so people can skip the spoiler if they want.)

Copper only becomes a "real" flesh & blood girl by giving her heart to William...If she decides to leave William for any reason, she turned back to cloth, metal, and wires. If she decides to keep her heart to herself from the start and continue on her quest to learn who she is, she never becomes flesh & blood... at least not in the storyline we are given. Who knows what would happen in the future...Is it the act of giving your heart that makes you real? Is it giving it to your "owner?" Either way, the idea that Copper only becomes real by giving the key to her heart to someone leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Even with that issue, the stories are still enjoyable and I would be interested in reading more.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

He held out the pendant in the palm of his hand.
"Happy birthday, Copper," he whispered.

A HEART FOR COPPER by Sharon Lynn Fisher is a quick, cute and fun steampunk fairy tale which features an automaton named Copper who comes alive thanks to her brilliantly talented master, William. This is not a normal linear book. In A HEART FOR COPPER, the reader gets to choose their own adventures as the story progresses from an assortment of what-if scenarios. At the end of each chapter, I made a choice and then the story would continue based upon what I'd chosen. I was so fascinated with the different possibilities that I had to go back and run though them all. I am happy to report that it was very easy to manipulate through all the choices. This is Copper's story.

Copper is a doll crafted of cloth, metal and wires who is gifted with a life-giving heart on her birthday by Will. Copper is an astute character with an innocent, questioning nature. She's a bit overwhelmed by the enormity of it all but certainly eager to explore the world.

Will is the mastermind behind Copper. He's in the story at the beginning and, then it's the reader's choice as to whether he remains in Copper's life. Will has always liked to be alone, but not lonely. Copper and Will's faithful canine, Dutch, have been his only friends as he grew up in Starley Manor tinkering with things just like his father. The society in which they live discourages quickening, also known as clockwork magic, and, if discovered, the retribution could be severe.

When all is said and done, the big question is what will Copper do? Will she decide to stay with Will or will she leave him to join a contingent of other automatons in the Clockwork Forest? As Hephaestus, who leads the automated menagerie in the Forest says: "The answer's in the question, child."

Following please find a few of my favorite quotes:

I have a heart-shaped hole. Like an empty bird's next, it rests among marigold-hued ruffles above the topmost hook of my corset.
The hole was not left by something removed, but for something anticipated.
---

He led me outside, and we encountered a monster. A gargantuan oak tree, like the illustrations in Master's fat books of fairy tales. I stepped close to the massive roots and sank in a poof of silken skirts, picking up shiny, capped acorns and rolling them between my fingers. Master had brought me things from outside, of course. I'd seen acorn, but never tree. Rose, but never bush. Feather, but never sparrow.
---

"It was only later I began to think of bringing you to lie. It's forbidden, of course. To breathe life into machines. We've lost the knowledge anyway. Erased along with post-Newtonian physics. But the ancient methods...those cannot be rooted out. Alchemy. Sorcery. Clockwork magic. I thought there might be a way."

I found this to be a well-written, uniquely entertaining tale which brought back memories of reading books like this as a child. Of course, I preferred some paths more than others. But I really enjoyed the choices and corresponding stories. If you, too, enjoyed these types of stories as a child or if you would like to try a choose-your-own-adventure story now, I would highly recommend that you pick up A HEART FOR COPPER!