Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

It’s illegal for 16-year-old tinker’s assistant Kellan DuCuivre to use the metal-carving magic of makecraft on her own, but it’s worth the risk to save her mentor. Kellan, a Black girl, is the descendant of traitors to Nanseau, someone regarded as being among the lowest members of society in the city of Riz. But when she impresses Madame Minora Mesny, a courtier and Master Engineer in makecraft, Kellan’s life is transformed. She accepts Mesny’s offer to become her apprentice and so breaks generations of tradition and law forbidding people of her status from rising up. Orphaned Kellan dreams of finding a cure to help her ailing guardian, Edgar, but the dangers surrounding her unlikely ascent are heightened by a mysterious, encroaching darkness that makes people disappear…or worse. In order to triumph, Kellan must navigate the cruelties of both the darkness and high society. She’ll have to unpack years of trauma carved into the very fabric of her existence. The worldbuilding is strong, with complex connections and a robust history for readers to delve into as they adventure with Kellan and her friends. This steampunk version of New Orleans is recognizable in the quarters that make up Riz and the twists of the bayous beyond the city. The magic gets lost when it’s time to knit the characters and their interactions together, however: Their profiles are distinct but not cohesive, and some of the camaraderie feels forced. A promising debut that lacks unity but showcases mountains of glorious imagination. (map)(Fantasy. 13-18) Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

Orphaned Kellan DuCuivre has just one person in her corner: her mentor, Edgar, whom she helps run a makecraft shop, which she is technically outlawed from working in due to her lower-class status. Despite the legality, her extreme talent at the metal-carving technique that creates magical items from delicate and dangerous runes keeps them afloat. Her ambition dovetails with her desire to help Edgar in a plan to go to the Annual Makers’ Exposition and steal a look at a prototype that will help her create the new hand Edgar desperately needs. There, an irresistible opportunity presents itself: an invitation from her idolized hero to compete for a life-changing apprenticeship. As her skills are put to the ultimate test, friendships are formed and a forbidden romance blossoms, all as she discovers that things aren’t quite adding up. Kellan, a talented, determined Black heroine, takes on a steampunk, New Orleans–-inspired city that goes topsy-turvy in madly riveting ways. A spectacular, mechanical fantasy that is expansive and immersive, Crittenden’s debut combines traditional cultural elements of the African diaspora with contemporary--feeling teens.

Publishers Weekly
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Orphaned and descended from a disgraced family, 16-year-old Kellan, who lives on the isle of Nanseau, is not allowed to practice makecraft, the magical art of metal-carving. But under the secret tutelage of her guardian Edgar, Kellan learns to wield her powerful skill. Following a visit to a maker’s expo where Kellan hopes to find a prototype to replace Edgar’s severed hand, she’s scouted by Master Engineer Madame Minora Mesny. Mesny takes Kellan under her wing to train for a competition against wealthy young apprentices for a chance to become a member of the Guild of Engineers. Kellan hopes to win the competition not only to make Mesny proud but to procure resources to help Edgar’s worsening condition. When the island begins experiencing threatening blackouts, however, she realizes that there might be more at stake, and soon, she’s not just fighting for Edgar but for the survival of her world. Kellan’s struggle to build confidence in herself—which she navigates alongside a budding romance with a Guild architect—drives Crittenden’s glimmering debut forward, resulting in a high-stakes story of friendship and the widespread effects of classism. Ages 13–up. (Oct.)