The Clockwork Crow (The Clockwork Crow, #1) by Catherine Fisher

Synopsis (via Goodreads): A magical story of snow and stars by Catherine Fisher. The Clockwork Crow is a mysterious gothic Christmas tale set in a frost-bound Victorian country mansion. When orphaned Seren Rees is given a mysterious package by a strange and frightened man on her way to her new home, she reluctantly takes it with her. But what is in the parcel? Who are the Family who must not be spoken of, and can the Crow help Seren find Tom, before the owner of the parcel finds her? The Clockwork Crow is a gripping Christmas tale of families and belonging set in snowy Wales from a master storyteller.

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I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

I really enjoyed Catherine Fisher's Incarceron when I read it several years ago, although I couldn't tell you anything about it today. Maybe if I re-read the synopsis and it jogged my memory? Regardless, The Clockwork Crow promised to be mysterious and magical, so I couldn't resist reading it with my monster. Unfortunately, the story was too short and the characters sadly underdeveloped. 

I really think The Clockwork Crow has the potential to be an amazing story, however, the book itself was only 179 pages and not very tall (so the pages were short and didn't have very many words on them). I feel like the author should have spent more time developing the world, the people, and the creatures that inhabited it. She introduced a lot of interesting characters, yet we hardly know anything about them by the end of the book.

Initially, the Crow was my favorite character because he's grouchy and short-tempered. He's also a mechanical crow that comes to life, so he had that going for him too. His interactions with Seren were interesting, although I didn't appreciate him calling her stupid, or how easy it was for her to manipulate him. It's obvious he has secrets, but his motives weren't always believable. Why was he firmly against something one minute, and then happy to help the next? Why did he lie about how he was turned into a crow? Also, when he does finally tell Seren the truth, she acts like she's always known despite the author never hinting at her awareness. There were no clues to indicate what he actually was, and we never see Seren mulling over the possibilities.

Additionally, if he used to be a man before he was a crow (whether a prince or something else), him always being in a little girl's room really rubbed me the wrong way. I know the author probably didn't mean anything by it, but it wasn't just a talking crow watching her change clothes and bathe, it was a man in a crow's body. It made everything feel gross.

Seren herself is a mystery, as are the rest of the people in her life. I'm not sure why everyone felt compelled to keep Tomos's disappearance a secret from her, but the revelation wasn't all that surprising. The housekeeper's behavior towards her was harsh as well, especially since any child would want to know why they'd been brought to live in a cold, dark home with no one her age to interact with. Captain Jones being her godfather was barely touched on, and none of the adult interactions were all that believable. 

They, Them, The Family - - they were a constant throughout the book. The humans were scared of them, their bells (something else that wasn't explained or elaborated on), the coldness they would leave in the house, yet Seren had no trouble finding her way to Them. She conveniently finds a diary with pretty specific instructions, and the timing was just oh-so-perfect. Also, the snow globe (which is very important apparently) just happened to be there? She just instinctually knew what to do with it? How? How did she know it would do anything at all? There was nothing in the story that indicated it held any value to Them or their world.

Oh, and their voices? Apparently their singing was supposed to compel humans to stay, but one of the crow's feathers kept Seren from being affected. Why didn't Tomos need one? Why weren't they supposed to look at the faeries? If they were cold, intelligent beings, shouldn't it have been harder for two kids to navigate their way into and out of their world? How did the Crow know the things he did? I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS. 

I'm really disappointed because I feel like The Clockwork Crow could have been so much more than it was. The mystery and intrigue were there, but it was like the author decided to be as vague as possible, while making everything extra convenient for the characters. There was very little struggle on their part, and I hate when a story comes together perfectly. Life is never that easy, so a story shouldn't make breaking into a faerie world look like a piece of cake. I hope the published version of this book has more depth and hard decisions. (★★⋆☆☆)