Cogling is a steampunk/fantasy story about evil Hags that are using their dark magic to kidnap children to work in their factories which they then replace with Coglings to mask their dissappearance. The hags felt like they were wronged by humans so they are dead set on getting revenge and ultimately want to take over the kingdom. A girl named Edna, who's brother, Harrison, was stolen by the hags, sets out on a perilous journey to reclaim her brother and stop the hags once and for all.

 

I thought the premise was unique and I liked the steampunk and fantastical elements that were in the story however I thought the actual writing style did not align appropriately with the content. I went into this book thinking it was a YA book but the writing style itself was very simplistic and really way more appropriate for younger children however some of the content itself was not. It's more geared toward older teens and young adults. So I really just think there needs to be some adjustments so that the writing style and the audience the story is appealing to meshes together. It's a cute story though and with a little polishing I think it has a lot of potential.

 

 

*I received this ARC from the author, Jordan Elizabeth, in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

 

 

 

 

**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**

One of those in-between books. I liked it more than not, but due to my lack of interest in the beginning, procrastination, and the fact that most Netgalley books expire after a couple months, I realized I had two days to read this, which after company came and we played Pinochle all day long, that meant a few hours of staying up in order to finish this. So I was reading a little faster than normal so I could go to bed darnnit. (Daylight Savings is brutal).

At its core, this story is all about family. Edna's brother is stolen away by a hag and replaced with a cogling, and come hell or high water, she's gonna get him back. Enter Ike, who has his own agenda but is willing to help Edna get her brother back. They become a thing, but it was handled fairly well, and was mostly put on the back-burner and the rescue/quash hag takeover took precedence. Which I mightily appreciated.

Also, it must be noted that hags and ogres are not your typical hags and ogres of folklore. These guys are all magical folk who got magic by living on a swamp and then they came back to the city, and whoops, everyone hated them now (because ewwww and magic) and banished them, and then the hags and ogres rebelled and won, and then THEY were rebelled against and quashed, and now some of them are allowed to practice magic to heal the elite, but are mostly scorned, and shocker, some of them would very much like to try for a hostile takeover. The females are the hags and the males are the ogres, and much like the non-magical humans, they can be either good or bad, though of course, with derogatory names like "hag" and "ogre", quite a bit of ill-will has been cultivated against them as a whole.

I guess I liked the overall idea of this book, but it failed a bit in my estimation in the execution. I didn't get a good sense of atmosphere, which with this world and the magic, would have been very nice to have. The world building in general felt rather one-dimensional, and the religion concerning the "Seven Saints" (which were mentioned frequently by both the hags and Edna) was vague at best. Not a bad book by any means, but not great either.

 

I figured out Edna had magic nigh instantly, and was reminded of this fact every couple chapters because "the evil" running through her blood kept being mentioned. This got old pretty quick, and also makes me wonder if we were supposed to immediately know she had magic, or was it supposed to be a surprise?

(spoiler show)

Cogling - Jordan Elizabeth Mierek Cogling by Jordan Elizabeth was graciously given to me in exchange for an honest review. I'll begin by saying that the first thing that attracted me to the book was the cover. I love the color scheme and the graphics, and once I read the story and connected it to the images represented, I liked it even more. Truly beautiful.

The story is, in my opinion, a mix of steampunk and fairy tale. The basic premise is that hags are stealing children to work in their factories and they replace them in the real world with Coglings, which are mechanical versions of the children held together with gears similar to that of a clock. Edna Mather, the main character, realizes this when her brother suddenly falls apart into a mess of gears, onto the floor. She goes to search for him with help from some friends she meets along the way.

The story has several fairy tale elements, including a king, a prince, fantastic creatures such as Hags, Nix, and a dragon, as well as the steampunk elements such as airships and the mechanicals themselves. It was a nice mix and I found myself appreciating the story from both sides. There was a dabbling of romance and a few battles where some blood was spilled. The pacing of the story kept me wondering what was going to happen next so I finished it in just a few hours. Definitely a fun read for anyone who enjoys fantasy. The possibility of another book is definitely an option but it could just as easily be a stand alone. I would surely read another book if it was written to see what happens next for these characters.

Cogling - Jordan Elizabeth Mierek Wow! Let me just catch my breath before I write a review, because this book just took it away! Yes it's THAT good. ;)
Wait for it.....
I loved this amazing adventure of a girl to find and save her brother. When hags took Edna's brother, leaving a Cogling in his place, she went after them. She had to save him, she couldn't fail him. She promised herself she would bring him home. Ike helped her but he had reasons of his own to go after the hags. Hags must be stopped and Edna and Ike planned to do just that. But their journey was full of dangers and many experiences neither of them ever anticipated. Would they reach their destinations unscathed or even return back once they saved Harrison.
It's an awesome story which takes readers into a very well written fantasy you wouldn't want to leave. It's full of adventures, twists and turns which will keep you on your toes. Once I started reading I simply couldn't put it down.

Cogling - Jordan Elizabeth Mierek I received this book from the author for review.

I really enjoyed reading this tale of, magic, mayhem and romance.
The tale centers on Edna who discovers her brother has been replaced with a cogling, panicking at what to do she bumps in to Ike who tells her that Hags are kidnapping children and leaving coglings. While she and Ike set of to save Harrison they discover the hags want to over throw the humans.

This was action from start to finish. Within the first few pages the setting and pace is set, never is there a let down on action, just when one problem ends, another is discovered. Edna and Ike are always on there toes and that's what I liked. Information was given only when needed and never too much. Just enough to create the atmosphere and keep the tale going without dragging it out.

Edna herself was a likeable character, she was unsure of herself to begin with but has the tale progressed she became a strong, independent character. Her unwavering relent to save her brother and make sure he stayed safe made her that more endearing. The romance between her and Ike was so well done, it started of slow and just built steadily through out the whole book, I liked how it was secondary to the main tale.

I would have liked a little more Steampunk influence in this book, the coglings were just perfect, maybe they needed to be in the story more. This book would be great for someone wanting to sample Steampunk, but not wanting the hardcore stuff.

All in all I really enjoyed this book and thank the author for letting me read.