The Puppetmaster’s Apprentice

Pirouette is a wooden puppet made alive through her father’s forbidden magic. An evil ruler compels her to make an army of marionettes. Elsewhere, Tavia’s ruler, the Margrave, orders dozens of life-sized puppet soldiers for Wolfspire Hall after admiring the puppetmaster and apprentice’s work. The story places a living puppet and magical creation under the authority of a ruler who wants an army, combining fantasy, coercion, and resistance to power.