From my first read Autumn 2016:

There were problems with the plot in places, I think it suffered from “too many cooks/authors” syndrome, in that the author may have taken too much advice from too many people and that it shows? I don’t know why I think this, it’s just an impression I have.

However, most importantly this is a rollicking good story! I enjoyed it immensely, an almost magical clockwork pet octopus, foreseeing the probable future, clockwork bombs, is he a villain or a hero and if so can we be friends or more than friends? watches that find their owners again when they get lost – together all these elements make a really good enjoyable story.

That after all, in my opinion, is the primary purpose of fiction.

Thoughts on my second read early Summer 2020:

Once more on reading this I loved the elements of the story, I am once more charmed by Mori's remembering and forgetting of past events, clockwork pets, and the strange mix of magical realism and steampunk throughout the novel. However, there is definitely something wrong with the narrative flow. If this was one of Mori's watched it would have all of the pretty jewels but the clockwork would be misaligned.