Clockwork Angel

This was the only Cassandra Clare series I really wanted to read. I had a lot of fun with the 1800s, steampunk vibes of this book. I usually don't care for love triangles, but the one portrayed in this book gave me heart-eyes. Clare's writing is a little juvenile and I do get some Harry Potter vibes in some scenes, but it was overall a fun book to read.

I was so surprised by this book. Before I even started Clockwork Angel I was expecting it to be a mere three stars. It's a paranormal YA, and I knew there was going to be a love triangle and I had read so much mediocre books that followed this same pattern that I thought Cassandra Clare's Infernal Devices was going to fall right into it as well but you know what? I was WRONG, SO WRONG. And I bite my tongue for judging this book before reading it.

As a complete newbie in the realm of Shadowhunters I was fascinated by the world Cassandra Clare had created about them, a world not only filled with nephilim aka Shadow Hunters but vampires, werewolves, warlocks, demons and more. A world where the Shadowhunters are the sort of police who make sure that the downworlders (paranormal folk) keep themselves in line and that the mundane (humans) don't find out about them. Mix that in with the time period and I wouldn't mind literally diving into the pages of Clockwork Angel for a few hours, I'd stay longer but I like my modern comforts.

Another aspect of the book I really enjoyed was the characters and the multiple points of view the story was told from. Tessa is our heroine but she's not the only one we get to hear from and I think hearing from different perspectives kept the pace moving steadily and allowed both the major and minor characters to develop naturally. It also made me really anxious for the upcoming manga adaptation since the story won't be all Tessa all the time because although Tessa is strong willed, kind and an avid reader she's not my favourite character in this book.

Perhaps not a literary masterpiece but if you're looking for something fun to read with a little bit of romance (the love triangle wasn't too heavy in this first book, thankfully) and a good amount of action and likeable characters I say give Clockwork Angel a shot.

I need to part ways with Clare's books I'm afraid. I just can't get into them. I like the idea of the “Shadowhunters” very much, I just can't get behind the way she's doing it.

I don't like her writing style, it makes it impossible for me to get into whatever is going on. I cannot connect to this universe even though I can picture it very well. It's like I'm reading everything from the perspective of a cyborg. It lacks passion. Most likely it's because of the characters. I don't like'em. They either bore me or annoy me.

The premise of Clockwork Angel sounded fantastic, but I saw everything coming from miles away. I guessed who the villain was way before the “Shawdowhunters” were hit in the face with the realization, so there was no suspense.

And this Will Herondale guy, for the life of me, I can't figure out what so great about him. He's a carbon copy of Jace from TMI with different hair and different clothes. And I dislike Jace very much. His sarcasm is overdone, it's not even funny. And this “heart of gold underneath the mask of an asshole” trope is boring the heck out of me. It's been done almost in all the YA books I've read so far. I'm sick of it. And it's not like he's even that smart. In fact all the characters lack the smarts based how the entire plot went down.

Don't even get me started on Clarisa Fray Tessa Gray. She's an idiot. He “sass” is ridiculous. Her mindset if very narrow. No surprise you-know-who betrays her and makes a fool out of her. She relies on other people to feed her information about what's going on. She barely tries to find out what she is. Did I mention she's a special snowflake? Yes, let's utilize another used-to-death trope, shall we? Why does everyone fawn over her really? What's so great about other than her cool, mysterious power? So she read a few books. It doesn't seem like she learned anything from them. She's extremely judgmental and shallow. She comments several times that people with disfigurements or unattractive people should just give up on life because what is the point of living if you don't look like a supermodel or if everyone doesn't want to get in your pants. And the way she lusts (cause let's face it, it all about his perfect face and neckline, his blue eyes and black hair, the way his wet shirt clings on to his perfectly sculpted muscles and whatever bad-boy vibe he's got going on) after Will even though he shows barely any interest, is embarrassing. I don't care that he secretly wants her too. She's got no proof of that and she behaves around him like she's known him her entire life.

As for Jem, what a wasted potential. He could be a great character but he's obviously there just for the purpose of igniting a love triangle. And since he's not as handsome as Will, based on Tessa's description, he's obviously going to lose the battle to Tessa's pants heart. I don't even need to read the entire series to find out.

I'm not even going to bother picking up the next books. I don't care what happens. I don't care about Tessa's origins, nor about Will's mysterious past. And I certainly don't care about the villain's intentions. He's just a caricature. Whatever his plan is I'm sure it's lame.

This book has been on my TBR (to be read) shelf for a while now along with the other two books in The Infernal Devices series, Clockwork Princess and Clockwork Prince. Written by Cassandra Clare and based in her world of Shadowhunters it is a companion to her Mortal Instruments series. The only reason I hadn't already picked this book up is I wasn't sure if it was ‘okay' to read The Infernal Devices books before I'd finished The Mortal Instruments and so I'd been trying and trying to get into the second book of The Mortal Instruments when I saw a great YouTube video that reassured me it's okay to read The Infernal Devices first and that was all the information I needed to have me delve into Clockwork Angel immediately.

I had already read City of Bones, the first in The Mortal Instruments series, and so I had a little background knowledge on Clare's Shadowhunter world but I read it a few years ago now and my knowledge was hazy and so I went into Clockwork Angel hoping that I would be able to glean as much information as I needed to understand the narrative. Also, for me a book with a historical, in the case of this book Victorian, setting really helped me engage with the world more than the modern setting of The Mortal Instruments series. I kept thinking Penny Dreadful, the TV show, when I was reading this and imagining a similar vibe of gothic London in the 1890's and it helped me build the atmosphere in my mind and I found that really helped.

The story begins when Tessa, a young American, travels to London after the death of her aunt to be reunited with her brother. When she gets to London she is taken prisoner by two sisters, known as the Dark Sisters who are trying to train her to use the powers that she has that allow her to physically change into another person. She is told that if she learns to use her powers she is to be married to a powerful man known as ‘The Magister' who is currently holding her brother prisoner and that only her co-operation will guarantee her siblings freedom.

Rescued by a mysterious young boy, Will Herrondale, Tessa is introduced to the world of ‘The Shadowhunters' a group of angelic fighters whose role it is to protect the human world from the dangers of ‘downworlders' which consist of Vampires, Werewolves, Faires and Warlocks. While helping Tessa to try and understand the strange powers she has they begin a quest to find and rescue her brother Nate from the mysterious ‘Magister' and deal with a new threat to The Shadowhunters that may be able to wipe them out forever.

I loved this book. It was dark and gothic and the action within the chapters was non-stop. It has a totally new collection of characters from The Mortal Instruments series except for the Warlock, Magnus Bane, whose name I recognised from reading City of Bones. Tessa is a great lead character, she begins the book with little confidence and much confusion in her abilities but by the end, she's clearly learning to use her strange powers and has grown in maturity. There is also somewhat of a love triangle in this book between Tessa and two young Shadowhunters, Will and Jem. Will is a dark, cocky and enigmatic young man who is confident in his abilities but whose attitude splits the opinions of those around him. On the other hand, we have Jem, Will's best friend and fellow Shadowhunter. Jem is more guarded, more thoughtful and also frailer. He is suffering from a mysterious illness that weakens him but he battles through it to ensure he is there for his friend when he needs him.

I liked the different relationships Tessa has with Jem and Will. With Will it's almost a gentle sparring between them, a teasing relationship but he is her protector and the one she looks to when she feels unsafe. With Jem, Tessa shares more about her inner feelings, how she feels confused by the new world she's learning about and what it means about who her parents were and her new life in London. At the end of this book things are left wide open and clearly are going to be explored in more depth as the series progresses.

I really needed to read this book in order to open a door for me into Cassandra Clare's world. I felt much more connection to the characters in this book than I did to those in City of Bones. I came away from this book desperate to delve into Book 2 in the series, Clockwork Prince. I genuinely have not felt that same calling back to The Mortal Instruments. This doesn't mean however that I do not intend to go back to them. I am using this series as a way to lose myself in the Shadowhunter world so much that I will then go back and reread City of Bones with a fresh perspective and then with my wider knowledge and background to the world move forward from there and after having read Clockwork Angel I'm sure I will do so with more insight and awareness than I did first time around. I am also studiously avoiding the TV series, Shadowhunters, so I do not spoil anything for the books but am saving it till I've finished both series.

I know I am coming to this series very late as much of the book community has already digested them and are already awaiting the second book in Clare's new series The Dark Artifices but I am so glad that now I am finding my way into the series and cannot thank Emmabooks and her channel on YouTube enough for giving me that reassurance that it was okay to pick this up before I read The Mortal Instruments. I had recently been in a bit of a reading slump, not finding anything to really engage me but I've changed up my usual genre's in the past few weeks and it's really re-energised me and given me a boost. Rather than sticking to my normal contemporary or historical adult fiction novels I've found an escape in Young Adult fantasy novels into worlds that really take you away from the normal and it's been really refreshing. Clockwork Angel has been such a joy and a book I would highly recommend if gothic adventures are your thing.

I enjoyed the chance to see the little links between TID and TMI characters, as well as Cassie Clare's usual nailing of dialogue, characterization, and wit. Leaves a little to be desired in the way of clich??s (Jace was stereotypical enough and Will is pretty much Jace 2.0), but that's somewhat typical for her and for the genre.

This review is also featured at Behind the Pages: Clockwork Angel

Clockwork Angel is the prequel to Clare's Shadowhunter novels. Tessa Gray arrives in London expecting to meet her brother Nathan. Instead, a pair of women called the Dark sisters are waiting for her. Under the pretense of being sent by her brother, the sisters take Tessa under their wing. But what waits for Tessa in the Dark sister's house is nothing pleasant. They force her to do things she never thought possible. Tessa enters the dark world that is home to vampires, demons, warlocks and more. Her only hope lies in the London Shadowhunters. Will and Gem will do all they can to save Tess and her brother, but nothing will prepare them for what's to come.

In this series, there are a lot of Shadowhunter terms used with little explanation. If I didn't have a clear image of the world, I would easily have been lost reading this. The characters also don't have the same type of chemistry as Mortal Instruments. The mood between Tessa, Will, and Jem is icy at best and slowly works its way into something more as the story progresses.

When I first started reading Will's sarcastic comebacks, he felt a lot like Jace in Mortal Instruments. I was worried there would be a repeat characterization, but I was proven wrong. Will is vicious in this first novel. Just when the character started to grow on me, I realized his words were just as sharp as his blades. Both aimed to cut as deeply as they can. That's not to say Cassandra Clare didn't build enough of a backstory to understand it. She certainly gave the reader enough pain and suffering for him to act this way, but it didn't make for a likable character. It certainly paves the way for a redemption arc that I hope to see in book two.

I wanted more of Jem. He was quiet in the first book and pushed into the background of scenes. Often times when Will was on a tirade, I silently wished for Jem to barge in a stop him. The slight mystery that surrounded Jem, didn't really sink in for me with so little page time. The best moments were always when Will and Jem were together. They compliment each other so well. Of course, being Parabatai I'm sure helps.

Despite some hiccups with the characters, I love this world. The battles, the tension, the potential of it all makes me crave more. I want to learn about the history of the Shadowhunters, the before moments for characters I came to know and love in the later series.

JEM ♥



Merged review:

Bueno, este libro me hizo desesperarme la mayor parte del tiempo. Nunca había tenido tanto problema con una protagonista cof cof desde Bella cof cof, hubo momento en que quise dejar el libro por lo pesada que podía llegar a ser. Lo bueno (espero no sea spoiler) es que llega su redención. Pero aún así me dejó un mal sabor.

“Magic is dangerous–but love is more dangerous still.”

Clockwork Angel is the start of the prequel series, Infernal Devices, to Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instrument series. I bought this book eReader wise early this January, and I have to say, it's a definite wonderful read! Clare takes her readers back in time to the Victorian Era, with descriptive writing and conflicts existing in the time of Victorian Era, such as the struggle for the women Shadowhunters to be proper young ladies and women that society demands while balancing the Shadowhunters' need for strong fighters.

The main protagonist, Tessa Gray, travels to London to visit her brother Nathaniel; but as the ship docks, she is kidnapped by two women, also known as the ‘Dark Sisters.' Terrified, confused, and worn out, she is rescued by two Shadowhunters: Will and Jem. They take her to the London Institute, where Tessa learns that her powers are different, otherworldly...and that there is a world within the world, a battle ready to start; and Tessa is in the middle.

In Clockwork Angel, you can see that Cassandra had changed her writing a little bit, to fit in with the mannerisms and beliefs of the Victorian Era. The speech, actions...everything is more refined. But even so, Cassandra managed to sneak in some dark humor and action scenes. And of course, the hazy, mysterious background of Will and Jem - which are bound to become bigger issues in the Clockwork Prince, the sequel to Clockwork Angel - that keeps readers entranced and entertained.

When I first picked up this book however, I was a bit skeptical. I generally have an aversion to reading books set in a different period of time from the original series, because I've already developed an attachment to the original characters. All I can say is, I definitely loved TID more then TMI. Not only the plot, but also the characters. The characters themselves are engaging, from dark-humoured William Herondale to high-strung Jessamine Lovelace. The interaction between characters, especially Tessa, Will, and Jem. You can't help but feel for all of them, in different ways.

Through this book, you will find spine-racking battles, intriguing mysteries, and a twist at the end, that tells you that the book is only the beginning. This book will certainly leave readers impatient for the sequel!

So so so so so so so so good. Like, so good. It's so beyond TMI even though I love TMI. But this is just so good. So so so so good. I cannot stress this enough. It's such a good book, such a fantastic introduction to the characters, the world, the setting. It's just all done so well, I can give nothing but praise to this book, I love it so much.
I forgot how old fashioned Tessa was during almost all of this book, like I was shocked, sometimes she sounded like Jessamine! And oh my god, I love Jessamine so much! It's hard to describe why exactly because most of the time she's such an ass to all of them, but she's good when it matters. She knows when to do shit when it matters and that's what's important about her character. I just- MMGHGMHGFDHMGDM THIS WAS SO GOOOOOOOD i absolutely adored this reread.