Tuesday 9 July 2013

Book Review: Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare




"Tessa Gray should be happy - aren't all brides happy?


Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute.

A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan. He needs Tessa. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her."

My Rating: 4.7 Stars.

*WARNING: This review will contain spoilers.*

Where do I start with this book? I ABSOLUTELY loved it. I'm currently going through a serious case of book hangover after reading it. I got so engrossed in this world Cassandra Clare had created that when I had finished the novel, I had no idea how I was supposed to continue living my life. 

Anyway, moving off from me, this is the last book in the Infernal Devices trilogy by Cassandra Clare. This trilogy is actually a spin-off series of the Mortal Instruments series also by Cassie Clare (Yep, I'm going to call her Cassie). 
If you've read the other two in the series, you definitely have to read this one and if you haven't read any in the series, you have to start. Now! Go! Why are you still here? :-) If you were a person who did not enjoy the Mortal Instruments series because Clary was annoying (for me) or for whatever other reason, I still recommend this series. In my opinion, it is MUCH better that the TMI series. 

I think I'm going to start with the setting of this series. It's set in Victorian England and I am a sucker for novels, movies or tv shows set in historic England. I will watch any movie set in old England, even if the plot does not entice me. So naturally, I took to the setting of this book. However, I must say that more could have been done with the writing of this novel. Even though it was set in England, the characters still felt American in a way (Yes, I know Tessa is actually American) and as if they were in the present.

With that out of the way, onto the good stuff. The love triangle. Team Jem? Team Will? Who cares! EVERYBODY WINS! Before reading this book, I wanted Jem and Tessa to work out because they were already engaged and he was just the sweetest, kindest, most selfless character who I did not want to see get hurt. With that being said, I also loved Will. He was hilarious and loved books and all round  just loveable. I felt like Tessa in this situation. 

This is one of the best written love triangles. The two guys don't hate each other and arn't all "I wanna punch you in the face for looking at her" etc etc. It was written in such a way that the respect and honour of all involved remained intact. 
I was still pining for a cure for Jem and so that scene with Will and Jem when he was about to die just broke me. I had to close the book for a minute and just breathe...


Found this on someones review and thought it was so appropriate. 

The Jem-Will relationship would have to be one of the best, if not the best part of this book. It's even better than the love triangle. We really understand what it's like to have a parabatai bond, it's more than being just a brother and the best part is that the reader felt it. When the bond broke, I swear something broke in me as well. Good work Cassie! I actually wouldn't have mind seeing Jem and Will end up together and be all "Bros before hoes". I'm joking, Tessa's not really a hoe. But seriously, I would not have been disappointed if Cassie decided to solve the love triangle by doing that (I am such a twisted person, I know)

So after I went through all of that emotional trauma over the loss of Jem BAM! It's like the thunderstom immediately cleared up and we see a rainbow- JEM IS ALIVE! Well sort of- as a silent brother. He's actually Brother Zachariah in TMI. Hmm, I see what you did there Cassie Clare, you smart woman. On a side note, that got me thinking about the lives of the other silent brothers and how they were before becoming a silent brother. It would be interesting if there were a novella written about Brother Enoch or  any of the others. Here's an idea for you Cassie! 

I probably should mention why I gave this novel a 4.7 and not a full 5 after I just went on about how amazing I thought it was. Firstly, I am a very harsh rater so I rarely ever give books a full 5 stars. Secondly, I found Cassie's writing to be a bit verbose at times. So at some points I would be reading a paragraph and thinking "what's the point of this?" and so I just skipped it. Thankfully, that did not happen to often. 

All in all, it was a wonderful...wonderful doesn't seem to do it justice...AMAZINGTASTICAL (that's better and in caps too, woo hoo! Go me!) end to an even more AMAZINGTASTICAL (sorry, I couldn't help it) series. I'm utterly heartbroken that it's ended but alas, all good things must come to an end. 


Until next time, toodles :) xx

P.s- If you've read this book, I'd love to hear what you thought of it in the comments so feel free to leave me one :)

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