Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare (The Infernal Devices #1)

When New Yorker Tessa Grey is asked by her older brother, Nate, to join him in London, she never imagined she would end up in the clutches of the Dark Sisters, a pair of evil magicians who force Tessa to use a power she never knew she had. Tessa has the ability to shapeshift, transforming into other people. The Dark Sisters say she has a gift, but so far, it's only hurt Tessa, and she wants no part of her powers if people are going to exploit her for them.

Tessa is rescued by a group who calls themselves the Shadowhunters and taken to their home, where she is offered a place to stay. She next learns that the creatures of legend, including vampires, faeries, werewolves, and demons, are real, and Tessa has ow been explosed to the arcane Downworld, where magic is real and things that normal people, called "mundanes", would consider impossible are the norm. The Shadowhunters hunt and dispatch any demon they come into contact with. They also work as a sort of police force for the Downworld.

Tessa soon learns that she may be a part of a sinister plot. A man called the Magister, who wants to use her for an unknown reason, is raising an army the Shadowhunters cannot kill. To unleash a force that the Downworld's most accomplished fighters cannot make even a dent in would be disastrous for the Downworlders, putting everyone in jeopardy. Working alongside London's Shadowhunters, Tessa searches for her brother and tries to unveil the Magister's true identity before any more harm can come to her and her new friends.

I absolutely adore Tessa! She's very curious, asking qustions about everything, mostly Shadowhunter life. She's also very fiery and outspoken, not afraid to speak her mind and defend her friends. In one case, Tessa is watching as a friend of hers is being yelled at by someone who pretty much hates him.

"That was too much for Tessa. Without thinking about it, she burst out indignantly, "What a thing to say!"

Gabriel, interrupted midrant, looked as shocked as if one of the tapestries had suddenly started talking. "Pardon me?"

"You heard me. Telling someone you wouldn't be sorry if they died! It's inexcusable!" She took hold of Will by the sleeve. "Come along, Will. This - this person - obviously isn't worth wasting you time on."

Will looked hugely entertained. "So true." "

I identify with her because she loves books. Of course, she's more of a Jane Austin and Charles Dickens kind of girl while adore Maggie Stiefvater, Lauren Oliver, and, yes Casandra Clare. Nevertheless, she reads pretty much anything she can get her hands on, loves libraries, and sometimes refers to novels for advice. If it happens in a book, maybe it will happen in real life, right? At first she isn't sure that the Shadowhunters are good people and is very wary, but once she warms up to them, she's a very loyal friend. Even when WIll's being an utter jerk, she isn't shaken off easily and stick with him.

Speaking of Will... At first, he seemed really familiar and reminded me of Jace from The Mortal Instruments. They have the same sense of humor and good looks. Imagine my glee when I found out they're related! Will can be kind of a jerk, insulting pretty much everyone. He's very closed off, not talking about his family and quickly becoming hostile when anyone asks about them. He's kind of hard to figure out because he's so closed off, but I like him for it. It's a challenge to try and guess what he's thinking, and sometimes you can't. It makes Will unpredictable. One thing is for certain, though. He likes to play hero (Remind you of anyone?) and is very selfless when it comes to protecting his friends. No matter how much he tries to convince everyone he doesn't care about them, when it comes down to it, he's a loyal friend who will take care of the people close to him.

One person who can always count on Will is his closest, and maybe only, friend, Jem. Jem is more laid back in comparison to Will. When he is sharp and lashes out at anyone who gets to close to him, Jem is kinder and more mild. Even when Will insults him, Jem only sighs or shakes his head. Will is never able to provoke Jem or put him on egde. He's one of the only people Will doesn't really want to let down. He takes Charlotte's shaken head or the scoldings of Sophie, a maid, but he never wants to let Jem down. I suppose that Jem is the closest thing Will has to a brother. He's an orphan like Will, but they also have common interests and are close in age.

Comedic relief in the books comes from several sources. Will always has something entertaining to say, but I also like Henry Branwell. Henry is an inventor. While his ideas are good, the actuall invention never really goes as planned. Sure, his flame retardant worked just fine, but he gave his wife, Charlotte, a heart attack. Imagine if your husband came up to the dinner table on fire! The scary part is that Henry didn't even know his arm was on fire. If his invention hadn't worked, he could have been badly hurt. Henry is a danger to himself, but he's also so lovable because of it!

On the opposite side of the spectrum is Jessamine, who is miserable. Jessamine comes from a family of Shadowhunters, but she wants no part in the life of the demon hunters or the Downworld. She longs for a normal life as a mundane. She is very formal and proper, abiding by mundane social rules for the time. (1878) Jessamine is a character that I'm going to love and hate. She is distraught and wants to be normal, which lets me sympathize with her. On the other hand, she can be petty. Jessamine loathes Will for no apparent reason. Maybe she dislikes him because he's hardly a gentleman, with his rude comments and the pleasure he takes in gambling and drinking. I'm very conflicted about her. While I feel sorry for her, I don't like her for the way she treats others. Even so, I like her because I pity her and because she only wants to be normal, something I can sympathize with.

This was a great way to start the series right off. Of course, this is a Cassie Clare work, so I'm not surprised. Henry and Will offered some comedy that made me laugh, and the search for the Magister provided plenty of mystery and suspense. I loved the characters' personalities, and their flaws made them feel very real because of their imperfections. I liked how the world of Victorian London was built. While semi-accurate historically, Clare blended the magic and the normal world very well. Tessa is, unavoidably, drawn to Will, which offered a hint of romance to spice things up a bit. Together, the characters, action, and romance was a perfect mix for a exciting, enjoyable supernatural story. This is a must read for any Cassie Clare fan or a lover of the supernatural in general! 4/5 stars.

This series is the prequel to The Mortal Instruments. If you really wanted to, you could read it first. However, I woud suggest at least reading City of Bones before Clockwork Angel to get some more backround information on the Shadowhunters. My recommendation would be to read the series together. If you read the first two or three books in TMI before starting this trilogy, you can have some more information of Shadowhunters and also know some of the trilogy's characters beforehand. Starting in the fourth book in TMI, there are some The Infernal Devices references that make it nice to have read the prequel series, or at least some of it, beforehand.

#cassandraclare #supernatural #demons #steampunkmachinesandtechnology #magic #nephilim #seriesstartandstandalones