Book Review: The Infernal Devices Trilogy by Cassandra Clare

Sunday, July 14, 2013
I love reading. Books are amazing. They are a form of escapism, yes, but they are also inspiration, joy, and... well. Goodness. I think in some ways I have used my appetite for reading to define parts of my personality, so it made sense for me to review some of what I read! Here we go...


Title: Clockwork Angel, Clockwork Prince, and Clockwork Princess
Author: Cassandra Clare
Series: The Infernal Devices Trilogy

Synopsis: From Clockwork Angel: "Magic is dangerous - but love is more dangerous still.
When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray arrives in England during the reign of Queen Victoria, something terrifying is waiting for her in London's Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Friendless and hunted, Tessa seeks refuge with the Shadowhunters, a band of warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons. Drawn ever deeper into their world, she finds herself fascinated by - and torn between - two best friends and quickly realizes that love may be the most dangerous magic of all."

My thoughts: I had originally planned on reviewing each of these individually, but that fell flat on its face when I realised that if I were to do that, I may be giving away fundamental parts of the story that you wouldn't want to know should you decide to read these books! So, instead, I will do my best to combine my thoughts on this trilogy together and then give you an overall score :)

To begin with, I have read some of the books from Cassandra Clare's other well-known series The Mortal Instruments, and so I was already familiar with the world of the Shadowhunters even before I decided to buy these books. (Note: bought from Dymocks as they are currently having a three for the price of two deal on many of Cassandra Clare's books. Also, I am a sucker for beautiful covers.)

The first thing I noticed about these books is that they are really easy to read and I found myself sinking into them without too much resistance. Clare writes in a way that feels familiar and light, while still introducing you to new characters, species, and relationships.
In the first book, Clockwork Angel, I found it a bit hard to connect with any of the characters in a real way, but that soon changed. Without giving too much away (is that my slogan now?), I fell in love with the character of Jem, whose back-story I found really interesting and his whole attitude to life just really resonated with me.

Other back-stories began to take shape in the second book, Clockwork Prince, and I began to care more and more about each of the people caught up in what was happening. There were a few twists and turns, and I loved finding out what was happening. I may have even teared up and gasped a few times (I'm an emotional reader these days). For those who read these books - Chapter Nine in Clockwork Prince is when I really started to care about what was happening in the relationships between the main characters. If you read it, you will understand. ^_~ Having said that, though, I still wasn't completely enamoured with the writing style and I occasionally felt like Clare was becoming a bit clunky and repetitive with her writing. I persevered, though, because by this time I really wanted to know what the resolution would be.

Clockwork Princess did not disappoint. Oh my goodness, the twists! The FEELS! The development of the characters was excellent, and even the minor characters and side-stories were fascinating. On the other hand, however, this would sometimes be difficult to follow as there were so many connections going on and so sometimes it felt all too convoluted and blah. I am really happy I finished the book, though, because it raised a lot of interesting thoughts about the burdens of immortality and also death, and I never really expected that from these books.

In the end, this trilogy got better over time and ended up making me want to finish Clare's Mortal Instruments series, which I think is a great thing. If a writer can make you want more of their work, then that's a win in my book. (ha!)


You would like this book trilogy if: you enjoy paranormal romance; you like any of the books from the Mortal Instruments series; you feel like a decent trilogy.

Rating: 7.5 /10 (Book One: 6.5; Book Two: 7.5; Book Three: 8.5)

If you'd like to keep up to date with what I'm reading, follow me on Goodreads here!

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