This book literally took my mind and exploded it with 150% awesome, though right away I should mention that that fact may be biased because Cassandra Clare is both my favourite author and fantasy best friend/demon fighting sidekick. So for the sake of this actually counting as a review, I'm going to take all of that messy business out of the equation.
Summary
Clockwork Angel is the first in a prequel trilogy for the bestselling Mortal Instruments series. The novel is set in the late 1800's - 1878, to be exact - and follows Tessa Gray, a New York City native who moves to London after the death of her Aunt. There, Tessa is taken prisoner by the Dark Sisters, members of an organization called the Pandemonium Club. With the discovery of Downworlders, Demons, and Shadowhunters, Tessa must find her brother, attempt to figure out the infuriating Will Herondale, discover the secrets behind the Pandemonium Club and it's mysterious Magister, all the while dealing with the unfolding truth about her own Downworlder status.
(You have no idea how hard that summary was to write.)
Point of the Novel
Clockwork Angel treads on familiar Cassandra Clare territory - mysteriously sexy and tortured boys, thick, twisting plots, wonderfully played out action scenes, gay wizards, etc. - and yet the story goes over so many problems never discussed in her earlier adventures with the Shadowhunters. Instead of exploring familial bonds, protection over truth, and the consequences of past sins, we see Clare questioning the stiff propriety of the Victorian Era and tackling feminism through the idea of a female warrior when women were meant to be lady's while men did all the fighting.
Characters
As in all Cassandra Clare novels, there was a whackload (new favourite word = whackload) of characters, all unique and quirky and absolutely lovely.
The novel is told from the view point of Tessa Gray, big time book nerd with a habit of asking someone a question every thirty seconds. I got the impression while reading that if you left her in a room along for long enough she would start interrogating a lamp. That aside, Tessa is like the savior of all young adult heroines. In all the books I've read, it seems like Tessa is the only one who's actually thought about the consequences of her actions before making them. For that reason I immediately fell in love with her.
Then there's Will, who doesn't wear a hat. He's reminiscent of The Mortal Instrument's Jace, probably because *SPOILER* they're related and he's too bad ass to wear a hat, just like how Jace was too badass to wear a shirt in the daydreams of millions. Besides not wearing a hat, Will is known by anyone who has ever heard of Clockwork Angel to be a jerk. Though it's true that sometimes he could be a bit of an asshat (though he never wore one because he doesn't like hats), I found it easy to see his true intentions. Of all the characters in the novel, I found him to be my personal favourite. The spotlight definitely loves Will. Oh, did I mention that he doesn't like to wear hats? Because the author definitely pressed that fact, even though Will is putting on a hat on the beautiful cover.
Will might be my favourite character - besides Magnus, of course - but Jem is definitely a contender. As opposed to being the silent brooding counterpart to Will's charmingly obnoxious jackassery, Jem is positive, kindhearted, and more than a little awesome. Jem manages to come off as both honest and mysterious, which can't be an easy thing to be or write.
And then there's Magnus. Though he doesn't appear in the novel half as much as I wanted him to, the fact that our favourite sparkling gay wizard is still much the same in 1878 as he is in the present day is something to celebrate. Literally. I had a 'Magnus is Awesome' themed party in honour of his quirkiness in Clockwork Angel.
Something I Didn't Like
The action in Clockwork Angel is considerably less than in the Mortal Instruments series. That isn't necessarily a bad thing, though it definitely did irritate the crap out of me when Will and Jem - think Jace and Alec except completely not - would skip merrily out the door with linked arms, off to fight some cool slimy demon thing in a creepy abandoned castle made of pure evil, and leave Tessa sitting on a chaise lounger to pout. Okay, so that doesn't happen in the book exactly, but the point is the same: the book was mainly written from the view point of a character who was constantly barred from the action. Chalk it up to girls being seen as the weaker sex in those times all you want, it still bugged me.
Something I Loved
Something that I absolutely adored in this novel was the use of steampunk. I LOVE STEAMPUNK *Points to steampunk posters in bedroom and locker*. So of course I was head over heels for all of the clockwork automatons and whatnot. Though it could be argued that Clockwork Angel doesn't technically fall under the steampunk category, it contained the basic elements (technology way before it's time).
Like It or Lump It?
Like it! Like it! Like it! And not even because I'm terribly biased! The Clockwork Angel is a creative, intelligent book that causes teenagers to think and learn while it entertains, which is why I'll recommend it to anyone who comes my way looking for something YA and fun.
:)
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-Cara :D
