Clockwork Angel

Book 1 of the Infernal Devices Trilogy. Prequel to The Mortal Instruments.

Author: Cassandra Clare

Rating: 4.5/5

Recommend: Victorian London. Demons. Warlocks. Faeries. Avenging angels. A gorgeous damsel. Poetry. Not one, but TWO extremely good-looking  males with unreal personalities. Oh and an evil madman with a clockwork army trying to kill them all. Sound good?

I have a confession to make before I start. After finishing the Infernal Devices trilogy, my heart went through a good long weeping phase, at the unfairness of it all – because the world of the Shadowhunters (and sweeter than life itself, beautiful, violin playing, silver-haired James Carstairs) are both fictional. WHY WORLD, WHY? Sigh. Here goes the review of the first book, Clockwork Angel.

Set in the time of Victorian London, when women spoke little and men expected them to, there existed a race of creatures completely (or mostly) unknown to ordinary human kind. Enter the Shadowhunters – half angel by blood, they are warriors of the heavens trained to keep the peace between the unsuspecting human world and the rest of the creatures in it. In Clockwork Angel, we meet the members of the London Institute, one of the few places on Earth which serve as both a home and training ground for Shadowhunters.

Throughout the story, we meet moody, smartass and irresistibly charming (when he wants to be) Shadowhunter William Herondale, his parabatai (sworn partner) and equally talented James Carstairs, and of course, our main heroine, Theresa Gray. Due to a series of unfortunate events, Tessa is the newcomer to the London Institute and changes the inhabitants’ lives forever.

To the left, William and to the right, James

Needless to say, I thoroughly enjoyed this first novel in the Infernal Devices series. A huge fan of historical fiction set in beautiful places, the appeal of Victorian London drew me in instantly – as soon as I knew the setting, I was determined to buy this book. Then comes the world building and of course, the characters themselves. I’ll start with the former.

The world of the Nephilim (offspring of angels) is a parallel to our own. They have their own wars and politics, they have different races and cultures, the difference just being that demons and faeries aren’t exactly human. Like J.K. Rowling’s wizarding world, the world of the Infernal Devices is vast, well structured and believable. It is a flawless escape from reality; and so, I loved it.

For the latter: in all of the countless books that I have read in my life, I have yet to encounter a character who is as… alive… as William Herondale.

“Are you implying that shreds of my reputation remain intact?” Will demanded with mock horror. “Clearly I have been doing something wrong. Or not doing something wrong, as the case may be.”

He banged on the side of the carriage. “Thomas! We must away at once to the nearest brothel! I seek scandal and low companionship.”

Will puts up a funny, sarcastic, and at times a mean exterior, but won my heart by the last page. True, there were times I hated him – however, amongst all the characters, he is the one who felt the most. I won’t say much about Jem; suffice it to say, no character comes equal to the levels of kindness and patience demonstrated by this fictional being. Forever grateful to Cassandra Clare for creating such a wonder. There are others too in the plot: we meet tough, straight forward Sophie, who despite being the maid, has maturity and a a gratifyingly strong sense of opinion; Charlotte and Henry, the two mismatched leaders of the Institute, the infamous warlock Magnus Bane (you'll see why later) and many more.

Spoken by Will, Chapter One, Clockwork Angel

The addictive plot, and characters so deeply rich in personality were my main drives behind finishing the whole series. I loved the brotherly bond between Will and Jem; I did not love however the role of Tessa. A heroine who was less of a damsel-in-distress and more of an I-can-kick-your-butt type would have been better. Initially, the concept of mechanical creatures as enemies also put me off a bit; however, they aren’t so easy to defeat as they seem, which I soon found out.

All in all, if you are a lover of the historical fiction/fantasy/romance genre, then I assure you,  Clockwork Angel, is definitely worth a read. There are at least another nine books (not including spin offs, short stories, and the upcoming ones) in the Shadowhunter series, and loving one, will definitely lead to you bundling under blankets to finish off the rest in the next few months or so.