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4.2 AVERAGE
4.2 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Spicy: 2.5
Characters: Magnus Bane, William Herondale, James "Jem" Carstairs, Jessamine Lovelace, henry Branwell, Charlotte Branwell, Nathaniel Gray, Camile Belcort, Sophie Collins, Theres "Tessa" Gray
Setting: London (1878)
Characters: Magnus Bane, William Herondale, James "Jem" Carstairs, Jessamine Lovelace, henry Branwell, Charlotte Branwell, Nathaniel Gray, Camile Belcort, Sophie Collins, Theres "Tessa" Gray
Setting: London (1878)
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It was kind of boring read. It kind of dragged on and in the final two chapters everything happened!!! The big plot twist wasn’t that shocking. I was however surprised by the brother’s betrayal. I’m thinking of already borrowing the next book and finish the whole series this summer…💃
“One must always be careful of books," said Tessa, "and what is inside them, for words have the power to change us.”
(Caution: Mild spoilers throughout, including some vague references to later books.)
Jul 2020 re-read thoughts:
Aaah! This book. TID solidified itself as an all-time favorite of mine when I first read it six years ago (!), and I think it's safe to say that my feelings are still pretty much the same. After all, this series has the only YA love triangle I've ever actually liked. But also, the story and the characters are just so good, and I'm absolutely delighted to be back in this world.
“It's all right to love someone who doesn't love you back, as long as they're worth you loving them. As long as they deserve it.”
CHARACTERS.
This is definitely where Cassie excels. I have so much love for all of these characters. (Plus, knowing what I do about what they're all going to go through in the next two books has definitely increased my appreciation for their introductions and developments in this one.)
❧ Tessa - Clary and Emma are great, but Tessa is my QUEEN. She is definitely my favorite main character out of the three. She's so smart, brave, and level-headed - I'm really just in awe of how well she handles being thrown into this strange and new world (without being a Mary Sue!). I was also 100% behind all the decisions she made, which I feel is pretty rare in YA. Also, her power and the way it's used in the story? The coolest.
❧ Will - Oh, my tortured son. So many iconic quotes in this book belonged to him, but I'd forgotten how rude he actually was in this book. I know he is (quite literally) battling his own demons, etc., and I appreciate how seeds were planted to hint at how he's hiding his true self, but I ended up just not loving him quite as much in this book because he was so closed off. (The romance also maybe happened a liiiitle too quickly, but I'll let it slide, because let's be honest, I would probably fall just as fast if I were Tessa.) As Will starts figuring things out and opening up more in the next two books though, I know I'll go right back to being a Herondale girl :)
❧ Jem - DESERVED SO MUCH BETTER. Wow. For the longest time, I felt really bad for not loving Jem/Jessa as much as I loved Will/Wessa, but now I know why. Jem doesn't feel like a love interest at all in this book! No wonder Wessa seems so much stronger for most of the series - Will got a major head start while poor Jem was completely friendzoned here. Being in a position to look back, I definitely think that Jessa could have been built up way more in CA to make the two couples more equal.
My first time around, I was so scared for the outcome of the love triangle that I didn't let myself fully love Jem. So, my biggest goal for this re-read was to finally give him the love and attention he deserves, and now I think I can finally say (and actually 100% mean it when I say) that I LOVE JEM. In fact, (dare I say it?) I think I liked Jem better than Will in this book. He's so soft and strong and gentle and considerate and everything that is good in the world. He deserves so much. SO MUCH.
❧ Charlotte - A force to be reckoned with. She's so strong and capable and kind; I love how she acts as a mother figure to the younger Shadowhunters. And she's only 23? Unbelievable. I admire her so much.
❧ Henry - Aww, Henry. What an absent-minded but supportive sweetheart. Don't let the haters get to you!!
❧ Jessamine - I remember despising her during my first read of TID, but now I just feel kinda bad for Jessamine. She's actually a lot more complex than I originally thought, and the little flashes we see of her fierce Shadowhunter-ness in this book are really fascinating.
❧ Sophie - !! So much love for this girl. Her backstory is so heart-breaking and real. She deserves the world, and I'm so excited to see more of her in the next two books!
❧ Nate -
Spoiler
WHAT A SNAKE. His storyline/motivations/reasoning/the whole evil brother thing was actually really intriguing and his place in the story brings up some great inner conflict for Tessa. But also WHAT A SNAKE.❧ The Magister -
Spoiler
I'm a little ashamed to say: I'd actually half-forgotten that Mortmain was the Magister. While I associated his name with the villain of the series, he was so convincing in the scene with Charlotte that I actually doubted my memory. Lol. I find the whole creating-robots-because-they're-not-Shadowhunters-or-Downworlders supremely genius on Cassie's part, and his relationship with Tessa is so twisted and cool. Still, I look forward to seeing him get defeated again. >:)“Only the very weak-minded refuse to be influenced by literature and poetry.”
STORY.
❧ Overall, I really enjoyed the story! The introduction to the characters brought so much nostalgia, the premise was just as interesting as the first time, the Victorian era setting was beautifully atmospheric, and the plot, though maybe a tiny bit slow, was still quite well-paced and twisty and kept me fully engaged. It was really interesting to notice how carefully the plot twists were set up this time around. Also, the confrontation at the end was gooood.
❧ A tiny confession: I think I've been spoiled a little by the complexity and massive scale that was TDA (i.e. Queen of Air and Darkness was 880 pages, and this is about half of that)...so, going back and reading this was a bit of a jolt - it felt strange for the book to end after only two major conflicts. Of course, that didn't dampen my enjoyment of CA - after all, this is actually a pretty normal length of a fantasy book, but reading this after TDA might have colored my judgement a little bit on this re-read.
“If no one in the entire world cared about you, did you really exist at all?”
Rating: After much consideration, I've decided to demote Clockwork Angel to 4 stars (gasp!). Mostly because JEM DESERVED BETTER, Jessa could've been upped a little, and also because the plot was just a teeeeny bit slow. Overall though, this was such a fun and nostalgic time, and Clockwork Angel is still an amazing start to an amazing series. On to Clockwork Prince!
~~
June 2014 (first-time read): 5 stars.
~~
Review for The Infernal Devices Book 2: Clockwork Prince (re-read, 5 stars)
Review for The Infernal Devices Book 3: Clockwork Princess (re-read, 5 stars)
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
medium-paced