Clockwork Angel

 Clockwork Angel (The Infernal Devices, Book 1)

To be honest, I finished this book a few days ago, but I haven’t really had the time to write about it because I’ve been swamped with homework. But it’s the weekend, and I figured that I could take a break and write about it now. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare is the prequel to her Mortal Instruments series. This book is, at least it seemed like it to me, a beginning of yet another series by her. Couldn’t she just finish one and then start the other? Oh wait, she had finished one, but decided to continue it after it was finished. Can’t anyone just write one book anymore? I don’t see why authors have to keep writing series, or extending series after they’re finished writing them. Well, I do. They want more money. But if they’re good enough writers, they could write stand alone books and still make enough to get by. Not many authors really do that anymore though, and it’s kind of sad. I’m getting a little sick of starting series and having to wait years to finish them. Can someone flip the trend and start writing stand alone books please? It would make my life a whole lot easier, since when I start a series, I absolutely have to finish it. I have to know how it ends! So that just adds books to my already long list of books to read. And that list is getting longer by the minute.

Anyway….you probably want to know what Clockwork Angel is about. It follows the story of Tessa, and is set in the late 1800s. At least I think it is…that’s what I remember anyway. If it’s wrong, sorry. Tessa is being sent to England after her Aunt dies to live with her brother. But when she gets there, not everything is as it seems. She’s kidnapped by these two crazy ladies who force her to do things she never believed were possible. In come the Shadowhunters to the rescue, and Tessa is thrown into a world that she never knew existed. Full of lots of action, Clockwork Angel is sure to keep you interested right until the end.

I’d have to say, as much as I am irritated that Cassandra Clare cannot leave this series alone, Clockwork Angel was pretty well written. I mean, it’s not fantastic literature, but it’s good if you want a good, fun read. I liked the character of Tessa because she was actually a strong female character that wasn’t completely obsessed with a man. Yes, she does have a love interest, but it’s not something she even really realizes until you’re most of the way through the book. You as the reader pick up on it pretty quickly, but Tessa is pretty slow when it comes to realizing her feelings for this guy. That irritated me a little, because she was being so oblivious to the fact that she was in love with this guy (I’m leaving out his name so I don’t spoil anything for anyone). Other than that, Tessa is always ready to join in the fight, and even though she’s living in a time where it’s frowned upon for women to have the urge to fight. This is something that Tessa struggles with in the novel, breaking these gender roles. She has to fight because she is expected to sit by and let the men do all the work, but she feels that she should be helping them in any way that she can. I liked that Tessa didn’t just let the men do all the fighting, and she actually tried to help them. Cassandra Clare gets points for a good, strong female character.

I guess that’s all I really have to say about Clockwork Angel. The next book I will be writing about (I’ve already finished, but I feel it deserves its own blog post) is The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky.