Title: Clockwork Princess
Author: Cassandra Clare
Genre: Young Adult
Publication: March 19th 2013
Pages: 568 pages
Source: Thank you so very much to Pan Macmillan South Africa for providing me with a copy of Clockwork Princess in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 5/5 Cupcakes!
Danger and betrayal, secrets and enchantment in the breathtaking conclusion to the Infernal Devices trilogy. Tessa Gray should be happy - aren't all brides happy?Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute.A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan. He needs Tessa. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her.*DO NOT READ REVIEW IF YOU HAVEN'T READ CLOCKWORK ANGEL AND CLOCKWORK PRINCE*
Since I read Clockwork Angel the end of last year, I've been meaning to read the next two books in The Infernal Devices trilogy. I loved Clockwork Angel, Clockwork Prince was even better and Clockwork Princess was phenomenal, although there were one or two things that slightly irked me.
Clockwork Princess picks off from where Clockwork Prince left off. Tessa is now engaged to be married to Jem, Will is trying to retain his over-powering love for Tessa, Gideon and Gabriel Lightwood have joined the Institute and Charlotte and Henry are trying to keep Charlotte's position as head of the institute whilst preparing for the birth of their new baby. However, things take a turn for the worse when their is a surprise attack on the London Institute, as it swarms with automatons, Tessa is grabbed and whisked away by the malevolent Mrs Black. As the carriage draws closer to Mortmain and Tessa's fate, the Shadowhunters at the Institute prepare to rescue Tessa from Mortmain's clutches, however, one of the Shadowhunters fall deathly ill and they have to stay at the Institute to be with the patient. Will then sets off on his black horse, trying in desperation to save Tessa. Will he survive the journey, and will Tessa escape?
I loved Clockwork Princess. The amount of action, the amount of shocking events that entailed, the romance...sweet mama of chickens, the romance in Clockwork Angel was so extremely well written and stunning I was left gaping.
The great thing about Clare's books, which it quite unique, and proves that she is a good author, is that she manages to write and produce the perfect mixture of realistic aspects, fantasy aspects, swoon-worthy yet gentle romances and characters that you form a deep bond with.
Her writing is also inspiring, there are countless, beautiful quotes that made my heart thud and tears well up in my eyes. Her descriptions are so detailed it feels like you are not merely reading words on a page but watching a heart-warming, poignant movies. Her words form pictures in your mind, pictures and words that show the cruelty of life and death, the love the completes you, sacrifices...pure perfection.
The plot was great! All the questions that we've been asking since reading Clockwork Angel and Clockwork Prince, have finally been resolved in Clockwork Princess. We realise what Tessa is, we are told more about the inhabitants of the Institute's pasts, we are told why Mortmain so desperately wants Tessa...and it is revealed who Tessa will end up with.
The characters gave their all in this book, and we discover more about them then ever in the last instalment of TID. We see their hopes, their dreams, their personal sufferings and burdens they bare, we see their full personalities, we see them fall in love, we see them grieve...we see them in a whole new light.
We also learn more about the secondary characters, and they brought an even more humorous and interesting appeal to TID. Gabriel and Gideon Lightwood were our enemies, but now they're part of the family. They've been through a lot which may have negative influences on some of their choices, however, they eventually proved their loyalty and you can't help but fall in love with them!
Sophie is the Institute's mundane servant, although, she actually is more their friend than anything! Sophie has had an awful past, yet she is incredibly brave and an excellent fighter and will lay down her life in gratitude to Charlotte for taking her in.
Cecily, I loved Cecily! Will's spunky, fierce fifteen year old sister was really amusing! It was so sweet seeing her and Will's sibling bond and it was awesome having another Herondale to read about!
And we see Charlotte and Henry's true affection for each other, and despite the stuff people say about their marriage, they still stand strong. I do wish though that they included Charlotte's pregnancy a bit more in the book, as she was fighting Mortmain and automatons and the Consul and I was thinking it was quite odd that there weren't a few references towards the unborn baby in those scenes.
Tessa has always wanted to know what she is, she is seems to be some sort of warlock, yet she doesn't bare the warlock mark. When she finds out about herself and her family's past, will the she embrace who she is or will it lead her to destruction.
Will. Geez I love him! His act of being a bad boy have crumbled away now that the "curse" has been lifted, and we see how fragile he can be. It pains him every day to see Tessa madly in love with Jem, yet he knows that he knows they are happy together and that as all that matters, which shows just how loyal he is. The fact that he reads and quotes literature just makes him all the more swoon-worthy! <3
Jem is sweet and kind and he is engaged to Tessa. It was sweet seeing their romantic sides and the public display of affection they showed. *spoiler* It was quite upsetting when Jem died, however I don't think he's death was written in the best way. I couldn't feel the full impact of his death, as it was more on how Will reacted after losing his parabati, but the other characters almost didn't seem to display that much emotion to his death except Will, which I found quite odd. Surely they would have been in hysterics? When we later found out that Jem became a Silent Brother I was quite shocked as it wasn't necessarily a twist I was expecting, quite clever of the author to write that!*spoiler*
The romance between Tessa, Will and Jem was...wow. The love Tessa shared for Jem as his fiancé didn't really feel fully authentic to me. I could really feel she loved him, but I thought, not really in that way. Whereas when she was with Will, you could feel and see that fiery love they held for each other, that spark and passion that radiated from them. I don't know about you, but I think Will is the one for her, I just can't picture her with anyone else.
It was also lovely seeing the secondary characters fall in love and seeing how beautiful their relationships were.
There were times during Clockwork Princess that I felt, in a way, that Tessa was being a bit...I'm not sure, but she would kiss Jem and then, even though she was engaged, she would kiss Will, and that wasn't right, they didn't deserve that.
The epilogue was filled with upset but also happiness. *spoiler* It was incredibly upsetting viewing Will's death, watching him grow old and die and I teared up quite a bit and wanted to hug my copy to pieces because I didn't want Will to die, I wanted to live with Tessa for eternity, as I just could picture one without the other. The thing with the epilogue is that Jem and Tessa meet every year on the same day on Blackfriars Bridge, even though Jem is a Silent Brother. However, in the year 2008, 71 years after the passing of Will, Jem is different, reborn in a way, and definitely not a Silent Brother anymore. After Jem and Tessa talk they realise they want to be together in Jem's lifetime, he is no longer a Silent Brother and no longer an addict of the yin fen, the drug that slowly killed him.
Now, here's the thing, as much as I adore Jem, I just simply can't come to terms that Tessa will be with anyone besides Will. I know Jem and Tessa were previously engaged before the demise of Jem, but Jem is not the same person anymore. He just doesn't seem the same and he isn't, and it's hard because it's almost like, during the epilogue, we're meeting him for the first time. I also really wish that Tessa didn't live for eternity, because now as she time goes by, the people she loves will pass away. I also felt it so saddening when she said that she left after Will died, because she could barely survive out-living her husband but she wouldn't be able to bear out-living her children. *spoiler* And that's the thing, although the epilogue had me feeling sad and almost nostalgic in a way, I think it was a good ending that will satisfy Team Will and Team Jem. The epilogue just has a certain sadness to it, it really showed the love Tessa, Will and Jem all shared for each other, however, *spoiler* seeing Will die*spoiler* was awful! But it had to happen, as Tessa is *spoiler*immortal*spoiler* and Will isn't.
Clockwork Princess was the phenomenal, astounding finale to The Infernal Devices, and it's a trilogy I can see myself re-reading in the future. Clockwork Princess tugged at my heart-strings and had a sense of nostalgia about it. Through reading Clockwork Princess you will begin to understand the meaning of true love and the sacrifices people will make for those they love. There were parts that broke my heart, parts that made my heart swell with happiness and parts that had me laughing and the humorous banter between the characters! The final book will satisfy any fan of Cassandra Clare's Infernal Devices series, whether they're Team Will or Team Jem and I'm sure all readers will love it! But beware you might just find yourself crying at parts...be it laughter or from sadness, you should have a box of chocolates and tissues nearby!
I give it: 5/5 CUPCAKES!
