Review- Clockwork Angel

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Released on August 31, 2010

My Rating: 5 Stars
When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London's Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep order amidst the chaos.

Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What's more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa's power for his own.
Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by—and torn between—two best friends: James, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and volatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm's length . . . everyone, that is, but Tessa. As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world. . . . and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all.

I expected Clockwork Angel to be a bit slow for me because of the setting and since it was the first in the series, and they usually are just like City of Bones was for me. Of course I got proven wrong because the book to me seemed fast paced from the beginning and had me at the edge of my seat immersed in it's wonderful Victorian world full of magic. I loved every minute of it, there was just so much going on and the story is so full of adventure and action with gruesome scary creatures and evil bad guys that you never feel bored or feel like wanting to put the book down and take a break. I even skipped a couple of meals because I didn't want to put it down, I kept telling myself just one more chapter but then it would turn into way more chapters and hours later before I stopped.

In Clockwork Angel we get a whole new set of characters which are ancestors to some of the ones we met in The Mortal Instruments series plus a couple that we've already met and were alive back then. Tessa the main character is a goodhearted and innocent girl who unfortunately ends up going through a lot of drama with love and finding out that she's not entirely human and the life she thought was real was all a lie. We also get two love interests in this one but it didn't seem like a love triangle (yet). Jem and Will are total opposites. Before I read the book I thought that I would definitely be Team Will but after getting to know him more I felt that I was tired of the "tough guy I don't love or need anybody and will not open my heart for no one" type of guys. I think that I'm team Jem in this one and he would be the right person for Tessa of course I'm getting way ahead of myself here. I did love Will too but in a different way, his humor and good looks made the book so much more enjoyable and fun to read. There's definitely plenty of humor and fun quotes on this one just like in the TMI series, also plenty of surprises along the way and lots of complicated characters that were very likable and different, they all seem to have their own little unique qualities.

If you think that you might not like it because it's set in a Victorian era you will be proven wrong just like I was. Clockwork Angel has the same Shadowhunter world that we fell in love with, an intricate web of plots, new characters, and twists all wrapped up in a dark and magical sophisticated setting. Cassandra Clare has proven to me once again why I fell in love with her writing in The Mortal Instruments series, her detailed descriptions make it so much easier for you to fall in love with her stories and feel a connection with her characters. I think I love Clockwork Angel even more than The Mortal Instruments and that's saying a lot because there's no Jace in this story *gasp!*. Can't wait for the next one!!