Book Review: Clockwork Princess

WARNING: I cannot guarantee that this review will be spoiler-free. Read on at your own peril...


I first discovered Cassandra Clare through Amazon. Yes, I know it is bad for bookshops and publishing, but their recommendations have led me to discover all of my favourite authors, so I guess they are good for something! I read Cassie's Mortal Instruments series in a couple of weeks and when I found out that she had a prequel series I rushed to read them too. I've always had a bit of a thing for historical fiction and with their late Victorian setting, their supernatural characters and Cassie's compelling writing, I was quickly hooked. For those not in the know, Clockwork Princess is the final instalment in The Infernal Devices trilogy (Clockwork Angel and Clockwork Prince being the previous two books). After falling in love with the series so far, I was curious to see if CP2 (as fans affectionately call it) would be a fitting end to the series.

Clockwork Princess cover

 A prologue takes us back in time to Adele Starkweather's first runing ceremony, a scene that makes you feel every inch of her pain when it all goes wrong. We then move forward several years to when Jem and Will met for the first time. The two scenes seem a little odd sitting side by side upon first reading. The latter reaffirms for us the strength and longevity of the bond between Will and Jem. It's like a gut-punch because we know that there is much threatening to break it. The Adele scene, on the other hand, makes you wonder how it will figure into the plot at large. 

We won't find out till much later in the book, but it was a clever twist and one that played nicely into the overall fabric of the overarching story. Considering how many loose ends needed to be wrapped up, Cassie has managed to maintain a good pace throughout. Mortmain's shadow still looms over the Shadowhunters, and the new clockwork creatures were like something from an episode of Doctor Who - they certainly gave me the creeps! I'v come to expect humour and action from Cassie's novels, and CP2 delivered in spades. There were moments of true hilarity and moments of almost terror. I think I feared for the safety of every single character at some point or other. The Mortmain plot is resolved in a satisfying fashion, also conveniently ridding our Shadowhunters of their enemies within their own ranks. It leaves us with the last quarter of the book to solve the romantic entanglements of the characters. 

 "Most people are lucky to have even one great love in their life. You have found two."

 The love triangle between Will, Jem and Tessa has always been at the heart of The Infernal Devices. It is an unusual triangle, however, in that all three love each other. Jem and Will are parabatai, brothers in all but blood, and it is this that gives this angle an extra emotional punch. You can't help but feel rotten for whichever guy doesn't get the girl. That said, I have a strong affection for Will and Tessa and their arc in this final book was beautifully etched. The scenes between them in Wales carried real heart and showed, for me, what true love is really like. There is a nice little twist that resolves the triangle, one that many fans had speculated on, and one that I did see coming, but still appreciated nevertheless. The last chapter was perhaps my favourite thing Cassie has ever written. It rounded the story up perfectly and we got to say a proper goodbye to all these characters we've come to care about. Not to mention that the last few paragraphs are wonderfully romantic.

And then there is the epilogue... I went from joy to heartbreak in the space of a page. I recently read Cassie's response to a fan saying that happiness and sorrow are part of life, and she's managed to show this at the end of CP2. I can't remember crying so badly at a book before, but there was a bittersweet emotion mixed in with the tears. Tessa is immortal, and the epilogue reveals to us the course of her life since the 1880s. I have to hand it to Cassie for giving us the ending she did - it was a good attempt at giving everyone what they wanted, but I do know it has left many feeling a bit bruised. I must confess to having a little bit of a misgiving about it myself, but I appreciate Cassie's decision to end it this way, and, to be honest, I don't think there could have been any other alternative to The Infernal Devices, not without upsetting one half of the fanbase.

"I love you now more desperately, this moment, than I have ever loved you before, and in an hour I will love you more than that."

Did Clockwork Princess live up to expectations? The answer is, yes, it did. Overall I am very happy with how the trilogy concluded and I would say that this was my favourite of the three books. It had all the ingredients one could wish for in a book - adventure, fantasy, laughter, sorrow and romance. My emotions went through the mill with it and that, for me at least, is the measure of a good book.