Book Review: Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

Book: Clockwork Princess
Author: Cassandra Clare
File Type: Hardcover
Release Date: 19 march 2013
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books.

Synopsis:

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.
Rating 3.5

I'd like to pat myself on my back because writing a review for this book hasn't been an easy task. It's a given that this book is heartbreaking. And I was quite prepared for it. But alas, things never go according to the plan and there I was , a crying-snot-blubbering heap of heartbreak.

I had initially written a huge review for this and it was pretty fantastic. I had just about managed to explain all my feelings and thoughts about this book but my stupid laptop turned itself off and all my emotions? Poof. Gone.

There was nothing left. NOTHING. 

Right now? I'm sad. 

I'm sad because The Infernal Devices is a series very close to my heart and that it isn't easy saying goodbye to a series you love. With unforgettable characters, vivid world building and a highly engrossing journey through the Victorian Era in London , The Infernal Devices is something that is to be cherished forever. The fact that I won't get to read about Will , Tessa , Jem , Sophie , Charlotte , HENRY! , Gideon , Cecily , Gabriel , Bridget..(and oh the list just goes on.) makes me even more sad. Sure, they might be mentioned somewhere or the other because that's the way Cassandra Clare rolls but it wouldn't be the same. It wouldn't.

Clockwork Princess beats it's predecessor by a mile when it comes to character development. There were times while I was reading Clockwork Princess and I would read about a certain character and I would wonder as to why I never liked this character before. And then realization would strike home because it is in this book that each character gets a well deserved platform. 
Also, the imagery spun by Ms. Clare never fails to surprise me. The Victorian Era has been portrayed so beautifully that I couldn't help but feel mesmerized. Wales is now on my list of 'Beautiful Places to Visit before you die.'
What's also so spectacular about this whole scenario is how much this trilogy in itself has affected each one of my emotions. A few years ago while cursing and whining about the disaster that was The City of Fallen Angels , I would've never guessed that a few years in future I'd be so deeply affected by the prequel of the series that had started out pretty great but later started to throw nothing but crap at me. 

When I talk about emotions , I try not to think much about the love triangle. Because let's admit it. It was pretty epic. There was something so beautiful in the pain and heartbreak that came with each page and I just couldn't help but fall more and more in love with this book. Will , Tessa and Jem are unforgettable characters and there were times when I just wanted to crawl inside the book and soothe their pain.

"I am not alone," he said. "Wherever we are, we are as one."

 This whole complication could be understood so well. All three of them lived for each other and if it came to that, they would even die for each other. Will and Jem's relationship was the highlight of the whole book. If,like me , you've ever wondered the dynamics of the Parabatai bond , things get pretty clear after reading this one.

"whether Will wanted her there or not or Jem either-- she could not watch the two of them walk into danger and not want to be where they were."

Some may wonder that if I did love Clockwork Princess so much and that according to me , this book beats Clockwork Prince then why is that Clockwork Prince received five shining stars and that this one just about managed to bag three and a half stars?
I'll tell you why.

Just because I feel everything doesn't mean I like everything I read. That end was beautiful but it wasn't something that sat well with me. 
There were certain things in the book that I did not approve of. And the epilogue was something I'd like to forget about. I'm at a loss of words because I have no idea how to explain to you my reasons without spoiling this book for you. Although, it was pretty predictable. My heart break went on until the end....until I read the epilogue and all I could say was WHAT?

In the end, although this book had it's flaws and I had my issue with it, this experience has been nothing but epic. This is a series that deserves to be cherished. And Cherish it, I will.