Review: Clockwork Princess (The Infernal Devices, #3)

Author: Cassandra Clare
Series: The Infernal Devices, #3
Release date: March 19th 2013
Publisher: Walker
Paperback, 568 pages
Source: Publisher for review
Buy: The Book Depository

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?

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.

Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute.

This review is entirely spoiler-free and consequently a bit all over the place. I hope you’ll forgive me.


There isn’t much I can say about The Infernal Devices that hasn’t been said already. In my life, I’ve finished more series than I can count, but there was never an ending that broke me in quite so many pieces and left me feeling as emotionally exhausted as this one. In that, The Clockwork Princess is unparalleled. For the longest time I refused to go anywhere near this series because of the bitter disappointment I felt after City of Fallen Angels, but once I finally succumbed to peer pressure, I immediately became just another prisoner of Cassie Clare’s magic. There is something in the quiet beauty of this trilogy that quickly finds its way to the very center of your heart. By the time you realize you’ve started caring, it’s far too late to protect yourself. You are fully invested and well on your way to getting your heart utterly broken.

We all waited on pins and needles to learn the fate of our three heroes. There were no advance copies to be had, no early cries of either outrage or joy on Twitter and GoodReads, just silence and endless speculations. Let’s not kid ourselves, discovering The Magister’s plans came second to learning whom Tessa would choose in the end and what role fate would play in their heartbreaking situation.

Fortunately, secondary characters weren’t swept away by the Jem-Tessa-Will hurricane. Clare took the time to give each of their stories a proper conclusion. All of them were present, and some, like the Lightwood brothers, played a crucial role in the main plotline.

I had every intention of writing a long passage about the epilogue and how much it bothered me, but I can’t seem to force myself to do it. The first 545 pages were pure perfection that cannot possibly be outweighed by the final 19 pages of fan service. Let’s just say I could have done without it and leave it at that.

I think #1 spot on the New York Times Bestsellers list, #2 spot on the USA Today Bestsellers list and #1 spot on the Publisher’s Weekly Bestsellers list tell you all you need to know about this book. I expected as much, but it’s still nice to see definite proof of how many lives it touched.

Aside from The Dark Artifices trilogy set in modern day Los Angeles, there’s talk of yet another Shadowhunter trilogy, which (mysteriously) goes by the initials THL and takes place in 1903. It will follow the next generation of Shadowhunters after Will, Tessa and Jem. A release date hasn’t yet been announced.

I’ve been walking with this odd ‘I can’t believe it’s over’ feeling for days now, slightly dazed and overwhelmed. I can often be seen frantically paging through my copy, revisiting certain passages, laughing and crying all over again. It will fade eventually, like everything does, but that will only give me a chance to reread and relive it all with a renewed intensity.

My warmest thanks to Walker UK for the gorgeous collector’s edition. I haven’t been able to stop staring at the shiny cover. (I might have hugged it a couple of times too, but I’d never admit to it in public.)