Book Review: Clockwork Prince

Warning! As always, this review contains spoilers. I can't seem to write a review without them. My apologizes. Also, the synopsis has spoilers from Clockwork Angel 

Clockwork Prince

"In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street—and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends. With the help of the handsome, self-destructive Will and the fiercely devoted Jem, Tessa discovers that the Magister’s war on the Shadowhunters is deeply personal. He blames them for a long-ago tragedy that shattered his life. To unravel the secrets of the past, the trio journeys from mist-shrouded Yorkshire to a manor house that holds untold horrors, from the slums of London to an enchanted ballroom where Tessa discovers that the truth of her parentage is more sinister than she had imagined. When they encounter a clockwork demon bearing a warning for Will, they realize that the Magister himself knows their every move—and that one of their own has betrayed them.

Tessa finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, though her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will—the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers about who she is and what she was born to do?

As their dangerous search for the Magister and the truth leads the friends into peril, Tessa learns that when love and lies are mixed, they can corrupt even the purest heart."

Author: Cassandra Clare
Year of Release: 2011
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal, Historical Fiction
Sequel(s): Clockwork Princess
What motivated you to read this book?: I almost always read the sequels to books that I read, plus I wanted to know what was going to happen next!
Book Version: Hardback
Where did you get the book?: Local Library
Favorite Character: Jem Carstairs
Least Favorite Character: Benedict Lightwood or Nate Gray, but I didn't really hate any characters to an extreme
Thoughts on Cover: I really like it. I love Jem. Normally I don't like long haired guys, but I like his long hair on this cover.
Recommended to: Fans of The Mortal Instruments
Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
Review: Clockwork Prince will leave you absolutely breathless. It will captivate you, draw you in, and you will not stop reading until you are done. It is rare for an author to be able to write a book that is better than the first, but in this case, Clockwork Prince triumphs over Clockwork Angel in terms of character development, romance, plot and story line.

There is a great amount of character development from Clockwork Angel to Clockwork Prince especially when it comes to Will. Will is definitely not the same person he was in Clockwork Angel (or maybe he was, but I just didn't realize it because I didn't know about his curse). Knowing about his curse made me pity him and realize that everything he did and said was a lie but for a good reason. I can't imagine living a life under the assumption of being under a curse that will kill all who love me. What a dreadful curse to assume has been placed on you! Especially finding out that the curse is false and knowing that all the lies you did and said for the past 5 years were for nothing at all. What a horrible, horrible thing. Poor, poor Will.

The romance was also a huge improvement as well. There were quite a few of intense, steamy scenes between Will and Tessa & Jem & Tessa that I loved. There were even a few cute moments between Sophie and Gideon. I especially loved the scene where Jem and Tessa first kissed and the scene on the balcony when Will and Tessa have a very passionate kiss.They were so much fun to read. They were probably my favorite scenes in the book.

The plot and story line will keep you interested as well. They were great in Clockwork Angel, but I found them to be more captivating in this book. It kept me reading and wanting to find out what happens next. Like in Clockwork Angel, Clockwork Prince consists of many plot twists and surprises. There is even a bit of a cliffhanger at the end that makes me quite eager for the sequel to come out!

I did find it to be a bit ridiculous though that Tessa agreed to marry Jem. I love, love, love Jem and think he is perfect for Tessa, but her agreeing to marry him after only just finding out how he felt about her just a few days before is quite absurd. She shouldn't marry him because she fears hurting him. She should have been honest with him and told him that she needed more time, especially since she has only known him for a few months and mainly because she loves Will, too, even though she hasn't admitted it to herself yet. Her engagement to Jem has only made me pity him because she doesn't love him as much as he loves her. It has also made me feel so bad for Will, too. It broke my heart to see him so sad and heartbroken, but I don't want Tessa to break Jem's heart either. (I hate love triangles.) I want both boys to be happy, but it's obvious they both can't be happy with Tessa. What made this love triangle more interesting than most love triangles is that the boys who Tessa must decide from are best friends, practically brothers. Usually love triangles consist of two boys who hate each other, not love each other. In this series, they both want the other to be happy and would be willing to sacrifice their own happiness for the other. What Will said to Jem when he announced his engagement to Tessa was so unbelievably selfless. I loved it. I truly love their friendship.

I absolutely loved this book. It was quite a pleasant surprise considering that my expectations for it were not that high. I expected it to be good, but not incredibly amazing. I definitely cannot wait to read Clockwork Princess!