Review: Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

Magic is dangerous--but love is more dangerous still.

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.

A Clockwork Angel is the first book in Clare's new Infernal Devices series. Now, it's been awhile since I've read the Mortal Instruments series. So I had a bit of trouble trying to recall all of the background on the Shadowhunters and Downworlders. Because the characters in A Clockwork Angel are the ancestors to Clary, Jace, etc. I kept trying to relate them back to the Mortal Instruments series. However, I have a horrible memory when it comes to recalling books. I read so many and I just don't retain a lot of the details that other readers seem to be able to recall. It's such a pain! I was kind of frustrating myself trying to remember all the stuff from the Mortal Instruments series that it was hampering my enjoyment of the story. So when I decided to just stop trying recollect everything and enjoy this as a stand alone title and not how it related to the Mortal Instruments series, I was able to immerse myself and enjoy the book. And enjoy it I did! I LOVED this book. I think I'm going to end up liking this series more than the Mortal Instruments series. I think the world that Clare has created works so well in the historical context. I think that is part of why I enjoyed this book so much!

The characters Clare has created with Tessa, Will, and Jem are complex. Tessa, clearly holds traditional views of women in her society. I think these views will be tested and eventually altered as the series progresses. In this book we already saw Tessa growing more independent and stronger. Doing things I don't think she ever imagined she could do.

I love Will. He's clearly a tortured hero, which is one of my literary weaknesses. I love his self deprecating, sarcastic sense of humor. I love the banter between Tessa and Will. I cannot wait to discover what his deep dark secret is!

Jem is the antithesis of Will. While I didn't love him as much as Will. I think he's an interesting character especially with his "handicap". I don't see him as a love interest for Tessa; I think it's all about Will for her. But I think Jem is and will become a great friend to Tessa. But I am decidedly Team Will, no doubt!

I loved the idea of the clockwork army, so creepy and the whole book has that Victorian horror novel kind of feel to it. I mentioned before but I really think Clare's world works really well in this historical setting. This was an excellent start to what promises to be another excellent YA fantasy series!
Be sure to check out the website for The Infernal Devices series. There's background information and even character sketches!

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Audiobites: Graceling by Kristen Cashore

Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight — she’s a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme, and in her case horrifying, skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king’s thug. When she first meets Prince Po, Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change. She never expects to become Po’s friend. She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace — or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away... a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone.

I first read Graceling in March 2009 and I loved it. I read it around the same time I read The Hunger Games, which I also loved, and felt that both these books portrayed strong, young adult protagonists.After reading a review of the audio version of Graceling and because June is Audiobook Month I thought I would give it a go.

The audio version is produced by Full Cast Audio and each character is representd by a differnt actor. This was a different experience for me. The only other audiobooks I've ever listened to were the Harry Potter books read by Jim Dale (who is AMAZINg and won all kinds of awards for his narration). He does all the voices for all the different characters, so to hear a book with a full cast was quite different.

The audio version of this book gave me quite a different experience than reading the text. One of the things I noticed was how much more attention I paid to the little details. Because the text is being "read" aloud or acted out, there is no temptation of skimming or glossing over any of the text. You hear everything well, unless your mind happens to wander!

I was concerned that perhaps the actors voices they chose to portray certain characters would not match my idea of what the characters should sound like. However, all the main characters had great voices that I found appropriate for each character. Especially Po's voice. Sigh.

The only thing I would comment on as far as the story goes, that I hadn't noticed when I read the printed text, was how anti-climatic the encounter with the villain of the story was. I didn't notice it when reading the story but when listening to it, our protagonists when through sooooo much to evade the villian and when they do encounter him the resolution seemed so rushed like....that's it? Really? I don't know why it stood out to me so much more on the audio than it did with the text.

That being said, the audio version really brings to life, literally, the amazing world and characters that Kristen Cashore has created. I enjoyed this audio book immensely and I intend to check out other Full Cast Audio productions.

I thought I should mention that AudioFile Magazine gave this audio book their Earphone Award which is given to:

truly exceptional presentations that excel in all the following criteria:

• Narrative voice and style
• Vocal characterizations
• Appropriateness for the audio format
• Enhancement of the text

I would agree! And even if you don't want to check out the audio version I give both the audio and the print version:

Lightening Reviews

Proof by Seduction by Courtney Milan

She is his last chance for a future of happiness…

Jenny Keeble has never let her humble upbringing stop her. She’s made her way in the world as a fortune teller, one who convinces her clients her predictions are correct by telling them what they most want to hear. Business is good… until she meets her match in the form of Gareth Carhart, the Marquess of Blakely, a scientist and sworn bachelor.

He just doesn’t know it yet.

Broodingly handsome, Gareth is appalled to discover his cousin has fallen under the spell of "Madame Esmerelda," and he vows to prove her a fraud. But his unexpected attraction to the fiery enchantress defies logic. Jenny disrupts every facet of Gareth's calculated plan— until he can’t decide whether to ruin her or claim her for his own. Now, as they engage in a passionate battle of wills, two lonely souls must choose between everything they know… and the boundless possibilities of love.

A big thanks to Stacy for putting this one on my radar with her review and post on intellectual romance. I really enjoyed this book! It was smart, funny, and sexy. The characters were flawed but endearing. And I kept picturing Gareth as our lovely Mr. Thornton from North & South. Sigh. Definitely pick this one up folks!

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Magic Lost, Trouble Found by Lisa Shearin

Raine Benares is a Sorceress Seeker of average ability until she comes into possession of an amulet that amplifies her powers-and her enemies.

Can I tell you how much I enjoy being on Twitter? I likely would have never picked up this book if I hadn't seen @kmont, @angiebookgirl and @janicu debating between the two hotties in this series. I haven't read a lot of fantasy and what I have read has been mostly YA. It always seems to take me a little longer to get into fantasy because of the world-building and in this book's case, the names. They had some weirdo names. However, it didn't take me long before I was sucked into the story.There wasn't much wrapped up in this book as it's an on going series. I'm looking forward to getting the next book. I really love the young character Piaras. I'm looking forward to more interactions between Raine and her two love interests: Tam and Mychael. :)

The series in order:

1. Magic Lost, Trouble Found
2. Armed & Magical
3. The Trouble with Demons
4. Bewitched & Betrayed

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Sharp Teeth by Toby Barlow

An ancient race of lycanthropes has survived to the present day, and its numbers are growing. Bent on dominance, rival factions are initiating the down-and-out of L.A. into their ranks. Caught in the middle are Anthony, a kindhearted, lovesick dogcatcher, and the object of his affection: a female werewolf who has abandoned her pack.

This was my Book Club's April pick in honor of National Poetry Month. I had some trouble finding novels in verse that weren't for YA's. I'd seen Sharp Teeth before and had wanted to read it for awhile now. One of my friend's finished before I did and said she didn't like it. We have pretty similar tastes so after that I wasn't super excited about reading it. However, as the leader of my Book Club felt kind of obliged. I'm glad I read it. It was a good read. Not great, not something I'll ever re-read. Not even something I'll tell people you HAVE to read this. But I enjoyed it. When we discussed it at my Book Club, my friend who didn't like it, had just jumped right into reading it and was confused about all the "fur" references and took her awhile to figure out it was about werewolves. Some other things slipped by her in reading it as well so after I filled her in on the pieces she didn't put together she seemed to like it a little better. We also discussed why the author chose to write in verse. As I was preparing for our Book Club meeting to discuss the book I found an article or interview where Barlow was discussing that writing in verse was writing the bare-bones of a story it was stripped down. We also discussed how the use of verse made some of the gory details less disturbing. Had this been written in prose, I think a lot of the violence would have been too much for some readers. There's an excellent review of Sharp Teeth in New York Magazine.

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Disclosure: I checked all books out from the library. I did not receive any compensation for these reviews.