Cassandra Clare's "Clockwork Angel"

"Clockwork Angel" on Amazon.com

They say "never judge a book by its cover", but when it comes to my love for fantasy books, I always judge the book by the cover. When I see a handsome dude in dapper clothes, and it's not a cheest romance novel, there's a good chance that I'll pick it up.

This particular book also peaked another interest of mine, which was find out what this whole "steampunk" genre was about, and Cassandra Clare's "Clockwork Angel" was my first foray into that domain. I'm glad that the book was a strong mix of steampunk and fantasy, because the mechanical elements didn't really appeal to me. I hear the word "automaton" and I instantly assume Will Smith will make an appearance a la "I-Robot". The robots in this book, while it was set in old-time London, were much closer to those of current time than the creepy yet benign automaton of "Hugo".

Cogs and mechanics aside, I loved the fantastical elements - the classic battle between angels and demons, intermingling with humans, vampires, warlocks and the fey. 

This series looks to be a bit darker than most fantasy, with certain scenes that could rival the creepiness of Silent Hill. Fires blaze and blood abounds, so while it's not terribly scary, faint of heart fairy-tale lovers should be warned. This isn't a fairy tale. 

The characters vary from the sensitive and intelligent angel warrior, Jem, to the flighty and shallow yet comically fierce Jessamine and everyone in between. The main focus is on the 17 year-old angel-soldier Will Herondale, who is arrogant and broody yet quite entertaining (and also the handome devil on the cover) and the equally young heroine of the story, polite yet feisty Underworlder, Tessa Gray. With a pairing like that, the obvious sparks and passions ensue. 

The story itself is great. It's well thought out, action packed with all the right elements to keep you engaged. But you can tell that it's a series because it just kind of fizzles out. There are a lot of unanswered questions to lead you into the next book, but no big cliff hanger. That was really the only disappointment. Other than that, it was a definite page-turner. I read all 450ish pages in about a day and a half. 

Kim Gray is a mom, blogger, nutrition fanatic and founder of the Voracious Readers Society and ePaleoCookbooks.net. If you would like to join the society and submit your own book reviews, you can contact her at voraciousreaders@yahoo.com or on twitter @artex1024.