The Infernal Devices is a YA historical urban fantasy series comprised of three books: Clockwork Angel, Clockwork Prince, and Clockwork Princess. The first book, Clockwork Angel, was released in 2010, and the series ended with the publishing of Clockwork Princess in 2013. The trilogy was released alongside the final three books in The Mortal Instruments, which is the first series set in Clare’s world of Shadowhunters. Since The Mortal Instruments takes place in 2007, The Infernal Devices is a prequel series (though it eventually received its own sequel series).
Set in 1878, The Infernal Devices follows Tessa Gray as she travels to London in search of her brother. Instead, she discovers Shadowhunters, warlocks, vampires, and more. The Shadowhunters are half-human, half-angel beings that fight demons, unbeknownst to the mortal world. As Tessa is pulled into their world, she grows closer to Shadowhunters Will Herondale and Jem Carstairs. The two boys are Parabatai, meaning they are sworn to protect each other and are closer than brothers. When clockwork creatures and their creator, the Magister, start coming for Tessa, she and the Shadowhunters of the London Institute must face the coming war.
I first read this series when I was 11 years old. My mom had introduced me to The Mortal Instruments, and she gave me this series after I finished the first. I turn 21 in three months, and I just finished rereading this series, though I lost count of how many times I’ve read it years ago. I write this with puffy eyes and the kind of headache you only get from the best books, the ones that have you crying your eyes out by the end. Even after ten years, I cry reading the final book. I cry harder than I ever have reading any other book, and I’ve read some sad books in my time. Now I don’t want to scare anyone away from this series. It is not the kind of ending that leaves you hollow because the characters never got what they wanted or everyone died at the end. There is sadness, but there is also so much happiness. It’s a feeling you can’t truly understand unless you’ve experienced it yourself reading Clockwork Princess.
What makes this series so good, and why I still cry my eyes out after all these years, is the profound love between the characters. You can find love in almost any book series, but not love like this. Tessa falls in love with both Will and Jem, who fall in love with her in return. It is a love triangle, but calling it that doesn’t do it justice. It’s the brotherly love between Will and Jem that, in my opinion, is what makes this series what it is. They are the heart of the story. Their bond is one that not even the author herself has been able to replicate. In her later Shadowhunter series, she has other Parabatai that are supposed to have that same level of closeness that Will and Jem have, but none of them do. They would do anything for each other—even give up the girl that they love for the other to be happy. In this rare instance, it makes perfect sense for the female main character to fall in love with both friends because you cannot love one without loving the other. For Tessa to understand Will, she has to understand his love for Jem, and vice versa. I’ve never read about three characters more intertwined than them, and the side characters are just as vivid and crucial to the story.
To me, The Infernal Devices is more than just a book series. No matter what age I am, what city I live in, or what school I go to, these books have always been there for me. The story has never lost its spark, and it is still just as powerful now as it was ten years ago. The books don’t feel cheesy in comparison to modern series, nor do they feel like a time capsule of 2010s literature in the way many dystopian books do. They stand on their own amongst a sea of books that feel lukewarm in comparison. Everyone should read this series, because I’ve yet to find a book that contains such vivid emotion and depictions of true love among friends, family, and romantic partners.
Sam Yanis, Pine Reads Review Lead Writer