It had taken weeks, and the first time she had Changed, it had been so blindingly painful that she’d vomited and passed out.
Book 1 in The Infernal Devices series. Tessa moves from New York to London to join her brother Nathaniel, but instead finds herself plunged into a mysterious world of Shadowhunters, demons, vampires, automatons and shapeshifters in a dark fantasy/steampunk version of London in 1878, hidden from the eyes of the normal citizens by the use of magic.
Discovering that she is more than a mere mortal herself, and armed with nothing but the advice from her late Aunt Harriet, her burning desire to reunite with her brother, and the comfort of a small clockwork angel that belonged to her mother, Tessa has to learn to navigate this dark and deadly Victorian London world of deception, passion and betrayal, and at the same time come to terms with her own magical abilities. But her gift comes at a great cost, and as Tessa seeks refuge in The Institute among the Shadowhunters, she eventually finds herself in the middle of an ongoing battle between good and evil, surrounded by parties eager to take advantage of her newfound skills.
The story is emotional and passionate, full of yearning, dark secrets and hints and snippets of events from the past, overarching stories and things yet to be. The three main characters are adolescents, and they have a raw, unpolished feel to them as they love, hate, rage and claw their way through a world that is not only unfeeling, but potentially lethal at every turn. I loved the setting, the dark, gothic, steampunk Victorian-era surroundings are atmospheric and intriguing and fit the gloom, passion and longing of the characters in the novel perfectly.
Take note that this is book 1 of a trilogy, it ends with plenty of questions left unanswered, especially when it comes to Tessa’s abilities and parentage, her obvious attraction to Will, and her budding friendship with Jem. If you want the full story, you will have to read the whole series of The Infernal Devices.
Fantasy – Steampunk
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