The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde - UPDATED REVIEW

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde  Genre : Classics Blurb (on back of book) : Oscar Wilde’s only novel is the dreamlike story of a young man who sells his soul for eternal youth and beauty. In this celebrated work Wilde forged a devastating portrait of the effects of evil and debauchery on a young aesthete in late-19th-century England. Combining elements of the Gothic horror novel and decadent French fiction, the book centers on a striking premise: As Dorian Gray sinks into a life of crime and gross sensuality, his body retains perfect youth and vigor while his recently painted portrait grows day by day into a hideous record of evil, which he must keep hidden from the world. For over a century, this mesmerizing tale of horror and suspense has enjoyed wide popularity. It ranks as one of Wilde's most important creations and among the classic achievements of its kind. UPDATED REVIEW MY OPINION : ****** I would like to start out this review by stating that this is undoubtedly m

Clockwork Princess - Cassandra Clare

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare
Genre: YA Fantasy/Romance

Image result for clockwork princessBlurb (on back of book): Tessa Gray should be happy—aren't all brides happy? Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute. A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan.
He needs Tessa.
Charlotte Brankwell, head of the Institute, is desperate to find Mortmain before he strikes. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her. For though Tessa and Jem are engaged, Will is still in love with her.
The last words of a dying Shadowhunter provide the clue that might lead Tessa and her friends to Mortmain. But their small group cannot stand alone, and the powerful Consul doubts that Mortmain is coming. Deserted by allies, the Shadowhunters find themselves trapped when Mortmain seizes the medicine that keeps Jem alive. With his best friend at death's door, Will must risk everything to save the girl they both love. 
To buy Will time, the warlock Magnus Bane joins with Henry Branwell to create a device that could help defeat Mortmain. As they all work to save Tessa and the future of the Shadowhunters that resides with her, Tessa realizes that the only person who can her is herself—for in the discovery of her own true nature, Tessa could become more powerful than she ever dreamed possible. But can a lone girl, even one who can command the power of angels, face down an entire army?
Danger and betrayal, secrets and enchantment, and the tangled threads of love and loss intertwine as the Shadowhunters are pushed to the brink of destruction in the breathtaking conclusion to the Infernal Devices trilogy.

MY OPINION: *****

Whew, what a long blurb! I feel as if it told everything that happened, but that's okay. I feel as if I have to make a long review after that, especially since this was the last book and it made the most impact.

Inside of the jacket cover of the copy I borrowed, there was a beautiful family tree that almost told everything. I loved it! It was beautiful and I wish I could include a picture, but my computer is acting up at the moment. CHECK iRANDOM FOR THAT IN THE NEAR FUTURE.

This was definitely my favorite of the three books in this trilogy. It was a good conclusion, though the ending was just... no. I hated it. But then again, it was perfect for people who couldn't decide who they shipped.

For me... TESSA X WILL. Never anyone else.

Especially not Jem.

Character talks first today.

Tessa. She definitely matured and changed from the first two books to this one. I think that she changed from being completely plastic and submitting to everyone to determined and independent. I liked how she finally started to make her own decisions and stopped doing whatever Charlotte, Will, Jem, etc told her to do. She really needed to do what she felt was right. I felt as if Tessa was so innocent. Her voice, personality, and manner of talking just felt innocent and young. I didn't necessarily hate that, but it wasn't the most appreciated.

Will. Will is still my favorite character. For me, I tend to dislike the protagonists and liking the sidekicks or even the villains more, though I did dislike Mortmain. Will was awesome. He was blunt and straight-forward which is something I appreciate in male characters, as well as real-life people XD He just spoke his feelings, although it might cause him pain or some other unwanted emotion. He definitely changed from the first two books. Will's "curse" definitely brought him under an influence of being cold and mean to everyone, but when it was "lifted" in a way, he changed back to the normal guy that he should have always been. I understand how he felt. Seventeen years of his life was definitely a long time, if not a lifetime yet, and he had wasted them under a false influence. Will was understandable and definitely someone that I could relate to. I LOVED HIM. BEST CHARACTER EVER.

Jem. Jem was not my favorite. In fact, I was angry at him most of the time, and I have to admit it now: I disliked him. I didn't hate him, but he was just so annoying. HE WAS TOO NICE. That's a weird reason, but it's true. He never got angry or lost his temper except once PARTLY, and then it just seemed out of character and weird. Jem's "sickness" or "disability" was also strange. He was going to die either way, but the author kept prolonging it. It felt unrealistic and not factual. The worst part is... SPOILER JEM DIDN'T EVEN DIE. What is this???? I hate when authors kill off their characters, only to bring them back to life, like in TMI, or have them never be dead in the first place. Cassandra Clare always does this, and it is good as an element of surprise, but I prefer it when they just STAY DEAD. Especially since I didn't like Jem in the first place. Silent Brother. Ok I can life with that. Until he leaves the Brotherhood and MARRIES TESSA even though he is going to grow old.

Charlotte and Henry. I disliked both of them. Charlotte was too submitting like Tessa, and then when she did her own thing, it seemed out of character. I can't even talk about Henry. I just disliked him. He was sweet, and I hate that feature in characters. Don't judge me.

Sophie. Sweet and perfect. Loved her. Definitely a great addition to this book. Gideon Lightwood x Sophie? I kinda see it, but am I the only one who wished she would end up with Jem so that Will would be free to pursue Tessa??

Gabriel. Jerk. But he changed by the end, and I liked how he really learned his lesson and decided to change his character. Cecily was sweet, but not my favorite especially when she was matched ith Gabriel, which is NOT a spoiler.

Ok, enough with characters. As you guys know, I don't like to talk about the bad guys as much, but let me just say that I hated Mortmain's actions. I didn't necessarily hate HIM, but his actions were just hellish and CRUEL.

I have to talk about something. SKIP THIS PART IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK YET..

THE ENDING. WORST ENDING EVER. Will died of old age, I think, and Tessa is all alone. She mourns him but then marries Jem, who is still young after finding a cure for his disease. Ummm... too happily ever after for me. Especially since I DID NOT LIKE JEM. Then Jem is going to die of old age at some point. Then what? Who's Tessa going to marry next? I wish she could have had some weird genetic malfunction or something that would have made her NOT IMMORTAL!

The weird thing about this book was that there were hardly any deaths. As morbid as that sounds, death is a part of almost all YA fantasy nowadays. The only deaths were...Jessamine, Mortmain (duh), Benedict Lightwood, Nate, the Consul (GOOD RIDDANCE, THAT JERK), Aloysius Starkweather, Will (in the epilogue, so that doesn't count... I don't remember any more. Either the deaths weren't important, or NOBODY DIED. NONE OF THE BIG CHARACTERS DIED...

Was I the only one who liked the fact that Cassandra Clare put in so many phrases from foreign languages? I remember Mandarin, Welsh, and Spanish. That was so cool and gave this book more of a diverse outlook.

Ok, I'm going to cut this short now. Let me just say that I loved this book and would recommend to fans of TMI (The Mortal Instruments), and fantasy, YA, and romance readers.

Main Character: Tessa
Sidekick(s): Will, Jem, Charlotte, Henry, Cecily, Sophie, Gideon, Gabriel, etc
Villain(s): Mortmain, Automatons, The Consul (yes, he counts), etc
Fantasy/Romance Elements: This book featured a lot of fantasy elements, such as fake characters like the automatons, and elements within the setting. This book had several romantic interests and relationships.


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