Clockwork Angel

 Rating: 4/5 

Author: Cassandra Clare

Official Goodreads Synopsis:

    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....

My Thoughts:

    The best way to describe reading Clockwork Angel is, like having a scoop of your favourite icecream. Clockwork Angel is full of delicious romances and chalk full of heart racing, page-turning action scenes. I simply couldn't put it down and found myself rushing back to it the moment I walked away. I wasn't sure that Clare could manage to replicate the magic she created in the Mortal Instruments series but after reading Clockwork Angel I can say that not only has Clare replicated the magic of her previous series but in my opinion with the setting in this, the Infernal Devices series, she manages to top it! Now my main problem is that I can't wait to read Clockwork Prince to see how the unpredictable romance between Tessa and Will continues!!!!

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Clockwork Angel (Amazon Print)

Clockwork Angel (Amazon Kindle)

Clockwork Prince; the next book in this thrilling series:

Clockwork Prince (Amazon Print)

Clockwork Prince (Amazon Kindle)

Half n' Half With a Touch of Flower

       Its been over a week since I've done a nail post, I know...c'est tres tres terrible. Last week was a super busy week for me, so I decided to go and get a manicure done. Which of course meant I spent a week making sure my manicure lasted... thus the lack of nail design posts. To remedy this, this week's nail design is combining both the "colour blocking" technique which has become very trendy as of late in addition to a flower. So what are you waiting for read on and try it yourself!

Polishes I Used:

• Wet n' Wild in Lilac Champagne
• Simply Sweet (the magenta nail polish, no colour name was given on the bottle)
• Sally Hansen Hard As Nails in White Tip
• Sally Hansen Ultimate Shield Base and Top Coat
• Sally Hansen Lacquer Shine in Lustrous (Centre of flowers
• I also used a silver nail striper but its from the dollar store and kind of tempermental...

Now to the Design!

Step 1: Paint you rnails a solid base colour, I painted mine the unnamed magenta coloured polish.

Step 2: When your base coat has dried, paint your alternate colour (mine was Lilac Champagne) over half of your nail diagonally (if you aren't steady handed enough to do this free-handed you can get the same results by using scotch tape to create a line). psst... this is what all the trendy people are calling "colour blocking" or "color block" nails.

Step 3: Using a dotting tool dipped in white nail polish, create two dots opposite each other near the centre of the nail. Then add two more dots to make a t-shape.

Step 4: If you want a tear drop shaped flower you can drag the polish in using a toothpick, it will make a sort of cross-like shape.

Step 5: Make a black dot in the centre of the flowers. If you made your flower to be tear drop shaped you can drag this out (using the toothpick) should you desire a hint of black in the centre of your flower's petals.

Step 6: Using a silver striping tool (or a tiny paint brush dipped in silver nail polish), paint a silver line along the line where the two colours (the light and dark pink) meet each other. Now just paint a a topcoat over your design and you're all done!

 I'd love to see pictures if anyone decides to try this themselves! Also, if you want further clarification on how to use tape when "colour blocking" let me know in the comments and I'll write a tutorial post!