Infernal Devices Books in Order

The Infernal Devices is a historical prequel to The Mortal Instruments, set in 1870s London at the height of the Industrial Revolution. It follows Tessa Gray, a book loving young woman who crosses the Atlantic to join her brother and instead finds herself kidnapped by warlocks who force her to use a shapeshifting power she never knew she had.

Rescued by Shadowhunters and taken into the London Institute, Tessa is drawn into a city of gaslit streets, secret Downworlder clubs, and mechanical demons. Clockwork Angel introduces her to Will Herondale and Jem Carstairs, parabatai whose deep bond sits at the center of the trilogy, and to a plot by the mysterious Magister, who is building an army of clockwork automatons.

In Clockwork Prince and Clockwork Princess, the stakes rise as Tessa learns more about her own origins and the Magister’s long game against the Clave. Political maneuvering inside the Shadowhunter hierarchy threatens the Institute itself, while the love triangle between Tessa, Will, and Jem explores duty, sacrifice, and the many forms a family can take.

Victorian literature, poetry, and social change are woven through these books, from references to classic novels to questions about gender roles and class. The series also shows earlier generations of families readers meet elsewhere in the Chronicles, including the Herondales, Lightwoods, and Blackthorns.

You can read The Infernal Devices either before or after The Mortal Instruments. Many readers enjoy starting with Tessa’s story, then watching how its consequences echo forward into The Last Hours and the modern day books.