Actually there is more tobacco and nicotine in alot of cloves than regular cigarettes. Ya they are a little worse for you to smoke, but not much. I wouldn't get in the habit of smoking them regularly, but like you said, a couple now and then isn't too bad. Not any worse than smoking anything else really.
They have a very distinct taste, it's kinda sweet, and they also crackle when you smoke them cause of the cloves. It's kinda cool.