City of Glass by Cassandra Clare Book Review

City of Glass by Cassandra Clare
(Simon Pulse, Hardcover, 2009)
Rating:

The rogue Shadowhunter Valentine is still on the loose and very close to obtaining all three Mortal Instruments, an action that will give him uncontested powers. Clary and her friends must travel to the City of Glass to somehow protect the third Mortal Instrument, a mirror that has been lost for hundreds of years. Clary is torn by her love for Jace and her duty as a Shadowhunter. When she meets Sebastian, Clary not only finds a way to help her coma-ridden mother but she also lands herself in the middle of a very tangled web of deceit.

Oh, what a fun series! I read the entire three books basically non-stop for several days, only stopping to work and eat. Cassandra Clare sure knows how to pile on the action and suspense. Simon, Jace, Sebastian...poor Clary and her seemingly endless line of bad boyfriend choices. I don't want to give away any spoilers so I'll just touch on two points about this series that I haven't discussed in my earlier reviews of City of Bones and City of Ashes. First, Valentine and his son are some of the best villains that I've encountered in recent memory. Both are polished and their convincing arguments hide dark jealousies and evil intent. I love that the series ended with a hint that maybe not all of Valentine's evil doing was erased. The second thing that I really appreciated about this series was the relationships. There were so many love triangles, I could write a whole paper about the love triangles in this book. "Teenage angst" is an often bandied about phrase and Cassandra Clare isn't afraid to just pile it upon her characters. Of course, the books have their lighthearted moments and the friendships that are formed are vital to fighting Valentine. I just read that Cassandra Clare is starting a companion series, set in the Victorian era and featuring a young warlock who must rely on a Shadowhunter, the warlocks sworn enemies. Definitely can't wait to read those books. Although, I think I'll have to buy each book and set it on a shelf until I have the whole series. I can't imagine having read City of Bones or City of Ashes without being able to finish the entire trilogy at once. Too many nail-biting cliffhangers!

City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare Book Review

City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
(Simon Pulse, Paperback, 2009)
Rating:

Clary's life has gotten awfully complicated. First, she learns that she is the daughter of a famous Shadowhunter and so must learn how to vanquish demons. Then she rescues her mother from the evil Valentine, only to learn that her mother is in a coma. Worst of all, she just found out that the guy whose kisses make her weak in the knees has a very unsettling past. Valentine is not gone for good though and it is up to Clary and her friends to try to stop him as he searches for the second Mortal Instrument, a sword that was made by angels.

The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare continues to amaze me. Clare obviously did her research and convincingly blends Christianity with various other world mythologies to create a unique world view. Her grasp of literature is also amazing. As Clary fights to find her place in this world, she discovers several truths and half truths about angels and demons. Biblical passages are quoted right next to John Milton and William Shakespeare. On the back cover, teensreadstoo.com says that this series is "reminiscent of Harry Potter." I believe I can see where there might be some resemblance. I've read the Harry Potter books many times over and am always finding some new hidden gem of mythology or plot clues. While reading The Mortal Instruments series, I had a similar feeling--I felt as if I could reread it a hundred times and still manage to unearth new meanings and literary references. These books are definitely big on action and suspense, but they also contain that wonderful literary element that is lacking in so many books.

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare Book Review

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
(Simon Pulse, Paperback, 2007)
Rating:

When Clary witnesses a murder and sees the body disappear before her eyes, she thinks she's going crazy. But then her mom is kidnapping under mysterious circumstances and Clary is suddenly confronted with an entire world that she didn't know existed. A world in which vampires, werewolves, and demons are fighting for dominance. Clary learns that she is the descendent of Shadowhunters, a group of humans that were blessed with angel blood and given the task to rid the world of demons. Will Clary be able to understand and accept her inheritance in time to save her mother?

This book, and the entire series, completely captivated me from beginning to end. Clary is a dynamic heroine, filled with equal parts confident control and shy hesitancy. Despite the fact that she knows nothing of the Shadowhunters and their history, she maintains her strong exterior and is equal to the task of fighting for her mother's life. Jace and Simon are definitely some of my favorite romantic leads. Simon is the happy-go-lucky best friend who sticks by Clary through thick and thin. Jace is the guy who challenges her at every step yet he has an unshakeable confidence in her abilities as a Shadowhunter. The action in this novel was well-balanced, not too much to detract from the interesting story but enough to keep me flipping the pages and guessing who would come out on top. One of the hardest things in writing a series is to conclude one book satisfactorily while leaving enough plot lines open to create the next book. City of Bones definitely delivers this. Clary's struggles weren't quite resolved but I was left feeling like this book had a good ending. Of course, I then immediately picked up the next book...

Stay tuned for my reviews of the next two novels in this series, City of Ashes and City of Glass.

We interrupt MY reading...

Oh, BEDA.  I'm slightly miffed at you right now.  You're seriously cutting into my reading time.

Two down, one more to go...I'm on page 119 of 541 of City of Glass by Cassandra Clare.  It's good.  Real good.  As in, it's a strong possibility that I will stay up til 2am so I can finish it tonight.

p.s.  Does this count as a post?  I'm counting it...quickly, of course, so I can go back to reading...