Review of City of Glass by Cassandra Clare

Book three of the Mortal Instruments story is full of unexpected (but not undesirable) twists and turns and while I sort of had one of the big plots twists figured out, the way that events actually unfolded was SO worth the read.  You're gonna enjoy it, I promise.

In City of Glass Clary makes her way to Alicante, the ancestral home and capitol city of the Shadowhunters, where she learns more about her family's past and the (sometimes dark) secrets they've kept, the decisions her father made that we are only just now seeing the effects of, and discovers a way to save her mother, Joceline.

Clary is still far too impulsive, always running headlong into danger without taking even half of a second to consider who might be hurt by her decisions.  This is one of the traits I don't like about Clary but I would like to think that her heart is in the right place.  When she isn't thinking about herself, nearly all of her choices are driven by her desire to help those she cares about.

I feel that Cassandra Clare is far more brilliant an author than I was expecting or originally thought.  As the series continues, things we heard about in book one are finally being explained even as new questions and mysteries are unfolding.  She is really quite good at both world-building and continuing the Mortal Instruments story through many books.  If you stop reading, or try to skip forward a few pages, I can guarantee you will miss out on a great story-line and vital information.

Review of City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

In City of Bones, Clary Fray sees what she believes to be a murder committed right before her eyes and discovers that there is a whole other world beyond what she knows.  A world that she has been hidden and protected from, and one that her mother has kept secret for her entire life.  With these unexpected and somewhat unwanted revelations coming to light, Clary has to decide if she's going to step up and be a part of this new world or continue hiding from it.

Initially, it was hard for me to get into this book. Clary is such a whiny teenager!  I've long since grown out of that stage of life and it was far too annoying for me to read.  I had to put this book down for an afternoon in order to accept that Clary is a kid dealing with things that are entirely beyond the realm of normal.  After that, it was quite easy to fall into the world of Shadowhunters, mages, werewolves, and more.

I'm excited to see what happens with Clary, Jace, and everyone else in book two of The Mortal Instruments series, City of Ashes.