City of Bones: The Mortal Instruments

Originally posted on my blog: [...] I have SO many favorite quotes this time over, you guys, I just HAD to share some :D Simon grinned, "You've never heard of Dungeons and Dragons?" "I've heard of dungeons," Jace said. "Also dragons. Although they're mostly extinct." Simon looked disappointed. "You've never killed a dragon?" "He's probably never met a six-foot-tall hot elf-woman in a fur bikini, either," Clary said irritably. "Lay off, Simon." He squinted at her. "Do you remember back at the hotel when you promised that if we lived, you'd get dressed up in a nurse's and give me a sponge bath?""Actually, I think you misheard", Clary said. "It was Simon who promised you the sponge bath." Jace looked involuntarily over at Simon, who smiled at him widely. "As soon as I'm back on my feet, handsome!" "I knew we should have left you a rat." "That's why when major badasses greet each other in movies, they donn't say anything, they just nod. The nod means, 'I am a badass, and I recognize that you, too, are a badass.'" "Have you fallen in love with the wrong person yet?' Jace said, "Unfortunately, Lady of the Haven, my one true love remains myself." ..."At least," she said, "you don't have to worry about rejection, Jace Wayland." "Not necessarily. I turn myself down occasionally, just to keep it interesting." Don't." Clary raised a warning hand. "I'm not really in the mood right now." "That's got to be the first time a girl's ever said that to me," Jace mused." Plot: Quite amazing. Fast-paced, thrilling with enough romance and mystery to keep anyone and everyone in its grip. And what an iron-fast grip it is! You are entranced from page 2 and you don't want to let go for the world. I started reading this the day before my final exams (yes, I know that was the stupidest thing ever) and I just couldn't stop. I finished my tests fast just so I could keep reading. Lol Characters: All of the characters in City of Bones are really well-written and easily lovable. Isabelle is such a strong person and I would personally love to meet her and Alec, well it's awesome Clare gave the gay population some voice! I just wish that Clary (I'm guessing that's a twist on Clare) was a little less dependent on Jace and the others; hopefully she'll learn more by the next book - I'd like to see her as a stronger female lead. My favorite character was definitely Simon. You can see why in my favorite quotes lol. I know you're wondering why I left Jace for last. Well, it's because I don't much care for him. (Don't hit me!) I was really liking him until the end. To be so credulous to blindly throw away all his beliefs just because his "father" turns out to be alive and well shows how undependable he isI find it slightly disappointing and I pity him. Well, I'm sure he'll have plenty of time to redeem himself in the next few books, but so far, that's how I feel. World: Ah, Clare creates such a crazy yet believable world! She's like Rowling that way (yes, I'm comparing her to Rowling). Both writers have the ability to create amazing worlds that invite you to step right in and make yourself at home. Romanciness: I loved Jace and Clary until...well, if you've read the book you know what I mean and if you haven't...no spoilers for you! I have no doubt that this *ahem obstacle* will turn out to be not true because that just ruins the chances for these two and I kind of doubt any author would do that in the first book. On the other hand, I do NOT like Simon and Clary. To be honest, I feel like that was just thrown in and there's really nothing there. Please, Cassandra, don't turn this into a Twilight-y love triangle! Isn't one person enough for you? And Please please please tell me Alec and Magnus Bane have a chance!! That's something I'm rooting for even more than the others. I know there's probably a huge age difference, but it's not insurmountable right? So overall, I'm just beating myself up for not reading this sooner! City of Ashes, where are you??? More About the Series: All you Clare fans probably know more about this than I do, but with some research, I have found that after City of Bones comes City of Ashes, City of Glass and City of Fallen Angels. The 5th book, called 'City of Lost Souls', will be published May 8, 2012 and the last book entitled 'City of Heavenly Fire' comes out Sept 2014. Yeah, you have to gnaw your nails that long, hard-core fans. But not to worry. There is a spin-off series called The Infernal Devices with Clockwork Angel and Clockwork Prince out already, and Clockwork Princess out Sept 2013. Question for you, Recommended for: OMG Everyone!! I borrowed this from my local library to read and post an honest review.

City of Bones (Mortal Instruments 1) by Cassandra Clare. 7/10 City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. Wow. I'd heard good things about this trilogy so I waited until all three were released. I'm glad I did. If I'd rushed out and read it as soon as it was released, I'd be jonesing for my next Mortal Instruments fix for ages. I don't like jonesing for anything. Clare writes her characters beautifully. She describes them very well, but it's her dialogue that makes her characters come alive. Brilliant. Well, most of the time. Clary, the main player is a 15 year-old girl in New York who: gets plunged into a supernatural world she never knew existed, discovers she's one of the supernatural folk herself, fights demons, vampires and other nasties, and then she tumbles into a love triangle between the limp best bud and hot new badass guy (the repartee between these three main players is just fantastic, by the way). And, she does it all with the maturity of a jaded 35-year old serial monogamist. She's just a tad too mature. As for the limp best bud Simon; he's fairly standard limp best bud been-secretly-in-love-with-her-for-10-years stereotype. And he's mortal, or a Mundie (short for Mundane) as the supernatural gang - shadowhunters - call us. Poor bloke doesn't stand a chance against the hot new guy... or does he??? As limp as he is, I was jealous of even him in this book because his dialogue was so cool. Wish I'd been able to talk that way when I was a teenager, instead of being the awkward nerd I was. Then there's the hot new guy. Jace, his name is. And he's a terminally sarcastic smartass, who's also one of the best demon hunters in the business, despite being just a teenager. The mouth on this kid is just fantastic. The main baddie, a thoroughly nasty piece of work called Valentine, is nice and wicked without too much of the all powerful Voldemort thing going on. Even better, his motives, which at first seem simple, turn out to be be a little more complex. Good stuff. The setting of New York might tug at the heart-strings of a few, but to me it didn't matter where the action took place. I mean, it was a nice change from dystopia, or down-town LA or Hogwarts, but hardly important. In fact, Clare puts a little too much emphasis on settings - I'll explain why in a minute. The story itself is great. Clare gives us plausible new takes on the origin of vampire, werewolves and demons which is nice, especially because she sticks to the rules. You know - silver, sunlight, holy water - that kind of thing. There's the battle to save the world from demons and the missing enchanted thingamajig that can either help or hinder. Classic stuff. Of course it's Clary who appears on the scene to help find said thingamajig. So far, so good. Then my Mr Potato Head Angry Eyes started to notice a few things, like the settings. New York seems to be where shadowhunters are sent if they've been naughty. Huh? New York? Being sent to New York as punishment comes across a bit hillbilly. Have a listen to Hank Williams Jr's If Heaven Aint A Lot Like Dixie and you'll get what I mean. On second thoughts, don't listen to it. You might need your ears again one day and scrubbing them out with barbed wire won't do you any good. Just read the lyrics. Then there's their homeland, Idris. Idris is nestled somewhere in Europe, but it's not on any map. That's fine. It's the comparison to the rest of the planet that made me cringe. The grass is greener there. The buildings are more beautiful, the people better looking and more civilised and the food tastes better - get the picture? All these hot-stuff supernatural warriors moping about after some beautiful place like love-sick cows started to wear a bit thin by the end. Next on the grumpy list, was the ending itself. The ending, even though it's not really the end because we know there are two more to follow the first, which isn't really the first because Clare is writing prequels... where was I? See how annoying that can be? The ending has a few too many twists and turns. It also gets a bit Empire Strikes Back - ish. I'm not going to give away the ending, but when you read it, you'll see it too. City of Bones (Mortal Instruments 1) by Cassandra Clare is a great read. Don't let the previous two pars in this post put you off. Really. Clare's dialogue alone makes it a must-read. I give it 7/10. I'm really looking forward to the next one: City of Ashes. It's there now on my ereader app, just waiting for me. Yummy. [...]

City of Bones is the first book in The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare. City of Bones focuses on the main character, 15 year old Clary Fray, who unexpectedly witnesses Shadowhunters killing a demon in a nightclub called Pandemonium in New York City. The problem is, she isn't supposed to be able to see them. Jace, a Shadowhunter, a warrior tasked with ridding the earth of demons, finds her again the next night at a coffee shop. From these, she is pulled into the supernatural world that is that of the Shadowhunters and encounters things like demons, werewolves and vampires that she never thought existed. When Clary's mother disappears and she finds herself being attacked by a demon, she realizes that everything she thought she knew about her life is wrong. She gets deeper into the Shadowhunters and Jace's world, while trying to find her mother and figure out why she suddenly has the Sight. First, I know I am late to the party by not reading this fantastic series until now. I read half of City of Bones when I was in college, but was busy with my undergrad and never finished it. The book went MIA and then I saw the whole series in a thrift shop a few weeks ago and bought it. I really loved this book. The author has created such a magical world with all of the characters. I have found some fantasy books to be too long but this was perfect, even at almost 500 pages. The author takes the time to describe all of the characters, places and events in enough detail that we really get to know everyone and everything, but without going overboard. I felt like I really got to know Clary, Jace and Simon, as well as Isabelle, Alec and Luke. The book also, to me, has the perfect balance of action and character development. There was also some romance. The book is told from more of a narrators perspective, which I really liked as well. Most of the fantasy series I have read, such as The Hunger Games or Divergent, are told from only one main perspective. I really can't believe it took me this long to start the series. For fans of fantasy series, I imagine if you haven't already read this book/series, you will greatly enjoy it. I couldn't put it down and read the entire thing in 2 days. I am really looking forward to reading the rest of the series. I try really hard not to put any specifics or spoilers in any of my reviews so that's all I will say about that! If you haven't read City of Bones, I highly suggest you go buy it and probably the rest of The Mortal Instruments series while you are at it! Happy reading!

While at an all-ages club with her best friend Simon, sixteen year old Clary stumbles upon three tattooed teenagers murdering another teen and finds herself mixed up in the world of Shadowhunters, Nephilim who are charged with ridding the earth of demons and other dark creatures. The fact that Clary can see them at all is a signal that she is no ordinary human girl. When Clary’s mother goes missing, it is the Shadowhunters who take her under their wing and teach her about her mother’s past. She learns that her mother was taken by an evil rogue Shadowhunter, Valentine, because she knows where the precious Mortal Cup is. But Clary’s mother isn’t the only one who knows where the cup is…with the help of a warlock’s magic, her mother buried clues into her memory. Clary and her Shadowhunter friends fight to reach it before Valentine does. My favorite part of this book was the snappy dialogue. Jace and Clary both wield sarcasm like swords. I really hope that if they ever make a movie of this series that they will use Cassie Clare’s actual lines and allow her to have a hand in writing the script. The world that Clare has created here is fun, scary and full of wonder. Her descriptions of fairies, vampires, werewolves, warlocks and Nephilim existing in the modern world around us, made me long for it to be real. I also love that her nasty Valentine character is so calm and psychotic. The way he can justify and turn things around in ways to influence people into thinking he is right is almost scarier than a typical villain. There is also a love triangle which starts out typical, but ends up being really interesting. Clary & Simon have been best friends since they were kids. It is obvious that he is completely infatuated with her and she has no idea. (There are actually several examples of unrequited love in this book.) When the incredibly hot Shadowhunter, Jace, enters the picture, it’s clear pretty quickly that Clary’s heart lies in another direction, putting her in between the two guys who don’t care for each other. Jace has an exterior that is tough as leather. Even thought you know that Clary is getting to him, he is not quick to relinquish his hold on his emotions. He flat out tells her that love makes people weak, something that a Shadowhunter cannot afford to be. No spoilers here or anything ,but there is a plot twist at the end of this book that completely broke my heart. Can’t wait to read the next book! Overall, I give City of Bones… Plot – 4 ½ bookmarks Character Development – 4 bookmarks World Building – 4 ½ bookmarks Love Story – 3 ½ bookmarks, but I think it will get more interesting in the coming books) Dream Cast (otherwise known as who I pictured while reading) – Rachel Hurd-Wood (Clary), Alex Pettyfer (Jace), Luke Pasqualino (Simon), Zac Efron (Alec), Christopher Backus (Magnus Bane), Christian Serratos (Isabelle)

I just finished the book and I'm going for a three star review because I didn't think the book was great, but I also didn't think it was terrible, especially not when you consider its target audience is over a decade younger than me. I've read some other reviews before writing this, which actually made me consider the book more closely, and will influence the review below. That said, there will be some major spoilers, so beware. First of all, as stated above, this was just a fun book to read. A lot of YA books sound like they contain really cool ideas and twists on various fantasy or sci-fi themes, but the writing is so terrible and the characters so one-dimensional that I can't read more than a few chapters. I had no problem reading this book and staying interested in the plot. I also thought that Clare had a (sadly) few good original ideas. Namely hiding the cup in the painted tarot cards things using runes. And a couple characters, such as Magnus. And that's where the good things I have to say end. Not that the above is a great summary of what she did well, but it makes more sense to explain the things that didn't work than gush over the things that did. I'll start with Clary. I didn't find her nearly as terrible as a lot of people on here do. For example, a lot of people complain that she "hates Isabelle just for being prettier than her." I took a different spin. Yes, Clary does bemoan how beautiful Isabelle is, and she probably does say some things on the surface that seem rather mean. But I took these as typical teenaged exaggeration, and an acknowledgement that we all feel insecure next to someone else. Yet here's what really bothered me: Clary just doesn't add up. At the beginning, we're told that she and her best friend Simon are only at the club Pandemonium because Clary likes it there. Yet as we get to know the characters, Simon the musician seems like the one who would prefer it. Clary is a jeans and a tee shirt, off the in clouds painter/reader. There's nothing about her that convinces me she would enjoy clubbing. Another note about Clary, although this isn't about her as a character: a number of people complained that Clary didn't know how beautiful she was until Jace told her, and how cliché that is. I agree, I guess, but this brings up another point. Why is it that in these novels even the otherwise ordinary, sweet, interesting (although that last is debatable) girl also has to be gorgeous in order for the male characters to be interested in her? Why can't she be pretty, but ... well, ordinary? Because that's what the majority of girls reading this book are. Next let's talk about clichés and plot holes. The biggest one first. Who read this and didn't guess that Valentine was Clary's father? I mean, seriously. I thought about it probably from the first time Valentine was mentioned. And then we find out that Clary's mom was married to Valentine. I thought to myself ... no, she wouldn't pull a Star Wars. But alas she does. And Jace as well, and his father that he loved so much but who, the more you hear about him, sounds more and more like a sociopath? I was hoping that part wasn't true, because I was actually hoping for a real love triangle. Something that would keep me guessing. And then I would understand, except that it's not even done well. Jace finds out that his father is Valentine, and he doesn't question it, or think it's weird. He doesn't consider the fact that his father faked his own death in front of him and abandoned him until Clary shows up and points all of this out to him. Though up until this point in the novel, he seems, if nothing else, reasonably intelligent. And even then, ok, maybe he doesn't care what his father did and he's just happy to have a family and feels loyal to him ... it certainly seems that way as Clary begs him to consider otherwise. Until all of a sudden he changes in the other direction for what I felt was very weak dialogue on Clary's part. And then there's the fact that they still seem weirdly close and codependent even after they find out they're siblings. Jace talks about how Clary, his sister, makes him feel settled. That just sounds weird to me. To be honest, I enjoyed the first half of the novel much more than the second. The first was more interesting as we were introduced to the Shadow world, went into the City of Bones, went to Magnus' party, fun things like that. There was a lot of build up. There was the cup that no one could find, there was the issue of Luke (who obviously was hiding something and wasn't really trying to get rid of Clary), there was her mother and the Clave and Valentine. I expected some of it to be revealed and resolved and some things to build up even more, but instead I felt like there was just too much all laid out on the table in the very first book, with not enough satisfaction and not enough held back to keep the reader interested. Rather than having to know what happens, which often spurs me to read the sequels to books far worse than this one, I feel like things are resolved to an extent that I could be content not reading on. Why, you ask? Let's use Valentine as an example. He's a pretty standard villain. Others have pointed out his similarities to Voldemort and I can't argue. That said, at least Voldemort was a bada** and in many cases Harry barely survived encounters with him and only because of these exceptional circumstances. In this novel, I got to the end and found myself asking: WHY WAS EVERYONE SO AFRAID OF VALENTINE? I mean, from the beginning, everyone talks about how V was nearly undefeatable. Actually was undefeatable if you consider the fact that he's somehow still alive. The first scene where Jace, Clary, and Simon overhear the conversation between Luke and a couple of V's lackeys, it seems clear that Valentine is not someone you mess with. Later, when Luke tells Clary about his past, he basically tells her that Valentine tutored him and that he was never any match for this great warrior. Then this great warrior is ALMOST defeated by two nearly unarmed teenagers and an injured werewolf. If it was that easy, why didn't someone go after Valentine sooner??? Not only that, but Valentine probably wouldn't even have escaped if Luke hadn't run to Alaric's side, which is another thing that made NO sense. Gretel was his "second" about half an hour before that but when she was killed outside Luke barely blinked an eye. Now he's got Valentine, the evil overlord he came to kill, at sword point, and he gives that up to go to his new "second" because he feels so terrible about Alaric dying because of him? The ending just felt like too much happened too fast, with no satisfaction and no real climax. There were other inconsistencies scattered throughout, little things that just didn't necessarily add up. At the end, when Clary goes back to the Institute, one of the characters tells her that Alec and Isabelle's parents are rushing back from Idris and will be there in a couple days. This is already at least three days after Alec is near-death and Hodge betrays them, which we know because earlier Clary comments that she's been checking in on her mother at the hospital for the past three days. Now, it says in the book that Idris is essentially hidden somewhere between France and Germany. Even if you were relying solely on "mundane" travels, it should take at most 24 hours (considering wait times and things like that) to get to NYC, not a couple days, and that's not even counting if they could rush things along, being Shadowhunters. Then consider that it's already been at least two days since Isabelle must have been able to contact her parents and the clave. Now, if you found out that your teenaged son had almost died while facing an "upper demon" (or whatever Clare called it) would you really take minimum four days to get to his side unless it was physically impossible to get there faster? And Alec's character to me, is another example of where the story could have been better. So when he and Clary meet, they don't hate each other but they don't get along great or anything. But tension builds and he and Clary have a big argument in the middle of the book which I quite liked. They both said some awful things, which we all do sometimes, and let's face it, not everyone is going to get along with everyone else. That's normal, and it would have made Clary seem more real. The next morning, Alex begrudgingly goes along to help Clary but only in order to protect Jace, at which point he is wounded nearly fatally and is unconscious. Yet the next time he sees Clary suddenly they're friends. What? I believe a work of fiction more when there's some amount of conflict. Some people just clash, and if your character doesn't, it means she dangerously close to being a Mary Sue. Anyway, to wind things down here, there's a summary of the major problems I had with this novel. As I said, it was still more readable than a good number of YA books I've attempted to read. It's engaging and it has some original ideas. But there are also a lot of plot holes, and a lot of things I think could have been better built up. I'm not sure if I'll read the second book. I don't feel compelled to do so; there's nothing I'm desperate to find out. I already know basically how this series will end, if not the exact details. But if I ever need an easy, engaging read, perhaps I'll decide to give the sequel a try anyway ...

Unlike many of the reviews that I have read; I have not read any of Cassandra Clare's fan fiction on Harry Potter of Lord of the Rings. As well as I have never read the Harry Potter series because I just couldn't get into them when they became popular. As for the book City of Bones I really enjoyed it and went on to read the other books in The Mortal Instruments series. The thing that first caught my eye about this book was the cover. People always say to not judge a book by its cover but we know we all do. I saw the markings on the man and the city in the background and thought that it would be something interesting and important about the marks. I also like that when looking at it for the first time I saw that it was placed in New York. A setting that was a real place and in a real time. The other thing I picked up on was that there was something about Shadowhunters. Shadowhunters sounded intriguing and mysterious so I wanted to learn more. Here are the basics I thought that people would want to know. My opinion contrary to some was that this was an interesting and great book to read. I really enjoyed that I could relate to the main character Clary in some ways about daily life, love of art, parents, and social problems; but then also have the excitement and escape to the world that we can't see. This book made me think about fantasy in another way as well as the world around me. Characters! I found that the characters were more realistic than most people think. Some have said that no one pointed out and gotten on Clary's case about the things she said to Alec but I found that that is more true to real people. People don't always point out to others about someone's wrong doings or hurtful words. I found that point and case to be totally natural Alec and Carly both realized their mistakes and apologized. Also another point that I have often seen in reviews is that Clary doesn't think that she's pretty until Jace tells her. Which in my opinion is totally natural for a girl who has always considered herself as plain and some what of a tom boy. Especially in this day and age; girls are constantly putting themselves down and thinking there is no way they can look as beautiful as the models and famous people their age. It sometimes takes someone outside of their "world" to tell them that they look pretty for them to truly see themselves. Also it could mean that she is not a model but is beautiful in Jace's eyes. Now for the basic plot; which everyone is waiting to hear. First it starts out a little slow, introducing the characters and their backgrounds and you get a general feel for their personalities. Though they do change in the beginning you almost just get their essence and the relationships to one another. Then it picks up into a fast paced story that makes it hard to put down. The beginning of this starts when Clary sees something at she should not be able to see one night at a club she often goes to with Simon. Simon is one of her closest friends and does just about everything with him. From there starts a journey that will change her life, her out look on the world around her, and the importance of her family to her. Her mother is taken away and she will suddenly get pulled into a world that she thinks should not exist but some how does. Clary finds that she likes this new way of looking at the world, the people she meets in it, and finds that it either seems familiar or doesn't bother her as much as she thought it should. Then their are the marks that give Shadowhunters powers that she shouldn't be able to see or use but can. From this she knows that things will never go back to the way things were and grows to coup with the huge changes coming her way. On top of that she finds more out about her family and her mother's past. Even though she has never been interested in her past or about where she comes from. She finds that even though she doesn't want to admit it her family means the world to her and she will fight and doing anything in her power to get them back. Lastly I found that I had a new look on mythical creatures. In this book they seem real and have real problems. There are one's that are good and others just don't care what others think of them. Then their are the demons, you don't really get a clear picture of them except that they are from different worlds and don't have souls. Which makes them ok to be killed by the shadow hunters. Finally if you like the first book keep on going to all of the others. The characters grow as the series continues and questions are answered in the other books that you are just dying to know from this book. I really recommend this series especially if you are someone who has a hard time getting into books.

I read this book because my friend swore it was amazing and life-changing of The Fault in Our Stars proportions. Alas, it just left me feeling squirmy and a little awkward. The beginning was pretty typical of paranormal YA- girl is friend zoning nice boy, girl encounters disaster, girl meets scary hot boy, boy takes girl to his secret lair. I didn't really mind. It was kind of nice, actually, because I'd just finished the Hush Hush series and Clary (weird name aside) was pretty cool. This book continued to gain strength with Alec and Isabelle's introduction (gotta love the gay Shadowhunters) and Hodge was okay. This may have been the peak of the book. I was fine with the Clary/Jace pairing. At least (Tobias and Tris, Gale and Katniss, I am glaring at you) their age was similar. Jace let Clary fight (now we turn to Patch from Hush Hush) and they made a good team. It was nice that Simon didn't sit in the corner and cry, then forgive Clary two milliseconds later. It was nice that there were rivals for both halves of the relationship. It was nice that there was plot development (though not much character development for dear Clary; Jace got a bit though). The middle kinda rocked. Then, the terrible, terrible end. The same end that had me screaming "WHY?!" at the friend who recommended this book and left me too in shock to remember not to walk into doors. This isn't good, though it sounds like it. This sounded awesome: Clary and Jace kick Valentine butt! Hooray! Action (something everything I read nowadays lacks)! I still don't know how something so promising went so wrong. Oh, wait. I do. These godawful incestuous relationships. Clary runs into the room Jace is in, and a reunion ensues. Yay! Jace is back. Suddenly Jace becomes cranky and weird. Boo! This makes no sense. So Clary asks her betrothed why he's so mad. The answer? "Hey, Clary, you know Valentine? He's my dad." "But he's MY dad, Jace." "Poor you. Guess you have to share." *mutters about only children* I guess this is a good twist? It's kind of creeping me out. I spent close to 500 pages waiting for something awesome to happen with this pairing, and I am rewarded with the discovery that it is incestuous? I cannot express enough how DISTURBING this is. All of this is so creepy. I've heard that maybe some dude named after a crab is her brother, too, and I think she and Jace fix everything eventually, but really? I can't even reread any sentences with the words "Clary" and "Jace" because it will just make me shudder. I gave it a four because I loved the middle so much. Had the ending not happened the way it did, maybe this book would go up next to Legend on my YA book list. But this is just wrong. I wish I could unread the end.

This is a story about Clary. A 15 year old girl who gets her world turned upside down after a night out in a club. She encounters things she never knew existed and finds out later exactly why that is. After a fight with her mother she runs out with her best friend Simon, and finds out that her life will never be the same after her mother is kidnapped. Clary is determined to get her back no matter what, so she takes in the help of Shadowhunters Jace, Alec, and Isabelle. The rest you will have to read to find out :) I hate to start this review this way, but I want to be honest. I have had this book on my shelf since 2008 and I never bothered to pick it up because I just didn't know what I'd feel about it. I'm mad at myself for this. I decided to finally read it because of the movie coming out. I really need to start reading all the books that I have been scared to read because of it being more fantasy. I have read a lot of fantasy recently and have loved every one of them. I'm being sucked in more and more. Clary you learn to love. You feel so bad for her, because she is short has red hair and finds herself really unattractive. She can be a pain in some of the chapters because of her stubbornness but I have a feeling that it is really going to come in handy further down the road even more than it has in this book. Just in this book she has grown up so much and I hope that continues throughout the other books. I learned to love all the characters, even the ones with jealous tendencies like Isabelle and Alec. I think it is just how they were raised though. Jace, Isabelle, Alec, Simon, even Luke let you more into who they are and more explanations come out throughout the book. I like that this isn't just humans, it has a little of everything, faeries, demons, werewolves, vampires, witches, warlocks. There are parts in the book about the worlds that a lot of books tend to explain the same way, but then you also learn more about the worlds too. You get sucked into the pages. This isn't a book that leaves everything for the end. There is action and suspense throughout the whole book that makes you not able to stop reading it. The writing flows so well. The page count can be intimidating but the wording is bigger than some books though so it doesn't take as long as you would think to read it. It is easy to fly through it if you have the time to sit and enjoy it. I can't wait to start the next book and I especially can't wait to go see the movie! Thank you movie for making me have to read it, I can't wait to devour the rest of the series!!

Ótimo!

Ja, ich liebe dieses Buch. und das obwohl ich der eigentlichen Zielgruppe schon ein paar Jährchen entwachsen bin. Zum Inhalt: Clary ist fast sechzehn, mag Discos, Mangas, Bücher, hat Zoff mit ihrer Mutter und verbringt ihre zeit am liebsten mit ihrem besten Freund Simon. Alles ziemlich normal, ziemlich durchschnittlich. Bis sie plötzlich beginnt Menschen, bzw. Wesen zu sehen die niemand sonst wahrzunehmen scheint. Sie lernt Jace - gutaussehend, schlagfertig, draufgängerischer Dämonenjäger- und seine beiden Freunde, die Geschwister Isabelle und Alec kennen. Und plötzlich findet sich Clary selbst als Teil dieser verborgenen Welt wieder. Am Ende steht die erste Konfrontation mit dem "Oberschurken". Sicherlich nichts wirklich neues. Und an einigen Stellen hat sich die Autorin auch recht offen an anderen Stoffen bedient. Erinnern die Kämpfe und die offenbar sehr enge freundschaftliche Bande der Protagonisten doch sehr an "Buffy", hat man am Ende durchaus das Gefühl in "Star Wars" gelandet zu sein, ist der Superschurke "Lord Voldemort" nicht unähnlich und wirkt Luke, der rein platonische Freund ihrer Mutter nicht wir einfach mal aus den "Gilmore Girls" rauskopiert... Und doch wird das alles so schön durchgeschüttelt und neu zusammengesetzt, dass das Bild zu hundert Prozent stimmt. Ein wenig hat man das Gefühl in einer übernatürlichen Soap gelandet zu sein, nur nicht ganz so Oberflächlich: Verbotene Liebe, unerwiederte Liebe, Homosexualität, Freundschaft, Verrat, Zoff mit Eltern, der beste "Nerd"- Freund,und der Hang zur Selbstzerstörung, etc... Und das ganze ist so anschaulich, flott und luftig leicht beschrieben, dass nie Langeweile aufkommt. Ein Lesevergnügen wie man es nicht häufig findet. Wem würde ich dieses Buch empfehlen? Jugendlichen ab 14 Jahren die Urban Fantasy mögen in der es ordentlich "menschelt" und Erwachsenen die sich hin und wieder die gute alte Buffy- Zeit zurückwünschen ;-)

Seguro que mucha gente tendrá dudas sobre si adquirirlo o no, a mi me ha parecido que vale completamente la pena comprarlo, la edición es preciosa, las páginas de un dorado brillante, las preciosas ilustraciones de Cassandra Jean y los extras por aquí y por allá, y esto dejando a parte la calidad, el gran tamaño y esas tapas duras tan bonitas y de textura agradable. Me ha encantado.

A la première approche, le livre avait été loin de me tenter ; je ne l'aurais même jamais acheté. Sauf que, il s'est trouvé qu'en allant voir le film adapté au cinéma, l'histoire n'est vraiment pas mauvaise et m'a plu. Curieux, j'ai donc acheté les trois premiers tomes, et me suis régalé. Le film est ok, mais les livres sont super ! (j'attend désormais le sixième tome avec impatience) Les personnages sont dans l'ensemble tous très intéressants, et leur psychologie bien travaillé. (Sauf Jace, désolé, mais il m'agace.) Isabelle et Alec, surtout, m'ont intéressé plus que les autres; une impression qui se confirme sur toute la série. L'histoire est bien rythmée, pas tirée par les cheveux, et quand tout se termine, les pièces du puzzle s’emboîtent parfaitement. (Je dirais que le film m'a quand même bien gâché l'une des intrigues les plus fascinantes de ce premier tome.) Les thèmes variés qui sont abordés sont originaux ; l'inceste, l'homosexualité, etc. En comparaison avec certaines autres séries de ce genre, la série "The Mortal Instruments" se classe assez haut. Sûrement dans mon top 5. (et en comparaison, oubliez Twilight - le côté romantique est présent, mais pas du tout étouffant.)

この小説の映画「シャドウハンター」のＤＶＤを借りて見たんですが、物語の世界観とキャラクターが私好みですごく魅力的だったのに全然面白くなかったので、どうしても気になって原作を読んでみました。 やっぱり思ったとおり原作は面白くてシリーズ全巻、寝不足になりながら一気に読んでしまいました。 おすすめです。