City Of Fallen Angels (The Mortal Instruments #4) by Cassandra Clare

“Hearts are breakable. And I think even when you heal, you’re never what you were before.”

Sysnopsis From Book Jacket:

The Mortal War is over, Clary Fray is back home in New York, excited about all the possibilities before her. She’s training to become a Shadowhunter and to use her unique power. Her mother is getting married to the love her life, Downworldsers and Shadowhutners are all at peace at last. And most important of all Clary can finally call Jace her boyfriend.

But nothing comes without a price.

Someone is murdering the Shadowhunters who used to be in Valentine’s Circle, provoking tensions between Downworlders and Shadowhunters that could lead to a second bloody war. Clary’s best friend, Simon, can’t help her. His mother just found out that he’s a vampire and now he’s homeless. Everywhere he turns, someone wants him on their side along with the power of the curse that’s wrecking his life. And they’re willing to do anything to get what they want. At the same time he’s dating two beautiful, dangerous girls, neither of whom knows about the other.

When Jace begins to pull away from Clary without explaining why, she is forced to delve iont the heart of a mystery whose solution reveals her worst nightmare: She herself haas set in motion a terrible chain of events that could lead to her losing everything she loves. Even Jace.

Love. BLood. Betrayal. Revenge. The stakes are higher than ever in City of Fallen Angels (quoted from the book’s jacket).

Personal Thoughts:

I got this latest addition to The Mortal Instruments series last Thursday night but as much as I want to read it as soon as it landed on my hand, I need to wait till my spare time allow me. Trying to do work instead of picking up the book was extremely hard. When I started reading it, I was hooked into it. First few pages of the book and I found my self smiling and laughing already. It’s always a treat to read about the world of shadowhunters and those lovely characters inside this world.

As expected there are more of Simon Lewis in the story. I never felt attached to Simon before but in this book he has certainly begun to grow on me. City Of Fallen Angels give so much more dept and emotion to his character. Reading more of him is like discovering an old friend and becoming more close to him. Same thing goes with Iz, she doesn’t have much exposure like Simon but you’ll definitely feel her presence. She’s one of the surprising revelations of this book. It’s nice to see the different side of her. I’m beginning to like her more. The development of Simon & Iz’s relationships is nicely built.

More of Simon doesn’t actually mean less of Jace. For awhile it bothers me that Simon is getting the spotlight from Jace. But after few chapters more of reading I begun to understand the need of it. Jace in here is different. He is more vulnerable and worried. It’s so disturbing to see him in despair and tormented. But as usual Clare knows best how to handle her characters. She’s definitely aiming for something bigger because Jace torture has a huge role in the plot. A bit cruel for Jace but worth journey for readers. Magnus Bane is also back together with Alec. It’s nice to see the new side of Alec. I love him with Magnus and it so sad that they don’t have much part in the story. I miss Magnus witty commentary so much, hopefully to get more of those in the coming books.

I’m still amazed with the author’s world building skills. She’s definitely has talent in writing. Honestly, after reading the three books I don’t know if Clare can manage to deliver more for the series. But she did a great job in this one. City of Fallen Angels is intense. Everything has been taken to a new level. It makes the series becomes more darker and more engaging. Somehow it feels like I’m starting a new series again. Except for the fact that I already discover the shadowhunters world and already connected with the characters.

I like that Cassandra Clare doesn’t focus on couple relationships alone. It’s not about just Jace and Clary or Simon and Iz and Maia. Every characters has their own part in the story. I also like the idea of balance between good and evil. How every actions have its own consequences. The side story with the Sellie Queen, I was surprised that it didn’t use much as part of the plot, obviously it’s something that need to be reveal in the next books.

The ending is beautifully painful and heart-breaking, which makes me want the next book so much. I hate it when it just end like that. What will happen to Jace now? Isn’t it enough that he was tortured the whole time in this book? And now Clare is also torturing the readers! I don’t know how I will manage waiting for the next book that will be release thirteen months from now. I’m just thankful that a least there is Clockwork Prince in the middle of waiting.

With all that, City of Fallen Angels is a nice addition to The Mortal Instruments series. It was as well-written as the previous books. With a growing characters, wrapping world and unpredictable plot filled with darkness, pain and mysteries, City Of Fallen Angels is definitely worth the wait.

City Of Glass (The Mortal Instruments #3) by Cassandra Clare

“People aren’t born good or bad. Maybe they’re born with tendencies either way, but its the way you live your life that matters.”

To save her mother’s life, Clary must travel to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of the Shadowhunters — never mind that entering the city without permission is against the Law, and breaking the Law could mean death. To make things worse, she learns that Jace does not want her there, and Simon has been thrown in prison by the Shadowhunters, who are deeply suspicious of a vampire who can withstand sunlight.
As Clary uncovers more about her family’s past, she finds an ally in mysterious Shadow-hunter Sebastian. With Valentine mustering the full force of his power to destroy all Shadow-hunters forever, their only chance to defeat him is to fight alongside their eternal enemies. But can Downworlders and Shadowhunters put aside their hatred to work together? While Jace realizes exactly how much he’s willing to risk for Clary, can she harness her new found powers to help save the Glass City — whatever the cost?
Love is a mortal sin and the secrets of the past prove deadly as Clary and Jace face down Valentine in the final installment of the New York Times bestselling trilogy The Mortal Instruments.

Personal Thoughts:

Most of the time when I read a series, the first book is the only great book within it. It’s rare for me to totally love all books, but with The Mortal Instruments I find every books enjoyable. City Of Glass, the third installment in the Mortal Instruments series is absolutely fantastic. This book lives up to the expectation of the first two books of the supposed to be Trilogy (now will be a series of six books). Cassandra Clare is quickly becoming one of my favorite young adult authors. I’m also loving the multiple points of view writing, it’s a lot more exciting to explore the views of different characters who have different perception of the world around them. Cassandra Clare does a good job of keeping each of these point of view exciting and bringing them together at the right moment. The cliffhangers within chapters where the point of view switches to someone else totally works for me.

The setting of City Of Glass take place to Idris and Alicante, home of Jace and other Shadowhunters. I’ve been imagining this place since book one and I just love the rich descriptions of the place. Every details that Cassandra Clare used makes the place more alive to me. More than 500 pages long, this book is the longest book in the series so far but the pacing of the book is fast enough to stop the story from dragging. Something that is hard to put down once you start reading it.

One of the reasons why I love this series so much is the superb cast of characters. They are all great. All are well crafted and developed one stage at a time, detail by detail. Each characters has distinct voice and easy to recognize. It’s easy to know who is talking right away with each switch of point of view.

Jace is a favorite of mine in this series. He is totally awesome in this book. His character development is beautifully crafted. From being tough, sarcastic and self-loving to the City Of Bones, he also shows more of his softer and less secure side. With his inner struggle fighting his evil side, it’s easy to feel his heart ache. Sometimes emotionally disturbing and frustrating. Clary is still a strong character, sometimes stubborn but somehow still likeable. She become more stronger and braver in this book. She makes mistakes and learned from it. Magnus Bane is still as witty as he is. Inspite of my silly bad hopes for his character I’m glad he doesn’t turn out the bad guy. I love his character so much that I somehow I expect a lot from him. But he is still lovely as he is. He is wise, confident and consistently in character. Alec also grows into the shadowhunter that he was born to be. He acts more as a responsible older brother and he finally face his inner fear which is confronting his ownself. The conversation between him and Jace revealing Alec’s gender is well delivered. Simon also transformed not just literally but his character grows together with the other characters. His conversation with Jace adds more fun into the story.

Valentine’s other side of character is also revealed. The depth in his evil doing are somehow justify. He is not just the typical paper-thin villain afterall. In his own twisted way, Valentine believes that he is doing the Shadowhunters and the world good. His ideas to clean the unseen world and help the humanity is good but for someone who is able to do a lot of evil things might be unable to care for other. Nevertheless Valentine loved his family dearly. When his wife Jocelyn ran away, he spent years searching for her. He was also fully capable of killing Jace, which was in his best interests, but he could not bear to. It simply shows that Valentine, like all people real or imaginary, is not purely black or white, but a moral shade of gray.

The story is quite predictable. I’ve seen much of it coming way ahead, with all the hints given from City Of Ashes. Clary and Jace relation, Jace real identity, his real parents, Shadowhunters and Downworlders unity, Valentines defeat and even Sebastian’s real identity and the location of the third mortal instruments. The only thing that didn’t happen which I thought it would be is that Magnus Bane is one of the evil character. When Clary and Sebastian find Magnus Bane at Ragnor Fell house I thought for awhile that he is actually on Valentines side or he has his own bad motive.

Overall, In-spite of being predictable and derivative this book is beautifully written. I don’t know how Cassandra Clare works magic with this novel, but it is definitely done well. With the right pacing, continuous flow of events, engaging and unforgettable characters, unexpected funny lines, clever detailed fantasy world, thoroughly engrossing writing style this book is impressive. I have enjoyed the series so far and looking forward for the next three books of the series.