Tuesday, March 31, 2009

City of Glass

To save her mother's life, Clary must travel to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of the Shadowhunters -- never mind that enter-ing 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 newfound 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.
from Amazon.com

Beth says 5 stars...
This book was fantastic! It kept me reading past 1 o'clock in the morning while I knew all along that I should have been sleeping. This book was worth the lost sleep, though. Clare has an incredible and unique way of writing, fusing sarcastic humor with striking descriptions. City of Glass lost none of that, and it feels like Clare's writing is just getting better. It is the backbone and driving force of the stories, and what makes them so wonderful. All of the characters became more complex, and none more so than Jace. His development was so fascinating and one of the most engaging portions of the book. The existing relationships also deepened and some new ones were introduced. It was interesting to finally get a real look at the Shadowhunters' homeland. That in itself gave insight into why some of the characters behave the way they do. Some of the "plot twists" I was able to figure out fairly easily, however I was blindsided on more than one occasion. I love (most) of the characters and the stories, so it's very sad for me to have to part ways with them. I must admit that this book had the most satisfying epilogue that I've ever read. This was a fitting end to an amazing series and I can't wait to read more books from Cassandra Clare.


Nathan says 5 stars...
I'm entirely convinced that Cassandra Clare could write about the rate at which paint dries and I would read every word. Her writing is amazing. I would put her in the top three YA prose writers today. I loved every sentence. The crew is back again and they are remedying (and creating) more havoc, but this time in Idris, the capital of the Shadowhunters. The dialogue is as amazing as always with a lot of quirk and biting sarcasm. I have one issue with the book-predictability. Most of the plot points were easily guessed, though a few were unexpected. It's so well-written that I really didn't mind. Denouement is one of my favorite parts of a novel and this book had plenty of it. There is a truly massive epilogue; this thing is awe-inspiring. Every minor plot was addressed and we find all of our characters reach a conclusion. I love all of the couplings in this book. It helps that Clare makes her characters realistic, which is hard to do when dealing with demon-slaying Nephilim, warlocks, vampires, and other breeds of mystical beings. This book is truly well done. I love Clare's writing and all I can say I can't wait for her next series*.

*Her next series is about the Shadowhunters and is set in Victorian England-I love Victorian England.

3 comments:

Carrie said...

Great reviews!! I still haven't picked this one up, but you've convinced me I can't live without it. I'll be buying it tomorrow.

BN Book Blog said...

YAY!!! I'm sure you won't be disappointed. Clare's writing is spot on.

Nathan

Unknown said...

I really liked this one too! A great ending to a pretty darn good series :D

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