Friday, September 6, 2013

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder -- much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing -- not even a smear of blood -- to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know. . . . 



4 Star Rating 
My Recommendation:  Very good YA Novel and even funnier the second time around.

Recommended Age:  14+  I have finished both the Mortal Instruments and the Clockwork Series.  To get ready for the motion picture, I decided to re-read City of Bones so that I could remember the beginning of the story.    I must say, I totally forgot how HILARIOUS this book is!  Hilarious you ask?  Yes!  Jace and Simon's repartee between each other and Clary kept me smiling, chuckling and bursting out laughing.  Beyond the funny moments, it was a great book to read.  The action was exciting and the romance presented a buildup of things to come.  The characters were entertaining and innovative.  I NEVER re-read books, I like new stories to visualize, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading City of Bones again.  

Plot/Pace:  A common story concept - a special group born and bred to kill/capture evil creatures - but the story surrounding the Shadowhunters is very uncommon.  Clary not knowing what she is allows the reader to discover the new world along with her.  I relished the suspense in the story;  not knowing who to trust and  discovering the truth behind the lies.  The pacing of the book kept me from getting bored and browsing through.  I really fell into the story and the characters.

Imagery:  A fabulously imagined world.  The author's descriptions of what mundanes cannot see and the creatures that live among them was stunning.  The Silent Brothers are downright scary looking!  I'm in LOVE with Magnus Bane!  His personality, his quirkiness, the way he lounges is just sexy.  After reading the book, I had a good idea in my head of what each character would look and act like.
Side note - Haven't seen the movie yet, but let's say I'm disappointed in the way some of the characters look - JACE - and I'm hoping their acting fits the personalities in the book.


Romance:  Great teenage love triangle (actually a double triangle).  There's a budding love story, unrequited love and forbidden love.  Something for everyone.  While Clary and Jace are the main romantic couple, I actually felt myself rooting for Simon.  

Action:  I thought this story had a very unique way of passing on powers.  The addition of the parabatai made the fighting scenes more intense to read because it made me anxious to think what one would do to protect the other.    The descriptions of the fights were vivid and realistic.  Even in all of the violence and excitement there was humor.  

Characters:  There are books where the teen heroines are very annoying.  They don't know their limits, think they know everything OR they are too timid, too agreeable with the male leads.  This was not one of those books.  I liked Clary!  She has spunk and is not over confident in her abilities.  If she insists on doing something, its not because she thinks she's as good as the Shadowhunters who have been doing this all their life, it's because she wants to help her mom.  Jace is arrogant, but his sense of humor negates any ill feelings I would normally feel.  The characters kind of played off of one another - in conversation and in personalities.

What Irked the Shiznit Out of Me:  Nothing

What Blew Me Away:  The book was very amusing!  I smiled, chuckled and laughed a lot.  I would re-read paragraphs that I liked so that I could experience the feeling, the excitement or funny moment again.

Wonderful book to read, even the second time around.  The entire series was amazing and all are worth the investment to buy and hold onto.

If you like this book, what else might you like???