I had never dreamed that I would want to be part of a violent, hidden world, but this book made me want to be a shadowhunter with every cell of my being. City of Bones by Cassondra Clare makes everyone question the world around them. In this thrilling novel, a young and seemingly average teenager named Clary Fray is thrown into a world of demons and angels, and everything in between.
After an unsettling encounter at a nightclub which no one else, not even her best friend Simon, could see, Clary begins to realize that maybe her and her artistic mother aren’t so average. After a demon attacks her home and steals her mother away, that idea is pretty much validated. Clary realizes that she has the blood of a shadowhunter, an elite race made to fight demons that threaten the balance of peace in the world.
Eager to use her newfound power, she demands to help on the search of the critical “mortal cup”, which a shadowhunter gone bad named Valentine plans to use to destroy the “mundane” humans, and make the world pure. The search for the cup would eventually lead in the finding of her missing mother as well. As the book progresses, we see Clary’s powers quickly take to new levels, and the world she’s thrown into becomes more and more captivating and deadly. Throw in a few love triangles and broken hearts, and you’ve got yourself one seriously mesmerizing book.
Each character is unique with a substantial backstory and a strong personality. The writing style complements and showcases each character through heavy dialogue. You better understand each person, and why they think or feel the way that they do. I absolutely loved the writing style. If you enjoy more of a dialogue than a narrative point of view, this would be a good book for you.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in creatures surrounded by myth and legend, and anyone looking for a fast paced, slightly humorous read. But, you must have an eye for detail. Many small mentions and small parts greatly play into the formation of the big picture. The subtle body language and word choice of the characters plays a huge part in understanding them, and being able to better predict what they're going to do next. But you’ll find that you’ll never quite be right.
Overall, I absolutely loved the book. It was funny, particularly when a frustrated Simon attempted to get a distracted Clary’s attention by informing her he was shaving his head and sleeping with her mother. It made me laugh, it made me tear up, and it always left me on the edge of my seat. If you’re looking for a lengthy book with a complex, captivating plot with fantastically unique characters surrounded by myths and monsters, than look no further. City of Bones is the book for you.