Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.31 AVERAGE
4.31 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
And anytime you feel the pain, hey Jules, refrain… Don't carry the world upon your shoulders,
for well you know that it's a fool who plays it cool by making his world a little colder.
First of all, I must say this is my new favourite book. It truly contains everything a good book should have, The Mortal Instruments' incredible layering, stunning sentimental value of The Infernal Devices, the most incredible characters, and a gripping plot that will not leave you indifferent, in fact, it will leave you in a wreckage of feelings, but that is only a small price to pay. However, what I would like to particularly emphasize is how Cassandra Clare mastery over words improves with every new book, to that extent that I am genuinely afraid of the newest release.
Characters of Emma and Julian are so brilliantly portrayed, with all their complexities and rough edges, that they seem very much alive and sincere. Their story, although tragic, is at the same time so veritable and relatable that it leaves you aching from a genuine sorrow. Also, I must say that Julian is such a remarkable character, and not only in sense of usual amazingness of Cassie's characters, but in a way that he is so indisputably real. His endless love for his siblings and his Emma are admirable, and I feel an absolute compassion and love towards him, that he might as well replace my ultimate human being: Will Herondale. I am so glad that I read a book which contains a character that is so much more than a pretty face that wants to get the girl. Julian Blackthorn is so much more, with layers of enormous sadness intertwined with even greatest strength and tenderness.
All in all, this is well worth reading if you enjoy reading about the Shadow World, it will not leave you disappointed. As if Cassie ever did.
PS. Herondales are exceedingly unimaginative when it comes to naming their children. +wink+
for well you know that it's a fool who plays it cool by making his world a little colder.
First of all, I must say this is my new favourite book. It truly contains everything a good book should have, The Mortal Instruments' incredible layering, stunning sentimental value of The Infernal Devices, the most incredible characters, and a gripping plot that will not leave you indifferent, in fact, it will leave you in a wreckage of feelings, but that is only a small price to pay. However, what I would like to particularly emphasize is how Cassandra Clare mastery over words improves with every new book, to that extent that I am genuinely afraid of the newest release.
Characters of Emma and Julian are so brilliantly portrayed, with all their complexities and rough edges, that they seem very much alive and sincere. Their story, although tragic, is at the same time so veritable and relatable that it leaves you aching from a genuine sorrow. Also, I must say that Julian is such a remarkable character, and not only in sense of usual amazingness of Cassie's characters, but in a way that he is so indisputably real. His endless love for his siblings and his Emma are admirable, and I feel an absolute compassion and love towards him, that he might as well replace my ultimate human being: Will Herondale. I am so glad that I read a book which contains a character that is so much more than a pretty face that wants to get the girl. Julian Blackthorn is so much more, with layers of enormous sadness intertwined with even greatest strength and tenderness.
All in all, this is well worth reading if you enjoy reading about the Shadow World, it will not leave you disappointed. As if Cassie ever did.
PS. Herondales are exceedingly unimaginative when it comes to naming their children. +wink+
I absolutely loved the characters, the plot was intriguing, and I love how it fits into the world. I love that she began to touch upon mental illness with Ty though I feel that it was a very overly forced characterization. I also felt some themes being recycled from some other books but overall it was a fantastic read.
I will preface this by saying that I have been a Cassandra Clare fan since Day 1. Literally Day 1. I just happened to be at the bookstore the day City of Bones was released; I bought it, read it in one day, and then realized I would have to wait a WHOLE YEAR FOR A SEQUEL. I got used to waiting around a year for the next Shadowhunters book. I pushed them on my friends in the meanwhile. I reread them. Oh, and look, I even went to a Cassandra Clare book signing.
https://www.goodreads.com/photo/user/9115979-emily?page=1&photo=1423704
I will admit that even though I loved all of the Mortal Instruments books, I lost interest with the last two. They weren't my favorites. When I found out about this book, I wasn't really interested. I knew I was going to read it, but I was skeptical.
I didn't need to be.
I should know by now to never underestimate Cassie's ability to create characters I love and relate to. I should know by now that she will write the most romantic men I could ever hope for. I should know by now that she is going to give me plot twists and turns that will leave me with a gaping mouth. I should know she will give me glimpses back to characters I've grown extremely close to, like Clary, Jace, Jem, and Tessa. She will leave me with a cliffhanger ending that makes me curse her and praise her all in one. If you are getting burned out on TMI/TID, please give this book a try. You won't be disappointed.
https://www.goodreads.com/photo/user/9115979-emily?page=1&photo=1423704
I will admit that even though I loved all of the Mortal Instruments books, I lost interest with the last two. They weren't my favorites. When I found out about this book, I wasn't really interested. I knew I was going to read it, but I was skeptical.
I didn't need to be.
I should know by now to never underestimate Cassie's ability to create characters I love and relate to. I should know by now that she will write the most romantic men I could ever hope for. I should know by now that she is going to give me plot twists and turns that will leave me with a gaping mouth. I should know she will give me glimpses back to characters I've grown extremely close to, like Clary, Jace, Jem, and Tessa. She will leave me with a cliffhanger ending that makes me curse her and praise her all in one. If you are getting burned out on TMI/TID, please give this book a try. You won't be disappointed.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The first thing I noticed with this book was how sophisticated it was compared to Cassandra Clare’s previous works. While I certainly enjoyed The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices, this book just feels miles ahead of them. Clare’s writing, her story telling, characterisation, world building, everything, is so much more engaging and interesting and mature. This book really does showcase how much she has developed as a writer, while also combining the most successful aspects of her previous books and combining them to create the success that is Lady Midnight.
The rest of this review will have spoilers as this is the discussion part of the post. If you have not read Lady Midnight yet, look away now, and head to the conclusion to see my closing thoughts.
So let’s talk about the characters.
Emma
Ugh, Emma. I love her so much. She’s such a great protagonist in this series and, even though she reacts to things with a lot more heart than I do, I can feel myself relating to her so easily. She is easily my favourite Carstairs – sorry Jem – and the character development she goes through in this book is amazing. I am so proud of her and I feel like she’s that little sister I want to shout about to everyone and tell them how amazing she is! Her love for Julian is heartbreaking, and that beach scene?! Ugh.
Julian
HELLO SWEET CHILD! I just want to hold him tight and tell him everything’s going to be okay because he’s holding SO MUCH on those shoulders and he deserves so much more than that! He’s the best big brother ever, and when Mark comes back he’s still trying to protect everyone and it makes my heart bleed. But let’s talk about that end. Ugh, he is ruthless, willing to give anyone up if it means he can protect his family. He is the most Slytherin Slytherin ever and I’m intrigued yet worried to see how this ruthlessness will develop and what it’s going to mean for the rest of The Dark Artifices.
Ty
He’s so sweet and innocent but so fierce. When he ran off to help Emma and Julian and held a knife to Kit’s throat I was so proud, he’d grown so much already! And let’s talk about the fact that he’s autistic – Cassandra Clare has come leaps and bounds in terms of representation and seeing an autistic character in a fantasy setting is amazing! The way it discusses how the Clave sees people like Ty, and how if he became a Centurion they wouldn’t treat him right, but Julian doesn’t want to burst his bubble and make him think that he’s not normal, and… ugh. My heart. I feel like this whole book is just “ugh, my heart.” Are we surprised, at this point?
Livvy
I love Livvy so much and I would happily read an entire novel surrounded by her. She is kick ass, badass, sassy, yet so sweet. She’s so lovely. I love her. I love her and Ty’s relationship and she is so desperate to be his parabatai and I want him to say yes SO BAD!
Mark
I don’t know how to feel about Mark. I know that the way he’s acting isn’t his fault, but I just can’t seem to warm to him. I want to, I do, but he’s not my favourite character ever. He’s nice, that much is clear, but I can’t help but feel that he seems a little bit selfish at times. I know he’s been through a lot, but it wasn’t until Kieran tortured Emma that I could see it was definite that he would stay, and until then I wasn’t sure how he would choose. I dont even know what would have been the right choice, but, for Julian’s sake, I needed him to choose to stay.
Christina
I LOVE HER!!! I don’t have much more to say, but I definitely ship Emma/Christina at least a little bit. But then at the same time it would be so cool for them to have been able to be Parabatai instead of Emma and Julian, so who knows what I want. I also love her relationship with Mark and her love and interest in anything Faerie. She’s just such an easy character to love and if she ends up dying or being evil I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’d never be able to trust Cassandra Clare again, that’s for sure.
Malcom Fade
Okay, so holy shit. I didn’t see that coming, but I kind of did?? Does that make sense? I don’t know, but it was that kind of thing where I could tell one of the characters would be shady, and I was kind of hoping it would be him above anyone else, but I didn’t want it to be so I kind of convinced myself he wouldn’t be shady. Plus, I couldn’t work out his motive, so that also convinced me otherwise. I also like him as a villain a lot more than Mortmain, though he has nothing on Sebastian and Morgenstern. At least, right now. We’ll see where that goes.
Diana
I like her, but I wonder what she’s hiding. I feel like she’s not shady and I don’t want her to be shady, but she could be shady. We’ll find out, but it would be such a double whammy if both of their adult mentors ended up being evil.
The Plot
Murder Mystery
So, I feel like a lot happened in this book, but also not too much happened. Does that make sense? Like, with Cassandra Clare I feel like she fills her books with so much plot we hardly have time to breathe. Whereas, that wasn’t the case with Lady Midnight. There were plenty of plot points and twists and turns to keep us interested, but everything in the book felt relevant and important. This is another example of how much Clare has matured as a writer.
BUT, the thing I loved most about Lady Midnight is that it almost felt like a murder mystery but with demons and swords. It helps that Ty is obsessed with Sherlock Holmes and so you have hints of this detective-type-narrative throughout the book and with this format, the pacing and the mood works really well for this world.
The Poem
The Anabel Lee poem was awesome and I loved this part of the story. Ty and Livvy acting as detectives was so fun to see, and the poem felt seamless to the story and the plot. It just made sense.
Clary is going to die???
I told you to look away if you hadn’t read the book! So, I don’t believe it, but Clary believes she’s going to die, and I’m not okay with it. How dare Clare do this to us! If she does die, I die with her.
Forbidden Romance
Forbidden romance isn’t one of my favourite tropes, but I don’t hate it. However, Lady Midnight does it so well and Cassandra Clare has me eating out of her hand. It’s just so good. Emma and Julian are magnetic, and, I’ve said ti before and I’ll say it again, my heart hurts so much when I think about the fact that they can’t be together.
The Parabatai Curse
Now this is interesting. After reading Tales From the Shadowhunter Acadamy, and the millions of other books set in this world, we are made aware that parabatais shouldn’t fall in love, but it’s so interesting to see that there’s an actual reason why parabatais should shy away from a romantic relationship.
Conclusion
This book is fast-paced, intricate, kick-ass, badass, full of tension, suspense, mystery, heartache, humour and love. If you even liked The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices then you should DEFINITELY read Lady Midnight. This is Cassandra Clare’s most sophisticated work yet and I promise that you won’t be disappointed.
The rest of this review will have spoilers as this is the discussion part of the post. If you have not read Lady Midnight yet, look away now, and head to the conclusion to see my closing thoughts.
So let’s talk about the characters.
Emma
Ugh, Emma. I love her so much. She’s such a great protagonist in this series and, even though she reacts to things with a lot more heart than I do, I can feel myself relating to her so easily. She is easily my favourite Carstairs – sorry Jem – and the character development she goes through in this book is amazing. I am so proud of her and I feel like she’s that little sister I want to shout about to everyone and tell them how amazing she is! Her love for Julian is heartbreaking, and that beach scene?! Ugh.
Julian
HELLO SWEET CHILD! I just want to hold him tight and tell him everything’s going to be okay because he’s holding SO MUCH on those shoulders and he deserves so much more than that! He’s the best big brother ever, and when Mark comes back he’s still trying to protect everyone and it makes my heart bleed. But let’s talk about that end. Ugh, he is ruthless, willing to give anyone up if it means he can protect his family. He is the most Slytherin Slytherin ever and I’m intrigued yet worried to see how this ruthlessness will develop and what it’s going to mean for the rest of The Dark Artifices.
Ty
He’s so sweet and innocent but so fierce. When he ran off to help Emma and Julian and held a knife to Kit’s throat I was so proud, he’d grown so much already! And let’s talk about the fact that he’s autistic – Cassandra Clare has come leaps and bounds in terms of representation and seeing an autistic character in a fantasy setting is amazing! The way it discusses how the Clave sees people like Ty, and how if he became a Centurion they wouldn’t treat him right, but Julian doesn’t want to burst his bubble and make him think that he’s not normal, and… ugh. My heart. I feel like this whole book is just “ugh, my heart.” Are we surprised, at this point?
Livvy
I love Livvy so much and I would happily read an entire novel surrounded by her. She is kick ass, badass, sassy, yet so sweet. She’s so lovely. I love her. I love her and Ty’s relationship and she is so desperate to be his parabatai and I want him to say yes SO BAD!
Mark
I don’t know how to feel about Mark. I know that the way he’s acting isn’t his fault, but I just can’t seem to warm to him. I want to, I do, but he’s not my favourite character ever. He’s nice, that much is clear, but I can’t help but feel that he seems a little bit selfish at times. I know he’s been through a lot, but it wasn’t until Kieran tortured Emma that I could see it was definite that he would stay, and until then I wasn’t sure how he would choose. I dont even know what would have been the right choice, but, for Julian’s sake, I needed him to choose to stay.
Christina
I LOVE HER!!! I don’t have much more to say, but I definitely ship Emma/Christina at least a little bit. But then at the same time it would be so cool for them to have been able to be Parabatai instead of Emma and Julian, so who knows what I want. I also love her relationship with Mark and her love and interest in anything Faerie. She’s just such an easy character to love and if she ends up dying or being evil I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’d never be able to trust Cassandra Clare again, that’s for sure.
Malcom Fade
Okay, so holy shit. I didn’t see that coming, but I kind of did?? Does that make sense? I don’t know, but it was that kind of thing where I could tell one of the characters would be shady, and I was kind of hoping it would be him above anyone else, but I didn’t want it to be so I kind of convinced myself he wouldn’t be shady. Plus, I couldn’t work out his motive, so that also convinced me otherwise. I also like him as a villain a lot more than Mortmain, though he has nothing on Sebastian and Morgenstern. At least, right now. We’ll see where that goes.
Diana
I like her, but I wonder what she’s hiding. I feel like she’s not shady and I don’t want her to be shady, but she could be shady. We’ll find out, but it would be such a double whammy if both of their adult mentors ended up being evil.
The Plot
Murder Mystery
So, I feel like a lot happened in this book, but also not too much happened. Does that make sense? Like, with Cassandra Clare I feel like she fills her books with so much plot we hardly have time to breathe. Whereas, that wasn’t the case with Lady Midnight. There were plenty of plot points and twists and turns to keep us interested, but everything in the book felt relevant and important. This is another example of how much Clare has matured as a writer.
BUT, the thing I loved most about Lady Midnight is that it almost felt like a murder mystery but with demons and swords. It helps that Ty is obsessed with Sherlock Holmes and so you have hints of this detective-type-narrative throughout the book and with this format, the pacing and the mood works really well for this world.
The Poem
The Anabel Lee poem was awesome and I loved this part of the story. Ty and Livvy acting as detectives was so fun to see, and the poem felt seamless to the story and the plot. It just made sense.
Clary is going to die???
I told you to look away if you hadn’t read the book! So, I don’t believe it, but Clary believes she’s going to die, and I’m not okay with it. How dare Clare do this to us! If she does die, I die with her.
Forbidden Romance
Forbidden romance isn’t one of my favourite tropes, but I don’t hate it. However, Lady Midnight does it so well and Cassandra Clare has me eating out of her hand. It’s just so good. Emma and Julian are magnetic, and, I’ve said ti before and I’ll say it again, my heart hurts so much when I think about the fact that they can’t be together.
The Parabatai Curse
Now this is interesting. After reading Tales From the Shadowhunter Acadamy, and the millions of other books set in this world, we are made aware that parabatais shouldn’t fall in love, but it’s so interesting to see that there’s an actual reason why parabatais should shy away from a romantic relationship.
Conclusion
This book is fast-paced, intricate, kick-ass, badass, full of tension, suspense, mystery, heartache, humour and love. If you even liked The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices then you should DEFINITELY read Lady Midnight. This is Cassandra Clare’s most sophisticated work yet and I promise that you won’t be disappointed.
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read the entire thing in less than 24 hours even though I have tons of uni work to do and my eyes actually hurt a bit right now, but like I said before, for some reason I can't keep myself away from these books. They just make me ache.
Did I love this quite as much as TMI? No. But do I think this was a solid book? Yes.
I also loved how much TMI and TID characters popped in.
I also loved how much TMI and TID characters popped in.