Reviews

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

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tcgarback's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious relaxing tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Personal Score: A
Critical Score: A-

I must have really been a YA Fantasy hater when I first read this over 10 years ago, because I have fallen head-over-heels in love with this book.

It is so absolutely scrumptious in its world-building and setting. I wouldn’t think I’d love a NYC setting, but it clicks for me in this story.

The characters are fun and likeable enough. The plot is exciting, but honestly the slower moments are maybe my favorite ones.

The incest thing that’s just beginning at the end of this volume is definitely…a choice. I don’t want it to ruin the series for me, so I’m going to try to work with it, but…yikes. What was Clare thinking?

The general concensus is that Bones is one of the worst, of not the worst, books in the Shadowhunter Chronicles, so idk what it means that I’ve rated this so highly. Will it just rank a lot higher for me than most readers, or will I love the other books even more somehow, or am I just in exactly the right mood for the series right now and that mood will inevitably wane as I continue the series?

This book has been entirely redeemed for me. I think this is peak YA urban fantasy, and even though it’s not super original, it is wholly enchanting.

ashjoy's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

a_chickletz's review against another edition

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I made it 75 pages in and had to DNF.

I can't. This is bad.

lili_the_bookbug's review against another edition

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3.5

I had fun reading this and I’m excited to finally understand the shadowhunter world. I knew about the crazy plot twist beforehand, but I wasn’t expecting it to be discovered in the first book so I was still somewhat surprised. Cassandra Clare is so weird for choosing that route.

annebrittain's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

lya06's review against another edition

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3.0

Qui la recensione completa: http://bookland89.blogspot.com/2011/03/recensione-shadowhunters-la-citta-di.html

Personalmente mi sono approcciata a questo libro con un certo timore, nonostante tutte le recensioni molto positive che ho letto soprattutto su Anobii, avevo paura di dover leggere la solita solfa del vampiro bellissimo, fortissimo, innamoratissimo della ragazza insulsa di turno, storia che mi ha francamente scocciato (non fraintendetemi, ho adorato Twilight e i primi romanzi di quello stampo, ma adesso c’è ne sono davvero troppi in giro, e pochi di questi sono leggibili, ovviamente sono gusti :) ).
All’inizio della lettura di questo libro, ho tirato un sospiro di sollievo, niente buonismo vampiriale (lo so è una parola che non esiste però ci sta!),la storia l’ho trovata dinamica, originale con la presenza sempre di un filo di suspense che tiene il lettore con il fiato sospeso.