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4.26 AVERAGE
4.26 AVERAGE
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
What a sh*tshow. It took me 4 years to get through all this bs. The way the villains talk is honestly so silly in the worst possible way of the word. C. Clare’s obsession with incest never ceases to amaze me, also in the worst possible way. Should've stopped at book 3.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
In the first few seconds of the audiobook I thought to myself “this narrator sounds just like Sophie Turner” and proceeded to listen to the whole book without looking it up. Turns out it was actually Sophie Turner lol.
I rated this book four stars because after sticking around for six installments, rating it any less would just be disingenuous. It's not bad, except that it's YA fiction about demons and angels and incest, and so of course it's bad, it's terrible, but it's readable, and I quite liked two of the characters.
I was kind of irked by the in-book references to the other series (one of which is still conveniently forthcoming) in the same universe. I hate myself enough for reading these, so it's unlikely that I'm going to be reading either The Infernal Devices or The Dark Artifices. I find myself resenting the author for peppering The City of Heavenly Fire with so much obvious prequel material. I'm here to find out if Magnus and Alec get back together, don't be expecting me to get emotionally invested in any of these new characters.
And I have theological concerns about this storyworld. Mostly along the lines of, do the Clave not know Jesus? "The Law is hard but it is the Law" CF THE NEW TESTAMENT.
Ugh, don't read it! Or read it but don't tell anyone! Yuck, shudder.
I was kind of irked by the in-book references to the other series (one of which is still conveniently forthcoming) in the same universe. I hate myself enough for reading these, so it's unlikely that I'm going to be reading either The Infernal Devices or The Dark Artifices. I find myself resenting the author for peppering The City of Heavenly Fire with so much obvious prequel material. I'm here to find out if Magnus and Alec get back together, don't be expecting me to get emotionally invested in any of these new characters.
And I have theological concerns about this storyworld. Mostly along the lines of, do the Clave not know Jesus? "The Law is hard but it is the Law" CF THE NEW TESTAMENT.
Ugh, don't read it! Or read it but don't tell anyone! Yuck, shudder.
this was actually a rlly good book im kind of sad that i finished them..i love u Alec
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
sad
fast-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’m very tired so my review might not be the greatest, but the reason I’m tired is because I was up until 7am reading this damn book! I finished the whole thing in one night I was so enraptured by it. I only have a few points to make and I’ll try to make them follow as best I can.
-the pacing was really great. I never felt like anything was filler and everything had a purpose. The book is so big so I was expecting some kind of lull in the story but at every turn was a new heartbreak or a new looming shadow around the corner.
-the plot line was really satisfying. Sebastian felt like an evil we have never fully understood so it kept the reader on their toes trying to figure out what he would do next. It felt like an epic closure on these characters that was not without its consequences. They lost people and they all went through some tough shit. Jordan was a likable character and I was sad to see him go. Simon losing his memory of his friends and his vampire-ness was very sad. He gave him a normal life which is really what he wanted in the first book and now he gets it. He gets to have his old life back but the price is the people he loves are lost to him. The Seelie Court turning against the Clave was totally foreseeable because Clary and the Clave are dicks to them as they are to most downworlders who don’t bend to their will. But that’s a story for another day. Edom was a cool setting and felt really foreign and daunting. It was like looking into a really evil mirror.
-the characters felt a bit more real. I’ve mentioned previously that the first three books was character setup and these last three have been somewhat of a crucible for all of them and their true deepest fears. They all had to come to terms with some of the things that have plagued them since book one. Isabelle has to come to terms with her broken family, her inability to see women as friends, and how to be vulnerable romantically with someone. Alec has to come to terms with his own mortality and Magnus’s inevitable immortality and what it would mean for their future. He also had to come to terms with his father and the rest of the Shadowhunter world not approving of him and Magnus. Jace kinda got the nicer end of the deal by becoming a holy weapon and the instrument that would bring about the destruction of his brother but he finally comes to terms with his identity as a Herondale which has been his main struggle since day one. Simon had to make a lot of sacrifices in this book. It seems like every angel and demon wants a slice of the daylighter pie! Making the bargain with the angel last book in exchange for his Mark of Cain and now his daylighter vampire immortality/powers and his memories of the people he loves most to Asmodeus in this book. He’s slowly getting it back but I’m not sure if it’ll ever be the same. Clary had to face her brother that had been corrupted by her father and had to come to terms with the fact that there would be no saving him. She had a vision of a happy family and a loving brother and she got to see a glimpse of what could’ve been at the very end of Sebastian/Jonathan’s life. She and Jace outsmarted one of the most strategic baddies they’ve ever encountered and it was bittersweet. Magnus has to come to terms with the fact that glitter and jokes couldn’t hide who he truly was. He had to share his past with the people he loves in order to really remember who his is in his expanse of long life. Being as old as he is comes with a price and he is staving off that price as long as he can for Alec. Maia becomes the leader of the pack and loses Jordan again even though she knew it wasn’t gonna work out with him that still sucks but honestly I don’t get her arc all that much. Maybe her growth was done when she came to terms with Jordan.
-Interesting new characters. I liked Emma and Julian and I know they are the stars of the next book series so I’m excited to see where their story goes. The siblings kinda blended together to me except for Tiberius, Helene, and Mark. Emma seems like a badass and I would love to read her story. Brother Zachariah being mortal again was very interesting for sure. I knew he was interesting for some reason and it wasn’t just because he was “the cool” silent brother. The Infernal Devices characters were cool to see. I’m not a fan of Victorian era steampunk books but I can try reading them I guess. I heard there’s a love triangle and I’m not a huge fan...anyway that’s a different book. These characters were developed in a way that made you care about them. I want Mark Blackthorn to be released from the fey Wild Hunt. I want Emma Carstairs to be the badass we know she is and it makes me excited. The only one I’m not sure about is Tiberius...he seems a little too “Sheldon” from The Big Bang Theory...
-Only one thing really concerns me for the future. The state of the Clave. They came together at the end and decided a “fitting” punishment for the Seelie people. Most of it was making reparations for the damage they caused monetarily and with loss of life and then the de-militarizing. The Seelie are old and all immortal and they remember every slight. The rage of the fey is patient and white hot and the Clave will pay for making them lay down their arms. Magnus was right in that the Clave is unnecessarily cruel especially to downworlders. Even to their own people they are harsh and unforgiving g even to someone like Helen who has done nothing wrong at all except be born half fey. She fought beside shadowhunters in the battle and was still exiled to the Arctic. In all six books the Clave has made no progress in their racism or their “the law is hard but it is the law” ideologies when those laws have done nothing but divide them amongst themselves and from the downworlders. They need a big change and it makes me wish for a Valentine sized purge. Ugh...anyway...
-Overall, I loved this thrilling conclusion to a long journey of blood and death but also light and love. It’s such an interesting urban fantasy with colorful characters and a fleshed out world. I loved the way everything panned out, even the bad stuff and I will probably read it all over again years from now.
-the pacing was really great. I never felt like anything was filler and everything had a purpose. The book is so big so I was expecting some kind of lull in the story but at every turn was a new heartbreak or a new looming shadow around the corner.
-the plot line was really satisfying. Sebastian felt like an evil we have never fully understood so it kept the reader on their toes trying to figure out what he would do next. It felt like an epic closure on these characters that was not without its consequences. They lost people and they all went through some tough shit. Jordan was a likable character and I was sad to see him go. Simon losing his memory of his friends and his vampire-ness was very sad. He gave him a normal life which is really what he wanted in the first book and now he gets it. He gets to have his old life back but the price is the people he loves are lost to him. The Seelie Court turning against the Clave was totally foreseeable because Clary and the Clave are dicks to them as they are to most downworlders who don’t bend to their will. But that’s a story for another day. Edom was a cool setting and felt really foreign and daunting. It was like looking into a really evil mirror.
-the characters felt a bit more real. I’ve mentioned previously that the first three books was character setup and these last three have been somewhat of a crucible for all of them and their true deepest fears. They all had to come to terms with some of the things that have plagued them since book one. Isabelle has to come to terms with her broken family, her inability to see women as friends, and how to be vulnerable romantically with someone. Alec has to come to terms with his own mortality and Magnus’s inevitable immortality and what it would mean for their future. He also had to come to terms with his father and the rest of the Shadowhunter world not approving of him and Magnus. Jace kinda got the nicer end of the deal by becoming a holy weapon and the instrument that would bring about the destruction of his brother but he finally comes to terms with his identity as a Herondale which has been his main struggle since day one. Simon had to make a lot of sacrifices in this book. It seems like every angel and demon wants a slice of the daylighter pie! Making the bargain with the angel last book in exchange for his Mark of Cain and now his daylighter vampire immortality/powers and his memories of the people he loves most to Asmodeus in this book. He’s slowly getting it back but I’m not sure if it’ll ever be the same. Clary had to face her brother that had been corrupted by her father and had to come to terms with the fact that there would be no saving him. She had a vision of a happy family and a loving brother and she got to see a glimpse of what could’ve been at the very end of Sebastian/Jonathan’s life. She and Jace outsmarted one of the most strategic baddies they’ve ever encountered and it was bittersweet. Magnus has to come to terms with the fact that glitter and jokes couldn’t hide who he truly was. He had to share his past with the people he loves in order to really remember who his is in his expanse of long life. Being as old as he is comes with a price and he is staving off that price as long as he can for Alec. Maia becomes the leader of the pack and loses Jordan again even though she knew it wasn’t gonna work out with him that still sucks but honestly I don’t get her arc all that much. Maybe her growth was done when she came to terms with Jordan.
-Interesting new characters. I liked Emma and Julian and I know they are the stars of the next book series so I’m excited to see where their story goes. The siblings kinda blended together to me except for Tiberius, Helene, and Mark. Emma seems like a badass and I would love to read her story. Brother Zachariah being mortal again was very interesting for sure. I knew he was interesting for some reason and it wasn’t just because he was “the cool” silent brother. The Infernal Devices characters were cool to see. I’m not a fan of Victorian era steampunk books but I can try reading them I guess. I heard there’s a love triangle and I’m not a huge fan...anyway that’s a different book. These characters were developed in a way that made you care about them. I want Mark Blackthorn to be released from the fey Wild Hunt. I want Emma Carstairs to be the badass we know she is and it makes me excited. The only one I’m not sure about is Tiberius...he seems a little too “Sheldon” from The Big Bang Theory...
-Only one thing really concerns me for the future. The state of the Clave. They came together at the end and decided a “fitting” punishment for the Seelie people. Most of it was making reparations for the damage they caused monetarily and with loss of life and then the de-militarizing. The Seelie are old and all immortal and they remember every slight. The rage of the fey is patient and white hot and the Clave will pay for making them lay down their arms. Magnus was right in that the Clave is unnecessarily cruel especially to downworlders. Even to their own people they are harsh and unforgiving g even to someone like Helen who has done nothing wrong at all except be born half fey. She fought beside shadowhunters in the battle and was still exiled to the Arctic. In all six books the Clave has made no progress in their racism or their “the law is hard but it is the law” ideologies when those laws have done nothing but divide them amongst themselves and from the downworlders. They need a big change and it makes me wish for a Valentine sized purge. Ugh...anyway...
-Overall, I loved this thrilling conclusion to a long journey of blood and death but also light and love. It’s such an interesting urban fantasy with colorful characters and a fleshed out world. I loved the way everything panned out, even the bad stuff and I will probably read it all over again years from now.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No