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A review by gen_wolfhailstorm
City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Video review: https://youtu.be/yMwx5EMf4vQ?si=fEiP37QS3eW67hKf
Blended reading: audiobook and physical.
The Details:
Narrated by Ari Graynor
Unabridged
The Shadowhunter books have been on my tbr for so long, and on a whim, I finally decided to get to it, with book one.
I'm so glad I throughly enjoyed this. I thought I'd be super irritated by the old school YA and wouldn't be able to suspend my disbelief or get over potential juvenile narrations but I felt really invested in the characters and the world of the demon hunters. Don't get me wrong, the inital few chapters probably would have dragged, had I not been listening to the audiobook, but once we got through that it was upwards from there.
City of Bones sort of gave me Percy Jackson vibes and when this became apparent to me, my enjoyment instantly increased more so.
Clary was pretty enjoyable to read from. She felt pretty immature at times but it was believable, especially recalling how I acted as a 15 year old. She did pretty well in the grand scheme of things, considering....
On thing I couldn't ignore about Clary, however, was that she was such an awful friend to Simon, consistently forgetting his whole existence... so much for 10+ years of friendship. It was almost like she was just waiting for something better to come along and it made me sad. Especially when Simon did himself a disservice by answering her beck and call after a major blow up, with no conclusion or conversation to really settle what happened.
I did love Simon though. I thought he was funny and a sweetheart but he wasn't over kill as a typical comic relief. It was fun to see his perspective as a regular person thrown into this world and I think, despite her ignoring him, he was a good person to humble and keep Clary grounded, but he lost himself in his love.
I loved that we had a cast of adult characters too. It took away some of the minor annoyances of following a group of young teenagers, and Luke was probably one of my favourite adults. However, when he said something like (and here, I paraphrase) 'don't call me uncle, I'm not old enough to be your uncle and I'm not reeeeally your uncle, just your mums long time friend.... ' rang super creepy to me. I mean I get it after everything that happened by the end, and understand the complex relationship he had with Clary's mum, but it initally felt so creeper alert.
Jace was so hot and cold, I felt like he was charming and the typical YA heart throb/swoon-y obvious love interest, but then he'd switch and be really spiteful. And then of course there's the big issue of... (see spoiler).
Overall, I had so much fun reading this and I'm hopeful the rest of the main series is an enjoyable one for me. It made for easy and fun entertainment, that had me really invested in particular character arcs, as well as the overarching direction of the plot and I'm eager to pick up book 2.
Blended reading: audiobook and physical.
The Details:
Narrated by Ari Graynor
Unabridged
The Shadowhunter books have been on my tbr for so long, and on a whim, I finally decided to get to it, with book one.
I'm so glad I throughly enjoyed this. I thought I'd be super irritated by the old school YA and wouldn't be able to suspend my disbelief or get over potential juvenile narrations but I felt really invested in the characters and the world of the demon hunters. Don't get me wrong, the inital few chapters probably would have dragged, had I not been listening to the audiobook, but once we got through that it was upwards from there.
City of Bones sort of gave me Percy Jackson vibes and when this became apparent to me, my enjoyment instantly increased more so.
Clary was pretty enjoyable to read from. She felt pretty immature at times but it was believable, especially recalling how I acted as a 15 year old. She did pretty well in the grand scheme of things, considering....
On thing I couldn't ignore about Clary, however, was that she was such an awful friend to Simon, consistently forgetting his whole existence... so much for 10+ years of friendship. It was almost like she was just waiting for something better to come along and it made me sad. Especially when Simon did himself a disservice by answering her beck and call after a major blow up, with no conclusion or conversation to really settle what happened.
I did love Simon though. I thought he was funny and a sweetheart but he wasn't over kill as a typical comic relief. It was fun to see his perspective as a regular person thrown into this world and I think, despite her ignoring him, he was a good person to humble and keep Clary grounded, but he lost himself in his love.
I loved that we had a cast of adult characters too. It took away some of the minor annoyances of following a group of young teenagers, and Luke was probably one of my favourite adults. However, when he said something like (and here, I paraphrase) 'don't call me uncle, I'm not old enough to be your uncle and I'm not reeeeally your uncle, just your mums long time friend.... ' rang super creepy to me. I mean I get it after everything that happened by the end, and understand the complex relationship he had with Clary's mum, but it initally felt so creeper alert.
Jace was so hot and cold, I felt like he was charming and the typical YA heart throb/swoon-y obvious love interest, but then he'd switch and be really spiteful. And then of course there's the big issue of... (see spoiler).
Overall, I had so much fun reading this and I'm hopeful the rest of the main series is an enjoyable one for me. It made for easy and fun entertainment, that had me really invested in particular character arcs, as well as the overarching direction of the plot and I'm eager to pick up book 2.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, War, Animal death, Death of parent, Child death, and Violence