City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare

City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare

Book Stats:
Reading level: Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Hardcover: 432 pages
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Release Date: April 5, 2011

Series: Mortal Instruments #4

Reviewed by: Tynga

Purchase: Amazon | Amazon CAN | Book Depository

Source: S&S Canada for review

City of Fallen Angels takes place two months after the events of City of Glass. In it, a mysterious someone’s killing the Shadowhunters who used to be in Valentine’s Circle and displaying their bodies around New York City in a manner designed to provoke hostility between Downworlders and Shadowhunters, leaving tensions running high in the city and disrupting Clary’s plan to lead as normal a life as she can — training to be a Shadowhunter, and pursuing her relationship with Jace. As Jace and Clary delve into the issue of the murdered Shadowhunters, they discover a mystery that has deeply personal consequences for them — consequences that may strengthen their relationship, or rip it apart forever.

Meanwhile, internecine warfare among vampires is tearing the Downworld community apart, and only Simon — the Daylighter who everyone wants on their side — can decide the outcome; too bad he wants nothing to do with Downworld politics. Love, blood, betrayal and revenge: the stakes are higher than ever in City of Fallen Angels.

Our merry gang of teenagers is now back in New York city after the crazy Idris events and are trying to go on with their lives. Alec and Magnus on a lovers trip, Clary training to become a Shadowhunter, Simon and Isabelle dating while he tries do deal with vampirism and his new mark, but Jace, on his part, is having a hard time. He is plagued by nightmares in which he is hurting Clary. Top that with his family heritage and his grief over Max and we are light years away from a good time. There’s no time for dwelling though, Shadowhunters are found dead, someone is trying to kill Simon and a very  powerful vampire is in town. Could there be a new Nemesis to defeat? Can they win this time? And what will be the price?

Oh. My. Freaking. God. This is textually what I said aloud after reading the last word of City of Fallen Angels. Can we frame Cassandra Clare for massive murder attempt? Because this, my friends, is a KILLER cliffhanger. WOW.

Ok now that it’s out of the way, let me tell you how amazing City of Fallen Angels is. What hit me the most in this installment is that every character seemed to be reestablishing their identity. They are trying to find their basis after everything that happened and it opens to a lot of vulnerability from all of them. I feel like I know the characters in a much more profound way now than I did before, and it’s amazing.

When Cassandra was talking about CoFA she said this book was a lot more about Simon. And while he does have a much bigger part and his struggles are super interesting, Jace stole the show for me. Not because he was his cocky flamboyant  self but quite the opposite. His pain and vulnerability was sometimes hard to bare. I just wanted to give him a hug and never let him go. His misery was heart-shattering. I have to say Clary kind of annoyed me. I can’t say I blame her because I don’t know how I would’ve reacted in her position but I wanted to smack some sense into her sometimes.

A new character I’m quickly growing fond of was also introduced. And for those of you who’ve read Clockwork Angel, two of its characters are also present/mentioned, which makes me that much more anxious to read The Clockwork Prince. I was also super happy to see Magnus, and I can never get enough of him so I wished he was a bigger part of the book but hey, can’t have it all!

The plot moved at a steady pace and the intrigue was really strong. There were so many things going on at same time that I was breathless just for reading and I had to put the book down a couple of times because the tension was just too much. Everything happens at freight train speed and Cassandra doesn’t give you time to try and figure out what’s going on. It’s Keep on Rolling and stay on the bench.

As mentioned previously, the end is a killer. I felt drained and full of dread after the final battle and then Cassie ties-up the loose ends, you’re hopeful for a brighter future and when you let your guard down.. BAM! Cassandra Clare strikes again!

The Mortal Instruments is one of the best YA Fantasy series out there and if you haven’t read it yet, you are seriously missing out.

City of Fallen Angels is fast, furious, emotionally draining and oh so fabulous! I want to read it all over again!

Here are some of my favorite quotes, fear not they are spoilers free:

“You’re just worried they’ll hire a male instructor and he’ll be hotter than you.”
Jace’s eyebrows went up. “Hotter than me?”
”It could happen,” Clary said. “You know, theoretically.”
"Theoretically the planet could suddenly crack in half, leaving me on one side and you on the other side, forever and tragically parted, but I’m not worried about that, either. Some things,” Jace said, with his customary crooked smile, “are just too unlikely to dwell upon.”

“That’s not necessary,” Jace said. “I can keep a perfectly good eye on Simon, thank you. He’s my neophyte Downworlder to mock and boss around, not yours.”

"You love each other -anyone can see that, looking at you- that kind of love that can burn down the world or raise it up in glory"

Read the first chapter

Posted by Tynga at 01:43

 Cassandra Clare, Review, Simon Schuster, Vampire, werewolf, young adult  5 People left their mark

Tynga is a 32 years old mom of two, from Montreal, working as a lab technician in an hospital specialized in heart disease. In her free time, she enjoys reading all things Paranormal and photography.

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