Meeting Cassie Clare

Having followed Cassandra Clare's work since waaay before she released City of Bones, I was so excited to get the chance to meet her in person. I was nervous too; I mean, how scary is it to meet one of your idols?

I bought my book and joined the queue, waiting around half an hour for the lady herself to join us. As I neared the front of the queue I could hear her asking for favourite characters and chatting away with other readers; she created a really lovely atmosphere. I've been to quite a few signings where people are pushed along with minimal interaction, handed their book / CD at the end and told to move away from the exits. But Cassie was very accommodating for everyone, smiling for endless pictures, answering questions, even looking at one girl's GCSE Art coursework, which she'd based on the Mortal Instruments series.

The nice WHSmith lady took two photos of us - one while Cassie signed my book and another of us posing away. We spoke about Will and Wales (I'm half-Welsh) and how difficult it is to master the Welsh language (very), and I managed to stutter that I was a huge fan and so pleased to meet her.

She asked my favourite character, I said it was Will for the Welsh connection, and she put his name in little hearts for me. A really nice touch! I also nicked some of her awesome 'Team Cassie' badges. I hope she tours England again soon - a delightful lady who deserves all of the praise and success she is getting.

City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare

Released: May 8th 2012
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Pages: 536
Buy The Book: Amazon

"The demon Lilith has been destroyed and Jace has been freed from her captivity. But when the Shadowhunters arrive to rescue him, they find only blood and broken glass. Not only is the boy Clary loves missing–but so is the boy she hates, Sebastian, the son of her father Valentine: a son determined to succeed where their father failed, and bring the Shadowhunters to their knees."

City of Lost Souls is a welcome return to form for Cassandra Clare, who, in my opinion, dropped the ball with City of Fallen Angels (check out my review here for my thoughts). The odd decisions and the strange character development that ruined CoFA for me have given way to a much more engaging plot, and the 'fanfiction' element has all but fallen away. I'll try to keep this relatively spoiler-free, as it's still quite close to the release of the book and I don't want to ruin it for anyone who hasn't got their hands on it yet.

Having read the books that have been released so far in the companion series, the Infernal Devices, I'm struggling to find Mortal Instruments quite as engrossing; in fact, I thought the most interesting parts of this book were the parts that dropped heavy clues as to what would happen in the next and final Infernal Devices instalment. However, that's not to say I don't seriously appreciate Cassandra Clare's craft and supreme talent, which is more evident in this novel than ever. The woman knows how to structure a story, CoLS is wonderfully put together and excellently written, with plenty of the old spark that I so missed in CoFA. Cassie is growing with every novel (writing CoFA off as a blip) and, despite my lingering reservations about her continuing the series past City of Glass, I'm actually quite excited to see what the final book holds.

Where my favourite character used to be Jace by a country mile, I am now appreciating Simon and Sebastian much more as literary constructs. Sebastian is masterfully well-written, the scenes where he has an almost easy and charming camaraderie with Jace certainly lull the reader into a false sense of security before he transforms into the monster we know him to be. He's a very charismatic villain and it's easy to see why people fall under his spell, even if his methods and aims aren't to be celebrated. Simon has also blossomed; in the first three novels I saw him as an annoyance but he's absolutely pivotal now and I don't find myself dreading the chapters that begin with his POV anymore.

In the way of criticism, I'd have to say that, as diverse and wonderful Cassie's cast of characters are, I'm finding the sub-plots to be a little distracting. The Maia / Jordan side-story didn't add contribute much to the actual plot, and I find it a little too neat that every single person in the main cast is involved with another member of the main cast. I know that it's fiction, but I find it a little too convenient, and I hope Cassie shakes it up a little in the final book. I'm sure she will, she writes tragedy extremely well.

All in all, I'm starting to warm to this series a little more, and I hope the final book is worthy of standing alongside City of Glass, which I thought (at the time) was an ideal ending to a series.

Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

Released: December 6th, 2011

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books

Pages: 528

Buy The Book: Amazon

"In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street—and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends. Tessa finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, but her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will—the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers about who she is and what she was born to do?"

If you read my review of City Of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare you'll know that I was disappointed with what I thought of as a lazy follow-up to one of my favourite book trilogies ever. My faith in the talented Cassandra had faltered and I was awaiting this book with a mixture of excitement and dread. All I can say is THANK GOODNESS.

The book is a brilliant return to form. One of the aspects I felt most let down CoFA was the strange backwards character development that seemed to make each of the well-loved cast regress into mere fanfiction caricatures. Clockwork Prince couldn't be any more different; no character is left unchanged. We learn about Will's heartbreaking history and the reason he is the way he is. I had anticipated that once I knew the big secret of Will's, the mysterious aura surrounding him would dissipate and I would be disappointed. I couldn't have been more wrong; hearing his revelation only made me love him more as a character. He became more real to me; he wasn't just acting up because it makes for a good scene-stealer.

We also learn more about his parabatai, Jem. In almost every other novel I've read which features a love triangle, I have always been able to guess who would end up with who. The hints have always been laid, there is always an almost instinctual feeling of which way the relationship is going to end up. But in this series, I really have no idea which way it will go. Jem is a wonderful foil to Will's caustic and impulsive nature, and it was refreshing to see his emotional side in this book. Tessa seems to care for the boys in entirely different ways and I have no idea which will win out. I just have an awful feeling that it will come down to tragic circumstance rather than choice...

Tessa is wonderful as always; brave, intelligent and a brilliant heroine. It's nice to note that Clare's leading ladies are usually the key to the plot rather than hopeless damsels swept up in something which doesn't concern them. Tessa is suddenly integral to these people's lives and she handles it all admirably. One of my favourite things about her is her love of classic fiction. I think it helps many readers to relate to a character when they share a common interest, and Clare must have known that many of her readership would have read and loved the same novels as Tessa (and Will, to an extent).

As in Clare's other work, the city of London is as much a character as any of the cast. Her descriptions of the murky Victorian city are vivid and appropriately grim, with the specific reference to places making me itch to get out a map and trace the footsteps of the characters. The backing cast are as weird and wonderful as ever, with Magnus Bane especially shining. You can guarantee that any scene with Magnus will be emotional, memorable or insightful. Jessamine's betrayal somehow felt expected and shocking all at the same time, showing off Clare's innate ability to make you care for the characters that maybe aren't so agreeable.

All previous sins from CoFA have been (briefly) forgiven. This book undoubtedly feels like it's laying the groundwork for a seriously grand finale, and I for one cannot wait.

City Of Fallen Angels by Cassanda Clare

City Of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare
Release Date: 5th April 2011
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Pages: 432
Buy The Book: Amazon



"Someone has been killing the Shadowhunters who used to be in Valentine’s Circle and leaving their bodies around New York City in a manner designed to provoke hostility between Downworlders and Shadowhunters. Internecine warfare among vampires is ripping 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. Meanwhile, Jace and Clary investigate a mystery that has deeply personal consequences for them — consequences that may strengthen their relationship, or rip it apart forever. Love, blood, betrayal and revenge: the stakes are higher than ever in City of Fallen Angels."


As an avid fan of what used to be the Mortal Instruments Trilogy, and an excited follower of Clare’s other series, The Infernal Devices, I had mixed emotions when I learned that there was to be a fourth MI book. The complicated plotlines and even more complex characters have proven themselves to make a compelling read, and part of me felt that the more books of Clare’s on offer, the better. I’d sit and read the telephone book if she’d had a hand in writing it. However, City Of Glass was one of the most striking books I’ve read in a long time, in that the ending was so perfect without being nauseating or too perfectly tied-up a la J.K.Rowling’s ’19 Years Later’. I put down CoG with both tears and a smile on my face. Every character got the ending they deserved, and in the strangest way I didn’t want to read any more about them. I wanted Clare to leave them alone and let them have their happy ending. They’d been through enough!


It was with a dubious anxiety that I picked up CoFA, and after devouring it in less than 24 hours, I think I was right to be dubious. The book lacked the witty spark I always associated with Clare’s work – in almost all of her previous books there have been numerous lines that I’ve insisted on reading out to people because they tickled me so much. I had always admired that, even when placed in the most depressing situations, the characters in MI seemed to be able to say something that would put a smile on my face. There is much less comic relief in CoFA.


Character wise, Clary, although showing flashes of brilliance with her angelic talent for creating runes, seemed oddly ‘fanfiction-ish’. You’d think that after almost single-handedly bringing down an evil dictator such as Valentine, a girl might have some confidence. You’d be wrong. Despite still being the most talented Shadowhunter on the planet, Jace has lost his irresistible dangerous edge, turning into a sort of Edward Cullen-style mopey martyr, too worried about hurting Clary and forever moaning about what an awful person he is. Simon, whose battle against and acceptance of his new vampire status is a major theme of the book, is disappointingly pedestrian for a ‘Daylighter’, although this can also be viewed as one of his better traits. Isabelle and Maia are a breath of fresh air in the face of Clary’s woeful lack of self-belief – the relationship between Maia and her ex-boyfriend Jordan is definitely one to watch in the upcoming books.


Concerning the plot and the storyline, I had previously thought that it would take a pretty special baddie to eclipse the Voldemort-esque Valentine. But Clare has succeeded, creating a villain of literally Biblical proportions in Lilith (and bringing back an old one who never quite got what he deserved). However this new enemy is only introduced in the last few chapters – the rest of the book is a lot like City Of Bones in that it very much lays the groundwork for the books to come. As readers, we spend a lot of this book piecing together cryptic clues that won’t make any sense until the end of the book (or even the next books in the series). A lot of the time I didn’t feel ‘in the know’, I was just plodding along and hoping it would all become clear to me at the climax of the novel.


I don’t want to be entirely negative about the book. I genuinely enjoyed reading it, as I always do with Clare’s novels. They’re very well-crafted, imaginative (probably an understatement) and intuitively written. I got a little thrill out of seeing Camille and Will’s names mentioned (characters from Infernal Devices, the companion series) and I always enjoy scenes which feature Magnus. It would have taken a pretty incredible book to topCoG and I don’t think CoFA has managed that, but I am looking forward to the rest of what looks to be another hit series for Cassandra Clare.