CITY OF BONES ended with arch-villain, Valentine vanishing with *The Mortal Cup* (The first of the Mortal Instruments) in his clutches. In his destructive wake, he left behind:
a) His son, Jace. Jace Wayland has to deal with whether he wants to follow in his father’s bigoted footsteps or stay behind with his supportive foster family. He also has to control his less-thn-brotherly feelings towards his supposed sister, Clary.
b) His daughter, Clary. While Clary Fray has no qualms about hating her rotten dad, she’s a tad confused over her feelings for Jace and best-friend Simon. She has brotherly feelings for someone who is NOT her brother and amorous feelings for someone who IS her brother. (It’s confusing, but true). She also has to deal with the fact that her mother Jocelyn (Valentine’s estranged wife and also a ShadowHunter) is deep in the throes of a coma.
Patriarch Valentine however, is hardly concerned about his seriously dysfunctional family. He has more pressing issues. After The Mortal Cup, he now wants to lay his hands on the second Mortal Instrument : *The sword Maellartach*. Once he has his grubby paws around it, Valentine will be able to summon the vilest of demons and use them as an essential tool in his dastardly plans.
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CITY OF ASHES was a vast improvement on the first instalment. Jace Wayland, the fearless ShadowHunter, displays a vulnerability which makes you empathize which his troubled teenage mind. Clary is more certain in her role as a vigilant warrior who is slowly discovering her special abilities. Simon, the quintessential best friend and closet lover is given a new, slightly bizarre and yet readable twist. Together, the trio play a cool game of thrust and parry as they battle with their changing worlds and burgeoning emotions.
New characters (Maia, The Inquisitor) lay promising groundwork for the next instalment. Old favourites like Magnus Bane, Luke and Alec show depth and add multiple layers to their fixed roles.
In all, engrossing and page-turnable (I don’t even know if that is a word!!!). Definitely worth the decision of buying books 2 and 3 together.
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