City of Bones by Cassandra Clare (2007)

Clary’s life is ordinary in every sense. She’s shares her life with three people: her mom, her mom’s best friend, Luke, and her best friend Simon. The summer days consist of debating names for Simon’s band, drawing, and going to parties. Except, at the end of the summer, things become out of the ordinary. At a night at the Pandemonium Club, she starts seeing things. Things like three teenagers murdering a fourth in the back of the club. It’s no mistake that she can see them, but a mistake that she hasn’t been able to see them her whole life. These teenagers, Jace, Alec, and Isabelle, are Shadowhunters, sworn to protect humanity from the evils of the world. In the course of a night, it’s discovered that Clary’s mom is a Shadowhunter as well and that she’s wrapped her and Clary up in a deadly problem. It’s all new to her, but Clary must trust Jace, Alec, and Isabelle if she wants to survive in this new world.

I originally read City of Bones over five years ago and have read it three times since then. I am a huge fan of Cassandra Clare’s writing and the world of Shadowhunters she’s created. City of Bones is the first book in The Mortal Instruments, a series that takes place after The Infernal Devices trilogy and before The Dark Artifices trilogy. In order to read the whole franchise properly, City of Bones is actually supposed to be read and is always the perfect book to read.

It’s been about four years since I last read this one and, while I remembered major plotlines, I did not remember most of the book. I also was listening to the audiobook this time which was a new experience for me (great voice, by the way). One thing I completely forgot about was that this whole book takes place in a couple day’s time. Usually, I don’t like books that take place over such a short time because I feel like there’s not enough room to fully develop a story. However, I did not have that problem with this book. It was completely jam packed with action and different storylines that fully carried out a defined plot.

There was also a lot of character development for only four or five days. Before when I read City of Bones I was in middle school and thought all the characters in the book were super adult being juniors in high school. Now that I’m in college I think it’s kind of funny that they’re so young. That being said, Cassandra Clare nailed the thought process of what these characters would have being sixteen. Clary was definitely naive but totally her age. Still, she completely grew as a character, specifically with how she controlled her emotions. Jace, Isabelle, Alec, and Simon were all really developed characters, too. They each had defined personalities and I could easily separate one from the other.

The world of Shadowhunters is one of extreme complexity and this is the book where everything is originally introduced to the reader. That being said, I thought all the explanations of the world were clear and understandable. It was obviously a well thought out world as well because I couldn’t find any inconsistencies either. Yes, I was familar with this world already when I read it this time, but I was also able to find solid structure in the story on things I had forgotten.

It’s safe to say I love the world of the Shadowhunters and that Cassandra Clare books will always be some of my favorites. The only real problem I had with this book was the romance was a tiny bit unbelievable. I am already planning to read City of Ashes again, which is the sequel to City of Bones. Currently, I am also listening to Lord of Shadows, the second book in The Dark Artifices.

4 Stars