YA in Review: Lady Midnight (Cassandra Clare)

First of all, this post will essentially be Spoiler Free, however if there are any I need to mention, they will be marked by an asterisk and will be elaborated on following a dividing line. Any comments by other users will not necessarily be spoiler free, so read at your own risk. Ready? Here we go!

shadowhunters.wikia.com

Lady Midnight is the first book in the Dark Artifices series by Cassandra Clare. Chronologically, this is the third series in the Shadowhunter Chronicles (although there will be a series coming out that will push this down to being the fourth), and it will be at minimum a trilogy.

What it's about:

Shadowhunter Emma Carstairs of the Los Angeles Institute is an orphan of the Dark War. But protecting the world from demons while seeking revenge for her parents death isn't an easy task. When Faeries are turning up dead without any explanation, Emma along with her best friend and parabatai Julian must uncover the mystery behind these murders...but there's a catch. Julian's brother Mark, taken by the Faeries years ago has been allowed to return to his family to help solve these crimes. He can only remain if  they solve it in time. Will Emma be able to focus on the task at hand, rather than avenging her parents? Will they catch the killer before Mark is forced to return to the land of Faerie?


Why it's worth a read:

• Full of magic/the supernatural (not the "hocus pocus" or Twilight kind), mystery, adventure, and romance
• If you like tortured love stories, love triangles, and all of that good messy stuff, this is right up your alley
• More of a mystery element to it than previous books by Clare, which is refreshing, as well as more insights into Faerie culture

Where it disappoints:

• There are many parallels between the other Shadowhunter Chronicles books, so if you are bothered by the repetition then you might want to give this a pass
• You'll want to have some familiarity with the Mortal Instruments books. Although gaps are filled in, there are many things that won't mean much to someone who hasn't read at least these books in my opinion...or read this one, then go and read the Mortal Instruments

Final Thoughts:

Along the same vein as the other books in the Shadowhunter Chronicles, if you are a huge fan of the Mortal Instruments series (and the romance in The Infernal Devices), you will most likely love Lady Midnight just as much. Personally, Lady Midnight ranks high on my list of favourite Clare books (along with The Infernal Devices series), and definitely is on my list of most addictive YA books (that sounds like a fun future post!). Book two, Lord of Shadows, is slated to be released in May 2017.

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What did you all think  of this book/this series? Please leave a comment if you'd like further reviews of this series, or a more in-depth, highly spoilery analysis.