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Thursday, 17 May 2012

Review- City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare



City of Lost Souls (The Mortal Instruments, #5)
What price is too high to pay, even for love? When Jace and Clary meet again, Clary is horrified to discover that the demon Lilith’s magic has bound her beloved Jace together with her evil brother Sebastian, and that Jace has become a servant of evil. The Clave is out to destroy Sebastian, but there is no way to harm one boy without destroying the other. As Alec, Magnus, Simon, and Isabelle wheedle and bargain with Seelies, demons, and the merciless Iron Sisters to try to save Jace, Clary plays a dangerous game of her own. The price of losing is not just her own life, but Jace’s soul. She’s willing to do anything for Jace, but can she still trust him? Or is he truly lost?

Love. Blood. Betrayal. Revenge. Darkness threatens to claim the Shadowhunters in the harrowing fifth book of the Mortal Instruments series.

(Cover and description taken from Goodreads)

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At the end of City of Glass, Clary was granted one wish by the Angel Raziel, and she chose to save Jace from death. In choosing this, she unwittingly set in motion a chain of events that saw her part-demon brother Sebastian resurrected by Lilith, mother of all demons, and eternally bound to Jace as part of a ritual. Now, if Sebastian is harmed, Jace suffers the same damage. And the Clave want him dead…

Now Clary and her friends have to make a choice: to tell the Clave and risk Jace’s death, or to find a way to save him- alone. Clary calls upon the Queen of the Seelie Court, to find a way of following Jace. Risking her life, Clary goes after him and Sebastian, hoping that she can find out what Sebastian is planning. But how far is she willing to go to save his soul? Meanwhile, Alec’s growing obsession with Magnus’s long past sees him longing for a way to be immortal, so they can spend eternity together. Even if it means asking for the help of Camille, former head vampire. But vampires are not to be trusted, and her price is steep…

Luke has been severely injured by Sebastian, and with their leader on the verge of death, werewolves Jordan and Maia have to put aside their differences in order to find a cure. Meanwhile, Isabelle and Jocelyn travel to the land of the Iron Sisters, weapon forgers, to find a weapon that can break the curse binding Jace to Sebastian. But there is no weapon, aside from those belonging to the angels and demons themselves. Simon has been thrown out of his house by his own mother, who is convinced that he is a monster. Cursed with the Mark of Cain, he cannot be harmed without the harmer suffering the same damage sevenfold. This may be the group’s only chance to save Jace.

What I enjoyed most about City of Lost Souls is that we get to learn so much more about Downworlders: werewolves and warlocks in particular. Clare also explores many characters more deeply, including Isabelle, Alec, Magnus and Sebastian, and their complex relationships - but without compromising the action, unlike in City of Fallen Angels. The recurrent theme is: how far will you go to save someone you love? Beautifully written as ever, the novel is as much of an emotional rollercoaster as City of Glass, and hints at a final conflict that could change the world as they know it. Downworlders and Shadowhunters alike must choose sides, because there’s a war coming, and the denizens of darkest hell may soon walk the earth…

Rating: ****

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