Review: City of Glass by Cassandra Clare

Goodreads summary: 

To save her mother's life, Clary must travel to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of the Shadowhunters - never mind that entering the city without permission is against the Law, and breaking the Law could mean death. To make things worse, she learns that Jace does not want her there, and Simon has been thrown in prison by the Shadowhunters, who are deeply suspicious of a vampire who can withstand sunlight.  

As Clary uncovers more about her family's past, she finds an ally in mysterious Shadowhunter Sebastian. With Valentine mustering the full force of his power to destroy all Shadowhunters forever, their only chance to defeat him is to fight alongside their eternal enemies. But can Downworlders and Shadowhunters put aside their hatred to work together? While Jace realizes exactly how much he's willing to risk for Clary, can she harness her newfound powers to help save the Glass City - whatever the cost?

Love is a mortal sin and the secrets of the past prove deadly as Clary and Jace face down Valentine in the third installment of the New York Times bestselling series The Mortal Instruments.


*BEWARE POSSIBLE SPOILERS*

Jen's Review 

I loved this book. It picked up right where City of Ashes left off in that cliffhanger ending. I really liked where the storyline went and all the many twists and turns that I did not see coming, but made me want to keep reading. I love how this book refers back to important plot points from the previous two books and really ties the series together well. I loved how the big secret surrounding Clary, Jace and Valentine was finally revealed. Right from the first book I knew that somehow Clary and Jace were not siblings. I just had no idea how Clare was going to pull that one off when it seemed for certain that they were, but I really liked how it turned out in the end. 

I also really liked the character development that is seen, especially with Clary. While she did start off by doing something reckless and impulsive (again), she does a lot of growing up and I really like how she seems to have matured by the end of the book. And of course I have to mention that I love how things end up between Clary and Jace.

The only characters that I really had problems with were Valentine (of course) and once again, Simon. I don’t know what it is about him, but I just really do not like him. Sebastian was also another character I did not like, and for good reason. I knew there was something off about him right from when he was first introduced, I just was not expecting him to turn out to be who he was revealed to be in the end! 

Overall, this is the first book in The Mortal Instruments series that I can honestly say I loved and gave a 5/5 rating. The author did a great job of bringing everything together in the end, and I would have been satisfied with how it ended if the series had been concluded as a trilogy. But having said that, I am glad that there are more books in the series for me to look forward to!

Mel's Review 

This book quickly became my favourite of the series when I first read it. I loved the plot twists and the sense of adventure that this book brought to the table. And the City of Glass (Alicante) has been a favourite location within the books as a well thought out fantasy city that fits right in with the modern world without being too otherworldly.

Clary and Jace's relationship goes through some dramatic ups and downs, with the outcome being both surprising and relieving. While I did have doubts about Jace's heritage as revealed in City of Bones, I still did a fist pump and "YES!". More surprising, however, was finding out who his real family was and how close he was to this revelation in the end of City of Ashes (remember when I mentioned throwing the book across the room? If the Inquisitor had survived, he would have found out sooner).

The introduction of Sebastian brought a few mixed feelings of suspicion and dread. This guy was not going to be nice at all...

A few characters did make their departure, and especially for one particular character I was absolutely heartbroken (why would you do this to me?!!)

This book, without a doubt, deserves the 5/5 rating that I gave it. Amazing.