City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare *Spoilers for some of the series*

*There may be spoilers in this review. There will be spoilers for the first 3 books in the series*


City of Fallen Angels (Mortal Instruments #4) by Cassandra Clare
Release Date – April 5, 2011
Publisher – Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
Pages - 432
My Rating- 10/10


Here is the synopsis from GoodReads

City of Fallen Angels takes place two months after the events of City of Glass. In it, a mysterious someone’s killing the Shadowhunters who used to be in Valentine’s Circle and displaying their bodies around New York City in a manner designed to provoke hostility between Downworlders and Shadowhunters, leaving tensions running high in the city and disrupting Clary’s plan to lead as normal a life as she can — training to be a Shadowhunter, and pursuing her relationship with Jace. As Jace and Clary delve into the issue of the murdered Shadowhunters, they discover a mystery that has deeply personal consequences for them — consequences that may strengthen their relationship, or rip it apart forever. Meanwhile, internecine warfare among vampires is tearing the Downworld community apart, and only Simon — the Daylighter who everyone wants on their side — can decide the outcome; too bad he wants nothing to do with Downworld politics. Love, blood, betrayal and revenge: the stakes are higher than ever in City of Fallen Angels.”

I will start this review with a brief disclaimer (it’s also at the top of the post and in the subject line) - there will be spoilers for the first 3 books here (and maybe some minor teases from this book). If you haven’t read the first three books you may want to wait and read this review after…also run to a bookstore and pick them up (and Clockwork Angel while you are at it). I will also say that this is going to a be a bunch of gushing.

I had been waiting to get my hands on this novel for what feels like forever. I went at lunch the day it was released to purchase a copy. Couldn’t wait to start reading. My expectations were so high…and this book did not disappoint. It met all my expectations and more.

Cassandra Clare’s talent as a writer was evident in the previous books, but I noticed that Clockwork Angel was on a whole other level. This book was also a step up from her previous work (which was already perfect). Her writing style, and pacing is perfection. I have to applaud how much she’s grown from book to book.

I was curious to know what was going to happen with Simon and the Mark of Cain that Clary put on him during City of Glass. I was so happy to see it addressed fully in this novel. I was surprised that we get to see what it means for Simon to have it and we are just beginning to see the effect it’s going to have on Simon’s life I expect. I was also surprised that we get to see what consequences there are for other choices Clary made in the previous novels.

One of the things I love about these novels is Cassandra Clare’s ability to weave in romance along the way and make it a seamless part of the story. The romance in this novel is sigh inducing and some of my favourite in literature. Jace and Clary are the main couple and novel is filled with cute, sweet dialogue, some angst, and heavy duty make out scenes. The Dirty Sexy Alley Scene lives up to it’s nickname and was SO hot. I fully believe that Clare writes some of the best make out scenes. Alec and Magnus are my favourite couple though. Magnus is my favourite character so that may have something to do with it. I loved the speech Magnus gives Alec towards the end of the novel. I was smiling so big and wanted to hug my book after. I enjoyed getting a reference to Clockwork Angel with Will Herondale being mentioned. It was cute to see Alec jealous and unsure because he cares so much. I was trying to gain some information about Will and if he was alive when this series takes place but nothing was given away (grumble). I like it that way. I want to be shocked in both series and that is something Cassandra does very well.

The twists/reveals/etc in this novel were genuine surprises. There was one especially that I never saw coming. I didn’t even think of it as a possibility and once I found out I was floored at how much planning and detail must go into writing one of these books.

We meet some characters that were not in the previous novels. Jordan, and Maureen are the two main ones that come to mind. They both had some what important roles in the story. They were nice additions and I am interested to see what happens with both of them in the next two instalments.

There is a tradition that these books end on insane cliff hangers and that they make the wait for the next one unbearable and this novel is no exception. The ending wrecked me, shocked me, and left me anxious about what is in store for us in the next two books. I do not expect it to be an easy journey and I am going to love every minute of it. What makes this series so great is that fact that I adore some of the characters. I care enough to be moved and impacted. I would much rather feel this than indifferent. It makes the novels even more fun to read.

This series is one of my favourites and I can not recommend it highly enough. Read it, you won’t be disappointed.