The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare, Sarah Rees Brennan, Maureen Johnson

Genres: Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Paranormal, Romance
Publication Date: November 11th 2014
POV: Male - Third-person, Past tense
My Rating: 4 out of 5

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The perfect gift for Shadowhunters. This gorgeous illustrated hardback brings 10 stories about immortal warlock Magnus Bane together for the first time, along with a bonus never-before-seen tale. A fan-favourite character from Cassandra Clare's Shadowhunter Chronicles, Magnus features in The Mortal Instruments, The Infernal Devices, Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy and the movie of City of Bones. Magnus will never be able to tell all of his tales. No one would believe him. But these stories shed a little light on his often inscrutable character. They are stories he probably wishes had never got out.

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So, some background on my relationship with Cassie. I read City of Bones first. Wasn't a huge fan of it, didn't particularly like Clary or Jace, I hated their relationship, and I hated Simon. The only redeeming quality was the excellent world-building and Magnus Bane. As I read City of Ashes and City of Glass I felt the same way and decided that was a good place to stop. I have never read City of Fallen Angels.

Then, as I heard all the ravings from fans about how much better TID was, and all the raving about Will and Jem, I became curious and wanted to know which side of the love-triangle I would fall on. So I read Clockwork Angel and yes, it is much better. It introduced me to Jem, who is the best thing Cassie has ever created, the story was very interesting, and Tessa is somewhat better than Clary. At least I don't actively dislike her. But there is one major drawback. Will Herondale is one of the worst things I have ever seen created on paper. I can't even tell you have much I hate him because words do not suffice.

I am always somewhat scared to start a new Cassie Clare book because her world is amazing and it has a lot of potential to impress me but I just seem to hate what she seems to think is a good romance and a good romantic lead. I do intend to keep trying though, by reading each of her new series. But as I said, Magnus Bane is one of the redeeming characters she has created, and I was excited to read about him in his own world.

“If one could look this fabulous, one had an obligation to. One should wear everything, or one should wear nothing at all.”

Each story in this book was interesting in its own right. I won't say which was my favourite because they were all interesting, entertaining, funny, and they all taught me something new about Magnus Bane. That is the best thing about this book. The overall experience of getting to know Magnus Bane. He never received this kind of undivided attention before and I feel like I know him intimately now. I don't know how much he appeared in the latter books of TMI, but this gave me a whole new view of him and I love him even more. He is an amazing warlock and an amazing person.

I loved seeing the friends he made over the years, the lovers, how he treated people, including Shadowhunters; how he tried to save Raphael, and Camille, innocent werewolves. He is a hero. But he never stops being Magnus Bane either. He shows up to battle in hot pink. I love his sense of humour too, his sarcasm. That is something I already knew about him, but I really enjoyed seeing more of. Two side of him worth loving.

“Even if the Shadowhunters had been expecting an interruption, and the werewolves had been hoping for a savior, apparently nobody had been expecting all the hot pink.”

I also loved seeing him with Alec. I enjoyed Alec in the books as well, but its different when you see him as Magnus sees him. I never knew Alec was so insecure and shy and good. I loved the way Magnus described him and the way he made him feel. It makes me reconsider finishing TMI, just to get a few more glimpses of Magnus and Alec together. I now have an incredible love and respect for Magnus Bane. I love him more than this series can contain. He is too big for his world. I will keep trying with Cassie Clare, but I have no reason to expect to find anything as great as this by her in the future.

"...he had wanted Alec there, so badly, and here he was. It felt more like magic than anything he could do."

On Midnight Wings by Adrian Phoenix (The Maker's Song #5)

Genres: Adult, Paranormal/Urban Fantasy, Romance, Suspense
Smut-O-Meter: 1 out of 10
My Rating: 4 out of 5

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A desperate search. A dark and dangerous journey. And every step could destroy everyone Dante loves.

Only one mortal woman can save him . . .

As Dante Baptiste’s true identity as both True Blood and Fallen ripples throughout New Orleans, he and Heather struggle for their lives against different foes, fighting their way back to each other. To free herself from her father’s treachery, Heather accepts help from an ally–and steps into even greater danger. Dante, lost to his brutal past, wavers between his own sense of self and the Bad Seed-programmed S that lurks within, between the never-ending Road and the Great Destroyer. And the danger of becoming both.

. . . unless the fallen reach him first.

Lucien searches frantically for the lovers, all too aware that time is running out. Dark forces continue to gather, eager to possess and manipulate the young vampire for their own ends. The fate of mortals, nightkind, and the Fallen pivots around Dante as he struggles to piece together his shattered psyche and gain control of his power before he rips all three worlds asunder.

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I love this series and the complex world Adrian Phoenix created. I love it as much as I did after reading book 1, A Rush of Wings, and being totally blown away. And I love Heather, and Dante, and Lucien more and more with each book. But I feel like the story is really getting drawn out.

Its just been a constant stream of Dante being kidnapped and tortured by vampires, psychopaths, evil angels, the government, other branches of the government, eviler angels, etc, etc. I am really getting tired of it. I guess this is all leading towards pushing Dante into becoming the Great Destroyer and then probably being saved by Heather, but I don't like seeing quite so much of it. Its starting to all seem the same.

Although the more Dante is tortured and pushed to his limits, the more I love him. I LOVE DANTE SO

MUCH!!! But its not even in a swoony book-boyfriend kind of way. I just love him so much as a person and admire his strength. I sort of have two separate lists of favourite heroes in my head. One is book boyfriends, and one is just heroes--male leads whose romantic relationship, or lack thereof, has no effect on my love for them. Dante would be on the latter, along with heroes like Ender and Eragon. But make no mistake, I am most certainly swooning and drooling ALL OVER his daddy. (At least, this is how I imagine him in my head)

I love Lucien and I look forward to seeing him protect his son further, now that Leviathon has awakened. I also want to learn more about Annie's baby. That wasn't really addressed at all in this book. Is Annie the only one who knows who the father is? As well as the father. He seemed to have figured it out real quick. Things could get interesting. But please, don't focus the next book on kidnappings and failed rescue attempts! It took all of this book for Heather to track down Dante after he was kidnapped at the end of the last one. It was so frustrating!

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare (The Infernal Devices #3)

Genres: Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Paranormal/Urban Fantasy, Steampunk, Romance
Publication Date: March 19th 2013
POV: Alternating - Third-person, Past tense

My Rating: 4 out of 5

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Tessa Gray should be happy—aren't all brides happy? Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute. A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan. He needs Tessa. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her.

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I find it hard to believe that I am actually rating something by Cassandra Clare so high, but I absolutely loved this. I much, much preferred the overall story of TID over TMI. But I was still prevented from really loving the first two books in this series because of how much I despise Will's character, and nearly every scene that involved him. So it is just a star away from being perfect.

Although the book was long, the story did not drag at all. It was packed full of action and adventure and danger and heroics and revelations. It was almost too much to bare. I found myself sometimes wishing it would end if only to end the strain on my heart. The emotion in this book was overwhelming. I always thought that Tiger's Destiny was the most emotional YA book I had ever read. But this has easily taken the cake. It has gone above and beyond, and that is both a good and a bad thing. In Tiger's Destiny, Kelsey was engaged to Kishan, even though she was obviously more in love with his brother, Ren. I was absolutely in love with Kishan, and it broke my heart to see how Kelsey betrayed him in her heart. I greatly, greatly appreciate that Clare did not do the same thing to Jem. Tessa loved Jem. She loved him as he deserved, as Kelsey could never have loved Kishan. But Tessa's love for Jem only makes it all the harder for me to understand how there could be any room left in her heart for Will. It defies nature, as she seemed to be aware. The only explanation is that they were parabatai, but that seems to be a weak explanation to me. It makes me sad and uncomfortable. I guess you just have to accept it as a natural phenomenon, or a paradox. I still appreciate that Clare tried, harder than most authors, not to break anyone's heart, characters and fans alike. But then again, it is rare that there are characters as loved as Will and Jem. There are very few instances of fans becoming so invested in a love-triangle, where both sides are loved almost equally.

I personally never saw the connection between Will and Tessa, throughout the whole series. I never really understood Will until this book. His personality annoyed me. Even in Prince, when we already  knew of the curse, he still annoyed me. The way he never took anything seriously. But I felt a lot of sympathy for him in this one. Regardless of my personal feelings for him, he was in a lot of pain that he didnt deserve, and he clearly loved Tessa so much. But I still didn't believe he belonged with her. And her love for him didnt seem real. She had an amazing connection with Jem, and whenever she thought of Will she thought, "Oh, his blue eyes and beautiful face." Those are not reasons to love someone. It couldn't compare to her feelings for Jem in my eyes. I never really believed that she loved him until Cadair Idris, when she said that he was like her."You say the things I think but never say out loud." It was an extremely touching scene, and the first time I had any sort of positive feelings for Will. But then he had to go and ruin it right after. Will doesnt seem to know the meaning of the word Kiss. He didnt know that she had been in love with him for a long time. For all he knew, she was distraught, and mourning Jem, and only looking for comfort, or distraction. He took advantage of her weakened state. I can't believe how little he questioned her first. She didn't regret it because she knew her own feelings for him had always been the same, regardless of Jem. But Will did not know that, and I can't believe what he did. In most YAs, the guy is usually like, "Are you sure? We can wait. It should be perfect. Are you sure? Are you sure? Are you sure?" And then, only then. But Will? He hears, "Kiss me," and then BAM. Sex. Dude, a little restraint?

When Jem said good-bye to Tessa and Will as Brother Zachariah, I cried so much. I was sobbing and gasping. It really broke my heart, even though I knew he would be back, it was still so sad. He belonged with them so much. But after he was gone, Tessa and Will got together way too quickly. When Jem and Tessa got engaged, people thought they were too young. But they knew Jem was dying so they tried to be understanding. When Will and Tessa got engaged, they were still only 17 so it must not have been long after Jem left, no more than a month or two, and no one comments about them being too young. Tessa and Jem had an excuse. Tessa and Will do not. Plus, Tessa should still be mourning Jem. But no one comments about the oddness of their swift engagement. I found it so disrespectful. Even though Jem gave them his blessing, they had no shame, no restraint. As if the fact that they both loved Jem gave them the right to do whatever they wanted with each other, completely heedless of Jem's loss that led to their gain. Do I sound bitter? I am bitter.

Tessa should have been with Jem and only Jem, but if she was to be with both of them, it is better that Jem be the last rather than the first. And desptie what Will and Tessa did, Jem is the one that is with her in the end. And she still loved him, 130 years later, still wearing his pendant. I know she would likely have done the same for Will. If she had been with Jem first, and had to wait 130 years to be with Will, she would have still loved him then. But I don't have to think about that anymore, because Will is dead. And Jem is back. Thats all the matters now. That they are together again. But I don't know whether Tess will want to have more children, and watch them die before her. So maybe Will will still have more from life than Jem will ever have. I just hope that he is still immortal. *looks skyward* Gosh, do I ever hope that he is still immortal. Oh, and I fell in love with Magnus a little bit in this book. :P

“There are so many worse things than death. Not to be loved or not to be able to love: that is worse.”

Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare (The Infernal Devices #2)

Genres: Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Paranormal/Urban Fantasy, Steampunk, Romance
Publication Date: December 6th 2011
POV: Alternating - Third-person, Past tense
My Rating: 3 out of 5

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In magical Victorian London, orphan Tessa found safety with the Shadowhunters, until traitors betray her to the Magister. He wants to marry her, but so do self-destructive Will and fiercely devoted Jem. Mage Magnus Bane returns to help them. Secrets to her parentage lie with the mist-shrouded Yorkshire Institute's aged manager Alyosius Starkweather.

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I definitely enjoyed this more than Clockwork Angel, but besides that I am not entirely sure how I feel about it. My main problem with it is the same problem I had with Angel, which I knew would not change. Tessa and Will. I didnt understand them in the first book and I dont understand them in this one either. Whatever reasons Will may have had for his behaviour, Tessa was not aware of them until the end, and still, somehow she managed to have insatiable feeling for a boy who had no discernible personality beyond sarcasm. Every private thought Tessa shared with us about Will only sounded like lust. "And still a look from him could make her tremble with mingled hatred and longing. It was like a poison in her blood, to which Jem was the only antidote. Only with him did she feel on steady ground." That makes things very clear to me. How can there be any comparison?

My feelings for this love-triangle are quite similar to that of Tiger's Voyage, although Tiger's Voyage excelled in all other areas, where Prince was merely mediocre. In both books, the girl has passionate thoughts about a boy who is wrong for her, who hurt her, who has a supernatural barrier between them. And when he comes back to her, it is too late because she has already fallen for someone else. A boy who is good and kind and understanding, and who deserves so much better than a girl who is constantly betraying him in her thoughts. I am aware that YA romances do not attempt to give an accurate portrayal of love. And I adore YA romance, it is practically all I read, so I have no reason to complain about the basis of the genre. I love it for what it is. But this book, and Tiger's Voyage, I must admit as much as I love it, take things a little too far. Lust and passion are a horrible basis for a relationship, as the above quote shows."...hatred and longing." Emotion for emotion's sake does not mean love, it could simply mean hatred. It reminds me of a scene in Tiger's Voyage, which isnt this book but still supports my point. The girl was confiding in someone about her torn feelings, and mentioned that one boy gave her peace, and the other makes her want to strangle him. Her confidante implied that the strong feelings that the second boy provokes in her is a sign that he is the one she should choose. What a load of crap! But that seems to be what Clare is trying to imply as well. I could go on all day about how wrong this is, but I think I've said enough.

I enjoyed this more than I should have because of Jem and Tessa. Will feels like the main guy of this love-triangle because of the way he dominates Tessa's thoughts, but otherwise I would have guessed that it was Jem, because he got much more focus in this book than Will. He could so easily fill the role of "main guy", if it werent for Tessa's betraying thoughts. And I dont want to enjoy Jem and Tessa as much as I do because I don't see how it can end well. Has there ever been a YA author who defied the laws of YA romance and got the girl with the back-up guy? Not to my knowledge. Although I would praise her unceasingly if she did.

“When two souls are as one, they stay together on the Wheel. I was born into this world to love you, and I will love you in the next life, and the one after that."

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare (The Infernal Devices #1)

Genres: Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Paranormal/Urban Fantasy, Steampunk, Romance
Publication Date: August 31st 2010
POV: Alternating - Third-person, Past tense

My Rating: 3 out of 5

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In a time when Shadowhunters are barely winning the fight against the forces of darkness, one battle will change the course of history forever.
The year is 1878. Tessa Gray descends into London’s dark supernatural underworld in search of her missing brother. She soon discovers that her only allies are the demon-slaying Shadowhunters—including Will and Jem, the mysterious boys she is attracted to. Soon they find themselves up against the Pandemonium Club, a secret organization of vampires, demons, warlocks, and humans. Equipped with a magical army of unstoppable clockwork creatures, the Club is out to rule the British Empire, and only Tessa and her allies can stop them....

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I can say I am not a Cassandra Clare fan with conviction. I have given this the same rating as the first The Mortal Instruments book, but for different reasons. In City of Bones I didn't much like the story, but I enjoyed the characters. In Clockwork Angel it is the opposite. The story was decently interesting, like a mystery with so many pieces to put together, but the characters were horrible. That is only my opinion, since I know this book and its characters are wildly popular.

I found Tessa to be a decent heroine considering her situation and the historical setting. But I have trouble taking someone seriously when they are attracted to Will. Why anyone would like him is beyond me. He is clearly hiding something and is trying to push people away with his rudeness and arrogance. But that is all there is to him. Like Magnus observes at the end of the book, "He seemed to show nothing real to the world." I have observed no redeeming qualities in him thus far. I cant imagine what Tessa or Jem see in him. I dont recall him ever being kind to her, beyond showing occasional concern, and that was usually not in her presence.

Having to put up with reading her thoughts about him is very frustrating. I have never disliked a male lead before. There are a few rare occasions where I have liked the supporting male character enough to be noteworthy, and on even rarer occasions I have liked him enough to rival the male lead, but never before to the extent of surpassing the male lead. Usually, all the thoughts they (leading couples) have about each other is what I feed on. It propels me through books as fast as I can possible read, wanting more. But in this, any thoughts of Will made me uncomfortable and I almost dreaded it. I cannot stress enough how unappealing I find him, or how baffled I am by Tessa's affections. Some have told me, "Dont judge until you read the next book!" But Tessa has not read the next book! It makes no sense to be attracted to someone who treats you like you're worthless, whatever their reasons or true feelings may be. But enough ranting about Will. Onto the next fellow.

Jem is kind and considerate, and everything an English gentleman should be. But I don't think that's what Tessa wants. She could not have missed his affections, however subtle, but I think he would have to be more passionate to attract her attention. He is far too subdued for my liking, and hopefully he will show more emotion in the next book, which I may or may not read. I will probably wait until the whole series is released before continuing. That is what I decided to do with TMI. Reading the whole thing slowly is far too tedious. I am even considering dropping the rating for this to 2/5.

“It's all right to love someone who doesn't love you back, as long as they're worth you loving them. As long as they deserve it.”

A Rush of Wings by Adrian Phoenix (The Maker's Song #1)

Genres: Adult, Paranormal/Urban Fantasy, Romance, Suspense
Publication Date: January 8th 2008
POV: Alternating - Third-person, Past tense
Smut-O-Meter: 6 out of 10
My Rating: 5 out of 5

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Dark. Talented. Beautiful. Star of the rock band Inferno. Rumored owner of the hot New Orleans nightspot Club Hell. Born of the Blood, then broken by an evil beyond imagination.

F.B.I. Special Agent Heather Wallace has been tracking a sadistic serial murderer known as the Cross Country Killer, and the trail has led her to New Orleans, Club Hell, and Dante. But the dangerously attractive musician not only resists her investigation, he claims to be "nightkind": in other words, a vampire. Digging into his past for answers reveals little. A juvenile record a mile long. No social security number. No known birth date. In and out of foster homes for most of his life before being taken in by a man named Lucien DeNoir, who appears to guard mysteries of his own.

What Heather does know about Dante is that something links him to the killer -- and she's pretty sure that link makes him the CCK's next target. Heather must unravel the truth about this sensual, complicated, vulnerable young man -- who, she begins to believe, may indeed be a vampire -- in order to finally bring a killer to justice. But Dante's past holds a shocking, dangerous secret, and once it is revealed not even Heather will be able to protect him from his destiny....

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I've never read anything like this before!

Although, I must admit I really wish I could replace every usage of the word 'belly' with 'stomach'. And the author really liked to reuse phrases. Several times someone trailed a finger along someone's jaw. More than once a car clicked and tinked. But her ability to describe a scene to you is amazing. Maybe she occasionally ran out of new ways to say it, and maybe I'm the only one who noticed, but the rest of the time I was completely drawn into her world. And I really enjoyed her affinity for the sense of smell. Every room and person had their own smell, a sense that is not usually focused on, it was like a completely new reading experience.
It read mostly like a really good thriller, full of conspiracies, cover-ups and secrets reminiscent of Bourne novels, with a little Criminal Minds mixed in. Which is a great combination already, but then add a world of vampires and fallen angels, supernatural powers, and other worlds of secrets. I have never seen a world like this before and there is nothing I can compare it to.

And I really appreciated Phoenix's version of the vampire mythos. She didn't stick with the usual 'steak to the heart', 'burst into flames' traits, but she didn't just ditch them all either. She made a unique combination of new and old. And the two leads are great. The leads are important and I couldn't have enjoyed the book this much if I didn't love the leads. Heather was a great female character. A perfect balance of tough but still feminine and sexy, enough for her weaknesses to be believable. And of course Dante was perfect, a beautiful tortured soul.

But the image I cant get out of my head is of Lucien, standing with wings unfurled under the broken roof of a cathedral. Dante took everyone's breath away, but he was described as pale and 5'8”. Not my type. Lucien was described as 6'8”, handsome, and oozing power. I would love to see that, with his rushing wings as he swoops down and perches on Dante's rooftop like a gargoyle.

"It's quiet when I'm with you. The noise stops."