The Mortal Instruments: City Of Glass by Cassandra Clare

Review:

So, despite my first review of the year being Where She Went, this was actually the first book I read this year.  I read both City of Bones and City of Ashes last summer, so this was a long overdue read of mine; however, despite picking it up as more of a need-to-read rather than a want-to-read book, I really enjoyed this.  I liked both of the first two books, preferring City of Ashes, and this was no exception; in fact, this is probably my favourite out of the series so far!

Firstly, I loved the characters, both new and returning.  I am already fan of many of the characters, so I liked learning more about each of them in this book.  I particularly liked seeing more of Simon and Alec (or more Alec and Magnus..), with Simon being one of my favourites out of the entire series.  I also enjoyed the introduction of new characters such as Armatis and Sebastion and loved how much more they added to the story.

Another factor that really drew me in was the setting, or more change of it.  I didn't realize at first that the entire book would take place in Idris, but I loved the fact that it did.  I think it brought something new to the book, as well as allowing us to delve so much deeper into the world of the Shadowhunters, something which I loved doing.

Something which I have loved in all books, and again with this one, was the writing and the quick-paced change of character perspective.  The fact that the books are written in third person allows Cassandra Clare to show so many different events that happen to so many different characters in a short space of time, and this technique was so prominent but used so well in this.  Often key moments would be split, to allow all characters perspectives to be shown at the same time, but instead of leading to confusion this only added to the writing and story more.  It kept me, and I'm sure others gripped and on the edge of my seat; it kept the plot even more gripping than it already was, and prevented me from even thinking about putting it down, myself keen to go back to characters whose sections had been left on cliffhangers.

As you may have guessed from my extremely positive review so far, I found very little wrong with this.  However, I did find a few small points which really didn't appeal to me, such as how long it took for the story to get going.  Despite most of this book being fast-paced and exciting, the start I found quite slow and unexciting, with nothing really drawing me in or causing me to want to keep reading.  I also didn't like how much of a final book this felt like.  The were so many questions that were answered and so many problems were solved in this book, that I kind of don't know what there is left to make three more books out of.  Although I obviously wanted things to be sorted out, a few loose ends would have perhaps given a bit more mystery to the next book.

Finally, I really enjoyed this book.  I loved how fast paced the plot was, and the characters and setting was were amazingly written, with Idris being such a magical place to set this third book.  The entire book was so well written, with lines that made me laugh out loud complemented by plot twists that I never saw coming.  Overall I adored this book and can't wait to pick up City of Fallen Angels.

Quotes -

"Normal isn't all it's cracked up to be." 
"People aren't born good or bad.  Maybe they're born with tendencies either way, but it's the way you live your live that matters."
"I asked you if I had a choice once.. And you said, 'we always have choices.'.. In the end that was the choice you made, and it doesn't matter how hard it was to make.  It matters that you did."

Songs -

God Put A Smile Upon Your Face - Coldplay - This is quite a strange one, and it certainly wasn't one I thought I would be putting on here, but I think the lyrics and overall feel of the song connects so well to so many different points of the book that it just fits to well not to put on here.
When The Darkness Comes - Colbie Caillat - This is from the City of Bones soundtrack, and it's such a good song that I feel it can also relate to the softer and sadder parts of the book so well.
Everybody Wants To Rule the World - Lorde - I feel this sums up the darker side of the book really well, despite it being from the Catching Fire soundtrack.

Other Books -

Switched by Amanda Hocking - This book is another one with a supernatural element, with trolls being the main focus.  I adore this entire series, and so definitely recommend it, and other Amanda Hocking series, if you want to delve more into other supernatural creatures.  

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendrae Blake - This book tells the story of a ghost hunter who falls in love with a ghost he is sent to kill, and so I figured that the whole Shadowhunter/ghost hunter thing connected these two, and after loving Anna, I had to suggest it just because of this connection.

Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman - As a lot of people may know, I love this series, and this is definitely a book/series to pick up if you liked forbidden love element of the book, but even if it wasn't your cup of tea, I would still pick this up as I find both of these quite similar, even if at first they don't seem it...