Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare

Lady Midnight (Dark Artifices, #1)

by Cassandra Clare

The Shadowhunters of Los Angeles star in Lady Midnight, the first novel in Cassandra Clare's newest series, THE DARK ARTIFICES, a sequel to the internationally bestselling MORTAL INSTRUMENTS series.

It's been five years since the events of City of Heavenly Firethat brought the Shadowhunters to the brink of oblivion. Emma Carstairs is no longer a child in mourning, but a young woman bent on discovering what killed her parents and avenging her losses.

Together with her parabatai Julian Blackthorn, Emma must learn to trust her head and her heart as she investigates a demonic plot that stretches across Los Angeles, from the Sunset Strip to the enchanted sea that pounds the beaches of Santa Monica. If only her heart didn't lead her in treacherous directions...

Making things even more complicated, Julian's brother Mark - who was captured by the faeries five years ago - has been returned as a bargaining chip. The faeries are desperate to find out who is murdering their kind-and they need the Shadowhunters' help to do it. But time works differently in faerie, so Mark has barely aged and doesn't recognize his family. Can he ever truly return to them? Will the faeries really allow it?

Glitz, glamours, and Shadowhunters abound in this heartrending opening to Cassandra Clare's Dark Artifices series.

Reviewed by Leigha on

3 of 5 stars

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Emma Carstairs attempts to uncover the mystery behind her parents deaths in this young adult urban fantasy novel.

Cassandra Clare missed her calling as a soap opera writer. I’ve read the first three Mortal Instruments books and the entire Infernal Devices series and still the soap opera twists keep coming – “I love you, but we’re brother and sister;” “You’re my best friend, but we’re in love with the same person;” “I can only trust two people in this wor…oh my god, one of them betrayed me!” I sometimes get the feeling the plot points dictate the ending of the stories rather than character arcs. And how many love triangles do I have to sit through? HOW MANY?

While I’m not crazy about the plot, the characters and world-building are nuanced. Most of the characters had clear motivations and drive. I really did enjoy all of the characters, especially Emma and the Blackthorn siblings. The romance between Julian and Emma felt believable and passionate, but I felt most of the drama between the two was artificially created to keep them separated. As for the other love stories, I felt most of them were pretty meh. I’m not a fan of characters from the original series making an appearance in spin-off books, but it was not over done in this novel.

Overall, I suspect fans of her other series will enjoy this book too. She does improve as a writer the longer she writes, and you can tell she has spent a lot of time creating this unique, complex world. However, I’m just not invested in these dramatic, angst filled plot lines. I will not be continuing this series.

tl;dr Complex characters and intricate world building didn’t save me from enjoying the soap opera “oh my god” plot.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 9 September, 2018: Finished reading
  • 9 September, 2018: Reviewed