It`s so hard to begin describing this series at this point. If you`re reading this review, you are probably already familiar with the wonderful Shadowhunters series by the author Cassandra Clare and if you are not, please make yourself acquainted. No. really this world is amazing and probably one of my favourite urban fantasy series ever and I've read a few. In short, these books are about our world, which is unfortunately inhabited by demons, but there are warriors, with both human and angelic blood, that are fighting them and thus keeping a balance between good and evil. They are called Nephilim, specifically Shadowhunters. There are also the Downworlders such as vampires, werewolves and fairies, so all of the stories that have been told for decades are true. The main thing you need to know is that you have to read the rest of Cassandra Clare books, specifically The Mortal Instruments series and The Infernal Device trilogy, before you get into The Dark Artifices trilogy, which at the moment consists of two book and they are Lady Of Midnight and Lord of Shadows, which is the book I`m most happy to review in this post. So lets begin.
First thing, I have to say that this book took me by surprise. After the disappointment that was A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas, I just didn't know what to hope for and expect from another popular YA author. I`m happy to say that Cassandra Clare really delivered this time. I enjoyed Lady Midnight, but wasn`t that much into it ( I`ve reviewed it here for Serbian readers, you can use google translate in the sidebar ), but I loved Lord of Shadows. It still has everything you've learned to expect from Cassie Clare books and so much more. I`m amazed how her writing seems to progress and mature over time. It is more consistent, focused and there is richness to these characters. I think that it is really hard for the author to start a new series with basically a whole new set of characters and to make us emotionally invested in each one of them, but she definitely succeeded, in my opinion. I loved all of the characters, especially members of the Blackthorn family and enjoyed all of the different POVs. In this book, there is so much character development and you really get to meet some of them, who you didn't get a chance to know better in Lady Midnight. There are still some romance tropes, which is to be expected from a YA fantasy, but they are not written over the top and most of the time, they are executed rather well.
This book has a lot of diversity and I mean a lot. Maybe at the times to much. Please don`t get me wrong, I have nothing against more diverse books, but you can include only so much before it starts to seem unnatural. I don`t think that you can live with that many diverse characters in you everyday life, at least that is my experience. But, I have to say that in Lord of Shadows it`s done so much better than in A Court of Wings and Ruin, which I`m probably gonna review also in English as soon as I get over my disappointment. It feels more natural and not like it came out of nowhere only to please the fans. I get that authors these days are getting a lot of hate for this and I kinda detest that. If you want to read a more diverse author, I`m sure you can find one, but you can`t bully popular authors into including more diverse characters if that is simply not their thing, if they don`t know how to write one, because they hadn't had that much experience with it in their real life, or the country they live in. So, in Lord of Shadows these things are included wonderfully and are really working within the story. The book is still written in classical Cassie Clare style, or I should rather say with her humor and pop culture reference, which I really adore in these books and I always appreciate in any urban fantasy story.
There are many little snippets about events and characters from previous books, as well as few cameos, that literally made me squeal with delight. As always, I feel so nostalgic reading one of her books, no matter how old I am, they will always have a special place in my heart and I will alway anticipate a new book in the series with the same dose of excitement. There are many critics that say that Cassie Clare should stop writing about Shadowhunters, because at this point she is just milking athe cache cow, but I completely disagree. She created this imaginative and creative world full of possibilities for new stories and characters and as long as inspiration serves her and it does, I wouldn't mind hundred books set in this world. Imagine if J. K. Rowling would step of her high horse and write us a Marauders prequel and not another movie or stage screenplay. If it were the case of Sarah J. Maas ( I`m sorry for all of the comparing, but the pain in my heart is still rather fresh ) with every book that is basically the same, with the same writing style, even down to the same sentences, I will probably also think, God, woman get over yourself, but I assure you this is not the case here. With each book, Cassandra Clare`s progress and growth as a writer are visible and I have to say that Lord of Shadows is probably one of her best works yet. She continues to take huge risks with her story and characters, which makes suspense believable and reading nerve wrecking and i only hope that this will be something we can look forward to in her future books.
Final thought: If you are a fan of Shadowhunters series, you will definitely enjoy this book. It has to offer everything we ever expected from Cassandra Clare books and so much more.
This book has a lot of diversity and I mean a lot. Maybe at the times to much. Please don`t get me wrong, I have nothing against more diverse books, but you can include only so much before it starts to seem unnatural. I don`t think that you can live with that many diverse characters in you everyday life, at least that is my experience. But, I have to say that in Lord of Shadows it`s done so much better than in A Court of Wings and Ruin, which I`m probably gonna review also in English as soon as I get over my disappointment. It feels more natural and not like it came out of nowhere only to please the fans. I get that authors these days are getting a lot of hate for this and I kinda detest that. If you want to read a more diverse author, I`m sure you can find one, but you can`t bully popular authors into including more diverse characters if that is simply not their thing, if they don`t know how to write one, because they hadn't had that much experience with it in their real life, or the country they live in. So, in Lord of Shadows these things are included wonderfully and are really working within the story. The book is still written in classical Cassie Clare style, or I should rather say with her humor and pop culture reference, which I really adore in these books and I always appreciate in any urban fantasy story.
There are many little snippets about events and characters from previous books, as well as few cameos, that literally made me squeal with delight. As always, I feel so nostalgic reading one of her books, no matter how old I am, they will always have a special place in my heart and I will alway anticipate a new book in the series with the same dose of excitement. There are many critics that say that Cassie Clare should stop writing about Shadowhunters, because at this point she is just milking athe cache cow, but I completely disagree. She created this imaginative and creative world full of possibilities for new stories and characters and as long as inspiration serves her and it does, I wouldn't mind hundred books set in this world. Imagine if J. K. Rowling would step of her high horse and write us a Marauders prequel and not another movie or stage screenplay. If it were the case of Sarah J. Maas ( I`m sorry for all of the comparing, but the pain in my heart is still rather fresh ) with every book that is basically the same, with the same writing style, even down to the same sentences, I will probably also think, God, woman get over yourself, but I assure you this is not the case here. With each book, Cassandra Clare`s progress and growth as a writer are visible and I have to say that Lord of Shadows is probably one of her best works yet. She continues to take huge risks with her story and characters, which makes suspense believable and reading nerve wrecking and i only hope that this will be something we can look forward to in her future books.
Final thought: If you are a fan of Shadowhunters series, you will definitely enjoy this book. It has to offer everything we ever expected from Cassandra Clare books and so much more.
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