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profbanks's review against another edition
3.0
I really enjoyed the beginning of this series, but I'm still finding I appreciate the prequel series, set in Victorian England, more than the modern one. The confused romance between Clary and Jace got thrown off course in this book, instead drawing out and complicating the love triangle with Simon. I don't honestly believe that the current obstacle to Clary/Jace is going to stick--it feels like the author's trying too hard to convince us of their other relationship, and the person who's selling it can't be trusted. I'll keep reading, but I found myself getting bored midway.
andredeyanira's review against another edition
3.0
2019 Reading Challenge #27: A book featuring an extinct or imaginary creature
Cham cham cham.
Continuamos con esta saga, y la verdad es que mejora bastante desde el primer libro.
En esta entrega podemos conocer más profundamente a algunos personajes y además, se nota el desarrollo que van teniendo (algo que me encanta).
Sin lugar a dudas, este libro fue mucho más emocionante e intrigante que el anterior. Me lo leí mucho más rápido, y siempre me tuvo a la expectativa de ”¿qué pasará ahora?”.
Sin embargo, sigue siendo una historia que no siento que destaque exageradamente por encima de otras.
Un buen rato que pasé leyendo y espero seguir la historia pronto.
Cham cham cham.
Continuamos con esta saga, y la verdad es que mejora bastante desde el primer libro.
En esta entrega podemos conocer más profundamente a algunos personajes y además, se nota el desarrollo que van teniendo (algo que me encanta).
Sin lugar a dudas, este libro fue mucho más emocionante e intrigante que el anterior. Me lo leí mucho más rápido, y siempre me tuvo a la expectativa de ”¿qué pasará ahora?”.
Sin embargo, sigue siendo una historia que no siento que destaque exageradamente por encima de otras.
Un buen rato que pasé leyendo y espero seguir la historia pronto.
reading_in_velaris's review against another edition
3.0
The story in City of Ashes was as fast paced & action packed as City of Bones.
I do like the story & the world in these books, but unfortunately I'm still not really connecting with the characters.
it's not that I don't like them at all, but I don't love them either.
I will read the 3rd book soon & I hope I'll get to love the characters..
I do like the story & the world in these books, but unfortunately I'm still not really connecting with the characters.
it's not that I don't like them at all, but I don't love them either.
I will read the 3rd book soon & I hope I'll get to love the characters..
ktamen's review against another edition
4.0
I love this series. I liked book 2 even more than the first. :)
Great audio book too!
Great audio book too!
leaballerina's review against another edition
4.0
See my review of the third book but basically I love this series.
starrynews's review against another edition
5.0
An excellent sequel to City of Bones, and it sets up nicely for City of Glass. I can't wait to get my hands on the third book. The returning cast is as fun as they were in the first book, and the new characters introduced were a great addition. Action-packed and thrilling!
darthval's review against another edition
2.0
Cassandra Clare is back. City of Ashes is the follow-up to her fun, young adult urban fantasy adventure City of Bones. This second book of the Mortal Instruments series is everything that the first book was not, and I don’t mean that in a good way. The first book was light on teen wallowing and focused on more on their adventure through a dangerous magical world.
City of Ashes, on the other hand, is a story about a group of spoiled teens in the midst of a big ole angst fest. Clary and Jace are all angsty about their Luke and Lei sibling attraction since they still think they are brother and sister. (Clearly, at some point it will be revealed that they are not actually siblings, because otherwise, eww!) Jace is also wallowing in Vader/Valentine father drama and acting bratty because nobody believes him, because dishing up disdainful attitude is always helpful in getting others to see your point of view. Simon is battling his angst driven jealously over any attention that Clary is paying to her brother, Jace. Alec is drowning in a whole vat of youthful melodrama, struggling with his sexuality, his unrequited love for Jace, and perhaps a hidden romance? Isabelle is not so much angsting as she is rebelling against nothing. Oh, and they are aware of the magical world around them and they are trying to fight evil.
Eventually, we see some opportunities for action and adventure. However, it feel like every time a conflict arises, someone breaks out into an angst-driven monologue. How many times are they going to feel swayed by Valentine’s fanatical ranting? Really? He’s right THERE! Less talky talky, more stabby stabby. When we are not interrupting this regularly scheduled not-a-fight scene, we are flash-forwarding to the end only to experience yet another heart rending near death episode. Surely Simon’s nine live are up??? Oh, the drama!
This book is guilty of SO many fiction faux pas plot devices that I may have lost count. The top five kind of looks like this:
1. Overreaction in place of action – like going to a werewolf bar to pick a fight because you are mad at your stepmom
2. Overuse of the monologue – battle is raging all around us, my sweet, but let me try to convince you why my evil plan is great
3. Logic is overrated (not sure which is my favorite example) – I hate demons SO much, that I want to rid the world of half demons by allying myself with full demons OR I know you are my sister, but will you still be my girlfriend and we can keep it a secret?
4. Smart characters make stupid decisions - The bad guy is looking for someone like ME? Why then, let me run off into the night alone and take back alleys so he can capture me!
5. And the worst plot device used in this book is . . . Love triangles, or in this case knots – A hot werewolf girl is in love with me, but I’m in love with you. You are in love with your brother. He loves you, too, but you can’t be together, obviously. His teenage foster brother is in love with him, but dating a 300 year old wizard who may be in love him (eww). The foster sister seems to be in love with herself. Let’s not even bother with the “adults.” It boggles the mind.
I pretty much liked the characters in the first book. Well, I didn’t dislike them, at least. However, in City of Ashes I think that everyone could use a swift boot to the head. Jace spends the book sneering and throwing abuse at others, meanwhile whining that no one believes in him. Clary is trying to martyr herself for every bad thing that happens to her in between bouts of saying really nasty things to people. Simon acts like a pouty douche who seems to have lost at least 30 IQ points since that last book. I could go on. Suffice it to say that Valentine wiping them all out starts to look appealing by the end of the book.
As for the conclusion, Clare serves up an ending so ambiguous that when examined you realize that there really wasn’t closure to any of the plot threads of this book. In fact, if you remove all of the angst and over emoting, I think that this book contributes maybe a single chapter, two at the most, of relevant information that moves that series plot arc forward.
On the positive side, the cover art for City of Ashes is fantastic. In keeping with the theme of the first cover, it features the city skyline with an otherworldly teen figure rising from the behind the city. This time the figure represents Clary with an almost flaming quality to her red hair. Too bad the contents of the book do not live up to the promise of the cover.
Now, I am left with a decision. Do I give the series another chance? I DID like the first book. However, my eyes are still sore from the number of times I rolled them while reading this book. Perhaps I’ll give it some time, let my eye muscles recover, and see how I feel with a little distance. They say distance makes the heart grow fonder. We shall see.
*Footnote: I listened to the audiobook version of this book. The narrator did not do a very good job of creating different vocal inflections for different characters and I found myself often unsure of which character was talking. It was frustrating.
City of Ashes, on the other hand, is a story about a group of spoiled teens in the midst of a big ole angst fest. Clary and Jace are all angsty about their Luke and Lei sibling attraction since they still think they are brother and sister. (Clearly, at some point it will be revealed that they are not actually siblings, because otherwise, eww!) Jace is also wallowing in Vader/Valentine father drama and acting bratty because nobody believes him, because dishing up disdainful attitude is always helpful in getting others to see your point of view. Simon is battling his angst driven jealously over any attention that Clary is paying to her brother, Jace. Alec is drowning in a whole vat of youthful melodrama, struggling with his sexuality, his unrequited love for Jace, and perhaps a hidden romance? Isabelle is not so much angsting as she is rebelling against nothing. Oh, and they are aware of the magical world around them and they are trying to fight evil.
Eventually, we see some opportunities for action and adventure. However, it feel like every time a conflict arises, someone breaks out into an angst-driven monologue. How many times are they going to feel swayed by Valentine’s fanatical ranting? Really? He’s right THERE! Less talky talky, more stabby stabby. When we are not interrupting this regularly scheduled not-a-fight scene, we are flash-forwarding to the end only to experience yet another heart rending near death episode. Surely Simon’s nine live are up??? Oh, the drama!
This book is guilty of SO many fiction faux pas plot devices that I may have lost count. The top five kind of looks like this:
1. Overreaction in place of action – like going to a werewolf bar to pick a fight because you are mad at your stepmom
2. Overuse of the monologue – battle is raging all around us, my sweet, but let me try to convince you why my evil plan is great
3. Logic is overrated (not sure which is my favorite example) – I hate demons SO much, that I want to rid the world of half demons by allying myself with full demons OR I know you are my sister, but will you still be my girlfriend and we can keep it a secret?
4. Smart characters make stupid decisions - The bad guy is looking for someone like ME? Why then, let me run off into the night alone and take back alleys so he can capture me!
5. And the worst plot device used in this book is . . . Love triangles, or in this case knots – A hot werewolf girl is in love with me, but I’m in love with you. You are in love with your brother. He loves you, too, but you can’t be together, obviously. His teenage foster brother is in love with him, but dating a 300 year old wizard who may be in love him (eww). The foster sister seems to be in love with herself. Let’s not even bother with the “adults.” It boggles the mind.
I pretty much liked the characters in the first book. Well, I didn’t dislike them, at least. However, in City of Ashes I think that everyone could use a swift boot to the head. Jace spends the book sneering and throwing abuse at others, meanwhile whining that no one believes in him. Clary is trying to martyr herself for every bad thing that happens to her in between bouts of saying really nasty things to people. Simon acts like a pouty douche who seems to have lost at least 30 IQ points since that last book. I could go on. Suffice it to say that Valentine wiping them all out starts to look appealing by the end of the book.
As for the conclusion, Clare serves up an ending so ambiguous that when examined you realize that there really wasn’t closure to any of the plot threads of this book. In fact, if you remove all of the angst and over emoting, I think that this book contributes maybe a single chapter, two at the most, of relevant information that moves that series plot arc forward.
On the positive side, the cover art for City of Ashes is fantastic. In keeping with the theme of the first cover, it features the city skyline with an otherworldly teen figure rising from the behind the city. This time the figure represents Clary with an almost flaming quality to her red hair. Too bad the contents of the book do not live up to the promise of the cover.
Now, I am left with a decision. Do I give the series another chance? I DID like the first book. However, my eyes are still sore from the number of times I rolled them while reading this book. Perhaps I’ll give it some time, let my eye muscles recover, and see how I feel with a little distance. They say distance makes the heart grow fonder. We shall see.
*Footnote: I listened to the audiobook version of this book. The narrator did not do a very good job of creating different vocal inflections for different characters and I found myself often unsure of which character was talking. It was frustrating.
tiny_napoleon's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0