Review: City of Ashes

City of Ashes (The Mortal Instruments, #2) by Cassandra Clare
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Format: Paperback
Pages: 464
Source: Purchased 
Amazon | Book Depository | Goodreads
★★★★★

A murderer is loose in New York City ...

... and the victims are Downworlder children. Clary Fray and her fellow Shadowhunters have a strong suspicion that Valentine, Clary's father, may be behind the killings. But if he is the murderer, then what's his true motive? To make matters worse, the second of the Mortal Instruments, the Soul-Sword, has been stolen, and the mysterious Inquisitor has arrived to investigate, with his eyes vigilantly targeted on Clary's brother, Jace.

Clary will need to face some terrifying demons and even more terrifying family decisions. No one said that the life of a Shadowhunter would be easy.

There is something about this series that keeps me coming back. It could be the mystery, the tension, the great world building or any of the other wonderful elements present in this story. The more I read this series, the more intrigued I become. City of Bones was a bit slow for me, but City of Ashes was an unexpectedly fast, gripping read: an extremely hard book to put down.

I really loved the mystery aspect of this book. There were so many unknowns, so many truths to uncover, and so many plot twists; Many of which still remained unsolved at the conclusion of this book. The pacing was great! Never once was I bored with a scene or felt the need to skip pages. There was more than enough action to keep me interested!

City of Ashes allowed me to feel a much needed connection with the characters. It provided what City of Bones, was missing for me. In this book, I could see that Clare's characters are flawed. Flaws are what make characters real for me. They allow me to feel a connection and relate to the characters. I was happy that they all weren't perfect. I also liked the fact that Clary was not some helpless girl. There are so many young adult books with helpless damsels in distress. What happened to the badass chicks? While Clary was definitely unsure of herself at times, it was refreshing to see a girl who isn't afraid to try to do things herself.

I'm beginning to see why so much hype surrounds this series... I'll admit that I was disappointed in the first book, but City of Ashes was a definite page turner.