Lauren
I never was able to get into the first trilogy in the Shadow Hunter’s series. I tried reading City of Bones even at the time that I was the target audience and it just never really got into it. I wanted to, but while I didn’t have the vocabulary for it at the time and now too many years have passed for me to remember the why, I know I felt some kind of disconnect. Awhile back I watched CariCanRead’s series recap on the main trilogy and this month decided I wanted to give this portion of the world a try (Cari recommended starting here if the original trilogy didn’t call to you). While I know there is overlap on the series, her overview gave me enough understanding to jump into this world, and I’m glad I did.
Cassandra Clare’s characters are fantastic. I really enjoyed Sword Catcher and the Ragpicker King, so I knew this going in, but I was still pleasantly surprised. I really enjoyed Tessa and her growth over the book. I like how Clare explored the role of women in society. I also enjoyed that Tessa wasn’t the typical FMC in books that are released today. Sometimes she’s strong and incredible, but other times she’s just a girl who needs help and is worried about her brother.
I know Will is going through shit and clearly has much bigger problems than romance (alas, YA characters - and even adult ones - rarely know how to avoid falling for the brooding man), and I am excited to see how he changes over the series, but man am I mad at him for that final part we saw him in. iFYKYK.
Overall it was a fun time and while I could see some of the twists coming, they were well done. Although I never got into the series, it felt oddly nostalgic.
I never was able to get into the first trilogy in the Shadow Hunter’s series. I tried reading City of Bones even at the time that I was the target audience and it just never really got into it. I wanted to, but while I didn’t have the vocabulary for it at the time and now too many years have passed for me to remember the why, I know I felt some kind of disconnect. Awhile back I watched CariCanRead’s series recap on the main trilogy and this month decided I wanted to give this portion of the world a try (Cari recommended starting here if the original trilogy didn’t call to you). While I know there is overlap on the series, her overview gave me enough understanding to jump into this world, and I’m glad I did.
Cassandra Clare’s characters are fantastic. I really enjoyed Sword Catcher and the Ragpicker King, so I knew this going in, but I was still pleasantly surprised. I really enjoyed Tessa and her growth over the book. I like how Clare explored the role of women in society. I also enjoyed that Tessa wasn’t the typical FMC in books that are released today. Sometimes she’s strong and incredible, but other times she’s just a girl who needs help and is worried about her brother.
I know Will is going through shit and clearly has much bigger problems than romance (alas, YA characters - and even adult ones - rarely know how to avoid falling for the brooding man), and I am excited to see how he changes over the series, but man am I mad at him for that final part we saw him in. iFYKYK.
Overall it was a fun time and while I could see some of the twists coming, they were well done. Although I never got into the series, it felt oddly nostalgic.