The City of Fallen Angels
is the fourth book in The Mortal Instruments series. One would notice
how considerably thinner it is than the former installments.
Unfortunately though, the book in its entirety disappoints because some
aspects were lacking. With lesser number of pages than the other books,
one would be under the impression that the story would progress quickly,
but on the contrary, the book was not fast-paced enough; leaving the
readers wondering what the main problem really was, and what the
installment is all about in general.
Like its predecessor, City of Glass, the book focused on the concept of love, but it delved into it more deeply. While most of the time it was about romantic love, friendship became another element. One would also notice that there is a different tone in this novel, as compared to the former three - it is a new approach that seemed rather foreign but worked quite well nonetheless.
While the earlier installments were more edging as "plot-driven," City of Fallen Angels took a brave step forward and became "character-driven." That is, the protagonists would be stuck in the moment where they would have to make decisions that could either be beneficial or harmful. That is why, while the novel seemed to beat around the bush and that it did not appear to go straight into the point, the dilemmas and new encounters the narrators would experience made the book riveting and somehow, a page-turner.
It is commendable how much the characters had developed and matured. Just at the first chapter, readers would catch a glimpse of how much Simon had evolved; not only his looks had changed due to "vampirism," but also himself as a person due to the experiences he had gone through. He still had smudges of his humor and sarcasm, but it was pretty evident how tremendously he had matured. The same goes for Jace, who, at the earlier books, was already beginning to show traces of his more vulnerable side. His voice in this novel was fairly emotional, and we readers would be tapped in his inner struggles against himself and the forces that try to break him. It is rather unfortunate, however, that Clary, the lead character, remained who she was, with hardly any improvement - she was still prone to impulsiveness, and the like. But then again, those traits perhaps were the ones that made her who she was.
With so much twists and surprises presented already in the three books, one might be under the impression that there would be no such thing anymore in the City of Fallen Angels, but Cassandra Clare still had a lot under her sleeves that would never fail to impress, and would leave the readers deeply astonished by the sudden turn of events and unexpected revelations.
However, despite the four stars that I gave, I would admit that this book has thoroughly disappointed me. I was expecting more from this particular installment, but the excitement was not able to come to me immediately - perhaps it never arrived - unlike the magic the City of Glass was able to conjure.
Like its predecessor, City of Glass, the book focused on the concept of love, but it delved into it more deeply. While most of the time it was about romantic love, friendship became another element. One would also notice that there is a different tone in this novel, as compared to the former three - it is a new approach that seemed rather foreign but worked quite well nonetheless.
While the earlier installments were more edging as "plot-driven," City of Fallen Angels took a brave step forward and became "character-driven." That is, the protagonists would be stuck in the moment where they would have to make decisions that could either be beneficial or harmful. That is why, while the novel seemed to beat around the bush and that it did not appear to go straight into the point, the dilemmas and new encounters the narrators would experience made the book riveting and somehow, a page-turner.
It is commendable how much the characters had developed and matured. Just at the first chapter, readers would catch a glimpse of how much Simon had evolved; not only his looks had changed due to "vampirism," but also himself as a person due to the experiences he had gone through. He still had smudges of his humor and sarcasm, but it was pretty evident how tremendously he had matured. The same goes for Jace, who, at the earlier books, was already beginning to show traces of his more vulnerable side. His voice in this novel was fairly emotional, and we readers would be tapped in his inner struggles against himself and the forces that try to break him. It is rather unfortunate, however, that Clary, the lead character, remained who she was, with hardly any improvement - she was still prone to impulsiveness, and the like. But then again, those traits perhaps were the ones that made her who she was.
With so much twists and surprises presented already in the three books, one might be under the impression that there would be no such thing anymore in the City of Fallen Angels, but Cassandra Clare still had a lot under her sleeves that would never fail to impress, and would leave the readers deeply astonished by the sudden turn of events and unexpected revelations.
However, despite the four stars that I gave, I would admit that this book has thoroughly disappointed me. I was expecting more from this particular installment, but the excitement was not able to come to me immediately - perhaps it never arrived - unlike the magic the City of Glass was able to conjure.
SPOILERS AHEAD
I'm mighty proud of myself: this is my first attempt at an actual review, and I think it's not terrible for a first.
I'm really glad that Simon and Jace became in good terms with one another, that they were already friends. That time at the City of Ashes when Jace realized it was Simon who was calling and not Clary, his coldness at the latter was disheartening. For some reasons, I was happy they became friends.
Furthermore, I love Simon in this book, especially the fact that the story was seen in his point of view a lot of times. Sure enough, I liked him before, but I like him better now, perhaps even more than Jace.
What surprised me very much was the fact that Kyle was Jordan. I thought nothing could surprise me further. And I was torn between the idea of thinking whether he really was the bad guy or the good one. Fortunately, he was an ally.
There's very little that I've got to say in this personal notes of the book, I think I've already mentioned everything in my spoiler-free review.
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