Review: Lord of Shadows (The Dark Artifices #2) by Cassandra Clare
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Series: The Dark Artifices #2
Author: Cassandra Clare
Published May 23rd 2017 by Simon & Schuster Children's UK
Goodreads Synopsis
Sunny Los Angeles can be a dark place indeed in Cassandra Clare’s Lord of Shadows, the sequel to the #1 New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling Lady Midnight. Lord of Shadows is a Shadowhunters novel.
Emma Carstairs has finally avenged her parents. She thought she’d be at peace. But she is anything but calm. Torn between her desire for her parabatai Julian and her desire to protect him from the brutal consequences of parabatai relationships, she has begun dating his brother, Mark. But Mark has spent the past five years trapped in Faerie; can he ever truly be a Shadowhunter again?
And the faerie courts are not silent. The Unseelie King is tired of the Cold Peace, and will no longer concede to the Shadowhunters’ demands. Caught between the demands of faerie and the laws of the Clave, Emma, Julian, and Mark must find a way to come together to defend everything they hold dear—before it’s too late.
Goodreads
Review
I remember buying this book on a whim, even though I had been falling out of love with Cassie's books, and am I glad that I did now. As soon as I finished Lady Midnight, I immediately picked up my copy of Lord of Shadows, and got right back into the action. After killing the evil warlock, Malcolm Fade, Emma is slowly getting back on track. However, her feelings for parabatai Julian are still there, and she knows that by loving him, she isn't just disobeying the law, but it's also a curse, and could lead to the death and destruction of everyone she cares about. She needs Julian to fall out of love with her, as that's the only way to stop the parabatai curse from continuing. Her plan, to get Julian's older brother Mark, and the only person he's ever been jealous of, to pretend to date her, to make Julian hate her. While this is all happening, there's also the fall out of Malcolm's attempt at necromancy. The Centurion's from the Scholomance have descended on the Institute, with Zara Dearborn leading a charge to register all Downworlder's, and treat them as inferior beings. The whole of the Clave seem to be turning into a mess, and it's up to Emma and the Blackthorn's to deal with it.
Now, so much happened in this book! Firstly we have the fall out of Malcolm's betrayal, then everything with the Cohort and Centurions, and then we get thrust in Faerie on a rescue mission to save Keiran from certain death - and this is all in the first half. Then we travel to London, with everyone in tow - including Kit who's now embracing his Shadowhunter heritage - and then all shit hits the fan. Malcolm's not really dead, then he is; Annabel had been brought back, and we're not sure where her allegiance's lie, and then it's to Idris, with Annabel and Keiran, to stop the Cohort, and try and prove what has actually being happening. I did love all of the action, but sometime's it seemed like too much was happening than was actually needed. All of the story lines were woven together, and sometimes you were just getting your head around what was happening with Emma and Julian, and then you were with the rest of the Blackthorn's doing something completely different.
The character's were all as wonderful as they had been in book 1. I loved that we saw more of the family dynamic this time around, and each of the Blackthorn's were their own distinct selves, but all interconnected and reliant on each other. Emma, I think is my favourite, with Livvy and Ty a close second. One of my favourite parts of this book was the inclusion of Kit into their life, with Ty and Livvy basically adopting him and taking him under their wing. Ty and Kit's relationship was fantastic, and I definitely can't wait to see how that develops in Queen of Air and Darkness.
The romance was flying in this book, with Emma and Julian's chemistry being off the charts, even with the knowledge of the parabatai curse, and Emma's supposed relationship with Mark being an issue. However, they can't fight how they feel for each other - cue REO Speedwagon playing in the background - and it gets too much for them in this book. There's also the chemistry between Christina, Mark and Kieran, which I think may be developed more in the next book - I'm hoping it is, anyway.
The main thing with this book, though, is the progression towards the final battle, final struggle towards saving everyone. The conclusion shocked me so much. I honestly did not see it coming, and I'm glad when I bought QoAaD that I never looked at the synopsis as I would've been spoiled. Looking at other people's reviews, I think I'm lucky too, that I waited until I had all 3 books to binge the series, rather than facing a two year wait as others did for book 3. That book, I think, will be my first of 2020 - here's hoping everything get's tied up!
Dates Read:
December 19-30, 2019
Rating
4 Stars
December 19-30, 2019
Rating
4 Stars
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