Review: Lady Midnight

Title: Lady Midnight 

Author: Cassandra Clare

Released: March 8, 2016

Synopsis: The Shadowhunters of Los Angeles star in the first novel in Cassandra Clare’s newest series, The Dark Artifices, a sequel to the internationally bestselling Mortal Instruments series. Lady Midnight is a Shadowhunters novel.
It’s been five years since the events of City of Heavenly Fire that brought the Shadowhunters to the brink of oblivion. Emma Carstairs is no longer a child in mourning, but a young woman bent on discovering what killed her parents and avenging her losses.
Together with her parabatai Julian Blackthorn, Emma must learn to trust her head and her heart as she investigates a demonic plot that stretches across Los Angeles, from the Sunset Strip to the enchanted sea that pounds the beaches of Santa Monica. If only her heart didn’t lead her in treacherous directions…
Making things even more complicated, Julian’s brother Mark—who was captured by the faeries five years ago—has been returned as a bargaining chip. The faeries are desperate to find out who is murdering their kind—and they need the Shadowhunters’ help to do it. But time works differently in faerie, so Mark has barely aged and doesn’t recognize his family. Can he ever truly return to them? Will the faeries really allow it?
Glitz, glamours, and Shadowhunters abound in this heartrending opening to Cassandra Clare’s Dark Artifices series.

Review:

Cassandra Clare has done it again. Lady Midnight was breathtaking, heartbreaking, hysterical, and a bunch of other emotions through the roller coaster that is a Cassandra Clare book. I could not put Lady Midnight down. I was entrapped by it. I was sucked into the world of the Los Angeles Institute as I learned about the Blackthorns.

As per usual with Clare’s books, the story was a roller coaster. Not a cute little one for a child, no. A full blown “I’m going to die” roller coaster. There seemed to be no down time in this book. Lady Midnight was full of twists, turns, loops-di-loops, and constant screaming.

I cannot count how many times my heart broke and repaired itself in the course of this 680 page book. I felt so bi-polar reading this. I couldn’t keep my feelings straight. One page I was close to tears and a few later I was laughing my butt off. I have seriously missed Clare’s writing.

I have read every single one of her books and I didn’t feel like this was a repeat of those stories. Lady Midnight had its own plot that didn’t match any of the other books. Clare showed a different side to the Shadowhunter world than we have seen before. No spoilers, but holy crap. I was not expecting certain things to happen and when they did, I was blown away.

Emma Carstairs is a badass and I want to be her. I have so much respect for Emma after Lady Midnight. We knew she was tough from The Mortal Instruments where she made a small appearance, but we never knew how tough. The things Emma must face are not easy yet she strides through them with a brave face and doesn’t stop fighting. Clare always writes strong female characters, but Emma was the next level. She didn’t shy away from a battle and I couldn’t help myself from loving her. If I could be close to the level of badass that is Emma, I would be happy. (I never will though, I’d rather read than fight.)

I don’t know how I feel about Julian. He would do anything for his family, which is amazing. He is strong in his own way, but he is also twisted. Becoming responsible for four kids at the age of 12 is too much for any kid. Julian never complained, never stopped, and was the parent these kids needed. But it warped him. He has a dark side and it’s slightly scary. He doesn’t stop fighting for the ones he loves, even if it means putting innocents in harm’s way. I don’t know if I trust Julian anymore. Which is very unfortunate, because I want too. I want to believe in him and be proud of him. I don’t think it’s possible for me anymore.

Quick rundown of some of the other characters:

Mark is awesome. His uncomfortableness with human customs is adorable but also sad. My heart broke for him many many times.

Ty is someone I would want as my friend. He is so intelligent. All I want to do is squish him in a hug and never let him go or get hurt.

Livvy… Just don’t mess with Ty. She is fiercely protective of her twin and I respect her so much.

Cristina is amazing. She is the polished type of Shadowhunter who is just all sorts of awesome. I want to be Cristina.

Dru is someone I would not mess with. She’s into horror and dark things like that, I couldn’t deal with it.

Malcom is forgetful and slightly eccentric. But nowhere near close to Magnus.

Lady Midnight kept my attention through an airplane ride and my roommate screaming at someone which is very hard to ignore. If you want to escape for a little while, then Lady Midnight is the book for you. If you didn’t enjoy some of TMI, just give Lady Midnight a chance. You could be pleasantly surprised.