Padma Wulandari

City of Bones (1) (The Mortal Instruments)

Book by Cassandra Clare

DETAILS

Publisher : Margaret K. McElderry Books; Reissue edition (September 1, 2015) Language : English Paperback : 544 pages ISBN-10 : 1481455923 ISBN-13 : 978-1481455923 Reading age : 14 years and up Lexile measure : HL710L Grade level : 9 - 12 , Discover the world of the Shadowhunters in the first installment of the internationally bestselling Mortal Instruments series and “prepare to be hooked” ( Entertainment Weekly )—now with a gorgeous new cover, a map, a new foreword, and exclusive bonus content! City of Bones is a Shadowhunters novel. When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder—much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. And she’s more than a little startled when the body disappears into thin air. Soon Clary is introduced to the world of the Shadowhunters, a secret cadre of warriors dedicated to driving demons out of our world and back to their own. And Clary is introduced with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is almost killed by a grotesque monster. How could a mere human survive such an attack and kill a demon? The Shadowhunters would like to know… Read more

REVIEW

Young Adult literature is something of a guilty pleasure for me. I didn't read any for a year or so and found that I really missed it, despite my many complaints about the YA books I have read. They're just too much fun. So, when a friend recommended "City of Bones" as one of the best YA novels she had read in recent years, I eagerly tore into it, looking for the fun and fluff these books tend to bring. It didn't disappoint. Spoilers follow. I'm actually going to start with a disclaimer. I've never read Clare's fanfiction. I have read that there is a fair bit of controversy surrounding these books, the author's earlier fanfiction, and accusations of the author plagiarizing from other sources. Since I was unaware of this when I was reading the book, I'm also not going to address it any further in my review simply because it doesn't affect my thoughts on the novel itself. "City of Bones" focuses on the story of fifteen-year-old Clary Fray, a seemingly normal girl living in New York City with her artistic single mother. After witnessing an event she shouldn't have in gothic club Pandemonium, life takes a drastic turn for Clary. Her mother is kidnapped, she is attacked in her apartment by a demon, and she learns that the city is full of supernatural beings that previously went unseen. Clary soon finds herself caught in this unfamiliar world of demons, vampires, werewolves, warlocks, and Shadowhunters, or beings who use runes to keep the supernatural creatures, or downworlders as they're called, from harming humans, also known as mundies. Valentine, a Shadowhunter who aspired to kill all downworlders and previously believed dead, has returned to continue his plan. With this threat, Clary is thrust into the world of Shadowhunters, uncovering not only secrets of the supernatural, but also her own life. Honestly, as far as the story itself goes, there's nothing particularly new or original offered in "City of Bones". The premise of an ordinary teen discovering that she's part of a unique, exciting world that exists along side the human world is hardly an original idea; the same basic idea was used in "Harry Potter," among others. The concept of certain people being able to see the supernatural world while most others can't is also not terribly unique, especially in stories involving the fae. However, this novel is a pretty good example of how certain tropes and common ideas can be used very well. While the basic ideas and plot aren't particularly unique, Clare still manages to tell a compelling story of a fascinating world. She clearly knew her audience and had a solid grasp on the world she wanted to portray. The book holds very few original premises, but the story is still intriguing, proving that common tropes need not always be a bad thing. Speaking of worlds, I rather enjoyed the world of the Shadowhunters. I'd have perhaps liked to have seen more of their environment and more Shadowhunters in general, rather than sticking with just Jace, Alec, and Isabelle in New York City, but I suppose that's what the other books in the series are for. As I mentioned above, Clare knew what she wanted to portray as far as her supernatural world went, and I think it worked so well because she kept things pretty straightforward and consistent as far as the rules of her world are concerned. Granted, I get the feeling that this is only the tip of the metaphorical iceberg as far as the Shadowhunters and their world go, but at least for this book, I felt that I had a thorough understanding of her this supernatural world works without being bogged down with too many complexities. Though, on a perhaps minor note, I do have to complain about the rivalry between the vampires and the werewolves. This is a pretty important element toward the middle of the book (Clary and Jace may not have survived if not for it), and while it is explained why that particular fight occurred, I would have liked to see some sort of explanation for why these two groups apparently butt heads. As it stands, it almost feels like Clare included it simply because it's the norm to have vampires and werewolves caught up in some sort of rivalry. Cassandra Clare is a decent writer. She's sometimes a little too prosy or spends a bit too much time describing the setting (we get it: we're in New York City and things are often hazy, grimy, rundown, or otherwise less-than-pristine), but overall, she keeps things moving with few slow spots or too many unnecessary tangents. She's good at building the story, and I often found it difficult to put the book down; indeed, she's probably one of the better YA writers out there. There is one area where she lacks, however...and it's a pretty significant flaw in her writing: big reveals. There are a few moments in the book that I felt were meant to be big surprises, the payoff of reading through pages and pages of buildup and speculation. Her issue is simply that she tries to keep the questions burning for so long that she effectively smokes out the answers before she means to reveal them. For example, Clary learns at the end of the book that Valentine is her father and Jace is her brother. This should be a huge moment in the book, something that takes the reader completely by surprise. Unfortunately, the author gives it away early; almost every time Valentine is mentioned, Clary ponders her father (whom she never knew). Jace, alternatively, speaks extensively about not knowing his mother because his father refused to speak of her. As soon as I read these things, I figured the big reveals out pretty quickly. And while it's always nice to be right, it would have been better if these big secrets had been hinted at more craftily. Hopefully Clare improves upon this in later books; as it is, it spoils the experience when the big moments are so strongly hinted at that they can easily be guessed early in the book. As seems to be the norm with YA romance these days, there's a love triangle present in "City of Bones"... kind of. Again following one of the genre's tropes, Clare presents us with Simon, the nerdy best friend, and Jace, the sarcastic supernatural bad boy, as romantic interests. Clary gets somewhat involved with Jace (which leads to some awkwardness when Jace is revealed to be her brother; think "Star Wars" when Luke and Leia kiss in Episode V) and seems to have some tender heart-to-hearts with Simon. Overall, though, the romance isn't as strong as I thought it would be. The characters seem mostly focused on the task at hand; really, with the exception of two kisses, the romance is barely present. This is actually a positive for me; I very rarely enjoy romance in novels, particularly YA ones, so I liked not having to slog through pages of awkward, unrealistic romantic advances. I'm not sure how other readers will feel about the lack of sizzling chemistry between the characters, but I found it to be an asset. And if I hadn't figured out relatively early that Jace was Clary's brother, my expectations would have really been exceeded with that twist to the typical love triangle. So let's move onto the characters now. Many follow the tropes and stereotypes of the genre, while others go above and beyond. I'll discuss them in detail in a moment, but first I want to address one complaint with the teenage characters in general: I wish they had been older. Clary is fifteen; Simon, Jace, Alec, and Isabelle are very close to that, yet they all act like they are considerably older. The first chapter takes place in a gothic nightclub where teens hand out drugs, make out in corners, and have sex in storage rooms with no fear of the bouncers. Sure, why not? It's an edgy, dark setting that sets the tone of the novel...but why are fifteen year-old kids allowed into such a place? Why would they even want to go (and no, I'm not buying the explanation of Clary enjoying it because it's exciting and different)? Clary and Simon go to a coffee shop to listen to poetry; Simon is in a band; the characters constantly engage in witty banter in which they use SAT-worthy vocabulary...it just doesn't seem at all realistic for fifteen year-olds. If Clare wanted to include these things, she should have made the characters a little older (say late teens or even college-age) because as it stands, some of their actions seem very inconsistent with their age. Our main protagonist is Clarissa Fray, also known as Clary. I'm pretty torn in how I feel about her as a main character. In many ways, she meets the expected norms of female protagonists in YA books: she's seemingly normal, beautiful but doesn't know it (on a side note, this cliche gets really old; can we get a main character that either knows she's beautiful or is genuinely plain looking), has nerdy hobbies, and finds herself facing an overwhelming new world that she seems to play a big role in. There are some inconsistencies in her character; the author claims that Clary is shy, but Clary often mouths off at people or slaps people she barely knows...not quite a shy thing to do. Her treatment of Simon is sometimes appalling in that she allows her cooler Shadowhunter friends to berate her supposed best friend and doesn't defend him despite the fact he risks a lot for her over the course of the story. My primary complaint with Clary is that she doesn't really exhibit any character growth at the end of the novel. Perhaps because the author made her too mature at the beginning? Whatever the reason, she doesn't seem too changed by everything she has learned and witnessed throughout the duration of the book. Yet, despite all of this, I also liked Clary, largely because I felt she often (though not always) acted like a teenager. Some have complained about Clary being selfish and shallow, focusing too much on other characters' looks, and yes, she muses over how attractive or unattractive people are a fair bit, but that's actually part of why I like her. She's fifteen, so I think it's understandable that she'd be immature and shallow about certain things. Teenagers often do obsess over both their looks and the appearances of others, and I think it's great that the author chose to accurately incorporate that into her main character. She's still a kid, something that is possibly forgotten by readers (and perhaps sometimes the author herself). I also liked that her artistic interests played a key role in finding the Cup; it's nice to see YA protagonists with interests outside of finding a boyfriend. Clary is more concerned with saving her mother than anything else, an admirable quality in a main character. She's simply not as bland as other main characters I've encountered in this genre; she has some very realistic thoughts and actions for her age and isn't thinking solely (or barely at all) of finding love when her mother's life is at risk. I'm interested to see where her character goes in future books. Jace fills the role of snarky supernatural bad boy...and he fills it to-a-tee. As the traditional role of this sort of character dictates, he's abrasive and sarcastic and sometimes says things just to get a rise out of someone; he's very attractive and he knows it, taking a certain delight in watching girls swoon over him; and he has a softer side, but it's hidden underneath the prickly exterior. He's everything one would expect... and he's written well. I actually really like sarcastic characters, especially when they're crafted with care. There's more to his character than initially meets the eye. Jace is snarky and outwardly bitter for a reason; his rough upbringing by a distant, sometimes-brutal father has effected him more than he lets on. Even at the end, he's almost willing to betray his friends and sister for his father's approval. He seems to struggle with himself, and by the end of the book he's a lot less caustic and more understanding than he was at the beginning. I'm very glad he ended up not being a love interest; as much as I enjoy these sarcastic individuals, they always make terrible and potentially dangerous boyfriends for these young female protagonists. Jace doesn't really bring any surprises to his character type, but he's very well written and has more to his character than simply being a sarcastic love interest. Simon is the third big character. As I mentioned earlier, he's Clary's best friend and accompanies her on a lot of her antics. Much like Clary and Jace, he appropriately fills the role he's been assigned. He's nice, very nerdy, not street smart, tries too hard to impress girls, and has his heart set solely on Clary. Unfortunately, he's pretty bland and doesn't demonstrate much character beyond the stereotypical best friend that wants to be more. I'd have liked to see more from him since I tend to root for the best friend in these books, but he never delivered as a character. Alec and Isabelle are the other two Shadowhunters we see in the books. They're siblings and act very similarly. They're both very attractive, sarcastic, secretive, and fairly elitist. I found them to be rather boring and unnecessary; they don't do a whole lot beyond participate in a couple fights and seem to be around primarily to snark at Clary and Simon. Alec demonstrated a little more growth when his feelings for Jace are revealed (good character twist there), but Isabelle remains static. I also didn't understand why all three of the Shadowhunters in this book start out as sarcastic elitists; some variation between them (and especially between the siblings) would have been appreciated. The side characters fare similarly to the main characters. Luke and Hodge are well done; both threw me for a loop and offered some unexpected surprises. We don't see enough of Clary's mother to really form a good idea of her character. Valentine is very stereotypical; he's evil and manipulative and will stop at nothing to achieve his goal. His treatment of Jace further indicates that he's just as cruel as one would expect. I'd have preferred a more interesting villain. Magnus is unique, if a little unbelievable at times. The other characters are unremarkable, mostly serving as minions to Valentine or random supernatural beings. Overall, I enjoyed Cassandra Clare's "City of Bones" as a fun jaunt into the YA genre. Clare deserves a lot of credit for really knowing and understanding her audience; while the characters may not have all fully clicked with me, I can see where they would be very appealing to the target audience. While the story presented here isn't terribly original or unique, it's very well done and Clare manages to build an intriguing world. She needs to work on not showing her hand too early as far as being reveals goes, and figuring big secrets out early slightly spoiled the experience. Most of the characters do what you'd expect with some exceeding the traditional conventions to be truly interesting, while others are very stereotypical. Despite my complaints, I genuinely enjoyed reading the novel; it's the first YA book that had me wanting to purchase the second book immediately after finishing the first book. For that, as well as its other assets, it gets 4 stars from me.

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