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Quick Reviews
Oct. 8th, 2011 05:10 pmJust wanted to add a couple of quick reviews. Since these reviews are for books 2 and 3 in the Mortal Instruments series, it's more of a continuation of my previous review post, I suppose. Anyway, here it goes.
I loved City of Bones (Mortal Instruments book 1). I couldn't wait to devour the rest of the series. Then I read book 2.
City of Ashes is the 2nd book in the MI series. I didn't love it like I did book one, but still enjoyed it. The pacing felt a little off, like Clare was trying to jam too many things into one book. Some of the events felt contrived. But overall, I liked the book. I liked it well enough that I felt compelled to begin immediately on reading book three.
City of Glass is the 3rd book. In this book, I began to notice Clare's infatuation with simile. I have never seen so many similes in one place. It's rather off-putting. But the book was still enjoyable, though I found myself skipping large sections of Tolkein-esque description that I just couldn't make myself care about.
One more negative that I've come upon in these books is that the foreshadowing is heavy-handed. There are very few surprises. I won't go into detail, because I don't believe in spoilers. I will say this: Jo Rowling she is not. In the HP series, there was room for speculation and conjecture and wondering what would happen next, not only between book but within each book. There is precious little of that in the MI series. Some major points that should have been handled with more suspense were given away very early on. It was a big disappointing.
Now for the good.
The characters in the MI series are interesting and compelling. Some people have said that the characterization is uneven, but I haven't really noticed that. What I've seen is that Clare has created characters who I find myself caring about. In a spot of two, I think that, perhaps, one character or another might have behaved in a way that doesn't quit jive with my perceptions of reality. Overall, though, the characters are what keep me reading these books.
Would I recommend the Mortal Instruments series? You betcha. I know a lot of people who would enjoy the series immensely, despite it's flaws. No series (or book) is perfect. It doesn't make them less worthy of being read. It just means the author is human. And oftentimes, that the editor and publisher didn't bother to actually read the book before printing it and hawking it to the unsuspecting masses. At least in the case of the MI series, I don't find myself wondering 'Why the hell did anyone ever feel the need to put this out into the world?' In fact, I'm quite glad that it was published and that I finally got around to reading the books.
On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 1 being the sort of book I toss aside after two pages and 10 being a masterpiece) I'd rate this series on the higher end of the scale. Perhaps a 7.5. Considering the my favorite series wouldn't rater higher than 9, this isn't a bad rating at all.
All that to say this - if you like contemporary fantasy with a young adult bent, you will probably like (or even love) the Mortal Instruments series. It's a far cry better than a lot of the YA fantasy stuff that's out there, and it's likely to get better as Clare's writing gains maturity with experience. Give it a go, and let me know what you think!
I loved City of Bones (Mortal Instruments book 1). I couldn't wait to devour the rest of the series. Then I read book 2.
City of Ashes is the 2nd book in the MI series. I didn't love it like I did book one, but still enjoyed it. The pacing felt a little off, like Clare was trying to jam too many things into one book. Some of the events felt contrived. But overall, I liked the book. I liked it well enough that I felt compelled to begin immediately on reading book three.
City of Glass is the 3rd book. In this book, I began to notice Clare's infatuation with simile. I have never seen so many similes in one place. It's rather off-putting. But the book was still enjoyable, though I found myself skipping large sections of Tolkein-esque description that I just couldn't make myself care about.
One more negative that I've come upon in these books is that the foreshadowing is heavy-handed. There are very few surprises. I won't go into detail, because I don't believe in spoilers. I will say this: Jo Rowling she is not. In the HP series, there was room for speculation and conjecture and wondering what would happen next, not only between book but within each book. There is precious little of that in the MI series. Some major points that should have been handled with more suspense were given away very early on. It was a big disappointing.
Now for the good.
The characters in the MI series are interesting and compelling. Some people have said that the characterization is uneven, but I haven't really noticed that. What I've seen is that Clare has created characters who I find myself caring about. In a spot of two, I think that, perhaps, one character or another might have behaved in a way that doesn't quit jive with my perceptions of reality. Overall, though, the characters are what keep me reading these books.
Would I recommend the Mortal Instruments series? You betcha. I know a lot of people who would enjoy the series immensely, despite it's flaws. No series (or book) is perfect. It doesn't make them less worthy of being read. It just means the author is human. And oftentimes, that the editor and publisher didn't bother to actually read the book before printing it and hawking it to the unsuspecting masses. At least in the case of the MI series, I don't find myself wondering 'Why the hell did anyone ever feel the need to put this out into the world?' In fact, I'm quite glad that it was published and that I finally got around to reading the books.
On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 1 being the sort of book I toss aside after two pages and 10 being a masterpiece) I'd rate this series on the higher end of the scale. Perhaps a 7.5. Considering the my favorite series wouldn't rater higher than 9, this isn't a bad rating at all.
All that to say this - if you like contemporary fantasy with a young adult bent, you will probably like (or even love) the Mortal Instruments series. It's a far cry better than a lot of the YA fantasy stuff that's out there, and it's likely to get better as Clare's writing gains maturity with experience. Give it a go, and let me know what you think!
