City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare

Title: City of Lost Souls

Author: Cassandra Clare

Pages: 534

Release: May 8^th, 2012

Synopsis:

(from Goodreads)The demon Lilith has been destroyed and Jace has been freed from her captivity. But when the Shadowhunters arrive to rescue him, they find only blood and broken glass. Not only is the boy Clary loves missing–but so is the boy she hates, Sebastian, the son of her father Valentine: a son determined to succeed where their father failed, and bring the Shadowhunters to their knees. No magic the Clave can summon can locate either boy, but Jace cannot stay away—not from Clary. When they meet again Clary discovers the horror Lilith’s dying magic has wrought—Jace is no longer the boy she loved. He and Sebastian are now bound to each other, and Jace has become what he most feared: a true servant of Valentine’s evil. The Clave is determined to destroy Sebastian, but there is no way to harm one boy without destroying the other. Will the Shadowhunters hesitate to kill one of their own? Only a small band of Clary and Jace’s friends and family believe that Jace can still be saved — and that the fate of the Shadowhunters’ future may hinge on that salvation. They must defy the Clave and strike out on their own. Alec, Magnus, Simon and Isabelle must work together to save Jace: bargaining with the sinister Faerie Queen, contemplating deals with demons, and turning at last to the Iron Sisters, the reclusive and merciless weapons makers for the Shadowhunters, who tell them that no weapon on this earth can sever the bond between Sebastian and Jace. Their only chance of cutting Jace free is to challenge Heaven and Hell — a risk that could claim any, or all, of their lives.And they must do it without Clary. For Clary has gone into the heart of darkness, to play a dangerous game utterly alone. The price of losing the game is not just her own life, but Jace’s soul. She’s willing to do anything for Jace, but can she even still trust him? Or is he truly lost? What price is too high to pay, even for love?

My Thoughts:

I have been a fan of Cassandra Clare’s Mortal Instrument series for a few years now and I think it’s a safe bet to say that it is my favorite book series. However, the last book, City of Fallen Angels, kind of fell flat for me and I was starting to worry that maybe this series had lost focus. I am happy to say that City of Lost Souls brought me back to why I love the Shadowhunter world and left me itching for more!

I think that one of my initial fears going into this book was that with Jace missing, a lot of the witty banter that makes these books so fun would be gone, but Jace is in most of the book and his personality does not suffer. Also, I found myself falling more in love with the relationships in this book. Simon and Isabelle, Jordan and Maia, Alec and Magnus, even Clary and Jace, all showed so much development throughout this book and I was appreciative to see how it unfolded.

As always, Cassandra Clare does an excellent job at having multiple storylines going on at once. Her ability to never make her books become boring or have a lull in action is something that I love. City of Lost Souls is a book that will keep you on the edge of your seat for it’s entirety. Trust me, my fingernails are all bitten off and I held my breath so much, I feel like I just ran a marathon! This is one you do not want to miss.

In Short:

Rating: 5/5

Purchase or Check Out?: Purchase

Would I read it again?: Yes!