(Cover picture courtesy of Goodreads.)

The Mortal War is over, and Clary Fray is back home in New York, excited about all the possibilities before her.  She’s training to become a Shadowhunter and to use her unique power.  Her mother is getting married to the love of her life.  Downworlders and Shadowhunters are at peace at least.  And—most important of all—Clary can finally call Jace her boyfriend.

But nothing comes without a price.

Someone is murdering Shadowhunters who used to be in Valentine’s Circle, provoking tensions between Downworlders and Shadowhunters that could lead to a second bloody war.  Clary’s best friend, Simon, can’t help her.  His mother has just found out that he’s a vampire and now he’s homeless.  Everywhere he turns, someone wants him on their side—along with the power of the curse that’s wrecking his life.  And they’re willing to do anything to get what they want.  At the same time he’s dating two beautiful, dangerous girls—neither of whom knows about the other.

When Jace begins to pull away from Clary without explaining why, she is forced to delve into the heart of a mystery whose solution reveals her worst nightmare: She herself has set in motion a terrible chain of events that could lead to her losing everything she loves.  Even Jace.

Love.  Blood.  Betrayal.  Revenge.  The stakes are higher than ever in City of Fallen Angels.

With all of the little unanswered questions at the end of City of Glass, I couldn’t help but be eager for the fourth book.  So now that I’ve returned to The Mortal Instruments series, I can finally review it.

In City of Fallen Angels we see a lot of different characters’ points of view, which I actually like.  Clary has taken a bit of a backseat to Simon, who is coping with being a Daylighter and bearing the cursed mark of Cain.  Did I mention the idiot is dating two girls at once since he doesn’t know how to say no?  Come on, things like that hardly end well and the love triangle feels a bit forced.  Other than that, Cassandra Clare’s characterization is decent, but nothing truly exceptional.

The plot is well paced and there are some unexpected twists.  We also meet some of the characters from Clockwork Angel, which I would recommend you read first.  It’s not necessary, but it helps you understand the vampire Camille and Magnus’ past, especially when Camille and Magnus allude to their past together.  One of the best things about City of Fallen Angels is that we finally get to learn more about demons and their origins as well as about the history of the Shadowhunters.  And with the cliffhanger at the end, I’m anxious to read the fifth book, City of Lost Souls.

I give this book 4/5 stars.

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