It’s funny the things you remember as you’re reading something. Cassandra Clare’s City of Lost Souls, for example, is a book that was a little murky for me except for two crystal clear snippets in my mind and oh were they just as punchy as the first time.

I love the relationship shifts in this one, especially where morality and conscious choice come into play. Things aren’t black and white and it creates a really gritty subplot to follow along with the action points and significant plot points in the main plot. We have the simple treading of water with Izzy and Simon, the honeymoon-esque phase with Jordan and Maia, the phantom love between Clary and Jace and the hidden secrets between Alec and Magnus. City of Fallen Angels felt like everyone was dealing with the miscommunication trope but this one feels like a pleasant mixture of stages and situations to work through.

The dynamics between Sebastian and Jace and Sebastian and Clary are really interesting to see. This isn’t including any of the incestuous, disgusting behaviour he enacts because that’s just straight up wrong but it is a indication of his character which is what I want to muddle over. We know Sebastian to be evil because that is not only his nature given his demon blood but his nurture growing up under Valentine’s watch. What I’m intrigued by are the human wants and emotions that are seeping through the cracks in his being – the want for family, for friendship, to belong to someone. The obsession and possessiveness showcased here comes when something gets ugly – a spark of anger, something dangerous like an attack, or when Clary disagrees with him. It’s an action and reaction likely brought on through how Valentine taught him to react. But the softer times, the purer times in a sense, are the times where what’s left of Jonathan Morgenstern’s humanity shines through. That want for connection, to be wanted, indicates that there is still a human in there but it will never be enough to make him someone salvageable. Never someone who can be saved.

The pacing is so good with this book – I keep forgetting that the total number of time since City of Bones is only about six months. It makes sense that that’s all the time that has passed, but wow so much has happened and things are moving quickly. The tension is high, especially when dealing with such events as demon summonings or angel summonings – the gravity of the situation and the seriousness of what is happening, what could happen, makes it feel intense and gripping in those moments. I feel that Cassandra Clare has a great grasp on when to bring these tension moments in and how to balance the story out with multiple points of high tension. It makes for a immersive, funny and staunchly serious novel.

I am very excited to get City of Heavenly Fire reread and wrap up this series. It’s been so fun rereading these and remembering the reasons why I got back into reading and my immersion in YA fantasy. It’ll be sad to finish it up but I have the Clockwork Angel trilogy and the Last Hours trilogy to reread and those two are going to be just as fun to revisit.