Chain of Iron is my favourite of The Last Hours trilogy. I don’t know what it is, but there is something about this book that makes my heart sing, sob, and feel like it has been ripped out of my chest and ridden over by a hackney cab. Continuing on from the whirlwind action of Chain of Gold, the Merry Thieves and friends are finding themselves in over their heads, with many secrets and shadows looming over their heads. That’s not all, for on the surface things should be wonderful – perfect even, especially for Cordelia and James.

Cordelia Carstairs seems to have everything she ever wanted. She’s engaged to marry James Herondale, the boy she has loved since childhood. She has a new life in London with her best friend Lucie Herondale and James’s charming companions, the Merry Thieves. She is about to be reunited with her beloved father. And she bears the sword Cortana, a legendary hero’s blade. But the truth is far grimmer. James and Cordelia’s marriage is a lie, arranged to save Cordelia’s reputation. James is in love with the mysterious Grace Blackthorn whose brother, Jesse, died years ago in a terrible accident. Cortana burns Cordelia’s hand when she touches it, while her father has grown bitter and angry. And a serial murderer is targeting the Shadowhunters of London, killing under cover of darkness, then vanishing without a trace. Together with the Merry Thieves, Cordelia, James, and Lucie must follow the trail of the knife-wielding killer through the city’s most dangerous streets. All the while, each is keeping a shocking secret: Lucie, that she plans to raise Jesse from the dead; Cordelia, that she has sworn a dangerous oath of loyalty to a mysterious power; and James, that he is being drawn further each night into the dark web of his grandfather, the arch-demon Belial. And that he himself may be the killer they seek.

From start to finish, there are a lot of emotions felt for both the characters and the reader. We have the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, all of which are mixed up and shaken about so they all happen at the same time for different people, and the reader takes the brunt of it all. The action is yet another point which brings the reader on a journey. The sinister shadows and happenings in the darkness of predawn light brings an ominous tone to the otherwise jovial and intimate occurrences between James and Cordelia. then, as things hit closer to home yet again (Cassandra Clare is loving the close calls in The Last Hours trilogy and I am here for them too), merriment fades to suspicion, betrayal, heartache, and worry. It works really well in building up the tension of the novel and looping together the various characters and threads that make it so intriguing and immersive.

There is a lot riding on the characters, and a lot of possibilities heading into the conclusion with Chain of Thorns. As this is a reread, I’m trying not to let my opinions of Chain of Thorns colour my judgement of Chain of Iron, and in all honestly it will be good to get a fresh perspective of the final book to see how it all unfolds and fit together as a series. I do enjoy Chain of Iron a lot and the character development is one of my favourite things about it. I wouldn’t say it is as good as Clockwork Prince because that novel has my heart and soul, but it is probably up there with Lord of Shadows.