“You belong where you’re loved.”
I’ve read a lot of Cassandra Clare’s work, especially The Mortal Instruments, and was also a huge fan of the show Shadowhunters, based on the same series. As much as The Mortal Instruments was able to satiate the younger me, it at times felt repetitive, without much action happening in each 500+ page book. When I heard that Clare’s newest series dealt with another set of characters, rather than putting The Mortal Instrument’s protagonists, Jace and Clary through more trouble, I was down to give the series a try. The fact that Lady Midnight was targeted toward a slightly older audience also helped matters.
Right off the start, I was worried because this book, like the rest of Clare’s books, was more than 650 pages long. It seemed like another repeat of the too many pages and too less action trope. Yet, to say the least, all these concerns flew out of the window once I started. Lady Midnight deals with the Blackthorn family, who was vaguely mentioned in the last book of The Mortal Instruments, but the characters were mere children. Lady Midnight shows the lives of Emma and Julian, as adults, as well as the rest of the Blackthorn children. Emma and Julian are Parabatai (they pair together while fighting). The book delves deep into Emma’s trying to find the cause of her parents’ murders. A new string of murders in Los Angeles provides some vital clues to her investigation, which had gone stale a few years, after reaching dead end after dead end.
Clare’s books are always big on the growing relationships between her characters, and this book was no exception. The development of Emma and Julian’s relationship, along with the dynamic with the rest of the Blackthorn family, progresses naturally and is a treat to read. A motley of new characters is brought in, and references to several old characters from The Mortal Instruments are also made, especially Jace and Clary. Sometimes these references to Clare’s older series are a bit overwhelming since Jace and Clary do not have much of a role in the book, except for a few random appearances. Even then, reading Lady Midnight should not be a problem, even if one hasn’t read The Mortal Instruments.
The most refreshing part of the book is how Clare’s writing is so much more emotionally driven. Her other books, targeted toward a younger audience seemed to have very superficial relationships between characters, and the writing wasn’t that impactful. Lady Midnight, on the contrary, is filled with several stunning lines. The book also bases its storyline loosely around Edgar Allen Poe’s haunting poem, “Anabelle Lee”, making the book so much eerier and darker than any other of her works.
The book also references several real-life scenarios, albeit very discretely. The Blackthorn family’s motto is “Lex malla, lex nulla”- A bad law is no law. Julian and Emma continually stand up against the wrongdoings of the Clave (the Shadowhunter government), questioning the higher-ups, who are driven by wayward influences and play safe most of the time.
Though Lady Midnight comes nowhere near to the fantasy novels by Sarah J. Maas or Victoria Aveyard, it is a fun read, if you’re able to get over the initial inhibition of reading a book bigger than a brick. Lady Midnight is sure to leave you wanting more, especially since the Blackthorns are sure to lure you in.