City of Ashes

City of Ashes (The Mortal Instruments Book Two) by Cassandra Clare

(Summary taken from the inside book jacket) "Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal.  But what's normal when you're a demon-slaying shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? If Clary left the world of the Shadowhunters behind, it would mean more time with her best friend, Simon, who's becoming more than a friend. But the Shadowhunting world isn't ready to let her go--especially her handsome, infuriating, newfound brother, Jace. And Clary's only chance to help her mother is to track down rogue Shadowhunter Valentine, who is probably insane, certainly evil--and also her father. To complicate matters, someone in New York city is murdering Downworlder children. Is Valentine behind the killings--and if he is, what is he trying to do? When the second of the Mortal Instruments, the Soul-Sword, is stolen, the terrifying Inquisitor arrives to investigate and zooms right in on Jace. How can Clary stop Valentine if Jace is willing to betray everything he believes in to help their father?"

I was really excited to read this book and it did not disappoint. It kept up the high-paced action and drama of the first book and added a few twists and turns. There were some things that really surprised me and some things I wondered about. A few questions were answered, but more are asked. There is no closure and you're left hanging once again. I really like Ms. Clare's style of writing except that sometimes she'll end a paragraph and then start the next paragraph at a completely different place. I had to go back a couple of times to make sure I hadn't missed anything, but that is just how she writes. So there are some transition issues but overall it's a fast and easy read. It is, once again, quite violent. There are some graphic scenes and quite a few deaths. There is love, betrayal, fighting, friendship, and magic. The characters are well developed and I like her descriptions a lot. I really feel like I'm in the middle of the action. There are some "physical intimacy" innuendos, with some kissing, but they never actually do anything more than kiss. I'm hooked for sure, so look forward to my review of the next book soon (hopefully).

Rating: PG-13 Violence, gory deaths, fighting, "physical intimacy" innuendos, kissing. There are also the homosexual characters (Once again, I know and love people who are homosexual--it just kind of feels forced, like a statement rather than a storyline, in this particular book.) and some innuendos from them. There is also language in this book as well.

Recommendation: I'm sticking with high school seniors and up.

I really enjoyed this book and can't wait to read the next one!