After seeing the preview for the film "City of Bones," coming out this August, I decided to read the book and start myself on a new series. I should have read the endorsement from Stephanie Meyer on the front of the book before reading so I knew what I was in for.The story revolves around a teenage girl, Clary, who witnesses a supernatural murder. After a series of events, she finds herself thrust into a world of angels and demons in which her role is far more important than everyone (except the reader) foresees. Clary discovers she is a Shadowhunter, or, a half-human, half-angel demon-killing machine. Being the first book in a trilogy, City of Bones sets itself up for its sequels nicely, but ends in an anticlimactic and abrupt fashion.
The first couple chapters sparked my interest, but it was mostly downhill from there. The sentence structure was juvenile, which makes sense based on the target audience (teen girls who are normally not voracious readers). The characters were thinly portrayed and leave a lot open to reader interpretation. This quality might actually help the film version, as the director and actors can use creative license to really mold their own characters to whatever they wish. About the only thing Cassandra Clare does well is end each chapter with a cliffhanger, enticing the reader to continue on their path to mindless entertainment.
Bookophile Rating: Poor (For a predictable story that is poorly executed, yet somehow addicting).
