Review: City of Glass

City of Glass by Cassandra Clare

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This excellent, satisfying ending to the Mortal Instruments trilogy never lets up on the pace of its breakneck action, while still finding time for interesting characterizations, terrific humor, and fascinating revelations. I was very impressed how much Clare's writing gained in confidence and skill over the trilogy, to the point where City of Glass is a seamless, engrossing whole. All the themes, ideas, and storylines of the entire series come to fruition, and here the villains are noticeably more fearsome. My only quibble is that some of the characters tend to overly speechify near the end, especially about subjects that we as readers had already heard or figured out for ourselves·

While never less than captivating, throughout the series, the plotting and settings seemed rather familiar, and the resolutions a tad pat. There are some good surprises, but there are just as many scenes where some original twists could only have helped. That said, the characterizations and easy clarity of the writing carry the reader through whatever weak spots with speed and humor. I missed this world as soon as I closed the back cover.