This series got better with every new book. This 3rd book is better than the 2nd which was better than the first. I was sad that it ended but it ends the way you want it to. It keeps you on edge wondering whick way the story will go. It was great! A world I'd love to slip into. ( )

Completion of The Mortal Instruments Trilogy. A mostly satisfactory conclusion although some of the twists in the last half of the book were signaled a little too strongly and thus the impact was lessened. Still, it kept me reading and I would probably read other books set in this world.

Reviewed by coollibrarianchick for TeensReadToo.com

I really have to stop reading books out by the pool. When I do this, especially with the good books, I forget about the thing called the "sun" and I end up getting roasted. I should've known better yesterday when I sat down to read Cassandra Clare's CITY OF GLASS. I should've known that I was not going to be able to put down the book, and now, unlike Simon who is not affected by the sun, I am a little bit burned.

It has been one really long - as well as crazy, heartbreaking, exhilarating, and anxiety-filled - month for Clary. She has been one busy girl - mixing it up with vampires, werewolves, and fairies, fighting demons, and falling in love completely and totally. Like I said, it has been one helluva month for Clary.

When we last saw her, both Clary and Jace were reeling from the fact that they were brother and sister. I think you were able to hear a collective moan of "oh no" across the country when everyone reading the book got to that part. On top of that, her mother was in a coma and Simon, her BFF, was turned into a vampire. Seriously, can anything else go wrong?

Welcome to the final chapter in THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS trilogy.

The trip has been planned. Everyone is going to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of the Shadowhunters. Clary was going to save her mother, learn more about her past. Life was going to be good once again. However, keep in mind the saying "the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry"....

So what goes wrong? For starters, Jace doesn't want her to go, claiming that it is too dangerous, especially if people, the wrong people, find out what she can do with runes. Then the Forsaken attack before Clary arrives, wrecking havoc and forcing everyone left alive (including Simon) to escape through the portal to Idris.

It is not easy getting into Idris. You have to get permission from the ruling body, and if you enter without permission, you run the risk of death. Uh oh.... now how in the world is Clary going to save her mother? Clave be damned is how, and she draws her own portal rune to transport her. Luke latches on at the last second in hopes of saving her, but it is too late - and they both wind up in Idris.

Good news is they made it; bad news is that Downworlders like Luke aren't exactly welcome.

The action in this installment starts early and doesn't let up until the very last page, but now with Clary, Luke, and Simon (who really shouldn't be there) in Idris, the twists and turns really begin. If you thought what happened on the ship in the last book was intense, you haven't read anything yet. Valentine, who has yet to show all of his cards, is planning something huge. He is just itching to use the mortal cup and he already has the sword. Everybody is on full alert, ready to battle for his or her lives.

I don't want to reveal that many spoilers, so lets just say Ms. Clare wrote a satisfying conclusion that will please her legions of fans. There is a lot going on in this book, that much I will say. This one was probably my favorite out of the three. The story moved at a very good pace and delved more into the relationships that have entwined all of the characters together. Familial issues take center stage, and romantic issues also abound.

There is also one really big surprise. Does that mean Jace and Clary are together in the end?

I'm not telling.... ( )

Delightfully fun! ( )

This review contains spoilers.

This book picks up where City of Ashes left off. Clary's headed for the City of Glass to try and find a cure for her mother.

The Clave has called Shadowhunters in from all over the world to figure out what to do about Valentine.

Valentine is still looking for the third mortal instrument.

I enjoyed the book while I was reading it, but the more I thought about it the more annoyed I became.

It was obvious from the end of the second book that Clary and Jace weren't actually related. So the whole incest angst thing was more irritating than anything else because it felt unnecessary. Especially once the birthmark thing was revealed. No one else picked up on that? Really?

The kicker for me was that demon blood was supposed to at least have the potential to do bad things when it mixed with human or shadowhunter blood. Surely Jace has bled all over people numerous times and no one ever suffered any ill effects from it so that alone should have been a heads up that Jace wasn't part demon. Which means he probably wasn't related to Clarey. So that angst felt unnecessary too.

Sebastian felt off from the beginning too. I think she was going for sociopathic (of if she wasn't, she should have been) but instead he just came off as selfish and spoiled. And the thing with the hair dye didn't make any sense. Could Valentine not be bothered to pick up some Just for Men?

And I really don't understand Shadowhunter Society. I can sort of get 18 being the age for a say in governmental matters. But I really don't understand having to be 18 to fight in a war. It's okay to go out and kill things one on one or in a small group, but somehow not in a war with overwhelming odds? The result is that instead of a large group against a large group you have a large group against a medium/small group which can be overwhelmed with sheer numbers and then they can go after the smaller group of kids and elderly. The older "kids" weren't even put in charge of protecting the young and elderly and they didn't really seem to be doing so on their own initiative. They were just...hanging out.

A sacrifice needed to be made, but Max wasn't big enough. Honestly, I didn't really feel anything when he was killed. I understand why the characters were upset, but as a reader I didn't connect with him and all we see of him in this book is a few instances of him being told to go into another room.

And Jace and Isabelle really didn't make sure Sebastian was dead? I know they were pretty banged up, but still. I can't image they'd have just left a demon they were "pretty sure" was dead.

I'm afraid Sebastian is going to be the antagonist in the next book and he's just not interesting enough.

So I'm glad the Clave is being opened to others (even if by Force), I'm glad Clarey and Jace got together. I do think Simon and the Mark of Cain could make for an interesting story line, although Simon has never interested me as much as others. ( )