#it's just sad to me that eh they ruined a perfectly good actual villain who like WAS a full on villain
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Queen of Air and Darkness by Cassandra Clare - blurrypetals review
originally posted dec. 9, 2018 - ā
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A-T. L-A-S-T.
I am so absolutely overwhelmed by everything that I've experienced in the last few days while listening to this. As Cassandra Clare's longest book to date, a whole dang fuckin' lot happens in this book. To sort my way through this review, the following paragraphs are gonna be chock full of a whole dang fuckin' lot of untagged spoilers, so continue at your own risk. I do think you're doing yourself a huge disservice if you do read this review before you've read the book, though. It's also incredibly likely I'll drop a spoiler or two on every Shadowhunters book so, if you're here and you have not, for some reason, read The Mortal Instruments, The Infernal Devices, the other two books in The Dark Artifices trilogy, and all of the short stories in The Bane Chronicles, Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy, and Ghosts of the Shadow Market, I implore you to amend that, to go and read those fourteen books and this fifteenth book before reading this review, just in case I ruin anything for you by accident. Okay, now that's out of the way, let's talk about sequels and how to finish a grand, epic fantasy story. It was difficult for me to not compare this book to three other books. The first two are, of course, Cassandra Clare's other finales, City of Heavenly Fire and Clockwork Princess. This handily bowls City of Heavenly Fire straight under the table because, even though City of Heavenly Fire is still a 5-star book, it's the weakest of The Mortal Instruments hexalogy and, other than perhaps The Bane Chronicles, it's also maybe the weakest in The Shadowhunter Chronicles in its current entirety. Clockwork Princess, by contrast, however, is, in my opinion, the best of the entire series. As a finale, Queen of Air and Darkness here sits comfortably as the second best Shadowhunters finale yet. So much happens in this book. It's split into three different parts which could have easily been split into three shorter books with near-perfect three act structures in place for each of them, making this book a nine act book with two "false" climaxes that would have made for quite the cliffhangers if they had been split up for any reason. The first act deals with the aftermath of Livia's death and, because it has a lot of rising action, it's actually a little frustrating in some ways, even if it was frustrating in an incredibly enjoyable way. One of my absolute favorite scenes in the whole book is Julian running to Magnus for help in the middle of the night because it so perfectly mirrors the scene in Clockwork Prince when another blue eyed boy named Will Herondale was at the end of his rope, desperate not to love a girl he was cursed not to be with. I loved the contrast between a Herondale's plea for salvation and a Blackthorn's last hope to avoid damnation, separated by a hundred years yet tied by the same plight and the same warlock's magic. Emotionless-Julian was a really compelling read, even if I was almost as angry and frustrated with him and Magnus as Emma was. I loved to hate how cold and calculating he became without his love and compassion around to guide his moral compass. I hated his betrayal of Emma so fucking much it hurt but I've always loved Julian's ruses, schemes, and plans, and his dealings with the Seelie Queen, the Black Volume, and a skilled calligrapher and wizard called OfficeMax. Damn. So fucking good. Also, speaking of Julian's plans and schemes, his war council and Livia's Watch is one of the most satisfying scenes in The Shadowhunter Chronicles as it currently exists; I'm so proud of my son. He is so great. Hot diggity. Speaking of reminders from past stories, we get the entire cast of The Mortal Instruments during a lot of this book. I was really excited anytime we ran into anyone from The Mortal Instruments, especially the part when Julian and Emma ended up being thrown in the same Unseelie prison as Jace and Clary were and that was Jace and Clary's first appearance in the whole novel. It could have easily gotten overwhelming; I was, in fact, rather worried that Jace and Clary would steal the spotlight for a good spell in the final act of the book, but they didn't, since Emma and Julian were, eh...too big to ignore, and the book even ends with the long-awaited Bane-Lightwood wedding of the centuries, but the story proper closes on Julian and Emma on the beach together. Even though The Wicked Powers is still yet to come, this book felt like a huge culmination of all fourteen of the prior books in a huge way. We had Jem and Tessa from The Infernal Devices, we had Jace, Clary, Simon, Isabelle, Alec, and Magnus from The Mortal Instruments, and we had Emma, the Blackthorns, and all their friends and allies from this series and it felt huge. I also felt the weight of what's to come in a super hardcore manner when it came to Kit and Ty, Dru and Jaime, and, of course, Ash. I genuinely feel as though I can't wait any longer to see how Kit and Ty's stories turn out. I'm especially pleased by the fact that Jem and Tessa decided to adopt Kit and that Kit will have the family he's longed for his whole life and, not only will he have two capable people parenting him through the rest of his adolescence, but he'll also have that younger sibling he's been longing for, someone he can teach and take care of in the way he wasn't when he was small. I really hope at least one of the two forthcoming Ghosts of the Shadow Market stories focuses on Kit and his new life and new home with Jem, Tessa, and hopefully their new precious tiny one. Thoughts of the future of The Shadowhunter Chronicles in Drusilla, Kit, Ty, and, specifically, Ash, bring me back around to the second section of the book, which is the most absolutely bananas thing Cassandra Clare has ever written but is also actually incredibly compelling. I fucking loved the alternate universe stuff, everything to do with the exciting return of not-Jace, the introduction of alterna-Livia, other-Cameron, and living-Raphael (especially the part where he begged Emma and Julian to tell Magnus and Alec to rename Rafael; I was in tears laughing about all of that biz), and the temporary absence of emotionless-Julian and how he and Emma ended up healing so much of their relationship there. I also am so totally down with not-Jace being the main villain of The Wicked Powers, or at least a main villain. I am really impressed with Cassieāwhich, when am I not, honestly?āin the way that second section of the book was written. It felt like a huge love letter to me as a longtime and dedicated fan of The Shadowhunter Chronicles in general because we got to see these, for lack of a better term, a fanfiction AU turned canon that doesn't read like a fanfiction in the least bit because it remains relevant, interesting, tense, and important the whole way through, even though it's literally a gigantic non-sequitur that some could argue is "pointless." I am not one who would argue that, though, because I loved it so damn much. It gave me what is probably my favorite Emma and Julian scene in all of The Dark Artifices, just after they return to the resistance stronghold. You know the scene. Okay, rapid fire because I could honestly go on forever about this book; I pinned 108 different clips throughout this book, which is the most pins or post-its I've ever put in one single book before. I adored the fact that Simon gave Julian his iron Lord Montgomery figurine before he and Emma left Idris. Michael Wayland's ghost showing up for Robert Lightwood's funeral fucked me up in a super hardcore way and the fact that Kit was the only one who could see him or even sense his presence really got to me and I really teared up because Bitter of Tongue from Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy absolutely wrecked me and this poked at that wound. Everything in regards to Mark, Cristina, and Kieran was incredibly sweet, sex positive, loving, trusting, and healthy and I just...gah they are perfect. A most excellent thruple, one for the ages. A great many of my pins have something to do with Kit growing into his inborn Herondale talent of being a master in snark (think candy gram and "Alas, poor Yorick,"). Everyone in the alternate realm being grossed out by endarkened-Emma's and endarkened-Julian's PDA was hilarious. Julian realizing art requires pain and morality about snapped my sad tiny bird heart clean in half. Feline death on a massive scale. Anytime Jace's more playful, youthful side showed because he's a happy boi now was delightful, especially the parts where he wanted to get to hold the mortal sword and when he declared, "We're the bait!" Magnus hallucinating was great, but my favorite hallucination was when he was flirting with a vase like it was Alec and then very seriously offering to buy it from the Institute. I also loved it when Magnus called Clary "biscuit". It made my heart all soft and nostalgic. Julian's smile at Emma when he got his emotions back tot me emotional, dammit! Caterina meeting Kit for the first time made my heart feel like it was too large for my body. Jace using finger guns, because finger guns are always hilarious. Dru realizing she was looking at the face of a parent when she looked at Julian. Kit responding to being called "Herondale," when Magnus said, "Stay away from my children, Herondale." Emma telling Diana that she showed her the kind of woman she wanted to be. Emma's terrible pun about Manuel being tied up. "Ragnor Lives." An old lady accidentally complimenting Julian on being tall. Emma and Julian deciding to go to the other at the exact same time. Alec would look better on the money. Mark trying (and failing) to make balloon animals and accidentally making them all snakes. That's not even a third of them all. Near the beginning of the review, I said I was having a difficult time avoiding comparing this book to three other books, two of which were past Shadowhunters books. The third book, however, is Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas, which is another very long final book in a series, one that somehow managed to get voted as the best YA fantasy of 2018 and, because of that slap in the face, I couldn't help but wonder how this book, technically the fifteenth in a series, managed to feel fresh, new, fun, and lovable from minute one to hour thirty of the audiobook even though this is the fifteenth time I've experienced a book in The Shadowhunter Chronicles for the first time and I've never come close to feeling the same sort of apathy or anger as I do for Sarah J. Maas and Throne of Glass. This is how you end a series. This is how you end one part of your series. This is how it's done. Take notes, everyone else. Get on Cassie's level.
#queen of air and darkness#the dark artifices#the shadowhunter chronicles#cassandra clare#2018#goodreads mirror#blurrypetals
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Roses are red
Violets are blue
This āpoemā sucks but
Happy Birthday to you
(Note: there was originally like eight more cynical lines about how birthdays mean youāre that much closer to the end, but I scrapped it because when I try to use dark humor it usually just ends up kinda gruesome.
Thereās probably something wrong with me and someday weāll find out what that is, but today is not that day)
Congratulations! @(^-^)@Ā You were only sixteen but your mind was older- now youāre seventeen, but Iām sure the latter part of that quote still applies and the blog will blow us all away even more than before! Hope you have a wonderful, satisfyingĀ birthday despite how non-stop you are (donāt forget to take a break when you can) and one last time, congratulations!
(also depending on how the timezone difference between Croatia and Korea works, weāre only a day or two apart- my birthday is March 30th, which is tomorrow over here! :D so cool)
āWhatever you say ma'am, Furuta will pay for his behavior! Iāll use tumblr, Iāll write under a pseudonym(Evans)- youāll see what I can do to him!
But at least since heās dead, you can finally speak your mind?ā
I know, I still like the idea of trans Mutsuki better but other than any hints dropped inĀ canon, I just think itās very unlikely that TG as a Japanese manga will add a 100%, conmpletely confirmed LGBTQ character. I believe Ishida himself is pretty open towards the LGBTQ community (Nicoās portrayal is a bitĀ questionable but in an omake Yomo is shown thinking that anyone he dates could become Toukaās aunt OR uncle (though of course that could be a translation error),Ā Shuu is a subversion of manga stereotypes regarding gay men and TG in general has a lot of interesting themes regarding sexuality and gender), but idk, the idea of a mainstream seinen manga like TG adding LGBTQ themes that go beyond heavy implication seems unlikely (though who knows, it could happen).
Mutsuki just makes me bitter. FIrst all the arguments about their gender and now I donāt even like them anymore (they used to be an adorable cinnamon roll but after recent chapters, while I still feel for them theyāve become a lot less sympathetic).
(Also this just makes me sound salty but I recently came across a very aggressive blog dedicated to reminding everybody that MUTSKI IS MALE AND YOU ARE ALL WRONG and reading through it just made meĀ kinda mad and irritated all at once.Ā Once a trans person made a post saying that despite being trans themself they didnāt think Mutsuki was, offering several manga moments as decent evidence and being quite polite, and the mod of this blog answered them withĀ what basically boils down toĀ 'lol no itās possible to be transphobic even if youāre part of the LGBTQ community and you are clearly one of these peopleā.)
Donāt worry, cinnamon roll Hinami isnāt being forgotten! :) Iām really looking forward to her meeting Akira. Iāve always liked Hina but these recent chapters pushed her up on my āfavorite charactersā list- sheās just way too sweet.
Reading the manga: wth Ishida you are officially my least favorite person like even Isayama is better than you
Reading Ishidaās translated tweets/the comments he makes in TG extras: why are you so nice
Yeah, I kinda hated Urie at first (I understood his goals and motivations but did he really have to be such a jerk? I honestly thought he was going to get somebody killed in the auction arc) but after the auction arc I started to like him better (I think the official moment I decided āI like Urie Kuki as a characterā was when Shirazu died) and I kinda freaked out when I realized what happened to himā¦
He would make a great Burr though. IĀ think heās way more willing to act than Burr andĀ is not a ātalk less, smile moreā kind of person (more like a ātalk less and donāt smile at allā type)Ā but theyāre still really similar. I could also see Urie singing Wait for Itā¦with Kaneki as Hamilton. Not because Kaneki particularly fits Hamilton but because of how Burr is clearly somewhat jealous about Hamiltonās progress despite not approving of his methods in Wait For It (in an interview about the song I think LMM said something about it describing the feeling of watching your friends and acquaintances getting so far ahead in life and thinking 'Wait for it; someday Iāll get there tooā).
Am I the only one who headcanons that despite acting super classy and not knowing much about rap/hip-hop before someone (maybe Hori?) gets him to listen to it, Tsukiyama actually turns out to be a really good rapper?
Speaking of Tsukiyama though, I want to see more of his interactions with Naki
Hmm, since Mado died after he was already an adult couldnāt Akira technically count? We know from omakes that Mado was a doting father and made her childhood as happy as possible, so while her life might not have been 100% perfect it was still really good in TG terms. Takizawa before he entered the academy also counts.
but even those two had so much tragedy happen to them asĀ adultsā¦
(also, have you started reading the manga again? :D)
ok, that sounds creepy. Not going to be watching that.
Thank you so much for the recommendations though! Not sure if Iāll get the time to watch those but I think I saw some Magi volumes in a bookstore here so maybe Iāll check that out when I have the time!
And yeah, if you have any good animes/mangas to recommend, please do! And genre doesnāt matter- though I usually prefer dark, psychological stories Iām willing to make exceptions when the series in question is really good (thatās what I did with YoI after all :) the only genres Iām really reluctant to read are horror and high school romances).
Iām glad you liked them! And nope, donāt mind at allĀ :D fangirling
I am back! Again, happy birthday ^^ I hope the day went well for you :) How old are you now, if you donāt mind me asking? Iām guessing itās either 14 or 15.
And thank you very much for the poem, itās very cute! I wouldnāt have minded the extra verses. They mightāve ruined the mood a bit, tho ^^;; The theme sounds like something baroque poems would write about... Donāt mind me, I just had an exam dealing with baroque, so Iām probably prone to making bad references to it.Ā
I will never manage to reach your level of puns... Iāll just say that Iām very satisfied with the amount of them.
āJust because heās dead doesnāt mean he wonāt come back. He died so another villain can take his place.
No matter how much I support trans Mu, Iād be very, very surprised if it actually become canon. I mean, as youāve said, Japan and lgbt donāt quite go together that well... I guess weāll just have to see... And nope, I still havenāt started to read the manga again. No time ^^;;
Iāve started to dislike Mu after the chapter in which his past was revealed. I just donāt have the will to stomach stories like that, honestly... Good horror/psychology manga/anime might interest me once in a while, but thereās a border I donāt like crossing. TG is waaay over it (which is probably a part of the reason why I dropped it, after all)
Gaah, itās people like that that make dislike the lgbts... Donāt get me wrong, I have nothing against people in that community and I wonāt discriminate (though stuff like fictionkin and made-up pronouns do make me roll my eyes), but itās these people that give people the wrong image about the whole community. Unfortunately, Iāve had quite a few encounters with those... aggressive people. I could go on and on about the things I saw as a part of this site, mostly concerning those ridiculous people who are probably in it because they think itāsĀ ācoolā orĀ ātrendyā to be bi or genderfluid.Ā I get waaay too worked up over this theme, donāt I?
Oh, Iām so happy about her not being forgotten! She is a precious cinnamon roll and doesnāt deserve the life she has, she deserves so much better.
Boy, that sounds fun. Well, Ive had experience with theĀ āreading mangaā part, but I donāt particularly follow tweets ^^;; I hope things work out in the manga!
Idk, I mean, I disliked him at first, but I got to like him very quickly. I just seem to like silent types like him (I say that, and yet I also like Phichit, Viktor, Haise and so on, who are nothing like him.... WHOOPS).
Signs that Iām slowly forgetting TG: *reading the message*Ā āwho... are these characters?ā I mean, I know the most important ones, like Haise, Urie, Akira and so on, but the other ones... This makes me very sad ;-;
Yeah, I guess that would make Kaneki a good Hamilton. STILL DONāT WANT BURR (COOKIE) TO KILL HIM, BECAUSE KANEKI IS A CINNAMON ROLL WHO DOESNāT DESERVE TO DIE! The dynamics between Kaneki and Urie donāt make a good Ham-Burr, but their positions in their job, so I guess they really are the best pair for Hamilton.Ā Why did Ham have to die ;-; That makes casting so much harder for me.
Oh yeah, Tsukiyama would be an amazing rappers, I donāt doubt it at all. In fact, Iām sure that heād be able to do Guns and Ships perfectly.Ā
Fun fact: You made a typo sayingĀ āMado died after SHE became an adultā (I changed it) and you gave me the biggest heart attack. Pls, my phone wasnāt used to the speed with which I typedĀ āTOKYO GHOUL WIKI AKIRA MADOā to check if what you said is true.Ā Yeah, Akira could count, I guess. That makes a total of ONE character... Not much, eh?
I donāt know if I count Takizawa... I think that the way his life is now, it very much makes up the lack of angst in his childhood.
Oh yeah, one last concern about The World Is Still Beautiful!
WHY IS THERE A CHARACTER NAMED LUNA WHO ACTS LIKE AN INSUFFERABLE BRAT DURING HER WHOLE SCREEN TIME, I DEMAND JUSTICE!
Iām done.Ā
One last recommendation:
LOVE LIVE AKA CUTE IDOLS. I invite you to join me in the pits of idol hell :) It(s not a romance, donāt worry. Also, thereās a mobile rhythm tapping game if youāre interested :))
Ooh, Iād be so happy if youād start reading Magi! During the later volumes, it gets reeally psychological, so I think you might like it! Iād say something, but spoilers!
Well, Iāll go add the text to the post, then ^^
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