Into the Chasm's Depths: City of Heavenly Fire

City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare
Published by Margaret K. McElderry
Format Reviewed: Hardcover
Publication Date: May 27th, 2014
Genre: YA Urban Fantasy
Pages: 725
Reviewed by: Stephanie
My Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
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In this dazzling and long-awaited conclusion to the acclaimed Mortal Instruments series, Clary and her friends fight the greatest evil they have ever faced: Clary's own brother.

Sebastian Morgenstern is on the move, systematically turning Shadowhunter against Shadowhunter. Bearing the Infernal Cup, he transforms Shadowhunters into creatures out of nightmare, tearing apart families and lovers as the ranks of his Endarkened army swell.

The embattled Shadowhunters withdraw to Idris - but not even the famed demon towers of Alicante can keep Sebastian at bay. And with the Nephilim trapped in Idris, who will guard the world against demons?

When one of the greatest betrayals the Nephilim have ever known is revealed, Clary, Jace, Isabelle, Simon, and Alec must flee - even if their journey takes them deep into the demon realms, where no Shadowhunter has set foot before, and from which no human being has ever returned...

Love will be sacrificed and lives lost in the terrible battle for the fate of the word in the thrilling final installment of the classic urban fantasy series The Mortal Instruments!

Wow. Just wow. This book was flipping awesome. Cassandra Clare ended the series with a bang, one that I entirely love. She wrapped every single little thread up and tied it into a bow all while prepping us for her next series, The Dark Artifices.

I've hated Simon for the entire series but... I admit that my feelings have since changed and that's largely due to the fact that he's with Isabelle. Simon was used to his full potential here though and that was heart wrenching and awesome all at the same time.

Jace's problem with the heavenly fire was fixed well. I wouldn't say it was a surprised but it seemed logical considering the Shadowhunter world and I'm not that picky so I was satisfied. I do really like that in the end Clary, not Jace, was the one who took care of Sebastian. I can't say much more about this all without spoilers but... Sebastian's last moments were everything I hoped for and utterly perfect.

For those of you who were wondering, we finally learn who Magnus' father is. There is so much build up to it though, I don't know whether or not I was supposed to be shocked (I wasn't). In fact, for some reason, I find myself slightly disappointed which is really weird if you ask me. I believe this is partly because I had thought up the most horrific scenario for him and it wasn't that (I was kind of hoping...). Still, it was interesting and, dude, I would never want to have to deal with him. All the power to the main characters here, all the power...

I will be honest, I skimmed a little bit. This book is huge and I do feel like some stuff could have been cut completely. Actually there are at least two plot threads this book could survive without but I also see why they're there, even if they weren't really necessary. Yes, I speak of the Blackthorns and Maia. The Blackthorns were really only there as an introduction for The Dark Artifices so I don't mind them as much, especially since I think Clare did a fantastic job keeping their role brief here but still accurately showing that poor, poor family's plight.

Maia however... I'll be blunt, I felt like she wasted my time, especially when it came to Jordan. I know Maia was there to show how the Downworlders were reacting to everything but honestly, when it came down to it, Jace and Clary had it covered. You could rip out everything with Maia in it and the plot/characters would have been just fine without it. Clare would only have to make one maybe two minor adjustments and everything would have been covered.

In short, Clare did a fantastic job ending the series and has left me wanting more Shadowhunters. I'm eager to follower Emma Carstairs and Julian Blackthorn's story in the next series!

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