GoodRead - The Bane Chronicles

I was very lucky and very honored when Sean from Walker Books asked if I wanted to review The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare, Sarah Rees Brennan and Maureen Johnson. I said yes (because I LOVE Magnus and am a huge shipper of Malec when I was read the first 3 books in the Mortal Instruments series [or trilogy as it was back then!] and I really liked seeing him in Infernal Devices). But, something very unexpected happened. Because I was honoured with this, I had to sign an embargo. I HAVE NEVER HAD TO SIGN AN EMBARGO BEFORE! VERY EXCITING!!! 

Yes, I am very weird. The only other time I had an embargo was Clockwork Prince and, even then, I never had to sign anything. So this was new and exciting territory. I felt like some book spy! 

I was going to try and read this for review of the Tuesday just gone (its publication date in both the UK and the US), but I kinda failed on the reading front so... here it is. 

The Bane Chronicles is a collection of short novellas the follow the life of Magnus Bane in year order (barring the last few). From the depths of Peru to Victorian London then modern day New York, we see Magnus getting more and more involved in the lives of Shadowhunters. Whether he wants to or not. 

Now, I have read three novellas when they were published in eBook form (What Really Happened in Peru, The Runaway Queen and The Course of True Love) and I admit, there was mixed reactions from me. So, knowing my reactions to them, I went into these stories with some uncertain. But all I knew was that I wanted to reread What Really Happened in Peru. Surely, it wasn't as bad as I remembered it to me. 

And it wasn't. Much to my surprise, I found What Really Happened in Peru quite funny. I'm still not thrilled over how the story ended (for the reasons I stated in my review) but because I was aware of how it ended, I braced myself for it. Forewarned is forearmed and all that. 

Now, I do want to write my thoughts and feelings over every short so am going to pick a few at random and do a quick thoughts/reactions. 

Vampires, Scones, and Edmund Herondale - I have no idea why I enjoyed this short. I just do. It was fun and yet, at the same time, It gave a tiny insight to the events that lead to Infernal Devices but it wasn't important to the series. And a new character that I instantly liked! 

The Midnight Heir - Ok, because I am a huge Infernal Devices fan, I am quite excited/intrigued over the whole The Last Hours trilogy that will look into the children of the Infernal Devices characters. I was reading it, looking for clues and hunts. But the main character - the child of [CENSORED] and [CENSORED] - I did not warm to him. But I got why he was the way he was but still... really? 

I was going to talk about some of the other stories (believe me, I could - let's not get me started on What To Buy the Shadowhunter Who Has Everything (And Who You're Not Officially Dating Anyway), shall we?) but let me talk about the reason why the book was embargo. This collection of short stories has one short story that had never been published and we had illustartions by Cassandra Jean (some of you may know Cassandra Jean's drawings from the tarot designs that Cassandra Clare put on her tumblr or from the Beautiful Creatures: The Manga). 

Now, I love the illustrations and, before I even started reading the book, I flicked through the pages for the illustrations to see what she drew.

And this mysterious story that hasn't been seen before this publication - The Voicemail of Magnus Bane. Now, before I go on, my advice is only read this story AFTER you read City of Lost Souls, as this takes place due to the event that happened at the end of that book. If you haven't read City of Lost Souls, you would be spoiled. I haven't read CoLS but I know the event in question (I went to an event after CoLS was published and Cassandra told us why she wrote it. I swear, I have never heard a group of readers gasp that loudly before!). Bu, I read this three times and out of the colection, this was a fave. It was heartbreaking yet funny. It felt like something that would be inside the book. It made me want to read the latter three books in the Mortal Instruments series. 

And I plan to. Soon. But am in no rush. Not yet. 

But this book. Ok, this is a mix bag - some stories are good and some aren't up to par. But this is a book for the fans (or, if you're a cynic [which I can be at times], another way to milk that cash cow dry!) but I would advice caution if you are a fan as this is in hardback and, I know some of you guys want your books to match. But yes, this is for fans but read if you have read all three Infernal Devices and the first 5 Mortal Instruments books to get the most enjoyment.