eBook Review - Son Of The Dawn

A mini-review of sorts from when I was on holiday in Cyprus (yes, am still on that! I don't want to overwhelm you with write-ups this month. Next month might be a different thing but am easing you in!). This came as a surprise from the lovely John from Walker. A few months back at the #WalkerYA Blogger Event (write-up here if you missed it), Walker announced that they will be publishing the Ghosts of The Shadow Market, an anthology set in Cassandra Clare's Shadowhunters world. I remember going "Oooh" over this and didn't think anything much from it till just before my Cyprus holiday when John emailed, asking if I wanted to read this. I went yes and, when I was on holiday, I got a iBook code for this and, once I got myself on wifi, I download this and read this as quickly as I could.

Quick background dump. This will be published in the same way as The Bane Chronicles and Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy. A novella will be published in ebook form, once a month. All the novellas, plus two unpublished novellas will be published in one collection, sometime in 2019. And, like before, Cassandra Clare is co-writing this with a mix of authors: Sarah Rees Brennan, Maureen Johnson, Robin Wasserman and Kelly Link. And with connections to all of Shadowhunter series - Mortal Instruments, Infernal Devices, Dark Artifices and Last Hours, though the series follows Brother Zachariah throughout the years as he visits the Shadow Markets round the world, trying to find a mystery item...

The first novella in this collection is Son of the Dawn. Set several years prior to the events of The Mortal Instruments, the Lightwoods of the New York Institute is expecting a new member to join their family: Jace Wayland. But when Silent Brother, Brother Zachariah, is in the Shadow Market, he meets vampire Raphael, he hears something that throws ghosts from the past into the danger of the present...

I like the Shadowhunter world. I'm not as up to date with the world compared to other Shadowhunter fans (I haven't read the latter three Mortal Instruments books [out of fear/me thinking those characters's stories are done for me] nor have I read Lord of Shadows. Not yet but hopefully will read before Queen of Air and Darkness is published at the end of the year), and this was a nice story to read. I read it in two sittings (the first before I went to bed and the second when I woke up the following morning). It felt like returning to an old friend. Fans for Jem, Jace, Alec and Isabelle will enjoy this nugget of what their lives was like the years before City of Bones.

The little jem that I enjoyed hugely was the bonus material, Not for Humans, written by Cassandra Clare and Holly Black. It's only a few page longs and set a few days prior to City of Bones but I devoured this and just wanted more. If this is what Holly and Cassandra writing together is like, I need to get my rear in gear and read their co-author series, Magisterium.

But I had a niggle with this. Maybe it's me, but as I was reading this, I couldn't get away from the feeling that this didn't feel like Cassandra Clare writing, but this was Sarah Rees Brennan. I understand this is a co-authored story, but it feels a bit like Cursed Child in a sense where these are the characters created by the main author, yet someone else is using them and it feels off. I think I have this problem in the past when Sarah Rees Brennan co-writing a Shadowhunter novella. I think it's her writing and I don't click with it. It's not her problem, it's mine.

For fans of the Shadowhunter world, you will enjoy this. And I hope to read the next novella in the series, Cast Long Shadows, when that comes out next month...

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. 

GoodRead - What Really Happened In Peru

When news was revealed that Cassandra Clare was writing a collection of tales of fan favourite, Magnus Bane, with two of her writer friends (aka Sarah Rees Brennan and Maureen Johnson), the Shadowhunter fandom explode. Plus how the stories will be released to the fan was interesting (if you are a book publishing nerd): the stories would be released through the course of the year (sometimes, two stories per month) as an eNovella and, at the end of it, the stories would be put together in one volume and released as an actual book (well... that's the rumour. Am pretty certain this is the plan for the US. Not sure of Walker Books [the UK Publishers] plans as of yet.)

So, What Really Happened in Peru. The first in these eNovella, co-authored by Cassandra Clare and Sarah Rees Brennan, tells us of Magnus's adventures in Peru. It also hints at why he's banned from Peru.

Now, I need to talk honestly about this so, be warned dear readers, spoilers will fly in this. If you don't want to know spoilers, then stop reading this review.

It was a fast fun read. We got a slight insight into Magnus's life before the Infernal Devices and Mortal Instruments series. We see him playful, at his most drunk (which gives us readers the best lines - "Magnus, you were flirting with your own plate.") and him enjoying life. Very much a summer read, fun and fluffy while you're lying by the pool or at the beach.

Which, brings me to this part of the review where most of you guys will hate if you're fans of Cassandra's world. Sorry, but I have issues. Well, three, mainly.

1. Writing - I know this is co-authored. I get that, but I found the writing slightly off. It was cheeky and fun, like Magnus. But as someone who has recently read Clockwork Princess, the writing felt different. As if Sarah wrote most of the story and Cassandra read it over, added a few details and that was it. This is my problem. It felt odd for me to read a character created by one author and yet written by another.

2. The story. It felt glossed-over. Which is odd for me to say that as there are times when reading I wish for more glossy read but this felt too slick, too rushed. We saw Magnus in Peru 4 times and these took place at different times and over last different lengths - one story was one mortal summer and it lasted only five minutes reading time and a second took several months/year and it took most of the eNovella. Why couldn't we have 4 eNovellas, each going more in-depth over his adventures? 

3. The ending. Right, this is why I warned you of spoilers. This point, and here is where my main issue is. The title of this eNovella is What Really Happened In Peru, which means fans should be be getting an answer to a question that has been bugging them for months/years: "Why is Magnus Bane banned from Peru?" The eNovella didn't answer this question. It gave a paragraph at the end, saying Magnus was banned for "crimes unspeakable" and he didn't know what these crimes were. So, the reason why he is banned is a mystery to himself and to us. Sorry, but... no. No, I am not happy about this. I feel... kinda lied to. And I hate it when authors LIE to their readers. Authors, do not lie to your readers!

So, with this, I kinda tempted to say avoid. But I won't. I am going to say this instead: if you want to read this, go for it. Here's something light and fun. However, if you are going into this expecting answers, don't hold your breath. If you are expecting answers, then hold onto your money for the time being.