We’ll Be the Villains of This Story

~City of Villains~
Book 1
By Estelle Laure
Amazon ~ Powell's

Mary Elizabeth Heart is a high school senior by day, but by night she’s an intern at the Monarch City police department. She watches with envy from behind a desk as detectives come and go, trying to contain the city’s growing crime rate. For years, tension has simmered between the city’s wealthy elite, and their plans to gentrify the decaying neighborhood called the Scar—once upon a time the epicenter of all things magic.

When the daughter of one of the city’s most powerful businessmen goes missing, Mary Elizabeth is thrilled when the Chief actually puts her on the case. But what begins as one missing person’s report soon multiplies, leading her down the rabbit hole of a city in turmoil. There she finds a girl with horns, a boyfriend with secrets, and what seems to be a sea monster lurking in a poison lake. As the mystery circles closer to home, Mary finds herself caught in the fight between those who once had magic, and those who will do anything to bring it back.

This was the one that reignited my interested to return to Disney books, essentially spawning this whole "Disember" idea. I remember seeing adds for City of Villains on Facebook early last year and being intrigued by the dark vibe. I mean, after reading a summary like that, and seeing some of the best villains on the cover, how could I pass this up? So I recommended it to my library, and lo and behold, it finally became available this December! Of course, the best laid plans went awry when I got a nasty cold (thankfully tested negative for the -19) smack dab in the middle of the month, forcing me to push back my reading and reviews a bit. Still, I hoped the magic and mystery of this city would end my year on a high note.

Vampires Are United by One Unavoidable Fact: We Are Our Hunger

~Certain Dark Things~
By Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Amazon ~ Powell's

Welcome to Mexico City, an oasis in a sea of vampires. Domingo, a lonely garbage-collecting street kid, is just trying to survive its heavily policed streets when a jaded vampire on the run swoops into his life. Atl, the descendant of Aztec blood drinkers, is smart, beautiful, and dangerous. Domingo is mesmerized.

Atl needs to quickly escape the city, far from the rival narco-vampire clan relentlessly pursuing her. Her plan doesn’t include Domingo, but little by little, Atl finds herself warming up to the scrappy young man and his undeniable charm. As the trail of corpses stretches behind her, local cops and crime bosses both start closing in.

Vampires, humans, cops, and criminals collide in the dark streets of Mexico City. Do Atl and Domingo even stand a chance of making it out alive? Or will the city devour them all?


This month's pick for Maven's Vampire Book Club is a recent reprint following the author's wildly successful Mexican Gothic, which I admittedly haven't read yet. So, other than knowing that this author has gotten a lot of praise for her suspenseful and beautiful writing, I had absolutely no idea what I was getting into. I'm not one who usually enjoys gritty stories (I'm a bit put off by the mention of "narco-vampires"), but a kick-ass vampire on the run with a charming human sounds like it could be fun, right? Right?

Shambling Guide on How to Catch Idiot Humans Who Ran in the Dark With a Hangover

The Shambling Guide to
New York City
The Shambling Guides
Book 1
By Mur Lafferty
Amazon ~ Powell's

A travel writer takes a job with a shady publishing company in New York, only to find that she must write a guide to the city - for the undead!

Zoë Norris is looking for a fresh start in New York City. She's found a seemingly perfect position as a travel book editor, but there is one thing holding her back—being human.

Zoë isn't going to let anyone—not even her blood-drinking boss or her death goddess coworker put her off from delving deep into the monster underworld. But her job, not to mention her life, might be in peril when the line between monster and human starts to crumble...with Zoë right in the middle.


Phew, this is the first physical book I've read in quite some time. That's right, my library didn't have an e-book of this one available in time for the Vampire Book Club's discussion date (though I did request it and its sequel for the future), so I had to hoof it old-school (it's been probably 5 years since I went full digital) through a paperback copy! Was it worth the papercut potential?

She Was, After All, Soulless and Practical

~Soulless~
The Parasol Protectorate
Book the First
By Gail Carriger
Amazon ~ Powell's

Alexia Tarabotti is laboring under a great many social tribulations.

First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she was rudely attacked by a vampire, breaking all standards of social etiquette.

Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire--and then the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate.

With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening to London's high society? Will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful or just plain embarrassing? Finally, who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?


I've had this one on my To-Read shelf since forever. Being a sucker for werewolves and vampires, the premise hooked me from the get-go, plus that cover image was perfection. I bought a used copy of it ages ago, but never quite got around to diving in until this month the Maven of the Eventide's (aka Elisa Hansen's) Vampire Book Club chose it as their next read (the club's review/discussion will be held March 15th at 5:30 PDT on her channel for any interested). Though I'm more on Team Werewolf than Team Vamp, this excuse was as good as any to finally take the plunge and start my first ever Steampunk series. And boy was it steamy.

In London a Bookseller Feller / Wore One Glove Surprisingly Yeller

~The Left-Handed Booksellers
of London~
By Garth Nix
Amazon ~ Powell's

In a slightly alternate London in 1983, Susan Arkshaw is looking for her father, a man she has never met. Crime boss Frank Thringley might be able to help her, but Susan doesn’t get time to ask Frank any questions before he is turned to dust by the prick of a silver hatpin in the hands of the outrageously attractive Merlin.

Merlin is a young left-handed bookseller (one of the fighting ones), who with the right-handed booksellers (the intellectual ones), are an extended family of magical beings who police the mythic and legendary Old World when it intrudes on the modern world, in addition to running several bookshops.

Susan’s search for her father begins with her mother’s possibly misremembered or misspelt surnames, a reading room ticket, and a silver cigarette case engraved with something that might be a coat of arms.

Merlin has a quest of his own, to find the Old World entity who used ordinary criminals to kill his mother. As he and his sister, the right-handed bookseller Vivien, tread in the path of a botched or covered-up police investigation from years past, they find this quest strangely overlaps with Susan’s. Who or what was her father? Susan, Merlin, and Vivien must find out, as the Old World erupts dangerously into the New.


Garth Nix has been on my to-read list since the 90's. I've heard his Abhorsen series is great, his Keys to the Kingdom series even got my quasi-illiterate sibling to read a little, and I've drooled at the covers for the Seventh Tower series during many a bookstore visit. So when I saw this new book on my Facebook feed, with that cover and a title that promised to involve bookish characters, how could I put it off any longer?

Mage & Vampire, Light & Dark, Blue & Red

SPOILER ALERT
This review is for those who have read or are familiar with the previous books in the Sabina Kane series or don't mind knowing major spoilers for them.
SPOILER ALERT

~Blue-Blooded Vamp~
Sabina Kane
Book 5
By Jaye Wells
Amazon ~ Powell's

Sabina Kane is on the hunt. Her prey: Cain, the father of the vampire race and the one who murdered her family and her friends. Unfortunately, Cain is hunting Sabina, too.

The one man who holds the key to defeating Cain is, of course, Abel. A mage with secrets to spare and, hopefully, the power to match it. Unfortunately, for Sabina, he's in Rome and may not want to be found.

Sabina sets out for Italy with her friends, Giguhl and Adam Lazarus, to track down the only man who can get her the revenge she hungers for. But will he help her or oppose her? And just who is Abel, really? Worst of all, when Sabina figures out the goddess Lilith has a plan for her she realizes this trip is getting deadlier by the minute. As they say: when in Rome - SURVIVE.


Another series down in the records. Gotta say, it's a bit bittersweet to let go of these characters after 5 books together. On the one hand, it's nice that I don't have to witness their perpetual torture, but I also don't get to see them taking names and kicking ass anymore either.

The Beginning of a New Chapter

As if books, ebooks, and manga weren't enough, now I've discovered apps with interactive(ish) stories. Coming off the heels of Hallmark's Christmas Movie marathons, I first started looking when I was craving a little romance in December. I've downloaded a few "otome games", just looking for some paranormal fluff, but I've been pleasantly surprised at how much depth has been in a couple of these. I'll get into my other favorites shortly, but I wanted to start off with probably the most diverse I've tried so far: Chapters.

Chapters
By Crazy Maple Studio

Choose your story with Chapters, the interactive story game that lets you choose your path in every story. Read through pages and pages of fun interactive stories that fit your mood, from romance to suspense!

Choose your story from our top collection of romance, fantasy, sci-fi, young adult, comedy, and drama series! Chapters combines a unique style of choose your own story gameplay with fiction stories from our top authors that you simply can't put down!

YOU get to make the choices in each story. Decide on hard life choices such as falling in love, discovering secrets, or unraveling deep mysteries! Make your choices wisely; every ending is different!

He Gave Me the Devil’s Own Smile

SPOILER ALERT
This review is for those who have read or are familiar with the previous books, Red-Headed Stepchild, The Mage In Black, and Green-Eyed Demon, or don't mind knowing major spoilers for them.
SPOILER ALERT

~Silver-Tongued Devil~
Sabina Kane
Book 4
By Jaye Wells
Amazon ~ Powell's

Now that the threat of war has passed, Sabina Kane is ready to focus on the future. Her relationship with Adam Lazarus is getting stronger and she's helping her sister, Maisie, overcome the trauma of her captivity in New Orleans. Even Giguhl is managing to stay out of trouble thanks to the arrival of Pussy Willow and his new roller derby team. But as much as Sabina wants to feel hopeful about the future, part of her doesn't believe that peace is possible.

Her suspicions are confirmed when a string of sadistic murders threatens to stall treaty negotiations between the mages and the vampires. Sabina pitches in to find the killer, but her investigation soon leads her down dark paths that have her questioning everyone she thought she could trust. And the closer she gets to the killer, the more Sabina begins to suspect this is one foe she may not be able to kill.


It's been a while since I was last in Sabina's world, but it took no time at all to ease myself back into their story and get hooked again.

Getting a Green Light from the Universe

SPOILER ALERT
This review is for those who have read or are familiar with the previous books, Red-Headed Stepchild & The Mage In Black, or don't mind knowing major spoilers for them.
SPOILER ALERT

~Green-Eyed Demon~
Sabina Kane
Book 3
By Jaye Wells
Amazon ~ Powell's

Things to do:

1. Rescue sister.
2. Murder grandmother.
3. Don't upset the voodoo priestess.

The clock is ticking for Sabina Kane. Her sister has been kidnapped by her grandmother, the Dark Races are on the brink of war, and a mysterious order is manipulating everyone behind the scenes.

Working on information provided by an unlikely ally, Sabina and her trusty sidekicks--a sexy mage named Adam Lazarus and Giguhl, a Mischief demon--head to New Orleans to begin the hunt for her sister. Once there, they must contend with belligerent werewolves, magic-wielding vampires and - perhaps most frightening of all - humans.

But as much as Sabina is focused on surviving the present, the past won't be ignored. Before she can save those she cares about most, she must save herself from the ghosts of her past.


I had a feeling I'd get to add a LGBT tag to one of these, and I was finally right! Absolutely LOVED Brooks as soon as he came on page. While arguably not a main character, Brooks and Giguhl's interactions were gold, and with my own sibling in a similar situation, I'm happy to add the tag. It didn't feel tacked on at all, as Brooks did play a major part in the story, and his history was nicely fleshed out. Overall, I wish Brooks could continue in the series...

Black With the Shadow of Fear

SPOILER ALERT
This review is for those who have read or are familiar with the previous book, Red-Headed Stepchild, or don't mind knowing major spoilers for it.
SPOILER ALERT

~The Mage in Black~
Sabina Kane
Book 2
By Jaye Wells
Amazon ~ Powell's

Sabina Kane doesn't have the best track record when it comes to family. After all, her own grandmother, the leader of the vampire race, just tried to kill her. When she arrives in New York to meet the mage side of her family, the reunion takes the fun out of dysfunctional.

On top of that, the Hekate Council wants to use her as a pawn in the brewing war against the vampires. Her mission will take her into the bowels of New York's Black Light district, entangles her in mage politics, and challenges her beliefs about the race she was raised to distrust. And Sabina thought vampires were bloodthirsty.


A nice, quick read following a tortuous series of ugh. You know, it's nice to be reading a book and actually enjoy what's going on. And it's another plus when the % complete ticker actually moves up at a decent pace. It took me 5 days to read this book, whereas the last took 5 months. And that book was YA!

All Vampires Have Red Hair

~Red-Headed Stepchild~
Sabina Kane
Book 1
By Jaye Wells
Amazon ~ Powell's

In a world where being of mixed-blood is a major liability, Sabina Kane has the only profession fit for an outcast: assassin. But, her latest mission threatens the fragile peace between the vampire and mage races and Sabina must scramble to figure out which side she's on. She's never brought her work home with her---until now.

This time, it's personal.


You know, I'd forgotten what it was like just to read something without analyzing it. I really didn't have to think about much of anything, just go with the flow. But then, kick-ass female protagonists in paranormal romance are kind of my fluff genre.

Of Vampires And Humans

~Team Human~
By Justine Larbalestier
& Sarah Rees Brennan
Amazon ~ Powell's

Mel is horrified when Francis Duvarney, arrogant, gorgeous, and undead, starts at her high school. Mel’s best friend, Cathy, immediately falls for the vampire. Cathy is determined to be with him forever, even if having him turn her could inadvertently make her a zombie.

And Mel is equally determined to prove to her BFF that Francis is no good, braving the city’s vampire district and kissing a cute boy raised by vampires as she searches evidence in this touching and comic novel.


You know the saying, "Don't judge a book by its cover"? Well, this one definitely fits that. If you thought you were getting a dark, edgy, super serious book about humans fighting vampires in a dystopian world, or something like that, yeah not so much. The title works fine, but that cover art is way out of line with the tone of the actual story.

Welcome To The Midnight Hour

~Kitty and the Midnight Hour~
Kitty Norville
Book 1
By Carrie Vaughn
Amazon ~ Powell's

Vampires.
Werewolves.
Talk Radio.

Kitty Norville is a midnight-shift DJ for a Denver radio station—and a werewolf in the closet. Sick of lame song requests, she accidentally starts "The Midnight Hour," a late-night advice show for the supernaturally disadvantaged.

After desperate vampires, werewolves, and witches across the country begin calling in to share their woes, her new show is a raging success. But it's Kitty who can use some help. With one sexy werewolf hunter and a few homicidal undead on her tail, Kitty may have bitten off more than she can chew.


This book, and the series overall, has been on my radar for some time now. My sister bought the first three books a long while back and read the first one when she was in middle or early high school. Not the greatest decision ever. But before they went into the donation bin I snagged them and stuck them on my shelf. Followers should be able to guess by now that I'm a fan of werewolves, so a series having a snarky female lead who so happens to be a werewolf was an instant draw. It also helps that the author is visiting my local Powell's next week, so without further ado, let's dive in to Kitty's world.

"What Is A Werewolf?"

~Bonds of Fenris~
By S. J. Bell
Amazon
Shooting for the Moon

Talia Thornwood's life ended one year ago, when she became a werewolf. She survived the attack, and the horrifying transformation a month later, but the life she has now is barely worth living. She lurks about in a filthy, run-down house, with too many werewolves crammed into too small a space. Every day is a struggle against the stress of human contact, the romantic prodding of her obnoxious packmate Pierce, and the gnawing hunger for flesh in her soul.

She's all but resigned herself to a dreary existence on the margins of society when she meets Corwin. Corwin is a werewolf like none other. He walks among humans as if it was nothing, and can keep his wolf under control even when the moon is full. Talia's mind is suddenly opened to the possibilities before her, and the realization of how little she really knows about lycanthropy.

Corwin claims that he can teach her how to cope as he does, even how to transcend her affliction. But it will not be easy. It is a hard education that requires her to question everything her pack taught her, and confront exactly what she has become. And, more amazingly, what she never stopped being.


If the whole theme of this blog wasn't evidence enough, I'm a bit of a wolf lover. That affection also extends easily to werewolves. And yet, surprisingly enough, the only 'werewolf' books I've reviewed thus far were the Mercy Thompson series. So when Mr. Bell offered his soon-to-be-released werewolf story up for review, I was thrilled to accept. And look at that, our color schemes match perfectly!

Coming Soon: Bonds of Fenris

~Bonds of Fenris~
By S. J. Bell

Talia Thornwood's life ended one year ago, when she became a werewolf. She survived the attack, and the horrifying transformation a month later, but the life she has now is barely worth living. She lurks about in a filthy, run-down house, with too many werewolves crammed into too small a space. Every day is a struggle against the stress of human contact, the romantic prodding of her obnoxious packmate Pierce, and the gnawing hunger for flesh in her soul.

She's all but resigned herself to a dreary existence on the margins of society when she meets Corwin. Corwin is a werewolf like none other. He walks among humans as if it was nothing, and can keep his wolf under control even when the moon is full. Talia's mind is suddenly opened to the possibilities before her, and the realization of how little she really knows about lycanthropy.

Corwin claims that he can teach her how to cope as he does, even how to transcend her affliction. But it will not be easy. It is a hard education that requires her to question everything her pack taught her, and confront exactly what she has become. And, more amazingly, what she never stopped being.

Bonds of Fenris is a paranormal novel by S.J. Bell,
due to be released through Smashwords on May 7, 2012.

The gorgeous cover was designed by the delightful Stephanie Mooney.

Be sure to check out the author's blog for more updates!

And check back here for a review of the ARC closer to the release.
I'm so excited at the prospect of a new werewolf book! How about you?

Book Blogger Hop (8)

Why do you read the genre that you do?
What draws you to it?

I read mainly Fantasy. This then trickles down into the subgenres of Urban Fantasy, Paranormal (Romance), Supernatural, Fairytales, etc.
I also enjoy reading a lot of Fantasy directed at YA.

Now for the big question...
Why?

For me, reading means escape. It means taking a step out of my boring/depressing/stagnant life and jumping into someone else's for a while. While it's nice to have some similarities between characters and myself, I want something new, exotic, fantastical. I don't want to be reminded of normal life, I want to be whisked away and not think about it.

High Fantasy takes me away to a world where anything is possible. In worlds where magic is in charge, everyone seems to have more of a fighting chance. Sure, there's sometimes some tricky vocabulary to tackle, but once that's done it's easy to forget everything and become lost in the pages.

Urban Fantasy/Paranormal/Supernatural books tend to be rooted in our world, but contain fantasy elements. I love werewolves, vampires, wizards, witches, demons, angels, superheros, villains, and the like because they take a small part of what I'm familiar with, but have so many more possibilities. When I'm reading these, it's hard not to glance around for traces of magic lurking just out of vision.

Young Adult fiction reaches me because in many cases I'm still young and inexperienced. Though I'm 5-8 years older than a lot of the characters, I still feel I can relate to their problems, their questions, their pain. And in that way, I'm with them through their triumphs, too.

So to me, reading is an escape.
It's exciting, it's eventful, it's not anything I'll ever experience.
Except through a book.

What about you? What do you read, and why?

Feel free to post a link to your own blog in the comments,
and be sure to check out other blog-hoppers at Crazy-for-Books' blog!

P is for Paranormal

With the recent trend wave onslaught of Paranormal Lit (especially in YA) I thought I'd dedicate a post to the genre that seems to be conquering the shelves.

Paranormal Lit primarily focuses on creatures that 'have yet to be discovered' by modern society, creatures that exist outside our 'normality'. Ghosts, vampires, werewolves, zombies, and faeries seem to be the most popular at the moment, though angels, demons, mermaids, dragons, and unicorns are also appearing. Another important aspect of Paranormal Lit is that it takes place now, as in within this decade. This better serves to juxtapose our reality (our normalcy) with what is going on 'under our noses'.

Paranormal fiction is, technically, a sub-genre of Fantasy, on the same level as High-Fantasy or Urban-Fantasy. High-Fantasy tends to be more medieval in time period, and contains more traditional mythological creatures. Magic and mythology are well-known by all, and even the landscapes tend to be magic-based.

Urban-Fantasy, however, is more closely related to Paranormal Lit, and so the terms are often interchangeable. They usually focus on the same creatures, and both appear in the same time period (present). However, I find Urban-Fantasy usually revolves around magic, while Paranormal Lit tries for a more scientific approach or a very strict rule-based magic. Urban-Fantasy also often features the fantasy-world as un-hidden (or slowly becoming so) from the masses, whereas Paranormal Lit usually focuses on keeping things under wraps.

Another trend I've noticed in the Paranormal genre is most books being Paranormal Romance. Not only is one (or more) character non-human, but that character is also irresistibly attractive. The majority of the book/series is either resisting the impulse to jump the impossibly attractive other character (and eventually giving in) or trying to overcome adversity (villain/prejudice) and be with that character forever. Now, I appreciate a good romance as much as the next girl, but seeing the same thing over and over again is getting a bit annoying.

Finally, here's a list of what category (I think) certain books fall under:

~High Fantasy~

Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien

Graceling/Fire - Kristen Cashore

Tortall Series - Tamora Pierce

The Inheritance Cycle (Eragon) - Christopher Paolini

~Urban Fantasy~
Mercy Thompson Series - Patricia Briggs
Kate Daniels Series - Ilona Andrews
The Dresden Files - Jim Butcher

~Half-n-Half~

Harry Potter Series - JK Rowling

Young Wizards Series - Diane Duane

~Paranormal Lit~

Artemis Fowl Series - Eoin Colfer

The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare

Twilight Series - Stephanie Meyer

Well, are you a fan of the genre? Or are you perhaps a little more comfortable with a different genre?

Some P Books I've Read:

Released TODAY!

A Puppeteering P Group:

The P Font:

Mercy, I'm Home

~Mercy Thompson: Homecoming~
Mercy Thompson
Prequel to Moon Called
By Patricia Briggs
Illustrated by Francis Tsai & Amelia Woo
Amazon ~ Powell's

Mercy Thompson doesn't go searching for trouble, but it usually finds her anyway. She is a coyote-shapeshifter who has been raised by werewolves most of her life, but now she wants out from under their oppressive rules. Out of work, out of friends, she's just about ready to give up and move back in with her mother...

...When she suddenly finds her self in the middle of a werewolf feud. And while one side holds to the strict rules she's tried to escape from, the other prefers a much looser, and more dangerous, code of conduct.

So now all she has to do is find a place to live, a steady job, and stay out of the way of the local fae, vampires, and two packs of territorial werewolves. Somehow, moving back home doesn't sound like such a bad plan...

Those Who Live in Glass Houses...

This review WILL hold spoilers for the first two books in the series. Frankly there's too much that happens in them for it not to. If you have not read them (City of Bones, City of Ashes), and you are still planning on it, I suggest you not read this review.

This review will NOT, however, hold plot spoilers about City of Glass.

~City of Glass~
The Mortal Instruments
Book 3
By Cassandra Clare
Amazon ~ Powell's

Clary is on a mission. She knows she's got to get to the Glass City and find a warlock who can break the spell her mom's under. She's just got one problem: getting into the Glass City is illegal unless they're expecting you.

Make that two problems: Jace doesn't want her to go. He thinks it's too dangerous for her to be there, especially with the Clave's interest in what happened on Valentine's ship. Jace is determined to protect her, even if it means lying to her to do so.

Um, make that three problems: Simon is held prisoner by the Clave. After accidentally getting dragged into the Glass City, the Clave takes a particular interest in his Daywalking abilities. A vampire who can withstand sunlight is a peculiar anomaly, and that he gained this ability after dealing with Valentine makes him doubly suspicious.

And, speaking of Valentine, add him to her list of problems. It appears that with two of the Mortal Instruments in his grasp, he's determined to have the third, even if it means a full-scale assault on the Glass City! Are the Shadowhunters strong enough to stand up against Valentine and his army of demons? Or can they put aside their differences and call on Downworlders for help? Would the Downworlders even answer their call?

Clary's determined to face all these problems head on, with or without Jace's help. Luckily, she's not short on the help of friends, especially the charming new Shadowhunter, Sebastian. But even so, she'd much rather have Jace's help. But can she convince him to work with her, even if they can't be together? Or must she face her tasks alone...

Ashes to Ashes

This review WILL hold spoilers for the first book in the series. Frankly there's too much that happens in the first book for it not to. If you have not read the first book (City of Bones), and you are still planning on it, I suggest you not read this review.

This review will NOT, however, hold plot spoilers about City of Ashes.

~City of Ashes~
The Mortal Instruments
Book 2
By Cassandra Clare
Amazon ~ Powell's

Clary has a lot on her plate now. Not only is her mom in a magical coma, her father an evil megalomaniac, and her entire past a lie, but the first guy she truly fell in love with turned out to be her brother. And let's just say she's not handling it as swimmingly as they did in Star Wars.

Jace isn't happy with the sibling situation either. He's also having a hard time coping with his father's betrayal. And to make matters worse, the Clave and his adoptive parents question Jace's loyalty. Without his teachers and parents' trust, where else is he to turn?

But personal problems will have to wait when young Downworlders start showing up completely drained of blood. If the vampires aren't to blame, what could the purpose be? And could it have something to do with the theft of the second Mortal Instrument, the Soul-Sword? Clary, Jace and their friends may have to break some rules if they're going to get to the bottom of this mystery, and this time, there's no turning back...