I started reading this book even before the community quarantine or “lockdown” started. I finally finished reading it! I’ll write out all my thoughts about this first book of Cassandra Clare’s Dark Artifices trilogy. Just a disclaimer though, this isn’t a full book review. I just like to tease you to read it and this goes out also to the Shadowhunter world fandom. Here go my Dark Artifices: Lady Midnight Book Writeup.
The Shadow World
Just a super short background, Shadowhunters are beings with angel blood. They solely kill demons and protect mundanes from any supernatural dark forces. They have a government called The Conclave/Clave. All the supernatural characters are all true in the Shadow world such as vampires, warlocks, faeries, demons, angels and more.
This book is the sequel to the first book series of Cassandra Clare, The Mortal Instruments. The timeline is five years after the Dark War. There was a prequel too which came out right before The Dark Artifices. It was The Infernal Devices which is also a trilogy.
The Characters
The protagonists here are Emma Carstairs and Julian Blackthorn and their family. These characters are all too familiar for me as Cassandra Clare already presented them in the last book of The Mortal Instruments, The City of Heavenly Fire. In the Dark Artifices: Lady Midnight, the characters are a bit older and more mature. There are many other characters in this book that came from all the siblings of Julian Blackthorn and the characters they meet outside the borders of the Institute (this is like the headquarters/home of the Shadowhunters).
Characters from previous books
If you have read The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices, reading Dark Artifices: Lady Midnight is such a delight! My eyes just lit up when Magnus came into the picture, Jace and Clary. They are from The Mortal Instruments. I could remember how they look like when Freeform TV even made a TV adaptation of the book entitled, “Shadowhunters: The Mortal Instruments.” I wrote a long review about that by the way. If you’re interested, click here: Shadowhunters: The Mortal Instruments
Now, from the characters of The Infernal Devices, which is still very fresh for me because I read that trilogy before this; Tessa Gray and Jem Carstairs also played an important role in Lady Midnight. I seriously felt my heart racing and feeling all giddy as all these characters are in one book. I love how Cassandra Clare interconnected the characters of the Shadow world! I am in awe and I even feel like drawing a family tree of all of them.
The Storyline
Here comes again the concept of “Parabatai.”A Parabatai is a pair of Nephilim warriors who fight together as lifelong partners, bound together by oath. The bond makes them stronger Shadowhunters, but The Law forbids a romantic affection for the pair. Emma and Julian are each other’s Parabatai. You may already know what happened next, right? The story also developed when Emma is not convinced that her parents were killed during the Dark War. Investigations went on and even The Faerie got involved. I was also fascinated that there are many groups of “fairies.”
If you want me to give you more about this Dark Artifices: Lady Midnight Book Writeup, keep reading! In my own interpretation aside from what’s written on the back cover page, this book is about vengeance, love, betrayal, determination, truth, sacrifice and longingness.
How do I feel about the book? (This one, I’m spoiling a bit of the story, you may stop reading!)
Of course, there was joy and enlightenment. I like it when the small characters from the previous books were given light in this book and that there are more tales to tell. I also felt waive of regret, and sorrow too especially for Emma and Julian. The love is there, they expressed their love more than just a Parabatai but it just can’t happen—yet. We’re still in the first book of the trilogy so my hope for them isn’t dead yet. I didn’t see it coming, the twist, who betrayed and all. I was a bit surprised when Malcolm was the lover of the “Lady Midnight.”
Tessa and Jem’s love felt so eternal as their love had been a century. Cassandra Clare knows the right words to lace together when it comes to them. I admire that. I might be able to write about the Infernal Devices soon too!
That ends my blog about Dark Artifices: Lady Midnight. I hope this inspires you to keep reading books and to read Cassandra Clare’s beautifully written books of the Shadowhunters.