Chain of Thorns by Cassandra Clare Audiobook Review

Chain of Thorns by Cassandra Clare
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
BUY THE BOOK

Ok my thoughts are gathered! Haha

Overall there were things that I wish has been done differently but every time she writes a book I end up devouring it.

I don't necessarily think this is a five star book, however, it is a five star series in a five-star world, and considering so many people gave it one star for literally no reason when they haven't even read it, I'm rounding up. My actual rating would be about a 4.3.

I listened to this on audio (thank you S&S audio) and it was fantastic. I'm so glad they have finally picked a great narrator and stuck with her for the entire series. She did an amazing job with The Last Hours and I highly recommend the audiobook!

My absolute favorite Cassie Clare series, and one of my favorite series ever is The Infernal
Devices. I reread the series while waiting for this to come out and it was even better than I remember. I also reread the first two books in this series and they were just as good as I remember. TID still holds my number one spot, but this series definitely gets the number two slot.

I absolutely love the characters in this series. Every. Single. One. of the main characters has my heart. Daisy is possibly my favorite Shadowhunter girl Cassie has written to date. She is fantastic! No wonder everyone is in love with her!! After the way things ended in the last book (WHICH I WAS TOTALLY HERE FOR) I was so on edge about how things were going to play out. I do think I wish things had been a little more fleshed out in Chain of Thorns, but overall I'm really pleased with the way everything was handled. Especially when it comes to Matthew (sweet Matthew!). I love him so much and just wanted his character to be written with respect considering everything he is dealing with. In my opinion it was. I only have secondhand experience with alcoholism so I will be interested to see what others think, but I feel both satisfied while still longing for more. I just always want more!

There are SO MANY things that I loved about this book, most especially just the way Cassie is able to make me want to keep turning the (metaphorical) pages. And the way she makes me fall in love with so many of her characters and their dynamic. I just tend to need to hash out the things I wish were different, so bear with me.

All that to say, I did love this book but I will say I think it's the weakest of the three. Following will be very minor spoilers if you want to know NOTHING...

All of the other characters were incredible as well. BUT PREPARE YOURSELVES! There was NO WAY we were going to get through this series without heartache. You have to already know that. And there will be heartache. I won't say more, but even though it hurt me, I think it was the right choice. In fact, I think she could've hurt us a little more. This is one small complaint I have because I love these books but I do think we get off too easy in a world that is constantly in turmoil and fighting.

Part of that is my own personal preference and just a little bit of fatigue with the way that Cassie tends to wrap up all her series (especially the latest ones) a little too neatly for me. I don't think it would be such a big deal if there weren't SO MANY relationships. Literally all the people get their own individual story lines and individual romances and they are all THE LOVES OF THEIR LIVES FOREVER AND EVER. Don't get me wrong, I both love and hate this. Obviously I love a HEA and I want everyone to be happy and in love etc, but when everyone is at the same time it gets a little repetitive and eye roll worthy. But again, I'm torn about it, because I still want it. haha

The next part is VERY SPOILERY. Please don't read until after you've read COT

(view spoiler)[ So here are the things I didn't love as much. One, I didn't feel like there was enough tension, in both the romance aspect and in the way the way book ended. I felt like things could've been done to add a bigger build up to their relationship when the time came. And the ending felt too easy. It also bothered me that Cordelia is this total baddie with all this power and ability, and in the end, it was James that actually "saved the day". Cordelia was so stifled in this book and it was so frustrating, which I would've been fine with if in the end there was a big payoff and she came back with a vengeance, either with her fighting skills or her wits. I also felt like making every relationship be so perfect (with the exception of the one not in the triangle anymore) was just too much. And honestly, the person who died was also the easy choice, imo. Not that I want ANYONE to die, but sometimes I feel like it needs to happen. Otherwise there are no real stakes. And it would be one thing if there weren't so many books and series in this world, but when everything always works out and no one super important ever dies, it makes it harder to be really concerned for anyone's safety because you know she's never going to hurt her darlings. Again, this is just personal preference and of course I would be PISSED if certain characters died so maybe it's a lose/lose. I even found myself wishing at one point that Jesse was actually manipulating Lucie and really working for Tatiana just so something would shock me. haha I guess what I'm saying is I'd like the stakes to be a little higher. (hide spoiler)]

Overall I love the Shadowhunter world. I love this series. The Last Hours will immediately be going on my reread list, and I can't wait to see all the things Cassie has in store for us in the future!

View all my reviews