blog entry #2

In recent years I seriously began to question my ability to read as fast and as much as I used to do in the past. Turns out all I needed in order to start devouring books again was to find a book series that actually interested me enough to do so. I’ve been on the look-out for a new fantasy series I could fall in love with for a long time now, but I never thought that it would be “The Mortal Instruments” by Cassandra Clare. But this May I read six books in the series in a space of a few weeks, proving that I still had it in me. On the other hand, it could be that the books are well-written and easily read, the world is well-shaped, and the characters aren’t too bad either. It’s not a new discovery for me. Not at all. In fact, I read the first three books in the series many years ago – probably soon after they had come out. I watched the film based on the first book in the cinema just as many years ago and I actually liked it a lot, so I was sorry to hear that there would be no continuation. I even re-watched it not so long ago. However, I couldn’t completely like the series, because I’m not a huge fan of the main characters: Clary and Jace. Normally, I need to love the main characters in order to enjoy the books, but these two just annoy me to no end. Still, I’ve kept an eye on the news about the Shadow World all these years and watched as more and more books joined the series, expanding the world that held a certain irresistible attraction for me. I love its structure and hierarchy and laws and all the problems that come with them, so I guess it was just a matter of time before I came back to devour the rest three books. A few years ago I chanced upon a used copy of “City of Fallen Angels” and bought it without any clear idea to ever actually read it. I just knew that I wanted and needed to have it. Well, this spring it finally came in handy and I was happy that I got my hands on it when I had the chance. Earlier this spring I finally watched “Shadowhunters: The Mortal Instruments” TV show and loved it much more than I’d expected to. In fact, I had been convinced that I wouldn’t like it at all and the only reason why I even started watching it was because I had always been impartial to Alec and Magnus and the loveliness that is Malec. So I shifted my focus from the main couple to my favourite couple and with that new view in mind reread “City of Bones”, “City of Ashes”, and “City of Glass” before continuing with the rest of the series. It was like coming back home to familiar settings and friendly faces and I love when books make me feel like that. Along the way I’ve read some stories from “Magnus Bane Chronicles” and “The Eldest Curses”. I’ve already read “The Red Scrolls of Magic” and I’m currently reading “The Lost Book of the White” before returning to finish “The Mortal Instruments” series with the humongous volume of “City of Heavenly Fire”. For years I’ve felt this strange pull towards this series and it looks as though my longing to plunge headfirst into the world of Shadowhunters and Downworlders has finally won over. And I can’t say that I’m sorry!