Cassandra Clare’s series The Mortal Instruments was a best-seller a couple years ago and is still a very popular book among young adults. However, it wasn’t very popular with me. Please, don’t attack me just yet, I’ll tell you why. During spring break, I decided to pick up Clare’s first novel in the series, City of Bones. The novel follows 15-year-old Clary Fray as she enters the world of Shadowhunters and demons. The story is set in New York and takes off when Clary witnesses Shadowhunters sending a demon back to the land down under. (*spoiler*) However, as a human, Clary shouldn’t have been able to see any of this. So, Clary is thrust into the Shadowhunter world and begins to unravel the mystery about her true nature: was she of human descent, or Shadowhunter? I was extremely excited to finally read this YA-favorite. I had seen the movie when it came out a couple years ago and hadn’t picked up the book beforehand, and thought it was time to read the original story. I was immediately distracted. It was hard for me to continue reading past chapter 1. Seriously, I couldn’t engage myself with the story like I usually do with any other book I read. Another thing that threw me off was the POV: 3rd person. I don’t usually mind it, but this time, it was particularly distracting. I was so confused when it went from Clary’s thoughts to her friend Simon’s, to another Shadowhunter’s, then back to Clary.

But, maybe if I try harder, it will grow on me. Don’t get me wrong, the idea is great. What drew me in was the fictional aspect of the novel. I’m a sucker for books about demons and people fighting them (which you can see in my previous review on Rick Riordan’s novel, The Trials of Apollo). I think I’ll give this book another try since there are about another five books in the series. The novel is a total of 485 pages and sure to be a hefty read. I recommend this novel for those who enjoy fictional novels about demons, a female hero, and don’t mind 3rd person POV.