Review: Chain of Gold by Cassandra Clare

Genre: Young Adult, Urban Fantasy, Paranormal, Historical, LGBT+
Pages: 624
Series: The Last Hours #1, The Shadowhunter Chronicles
Release Date: March 3, 2020
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books

This may just be my Procrastination Book of the year, and we’ve got a ways to go before the year actually ends. Last year’s procrastination book was Hard Times. And though this one didn’t take nearly as long, 50 days between starting the book and reviewing it is still a fair amount of time. But I won’t get into why it took that long. You can read my GR status updates for that.

This book is set in 1903. And for those of you not obsessed with The Shadowhunter Chronicles, I’ll try to patch together a synopsis. Though I urge you to read, at least, The Infernal Devices beforehand.

The characters featured in this novel are Cordelia Carstairs, James Herondale, Lucie Herondale, Matthew Lightwood, Anna Lightwood, and several others. Seriously, there are so many characters. And they’re Shadowhunters—part angel and part human, hidden from the human world, and trained to protect it from demons. The story is set in London. At the beginning of the novel, we’re introduced to a peaceful London. There’s barely any demonic activity. Unfortunately, it doesn’t last, and the characters are faced with threats that they may be unprepared for.

But that’s not the only thing happening. Cordelia’s family could be facing ruin, and she’s desperate to save them. James is in love with a girl he can’t be with. Matthew and Alastair Carstairs are struggling with their past actions. And Anna Lightwood is the coolest person in the world. No, she wasn’t spared the cruelties Cassie relishes inflicting on her characters, but that doesn’t make her any less awesome.

So yeah, lots of characters, lots going on. There are multiple subplots, there’s action, angst, humour, sarcasm, heartbreaking emotion… and I honestly love this book. Yes, some events frustrated me. Especially one which I found predictable. Partially because I know Cassie, and she always does this at the end of the first book. There’s always a lie or a misunderstanding. And I wish she’d a better way to create conflict in a romantic relationship. But you know what? I’m not going to rant about that. This one thing won’t be dominating my feelings for the book.

There are so many things to love about it. But for me, as is always the case with Cassie, it’s the characters. As I’ve mentioned before, there are a lot of them. And I adore them. They’re all so different and have different things driving them. Whether it’s love, determination, science, self-hatred, or the next great story. Cassie has previously written many of my favourite characters, and this time is no different.

And… what else can I say? This was the beginning of a series that I’ll surely love, even as it breaks everyone’s hearts. The setting in gorgeous, the people are lovely, and a great but unknown threat looms over it all. And I, for one, am eager to see where things are headed.