Queen of Air and Darkness (The Dark Artifices #3) by Cassandra Clare
Pages: 912
Publish date: 4 December 2018
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 9781471116704
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU – QBD
What if damnation is the price of true love?
Innocent blood has been spilled on the steps of the Council Hall, the sacred stronghold of the Shadowhunters. In the wake of the tragic death of Livia Blackthorn, the Clave teeters on the brink of civil war. One fragment of the Blackthorn family flees to Los Angeles, seeking to discover the source of the blight that is destroying the race of warlocks.
Meanwhile, Julian and Emma take desperate measures to put their forbidden love aside and undertake a perilous mission to Faerie to retrieve the Black Volume of the Dead. What they find in the Courts is a secret that may tear the Shadow World asunder and open a dark path into a future they could never have imagined. Caught in a race against time, Emma and Julian must save the world of Shadowhunters before the deadly power of the parabatai curse destroys them and everyone they love.
Queen of Air and Darkness:
It’s taken me a while to write this review for a few reasons. The first being, I’m not sure how I fully feel. Queen of Air and Darkness was a hell of a ride and while I adored it, there were so many things that happened that change everything about the shadowhunter world. The second being, I just haven’t had time to get my thoughts down. But here we are now. I don’t even know where to begin with this review.
Just a warning, there will be spoilers from the previous two books in the series and the rest of the shadowhunter world. I have tried, hard not to spoil anything from Queen of Air and Darkness.
Queen of Air and Darkness by Cassandra Clare starts immediately after the end of Lord of Shadows. So you can guess that I was crying so hard in the first couple of chapters. And with the risks that present themselves throughout the novel, I was totally on high alert. There wasn’t any time for me to breath, because when I thought one bit was over – then a whole new thing began. Queen of Air and Darkness is intense, heartbreaking, but also so addicting. This series is by far my favourite of Clare’s and that is saying something. So many things have been elevated in this series including Clare’s writing and character development. I just keep on falling in love with this series over and over again.
Emma has been through a lot before Queen of Air and Darkness starts, and she isn’t really given a break in this one either. Emma is one of those protagonists that I can easily get along with. She is so easy to read and I loved seeing her grow not only through the series but through this book. Emma’s character arc is so well done and I couldn’t get enough of her. What I also love about Emma is that she is different from Cassandra Clare’s other female protagonists. While Tessa and Clary are both very strong characters, Emma has known she was a shadowhunter her whole life – it’s what she has been training for – so it makes her abilities and her sense of the world very different. It’s a nice contrast and I cannot wait to read more about Emma and the life that she takes.
Oh, Julian why do you like to hurt me? Why? Julian is a hurt soul, and while he might fight like a warrior, his heart is very soft. Not only has Julian had to look after himself, but has to grow up and look after his younger siblings. He has to become a father. And I don’t think he minded that too much, because he adores them, but that does play a lot into his character. Julian does some things in Queen of Air and Darkness that ruined me. It literally tore my heart out and stood on it. I understood why, but gosh did it hurt.
On their own Emma and Julian killed me, together they left me for dead. They were hurting already so much in this series, but Queen of Air and Darkness just tore it to pieces. If you thought the decision they make at the end of LoS was hard, the things that do in this one. I love Emma and Julian together so much, and they take forbidden love to a whole new level. There is something about Emma and Julian that make me so happy. They love each other no matter the faults, and they will do literally anything for one another. Even if it means leaving the world that they love behind.
There are many ups and downs throughout Queen of Air and Darkness and it isn’t just the relationship between Emma and Julian that is causing mayhem, but the shadowhunter world its self. So much that happens in this last book that plays a massive role is books to follow. There are so many changes coming that I can’t even begin to think what it means. One of my favourite things about Queen of Air and Darkness was that the reader is able to see old favourites. Clary and Jace, play a significant role in events that happen throughout the novel. Magnus and Alec again make their stance in the world.
While the Seelie and Unseelie courts play roles in other books by Cassandra Clare and even in the first two books of this series, they make their selves know in Queen of Air and Darkness. But they aren’t the only villains in this world and that scares me. The whole book the reader doesn’t know who to trust and while that makes it excited, it also makes it scary. The whole time you are waiting for something to explode.
Cassandre Clare does something really excited with Mark, Christian, and Kerien. I don’t want to go too much into here, but I’m intrigued by how she dealt with these three. I love them all. They are all intriguing and are able to stand out on their own. Their relationship is a game changer in YA I think. And I am excited to see what happens, or if I am just reading too much into it.
Kit, Ty and Dru, I just love these three. I can’t even begin with how much. Before the book, I knew that they would survive, but I didn’t know how much heartbreak Ty could go through in the meanwhile. He just lost his twin sister, his best friend. The one person that knows him better than anyone. But he can’t stop and grieve, because there is so much else going on. I think that might play into some of the things that he tries to do throughout Queen of Air and Darkness. Kit and Ty together, oh gosh, I am so not ready for the next series with them. Lucky I have a while to wait.
Throughout the novel when major things happen all I could think about is ‘what does this mean for the shadowhunter world.’ I don’t know what to think at the moment, and we won’t know for some time now. But this changes everything. And it’s going to be on hell of a ride. There are also so many more characters that I could talk about, Diego and Jamie in particular.
Overall, I loved Queen of Air and Darkness. I didn’t know what to expect going in. I had to think the worse or else, I would have been even more shattered. Queen of Air and Darkness explores family, friend, love, and loyalty to its core. It explores forbidden love and family heartbreak. But with beautiful writing, fantastic characters and a plot that just keeps you guessing, you won’t be able to put the book down. If you have been thinking about picking up this series, please do. There is so much about that I can praise again and again. Clare is able to intertwine many different storylines, effortlessly, that just adds another layer to both her world and her characters.
I can go on talking about this series and Queen of Air and Darkness in particular, but I am going to stop here. I just love, Emma, the Blackthorne family, Christian, Keirian and so many more characters in this series that I don’t know where to begin or stop. But tell me what you think? Have you read Queen of Air and Darkness yet? Did you love it? Are you planning on reading this series? Which series from Cassandra Clare are you excited for next? Let’s Chat.
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