The second in The Dark Artifices series, Lord of Shadows, refers to the King of the Unseelie Faerie Court, who hunts for The Black Book of the Dead, hoping it will unlock the power to destroy the Shadowhunters he hates. With the wizard Malcolm Fade finally destroyed, Julian Blackthorn returns to running the Los Angeles Institute and looking after his siblings, Tavvy, Ty, Livvy, and Dru. Of course, the peace doesn’t last long. Soon, giant squid demons are threatening the southern California coast. They are the least of the Blackthorn’s problems since the Cohort, a radical faction inside the Clave, seeks war with the Downworlders. There’s lots of action and supernatural shenanigans as good Shadowhunters face off against evil ones once again; however, I believe the author spends way too much time in this book, immersing the reader in the romantic entanglement of the characters. Jules and Emma (parabatai) fight their forbidden love, while Kieran, Mark, and Cristina have an awkward threesome blooming. I know these relationships are essential to the plot. However, I can only read about how cloudy someone’s eyes are or how soft their hair is so many times. I felt this much time spent on every sexual desire the characters experience distracted from the story. ( )

I am starting to dislike Julian and the choices he has been making. I know that he thinks he has valid reasons for making these decisions but he is definitely moving towards the dark side. ( )

I really am so glad I finally got around to reading this book. It is a book I have put of mostly for length and I am regretting that. I really was impressed by this read. This book was one that packed such a punch but one that I not expect. Even thought this book had a massive cast of characters. i felt like that plot and the characters all got enough love and attention. I really grew to love all the characters even more and found the end of this book to be gutwrenching. So many things I adored about his book including the focus on predjuices and also LGBTQ story elements. I have so many characters from the previous series that i am dying to see, but I THINK this book was able to stand on its own. I must start the next read soon!! ( )

I really am so glad I finally got around to reading this book. It is a book I have put of mostly for length and I am regretting that. I really was impressed by this read. This book was one that packed such a punch but one that I not expect. Even thought this book had a massive cast of characters. i felt like that plot and the characters all got enough love and attention. I really grew to love all the characters even more and found the end of this book to be gutwrenching. So many things I adored about his book including the focus on predjuices and also LGBTQ story elements. I have so many characters from the previous series that i am dying to see, but I THINK this book was able to stand on its own. I must start the next read soon!! ( )

Just read it...but be prepared for that ending! You have been warned! ( )