The Red Scrolls of Magic by Cassandra Clare

Jude-broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness-has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.īlack is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.Īutumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart their mothers are still best friends.

“Malec” shippers will clamor for installments to come.

The cast of secondary characters notably includes additional queer characters as well as Shinyun Jung, a Korean warlock. The acknowledgments place the book within the timeline of the City of Fallen Angels (Clare, 2011). However, the shifting third-person narration deepens characterization by exploring Alec’s internalized homophobia and Magnus’ past. While the book-length focus pulls these former secondary characters deservedly into the spotlight, its authenticity is marred by the excessive cologne of its clichéd Adonises. Though ostentatious in description, setting, and detail, Chu ( The Fall of Io, 2019, etc.) and Clare’s ( Queen of Air and Darkness, 2018, etc.) collaboration effectively balances star-crossed love with a contagious spirit of fun. Sexual tension abounds as the two steal moments of sizzling romance while fighting demons and solving the mystery. Rather than turning Magnus in to his fellow Shadowhunters for questioning, Alec stays loyal to his man.

A mysterious gap in Magnus’ memories keeps the truth at bay. This time, the immortal, bisexual, and biracial (Dutch/Indonesian) warlock stands accused of founding a human cult-the Crimson Hand-in the name of his demon father, Asmodeus.

One true pair Magnus Bane and Alec Lightwood get their own spinoff series.Įven when he’s on a glamorous and romantic holiday in Europe with his boyfriend, Alec, Downworlder excitement still finds its way to Magnus.

The Red Scrolls of Magic by Cassandra Clare