Review: City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare

Title: City of Lost Souls

Author: Cassandra Clare

Series: The Mortal Instruments (#5)

Publication Date: May 8, 2012
Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal, YA

The New York Times bestselling Mortal Instruments continues—and so do the thrills and danger for Jace, Clary, and Simon.

What price is too high to pay, even for love? When Jace and Clary meet again, Clary is horrified to discover that the demon Lilith’s magic has bound her beloved Jace together with her evil brother Sebastian, and that Jace has become a servant of evil. The Clave is out to destroy Sebastian, but there is no way to harm one boy without destroying the other. As Alec, Magnus, Simon, and Isabelle wheedle and bargain with Seelies, demons, and the merciless Iron Sisters to try to save Jace, Clary plays a dangerous game of her own. The price of losing is not just her own life, but Jace’s soul. She’s willing to do anything for Jace, but can she still trust him? Or is he truly lost?
Love. Blood. Betrayal. Revenge. Darkness threatens to claim the Shadowhunters in the harrowing fifth book of the Mortal Instruments series.

This is probably my favourite book in the series by far, since I haven't read City of Heavenly Fire. I've given all the books in the series 5 stars, but speaking plot wise, this book was probably the best. City of Bones was the beginning of the series, and we all know that most of the first books in series aren't usually the best. City of Ashes was SO BLAND. City of Glass? It was also kind of long and boring, but still alright. And City of Fallen Angels was like as slow as molasses. The entire time I was like:

In City of Lost Souls, I just fell in love with Sebastian and I'm pretty sure 80% of this review is going to be on WHY. I have a feeling that this review will be very messy and all over the place and might turn into a rant, so don't say you weren't warned...

I'm not really going to go into depth about what this book is about, because it's basically a continuation of the series (no, duh) and you must read the series in order. It's basically about how Clary gets herself involved with this "world of Nephilim" where there are these half men half angel warriors called Shadowhunters who fight demons and protect the mundane (another word for human) world. In this book, Jace, Clary's boyfriend and Sebastian, Clary's half demon brother's souls are linked together and Clary and her friends are trying to separate their souls.

City of Lost Souls actually focuses on Sebastian for most of the story. When demon controlled other Jace offered to take Clary to his and Sebastian's secret hideout, Sebastian wanted to show Clary the other 'big brother' side of him and that's when its revealed that we might have all misjudged the evil Sebastian. 

"Don't you hate and despise Downworlders?"
"No," he said. "Don't mix me up with Valentine."

I found Sebastian to be really likeable when he started to show the other side of him. He's smart, funny, and a lot of times in the story, I just felt a pang of sympathy towards him. Turns out that deep inside of him, he still has a heart.

"You stabbed Luke," she said. "Someone I care about. Someone I love-"
"He was about to blow me to pieces with a shotgun," said Sebastian. "You love him; I don't know him. I was saving my life, and Jace's. Do you really not understand that?"
"And maybe you're just saying whatever you think you need to say to get me to trust you."
"Would the person I used to be care if you trusted me?"
"If you wanted something."
"Maybe I just want a sister."

When I said I started to like Sebastian a tiny bit more than Jace in this book in one of my other posts, I wasn't kidding. Of course Jace is describe as "hot stuff" and all that, but he's like the perfect guy. We're like meant to like him because he's "the golden angel" as Clary says and because he's SO PERFECT with his golden hair, golden eyes, hot body, and bleh....but then there's SEBASTIAN who's not even close to being perfect, but he's trying to become a better person. Sebastian is so much more interesting that JACE, who everyone loves and adores.

"All right", she said. "Turn around."
He did. And she swallowed back a gasp. His bare back was striped with ragged scars, one after another, too even to be a random accident.
Whip marks.
"Who did this to you?" she said.
"Who do you think? Our father," he said. "He used a whip made of demon metal, so no iratze could heal them. They're meant to remind me."
"Remind you of what?"
"Of the perils of obedience."

Sebastian was like the heart of the story. Without him, the story would probably be flat. Before I read City of Lost Souls, I just wanted him to die like he was some kind of bug on my food. And now I'm really scared that Sebastian WILL die because you know, he's the evil guy and evil guys usually always die right? And I'm 90% sure he will die in City of Heavenly Fire,  right when we actually see the other nicer, kinder side of him! He's been tortured and abused by Valentine and shaped into this thing to be ruthless, but at the same time, he's always unloved. 

Going back to your own mother and just having her reject you because you have demon blood in you is just too sad. And because he's Valentine's son, he's regarded as Valentine himself as well. Jocelyn is also a shell of a mother. How can you reject your own child, even when he's a "demon thing"? If she was a good mother, she'd probably at least attempt to help Sebastian in his current state, not abandon her own child and leave him. I hate how Cassandra Clare put us in a situation like this where we just know she's going to kill him in the last book.

I also loved Simon in the story. He's such an awesome friend and I keep repeating this but he is. Stay awesome bro. 

One tiny (well I wouldn't say super tiny, but still small) thing that really irked me was MAIA AND JORDAN. They have NO ROLE AT ALL IN THE STORY! I don't even know why Cassandra Clare included them...they were basically just this lupine couple that just took up like 7% of City of Lost Souls swooning over each other. And they were completely meaningless and irrelevant to the story. They're actually not just only in City of Lost Souls but they took up part of City of Fallen Angels too, though I just never wrote a review for that one and I didn't mention it but I'd just like to say it now...WHY ARE THEY EVEN IN THE STORY??? 

There were so many feels in this book. I cried for like 60% of the book. I loved City of Lost Souls and again, it's my favourite book in the series by far! I really hope that Sebastian doesn't die but he's almost BOUND to die. *cries* I wish there was someone to ship Sebastian with...wait, I'll ship him with me :D Anyways, I can't wait to see what happens in City of Heavenly Fire! (I love that title, Heavenly Fire sounds so colourful....) Even if you read TMI and stopped at City of Fallen Angels and you don't want to read the rest of the series or you need to catch up, catch up with the series and READ IT NOW! I tell you, City of Lost Souls is a  MUST READ, and you'll definitely be bawling your eyes out and fangirling once you're finished! 

Recommend?