Lord of Shadows (The Dark Artifices #2)

                Hello happy readers!  So as many of my fellow Shadowhunters are aware the newest i book came out last week, Lord of Shadows.  I had the audiobook pre-ordered and had been waiting to dive in after how Lady Midnight left off and had me very worried.  So buckle in and sit back while I try to put my all over thoughts into a somewhat coherent review for this amazing story.  Spoilers ahead for the previous books in the universe duh.  To catch up I reviewed Lady Midnight here.  Also as I listened to the audiobook I didn’t see the names written so sorry in advance if I mess up any of the spellings I am trying to Google them first!

Rating: 5 Runes

                When we left off in Lady Midnight they had just killed the evil warlock and managed to keep things under wraps about their deal with the faeries and Uncle Author with his condition among other things.  Oh and Jem and Tessa shared the news with Emma of the parabatai curse making the love between her and Julian not just against the Shadowhunter law but a curse.  Now while the Shadowhunters have some stupid and unfair laws this one is there for a reason even if no one really knows it.  So Emma decides to pretend to date his brother to make him not love her anymore to prevent the curse.  That’s just the start of the mess with an extremist group, the Cohort, trying to push their agenda and the stress of the Cold Peace and all things Faerie.  So just your typical day at the LA Institute.

                So first things first I listened to the audiobook which I adored.  I was a few chapters, a few hours, before I realized why the voice sounded familiar.  It’s ready by James Marsters (AKA Spike from Buffy) and that was just extra sprinkles on the book because I always adored his voice.  Now for the story, I was so anxious about this curse.  I had spent the time since reading Lady Midnight trying to come up with ways it could be avoided or some loop hole and I kept coming up with nothing solid.  Plus the whole having to hurt him to push him away because being told it’s impossible to love someone doesn’t make the feeling go away even if you want it to.  Feelings are tricky that way.  So I expected there to be some of that back and forth with this side of things.  I went back and forth between saying screw it I want them together just be honest and stop hurting each other and wanting them to stay apart so nothing bad happened.  I just adore them.  But this pretend dating made me love Mark even more.  I really grew to like him in the last book but in this one, him curling up in a blanket cocoon every night in Emma’s room and them talking and really connecting was beautiful.  They were connecting in a way that parabatai are supposed to connect so seeing the inverse with brothers was a great play.

                 I just fell in love with everyone!  I mean I already loved the Blackthron kids from Julian for obvious reasons and his love and care for his family, Liv and Ty with their bond and determination to help, even Dru and her body issues tired of always being stuck babysitting and of course sweet little Tavy.  Even poor Arthur and his broken mind.  I loved that the book handled his condition and showed several sides to it.  This is even more so done of Ty.  We knew he was different and for Shadowhunters that isn’t a good thing as they don’t like not being able to place people in boxes but we really dove into his character.  Seeing him with Kit and watching as Kit, who thought he was normal and knows more about mundane medicine and psychology understands him.  Watching these two interact while Kit struggles with his newfound “family” and surroundings was what they both needed.    This book for all it had happening really gave you a chance to dive into so many characters including Diana and her past which, was so well done and so different all I can say is kudos.

                We also had more of the familiar faces we know from the previous book series which I adore!  I mean I loved these characters so of course seeing them, even if only in smaller less major rolls is huge.  I love knowing what is going on with Jace and Clary in NY and even more I was beyond thrilled to see more Magnus and Alec!  Magnus is my favorite character of the world, not only is he in every series but he is fabulous.  I also adore him and Alec so happy and in family mode was great!  Plus whenever he gets to whip up his blue flames of magic with a smart quip is perfect!  Everything in this world is connected somehow and I love it!

                 Faerie is also a huge influence in this series.  We have the Cold Peace with not everyone agrees with but getting rid of it is easier said than done.  We go into Faerie and get to see both the Seelie and Unseelie courts, both dangerous in their own way.  While the Unseelie King has always been an enemy, the Seelie Queen has been devious in the past with horrible consequences so it’s hard to trust either.  Something did happen I didn’t know if it was possible to do, I like Kieran.  And Gwen (Wild Hunt leader).  Yep, never saw that coming but they were both developed in this story and the way the characters interact and the stories all flow just really opens them up in the best way possible and gives so much to attach to.  Speaking of the Wild Hunt, we see another band of elite and terrifying faerie warriors.  

                Lord of Shadows really had so much going for it.  I was invested in the world I already love flaws and all as it brings important topics to the forefront.  The characters who are all so unique and special in their own way even the baddies I love to hate on.  Ships to ship and so much more.  I also love how the story balances out the mystery and intrigue handling so many different aspects and somehow making them all blend together.  My biggest gripe about this book is that per Goodreads (at this moment) it shows an estimated publication date for the next book to be 2019!  That’s not even a year wait but LONGER!  With the ending…and just trust that I have some serious feels about that ending.  Like LOTS of feels about that ending.  I need more and I need it now.  2019 is too long of a wait so I hope it was a typo. 

                Still that’s all for now.  I’d love to hear your thoughts and feels in the comments below.  I’m waiting for my friend to finish it now and it’s killing me not being able to discuss it with her yet (payback for not having caught up with The 100 yet she says) but my world of bookish peeps are here so score!  Check back I have a couple giveaways planned in the next bit and I think the next one will go live in the next day or so!

                Until next time…