If you’re into young adult fantasy such as Twilight, Star Wars, and Harry Potter, then you will love The Mortal Instruments series. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare is the first of six books that is followed by City of Fallen Ashes, City of Glass, City of Fallen Angels, City of Lost Souls, and City of Heavenly Fire. The book itself contains mystery, mythical creatures, and action that keeps you on the edge of your seat.

The main character Clary, who is fifteen years old, comes across an unexpected world one night in a club. Everything changed that night for her in Pandemonium since she was able to see a teenager, Jace, apparently murder an innocent man. She later discovered Jace had actually killed a demon because he was a Shadowhunter. Shadowhunters are half angel/half human they protect their world.

Clary comes into contact with more Shadowhunters when her mom, Jocelyn, is kidnapped by the evil Shadowhunter, Valentine. When she realizes her mom has been kidnapped, she is attacked by demons, and Jace comes in and saves her.  Both she and Jace realize she’s a Shadowhunter and they team up to save her mom. Once she got mixed up with the Shadowhunters, Clary finds out that her mother and Luke, her father figure, had been part of the Shadowhunter world before she was even born. Along with the cocky and attractive Jace, Clary meets his siblings, Alec and Isabelle Lightwood, who help her save her mother. They eventually seek help from the warlock, Magnus Bane, who had helped Jocelyn make Clary forget about the evil lurking inside her.

There couldn’t possibly be a young adult novel without a love triangle and Clary finds herself struggling between with her feelings for her best friend Simon and her attraction to the impulsive Jace.  Matters get complicated for Clary as Simon, despite not being a Shadowhunter, joins in to help Clary save her mother.

I would definitely recommend City of Bones, since I fell in love with it on the first read. The book is written mostly in Clary’s perspective but further on the book begins to switch back and forth between Clary and Jace’s perspective. What caught my attention the most was how the book contains a little bit of everything from drama to action to comedy. The book is definitely worth reading, before seeing the movie, and it even ends with a cliffhanger that leaves you begging for more, which can be found in Book 2, City of Ashes.