City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Bibliographic Information:

Title: City of Bones

Author: Cassandra Clare

Copyright: 2007 (book), 2013 (movie), 2016 (show)

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books

ISBN: 9781416914280

Format: Print Prose Novel/ Audiobook/ TV Series/ Movie/ Graphic Novel

Genre: Fantasy/ Romance

Awards:

Locus Award Nominee for Best First Novel(2008),Georgia Peach Book Award Nominee for Honor book(2009),South Carolina Book Award Nominee for Young Adult Book Award(2010),Pacific Northwest Library Association Young Reader's Choice Award(2010),Lincoln Award(2010)

Reading/Interest Level: Ages 14+ (book), TVMA (show), PG13 (movie)

Plot Summary:

Clary Fray and her mom are for the most part a perfect duo, that is until strange things start happening. When Clary and her best friend Simon go to the club Pandemonium her view reality drastically changes. She witness a murder, she thinks, in a packed club and somehow no one else saw. After an argument where Clary's mom tells her that they are leaving town for a while, Clary happens to see the "murderer" from the night before at a cafe. This mysterious and attractive boy begins to explain to her a world beyond her imagination and tries to understand why she now is privy to it. That is until she receives an alarming phone call from her mother, who was captured. Clary is thrust into a new world in hopes of saving her mother. Will she find out more than she wants about her past while trying to recover her loved ones?

Author Background:

Cassandra Clare was born in Iran and from an extremely early age became a world traveler! She found friendship amidst these travels in books. When she was in high school she began writing and continued her professional writing journey in the tabloids after college. She began City of Bones, her first novel, in 2004 and has been writing fantasy full time ever since. Her works include The Shadowhunter Chronicles, the Magisterium Series, and the Sword Catcher Series.

Critical Evaluation:

I was utterly enraptured by this book, I am not so sure why it took me so long to begin this series, it seems I was just fighting the inevitable. The depth of media this novel and series has is incredible. For this reason I will be reviewing the media attached to this series that I have consumed.

I read the print novel in tandem with the audio book and that was just an experience in itself. I loved hearing the personalities come through and understanding the plot deeper due to the accents the voice actor used. I noticed some additions in the audiobook that were not included in the print novel and was curious if the discrepancies were due to the different editions of the story. As for content I really loved how quickly I got into this book, the world building did not make my brain hurt, and the plot was fast paced. I found even though some of the characters were a tad bit annoying, it's impossible not to love them. My only complaint is that for a fifteen year old, I found Clary and company's lifestyle unbelievable.

I watched the TV series when it first came out and despite what anyone has said, it is entertaining. Shadowhunters is objectively not great TV in terms of acting, it makes quite significant changes in terms of plot and character identity, and moves at a far faster rate than the books. However, it gives life to the book series and makes the story accessible or at least provides some publicity. I do find that this show fails to stay true to many elements within the book which can be aggravating and the characters/acting also can grate on you. But I have to admit to its strength in captivation. The show paints the characters as more mature and in that regard the show is less suited for younger audiences, because of this the series is able to draw a larger demographic.

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones is a movie I remember taking my teen friends by storm in High School. I recently watched it because I just couldn't get enough of the first book. I would say that this movie is a way better interpretation of the book as opposed to the show. The characters are portrayed in a more consistent light and the pace is more accurate. Obviously movies adapt the book to suit the format, and this movie does just so. The characters in this movie are a lot more "like-able" or compelling perhaps and the acting is better. I found that I resonated more with this depiction. However, like the show, this movie creates a draw for the series itself. I believe that this movie was supposed to be the first in a line of the Mortal Instruments movie adaptations but since 2013 it has not expanded. This does prove to be good for the book series as many viewers are hooked on Jace and Clary's story. I think that this is great to entice readers, even reluctant ones.

In addition, this series has also been adapted into a Graphic Novel! I unfortunately have not gotten my hands on it yet but again, it is only a matter of time! From the cover I can only imagine how amazing it is! I absolutely love a graphic novel adaptation, I think that it creates so much space for accessibility and inclusion. Likewise, I think that a graphic novel is another unique way of interpreting a story, the reader may understand things in a different way when reading the graphic novel than they did from the original prose novel.

Creative Use for Library Programming:

I featured this novel in my schools book club. I divided the book into four sections accompanied by reading prompts as well as an activity/material for each section. I shared a Spotify playlist to go along with the book series. One activity that I shared with my students was to encourage them to create their own page of the Shadowhunter Codex by creating a new weapon, monster, or rune for future shadowhunters to learn.

I am really excited about the temporary tattoos I made from tattoo paper I ordered and printed onto. I created both book and movie accurate Marks of Raziel for students to take home or apply. Here are the PDFs

Skin runes.pdf

Download PDF • 174KB

Black Runes.pdf

Download PDF • 141KB

Lastly I encouraged students to review/compare all forms of media related to this book series and answer some questions with links on how to access some of the content featured in this post.

Speed Round Book Talk:

15 year old girl who goes to night club and witnesses a "murder", the next morning has coffee with the hot murderer who tells "All the stories are true." Now her mom is missing and she has cool shaped stretch-mark-like scars.

Potential Challenge Issues and Defense Preparation:

City of Bones, the first book in the Mortal Instruments series has been marketed for readers 14 and up, however I have included this book as one of my middle schools book club picks. I have gone back and forth on whether it is suited for 6th grade and have not made a definite decision. I think that the mentality of Clary can lean a little mature for her described age and may not be as relatable to a younger audience. The book does mention drug use, sexual activity, violence, and adult language and for these reasons and others this book has already been challenged. It is important to note that many teens of all ages discuss this material in everyday conversation with their peers and it should be up to the individual to gauge what they are comfortable reading. My note as a librarian to the reader or fellow librarian is that as an urban fantasy this book can feel dated in aspects such as social norms and expectations. While this book does not have a message of hate it includes themes of hate and intolerance that may or may not be consistent with the current social climate.

Reason for Inclusion:

I included City of Bones in my blog for multiple reasons. First, because I have attached material/activities to this book I thought it would be worth while to share. In addition this series is still relevant, popular, and being added to. Lastly, I wanted to highlight how rich in media depth this story is, what an excellent way to involve readers, build a community, and entice new readers.

Check Out:

For more Shadowhunter content check out the official website.

References:

Amazon. (n.d.). The Mortal Instruments: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 1 (The Mortal Instruments: The Graphic Novel, 1) [Photo]. Accessed March 2025 from https://www.amazon.com/Mortal-Instruments-Graphic-Novel-Vol/dp/031646581X

Cassandra Clare (n.d.). My Bio. Accessed March 2025 from https://cassandraclare.com/about/

Goodreads. (n.d.). City of Bones. Accessed March 2025 from https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/256683.City_of_Bones

IMDb. (n.d.). The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones. [Photo]. Accessed March 2025 from https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1538403/

Rotten Tomatoes. (n.d.). Shadowhunters. [Photo]. Accessed March 2025 from https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/shadowhunters

Shadowhunters. (n.d.). Cassandra Clare's SHADOWHUNTERS. Accessed March 2025 from https://shadowhunters.com/

@tav. (n.d.). POV: you're reading "The Mortal Instruments". Spotify [Playlist]. Accessed March 2025 from https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5b6oLsAyknDZDuHgVdo6wg?si=c4-TSOxpQyqaWqLkF252kA