Book Review : City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

 “Sarcasm is the last refuge of the imaginatively bankrupt.”

                                           ― City of Bones

Synopsis : When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder — much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Clary knows she should call the police, but it's hard to explain a murder when the body disappears into thin air and the murderers are invisible to everyone but Clary.
Equally startled by her ability to see them, the murderers explain themselves as Shadowhunters: a secret tribe of warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. Within twenty-four hours, Clary's mother disappears and Clary herself is almost killed by a grotesque demon.
But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know....

I first heard about City of Bones via the drama concerning author Cassandra Clare. I've heard everything from rave reviews of this book to people claiming it was downright laughable. I've also heard this series is pretty much like Twilight. When I found out the series was being picked up for a film, I finally decided to read it.

What did I think ?

I was expecting worse. I'm not really familiar with the fantasy genre, but I found this book to be overly cliched. It was easy to see how the novel was derivative from some of Clare's known fandoms; Harry Potter, Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Star Wars. All creative stories that are hard to live up to.

The novel does offers unique, diverse and glamorous (get it ?) characters, but their personalities tend to fall short and blend together. Everyone is so witty and snarky that after a while it becomes the books biggest flaw.

While City of Bones is fast paced the plot is very linear and can sometimes get dull.  I  found myself wondering if  something was really happening. The reader isn't given enough time to get into the world of City of Bones.

The novel does have a twist ending ( I was spoiled ) and I am interested to see how Clare has spawned the world to encompass 5 + books. I've already started City of Ashes with mixed thoughts.