Chain of Gold by Cassandra Clare

Fans of The infernal devices series by Clare have a treat in this new series that stars Tessa and Will's children, James and Lucie Herondale as well as Cordelia Carstairs and a host of other characters. Cordelia is a Shadowhunter who has trained since childhood to battle demons. Her father has been accused of wrongdoing and with her family she travels to London in the hope of meeting influential people and clearing her name. There she meets James and Lucie again, friends from childhood, and begins to learn about the people in London's glittering Shadowhunter society. Then demons attack London, using an unknown poison to afflict the Shadowhunters and London is quarantined. Cordelia, while hiding her love for James, joins in the hunt for a cure as the group that James leads begin to uncover their powers.

At a massive 591 pages (plus a bonus short story featuring Tessa and Will) the story is crammed with many characters and much action. Cordelia is a very appealing heroine, strong and steady, while James is fighting demons of his own as he tries to find out who his grandfather was. Secondary characters like Matthew and Alistair have secrets that beg to be revealed and kept me fascinated to find out their background stories, which may be revealed in subsequent books in the series, and I cannot wait to see Lucie bloom and grow.

Clare’s writing is compulsive; she has the knack of writing characters that the reader wants to get to know and the adventure, romance and danger that they face will ensure that the book is finished and the next one put on a waiting list to be read.

Themes: Fantasy, Romance, Demons.

Pat Pledger