jazmin's reviews
676 reviews

“The greatest and most powerful revolutions often start very quietly, hidden in the shadows. Remember that.”

Okay so I never wrote a review for this book when I read it for the first time, so let’s try to write one now.

The Writing
First, I think that when you read this book, it’s very obviously the “older” style of YA paranormal/fantasy. As in published before 2013 ish. Not sure if this is a thing that people have noticed, but as the popularity of different book tropes and writing styles continuously changes, authors accommodate that. Therefore, things like love triangles and the I’m not like other girls trope that are no longer in style can be found in books like this series that were popular a few years ago… if that makes sense.

(Some examples would be the Lux series, the Covenant series, and the Fallen series. They focus a lot on the characters and they sort of have a new conflict in each book, as well as one main one.)

Anyway, of course, that doesn’t mean that this book wasn’t good, because just like last time it was very entertaining. It was just a bit of a change from some of the more recently-published fantasy I’ve been reading that focuses so much more on world-building and the plot.

Rose and Dimitri

Honestly at this point these two are just iconic. They’re not my favourite characters in the Vampire Academy world and I prefer Sydney and Adrian’s books, but a solid couple nonetheless. Although I do have to say that the fact that Rose hadn’t turned 18 yet in this book disturbed me.

“If I let myself love you, I won't throw myself in front of her. I'll throw myself in front of you.”

The Plot
This book was definitely only a small introduction into this world, and a lot more’s to come, so I can’t wait to continue with my reread!

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“You will lose what you value most, so treasure it while you can.”

Second time read, first time review. Things are finally starting to pick up, and I am absolutely hooked by this series, again.

⇢The Plot
Just like I said, the plot really exploded in this book. We’re finally getting into the main parts of the storyline, and I couldn’t be happier. And that ending! I’m pretty sure that I absolutely freaked out when I first read those last few chapters. Honestly, I can’t even remember what happens in the next book so I’m sort of going in blind.

⇢Rose’s Character Arc
Rose’s character and personality changed so much these past few books and I loved it. Although I sort of miss the irresponsible and crazy version of her, it was great to finally see her stick up for herself and discover what she wanted.

“It's not about you, okay? This time, it's about me. Not you. All my life, Lissa... all my life, it's been the same. They come first. I've lived my life for you. I've trained to be your shadow, but you know what? I want to come first. I need to take care of myself for once. I'm tired of looking out for everyone else and having to put aside what I want.”

⇢Rose and Dimitri

All I want to know is, why did Richelle Mead think it was a good idea to wait so long for Rose to turn 18? I wasn’t as bothered by it the first time because it sort of passed over my head, but someone underaged in a relationship with someone in their 20s kind of disturbed me. I mean, Rose had literally been 17 for three books now, couldn’t she have turned 18 a bit earlier!?

"You didn't answer the question. If you'd really do it."
"I'd do a lot of things to protect you, Roza.”

⇢Side Characters
The side characters are a huge part of this series and I haven’t talked about them yet so let’s get into it.

First, Lissa. I like her character overall, but in this book particularly she came off as a bit pushy and oblivious to what was going on around her. Obviously, our perspective was a bit skewed because we only ever see her through Rose’s lens which in this book was impacted by her dark aura. Overall, Lissa definitely isn’t my favourite character, although I don’t dislike her either.

Next, I like Christian a bit more than her, mainly because of the scene where he and Rose fought together. It was definitely an improvement from when they were fighting against each other.

Last but not least, Adrian. It felt like we didn’t see as much of him in this book because the focus was on Dimitri, but I think we see more of him in the next book as far as I remember, which I’m super glad about. It sucks that 99% of the Adrian content is him and Rose because I don’t like them together, but oh well. Also, I can’t remember when Sydney gets introduced but I’m super excited for that. She’s the best.

“You, know I'm the Queen's favorite great nephew, Well, yeah I'm her only great nephew, but that's not important, I'd still be her favorite...”

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“If your eyes weren't open, you wouldn't know the difference between dreaming and waking.”

Second time read, first time review. I absolutely cannot wait to continue with the next book!

⇢The Plot
I’m just going to get right into it. So, I know that a ton of people dislike this book or dnfed it because a huge chunk of it was devoted to Rose traipsing around Russia and Siberia. I’m definitely in the minority because I actually really enjoyed her whole journey, for multiple reasons.

First, I really liked how the scenery completely changed. We had been stuck at the academy for too long, and seeing Rose travel was a nice change.

Second, SYNDEY. I love her so much. We don’t get a ton of information in this book (or this series, really), but she’s one of my favourite characters in this universe so I loved seeing her finally be introduced.

“P.P.S. Just because I like you, it doesn't mean I still don't think you're an evil creature of the night. You are.”

Finally, I absolutely loved the scenes where Rose met and spent time with Dimitri’s family and meets the bound couple. I know some people found the whole thing uneventful, but I found it adorable.

Now, that isn’t to say that this book never dragged, because some scenes did. The parts where Rose was captured by Dimitri weren’t the most entertaining, but thankfully they were relatively short so I didn’t find that to be a major issue.

⇢The Characters

I don’t have a ton to say about Rose, because I don’t think her character differed a lot from the last book. Dimitri, on the other hand, obviously underwent a huge change, because throughout this book he was a strigoi. I have to say, it doesn’t make sense to me that a lot of people complained about Dimitri being completely different than previous books because… isn’t that obvious? He wasn’t even the same person in this book, so of course, he wasn’t going to be the same stoic and kind character that he was. Anyway, just wanted to say that.

“Roza." His voice had that same wonderful lowness, the same accent . . . it was all just colder. "You forgot my first lesson: Don’t hesitate.”

There isn’t much to say about the side characters, other than the fact that Jill was finally introduced! Since Rose was away the whole book we only saw the actions of the side characters from Rose being in Lissa’s head which was certainly unique. Wish we got more of Adrian :(

⇢The Ending
Just like with previous books, we got an intense ending that promises an exciting next book. As far as I remember the next book was one of the best, so I can’t wait to start it!

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“That's everyone's dream, isn't it, really? Instead of many who give you little pieces of themselves-one who gives you everything.”

Third time read, first time review. I absolutely adore this book so sit back and get ready for a longer-than-normal review that will be 95% me talking about how much I love these characters and 5% me actually analyzing the quality of this novel.

⇢Cordelia Carstairs
Cordelia has to be my favourite Cassandra Clare protagonist to date aside from Emma, but I guarantee that by the end of this series she will have passed her. I absolutely love Daisy, and she was such a refreshing protagonist. In Chain of Gold, she was so strong and determined, and I can’t wait to see how she handles her fake marriage situation in Chain of Iron.

“They need a muse," said Anna. "Someone to be inspired by. Someone to know their secrets. Would you like to be a muse?"
"No," said Cordelia. "I would like to be a hero.”

⇢James Herondale
My opinions on James are a bit complicated because there are so many sides to his personality. I don’t think that I can say that I love his character because I absolutely despise some of his actions while wearing the bracelet, but I also can’t say I hate him because I adore him when he’s not under Grace’s influence. Ultimately, I think that he’s a really underrated character; so many people find him boring just because he’s more introverted than some of the other Herondales. I can’t wait for him to take off the bracelet in Chain of Iron and realize what it was doing to him. UGH I can’t think about Grace and the bracelet without getting angry.

“I am a Herondale. We love but once."
"That is only a story."
"Haven't you heard?" James said bitterly. "All the stories are true.”

⇢Lucie Herondale
Lucie is so so underrated. SHE NEEDS MORE FANS. But I can forgive the lack of Lucie appreciation for now because we all know that Chain of Gold will be her time to shine. I’m so excited to see how she goes about saving Jesse in book two! Also, I'm not going to write a section for Jesse so I just want to say that I love him too and he deserves the world.

“If it actually cared that James was related to an ‘important’ demon, it should have said something to me, too,” said Lucie. “I am his sister. I do not appreciate being overlooked.”

⇢Alastair Carstairs
FINALLY. I was holding back writing about him first. Alastair was such an amazing character. He was so complex, with the bullying and his love for his family and his relationship struggles etc. I know a lot of people can’t tolerate how he treated the Merry Thieves when they were at the academy, and for sure that shouldn’t just be forgiven. But remember, he was a gay and Persian man living in the early 1900s, and as he said in the Chain of Gold, it was bully or be bullied. I hope we see him repair his relationship with Thomas and finally get over Charles in Chain of Iron.

“We're all of us alone," he said. "In the end.”

⇢Matthew Fairchild
Matthew Fairchild was an absolute mess in Chain of Gold and I am terrified for him. He went through so much, from his unrequited love situation with Lucie to Grace doing her siren thing on him and making him fall in love with Cordelia and his drinking issues and oh my god, he just needs a break. At the end of this book, we saw Magnus deciding to stay in London a bit longer so I can only hope that he takes Matthew under his wing. I really do not want to see Matthew get his runes stripped :(

“That’s right.” It was Matthew Fairchild. Fair hair, spicy cologne, a blur of a smile. His hands were gentle as he swept her back into the waltz. “Just—try to smile, and no one will notice anything happened. James and I are practically interchangeable in the public consciousness anyway.”

⇢Thomas Lightwood
I loved Thomas, and he is definitely underrated just like Lucie. I know he’s considered the “kind” one, but he’s definitely so much more than that. I hope we get lots of Thomas content in Chain of Iron! I particularly want to see him with his parents because of what happened to Barbara, and of course him and Alastair.

“We don’t always love people who deserve it.”

⇢Christopher Lightwood
I honestly don’t have much to say about Christopher as of right now because he didn’t appear as much as some of these other characters in Chain of Gold, but I couldn’t talk about the rest of the Merry Thieves and not him. According to the family tree (yes, I know it's not 100% accurate), he ends up with Grace. So I expect that if that’s true we’ll get some scenes with them together in Chain of Iron? I’m not sure how feel about it but since Grace gets an arc I’m not totally opposed.

“The last time I saw you shocked was when that Iblis demon was sending Christopher love letters.”
“I have a dark charm,” said Christopher sadly.”

⇢Anna Lightwood and Ariadne Bridgestock
I’m going to group these two together just because we don’t know all that much about either of them yet. I’m super excited to see more of Anna because she’s an incredible character, and I can’t wait to see what Ariadne does to convince Anna to risk loving her. I just hope that Cassandra Clare will finally provide us with that sapphic content we’ve all been waiting for since Helen and Aline, the only other sapphic couple were SENTENCED TO AN ISLAND FAR AWAY. PLEASE JUST LET ANNA AND ARIADNE BE HAPPY.

“I know you are strong-willed, Anna Lightwood, but I am just as strong-willed. I will change your mind. I will win you back.”

⇢The Plot
Wow, it only took me a billion paragraphs to finally actually talk about the book. I mean, you can’t blame me because we all know that the reason we all love the Shadowhunters books is the characters and not the plot. I do have to say though, that I actually really liked the Chain of Gold storyline. It dragged at certain points, but ultimately it was really enjoyable.

I mean, there were some pretty iconic scenes in this book. THE WHISPERING ROOM SCENE? AND CORDELIA'S PERFORMACE? UNMATCHED. Also, I loved that flashback scene where Cortana chose Cordelia to be its owner. That scene deserves more praise.

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champagne problems by Taylor Swift
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feelings are fatal by mxmtoon
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“I've given up on you... Love fades. Mine has.”

Second time read, first time review. Really enjoyed this book, although not quite as much as last time.

⇢Rose and Adrian
I lowered my rating for this book to 4.5 stars, mainly because of all the Adrian and Rose content.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved them as characters, but I hated them as a couple. It was a really annoying part of the plot that they got together because the whole time it felt like Rose was stringing Adrian along, and honestly, they barely acted as if they were together.

It was obvious that Rose was still in love with Dimitri and that she wasn’t right for Adrian, and after a while, it just got boring to read about them. It was sort of ridiculous how Rose was in a relationship with Adrian while… trying to save Dimitri and constantly saying she was in love with him? Like- (And I mean, I get that she wanted to try to fall in love with Adrian and that’s fine, but maybe don’t go around telling Dimitri you love him? Just an idea.)

“Yeah, that's exactly what I want. To help my girlfriend get her old boyfriend back." He turned away again, and I heard him mutter, "I need two drinks.”

⇢The Plot

However, despite those issues, I have to say that the rest of the plot was highly entertaining. Especially the last 10% of the book. I can’t wait for them to find out who the other Dragomir is!

Also side note, seeing Sydney again (and all the conversation about the other Dragomir) made me even more excited to reread Bloodlines. After all, I only reread this series so that I could reread its spinoff too. I can’t wait for Adrian to actually get treated properly LOL

*4.5

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"Will is famous among Shadowhunters for his heroism and his crippling fear of ducks."

An adorable guide! I do not regret this purchase one bit because I plan to look at these profiles every time I reread the TSC books.

⇢The Art
I think it’s obvious but the art in this book was gorgeous, just like all of Cassandra Jean’s work. Super useful because I often start imagining characters looking completely different than they’re supposed to.

⇢The Profiles

I loved the cute tidbits of information that we got, I just wish there were a few more details! Also, I wish Kit was in this because he’s one of my favourite TDA characters.

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“Ah, my daughter,ʺ he said. ʺEighteen, and already youʹve been accused of murder, aided felons, and acquired a death count higher than most guardians will ever see.ʺ He paused. ʺI couldnʹt be prouder.”

⇢The Plot
This book was a great conclusion to an exciting series. There were definitely a few scenes that felt like they were added solely to add conflict to the book, but overall I enjoyed the way the novel played out.

“Sometimes the greatest tests of our strength are situations that don't seem so obviously dangerous. Sometimes surviving is the hardest thing of all.”

⇢Dimitri

Unfortunately, I think my biggest issue (which honestly wasn’t even big) was Dimitri’s character and what happened after his transformation. While it made sense for him to need some time after being turned back into a Dhampir, it was obvious that his change was made into a much bigger conflict than it needed to be just to further the plot. It was just bizarre and weird to see Dimitri so sad and hopeless, and I think it would have been better if that whole situation hadn’t been exaggerated quite so much.

Note: I’m not trying to say that it wouldn’t have made sense for him to have ptsd or mental health issues because what he went through was traumatic. I just think that the way it was written could have been much better.

⇢Adrian
Honestly, the way that Adrian’s character was handed throughout this series (and particularly this book) just infuriated me. He was such a good character, but was treated so badly??

As I mentioned in my review of book five, the whole Rose and Adrian romance plot was useless and should have ended the second Rose realized she still loved Dimitri. And the fact that it continued into this book considering that Dimitri was healing and Rose was literally going to travel with him and never see her actual boyfriend was ridiculous.

WHEN SOMEONE WHO CAN SEE AURAS TELLS YOU THAT YOUR SOUL IS “BRIGHT” AROUND SOMEONE WHO ISN’T YOUR SIGNIFICANT OTHER, JUST END THE RELATIONSHIP. PLEASE.

“I loved you!" he yelled. He jumped up out of his chair so quickly I never saw it coming. "I loved you, and you destroyed me. You took my heart and ripped it up.”

^ *sobs*

⇢Overall
I know I just complained for two paragraphs straight but honestly those issues were pretty minor when it came to the entire plot. Well, not minor exactly, but they didn’t affect how entertaining the rest of the book was. And my issues with the way Adrian was treated are going to be resolved once I read Bloodlines, so yeah! Off to read Bloodlines ;)

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“You're my flame in the dark. We chase away the shadows around each other.”

⇢The Plot
What even happened in this book? I’m too excited to start the next one to think logically. Okay, so not a ton of new detail was given when it came to old conflicts and the overall storyline, but there were a few more things that the characters faced which was fun. Definitely not the most entertaining book in this series plot-wise, but still fun.

⇢Adrian and Sydney

Honestly I don’t have much I can say in this review that would be different than my review for book two, but I can say that Adrian and Sydney finally admitted that they love each other and Sydney was definitely a lot more comfortable around vampires and magic in this book than previous ones. Always a good sign.

“I don't care if you say we can't be together. I don't care if you think I'm the most evil, unnatural creature walking on earth. You can think whatever you want, go whatever you want. I'm going to just go on loving you, even if it's hopeless.”

⇢The Ending
OF COURSE, ZOE HAD TO SHOW UP JUST WHEN THINGS WERE GETTING GOOD. UGH I TOTALLY FORGOT ABOUT THAT PART OF THE BOOK. Okay, that’s it for this review because I want to go read lol.

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“But perhaps the best part of all was that I, Sydney Katherine Sage, guilty of constantly analyzing the world around me, well, I stopped thinking.”

Second time read, first time review. THIS BOOK WAS ABSOLUTE PERFECTION I LOVE IT SO MUCH.

⇢Adrian and Sydney
I love them. SO MUCH. This book was a huge turning point when it came to the storyline and plot as well as Adrian and Sydney’s relationship and their personalities. Sydney started practicing magic, and it’s obvious that she’s distancing herself from the Alchemist’s beliefs more and more, even if it’s unintentional. Adrian also changed in a way that wasn’t as obvious, but just as important. He started believing in himself in a way that he never did before.

As for them as a couple, it hasn’t quite happened yet because Sydney is still relatively averse to vampire and human relationships, but we got so much cute content that I really don’t mind how long they’re taking to realize their feelings for each other.

“I tried to be a better person for her– but it was to impress her, to get her to want me. But when I’m around you, I want to be better because… well, because it feels right. Because I want to. You make me want to become something greater than myself. I want to excel. You inspire me in every act, every word, every glance. I look at you, and you’re like… like light made into flesh. […] You have no clue how beautiful you are or how brightly you shine.”

⇢Other Characters

Honestly, I don’t really care all that much about the Eddie, Jill and Angeline love triangle situation because their age differences still creep me out, but I do feel sort of bad for Jill. I also wish that we saw more of the side characters in this book because even though I love the amount of Sydney and Adrian content, I love seeing the whole crew together.

⇢The Plot
As I mentioned briefly, a lot happened in this book, which was certainly a change from the last one. We met the “Vampire Hunters”, Sydney started practicing magic, the self-defence classes took place, and Sonya and Dimitri did a lot of research about blood. It was exciting and fun, and honestly, I don’t really have any complaints!

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“Takes a lot of tries before you hit perfection." He paused to reconsider that. "Well, except for my parents. They got it on the first try."

Second time read, first time review. It’s insane how much more I enjoy this series than Vampire Academy, but it’s just so addicting, and the characters are so much easier to like.

⇢Adrian and Sydney
I LOVE THESE TWO SO MUCH. ICONS. Also, rereading this is reminding me of how amazing Sydney’s arc is. She goes from being terrified of magic and thinking that all vampires are evil to… well, we’ll see.

And Adrian’s passion for art >>>

“Weirdly, an image of Adrian’s Love painting came back to me. I thought of the jagged red streak, slashing through the blackness, ripping it apart. Staring at Jill and her inconsolable pain, I suddenly understood his art a little bit better.”

Sydney and Adrian being together is obviously something hasn’t happened yet since it’s only book one but some serious progress has still been made and I’m so excited to continue with my reread.

“My God, Sage. Your eyes. How have I never noticed them?”
That uncomfortable feeling was spreading over me again. “What about them?”
“The color,” he breathed. “When you stand in the light. They’re amazing . . . like molten gold. I could paint those . . .”

⇢Other Characters

Okay, I just want to say, it was super disturbing that Richelle Mead tried to make Jill and Lee a thing. (I’m glad that it will never happen for obvious reasons, but I won’t forget that it almost did.) She must have some sort of age gap thing because Rose and Dimitri also got together when she was only 17 but it's even more creepy here because Jill was literally underage and not even close to 18 while Lee was 19?? Please no. Not that Eddie and Jill is much better because he’s also older I think??

⇢The Plot
Honestly, this book didn’t have a particularly distinct plot since it was really just setting up the new environment and characters, but I didn’t mind that at all because it was still super fun!

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