Ah yes, Clare’s biggest trilogy to date and admittedly my least favorite. Maybe I’m just getting burnt out, or maybe I’m just not connecting to the characters but I won’t be revisiting this series as much as the other two.

Honestly the problem for me was the length. All of these were over 600 pages. QoAaD was a possibly record breaking 900 pages. I like a long book but 900 pages was simply overwhelming and while Clare manages to utilize all her words and keep the story going while providing lush descriptions. . . 900 pages.

I actually procrastinated on this because of how long it was. I know she creates an epic world but honestly whenever an author goes over 500 pages, I feel like they’re getting paid by the word. Surely they could synthesize it. Or even split it from a trilogy to a 5 book series so one could have time to digest everything.

Plus some of it, especially in book 3 felt a lot like fan service which I’ll get to in the rankings.

Because if there’s one thing that The Dark Artifices has is that it has everything all over the span of a few days in each book.

But on the more positive side, The Dark Artifices has shown how much Clare has grown in her writing. I think it is at its peak actually. All the characters are engaging and likable (except for the heinous ones). It explores the realm of the fey and of Thule creating such a descriptive intoxicating otherworld I could perfectly see it in my mind’s eye, all beautiful yet haunting. The emotional prose is just epic. Like I said before in my The Mortal Instruments Overview, I mean epic as Biblical stars exploding epicness. The soul bonds, familial bonds and emotional bonds are all present and intense.

Furthermore, there is the intensity of hate in this trilogy that is a bit too on the nose in echoing our current political state. It did add a more dangerous element of human darkness. The hate and prejudice of the Cohart is more harrowing than fey or demons. It also made a great race against time, and downer ending that makes me eager to see how the heroes will get through it in the next trilogy-The Wicked Powers.

There’s also the intensity of grief which Clare explores through different people the emptiness, sadness, and desperate hope that overcomes survivors afetr losing a loved one. Apparently Clare was also dealing with a loved one’s death so you can see the personal agony spread through the pages and how she connected with that.

But it also fits because this trilogy feels more emotionally and morally complex than the others which is best defined by Julian Blackthorn. Finally we have a hero is not a Herondale and I love Julian’s manipulative, pragmatic side that he holds like a sheild to protect his family. It works because you know how much Julian deeply cares for his siblings as their psuedo-dad but you also get to be chilled by how much of a merciless chessmaster/manipulator/blackmailer he is.

Emma is also a strong flawed protagonist with her big heart, strong ambition and need for revenge and answers about her parents’ deaths. But she is also strong emotionally and morally that she is able to balance Julian’s ruthless heart which they need as parabati. Yeah they are parabati who love each other. Like romatically love each other, a flaw that could lead to exile and being stripped of their marks.

It’s such a great angle that makes their romance unique. Not only do they have the best friends to lovers trope that I enjoy but the forbidden romance and brief love triangle in book 2 tropes adds intensity to it to make a continuously changing dynamic in their journey to love and security for the Blackthorns.

As for the rest of the Blackthorns, my favorites were Mark and Drusilla. Drusilla had the snarky goth chick attitude and yearning to be an adult that is very relatable. While Mark’s story of being abandoned to the hunt, re-acclimating to Shadowhunters and finding love from both worlds to be thoroughly engaging. Mark is truly a charming, thoughtful soul. Ty and Livvy were interesting and I liked their friendship/something more with Kit Herondale. Yes, another Herondale. Clare just can’t keep them away from the story but it’s fine because I did enjoy Kit’s street-wise personality.

Outside of the Blackthorns, I loved Cristina! For her peace-keeping, conscientious nature, her love and knowledge of they fey world, for being a badass, for being a great friend, for her romances and heartbreaks, and Cristina is just great. I want her to have the best and her own solo book. Also her friendship with Emma is so well-done and lovely. While Izzy and Clary are friends and Tessa and Charlotte have their cordiel relationship, Emma and Cristina are the first ones that really feel like true blue friends.

I also enjoyed Diana’s parts as she represents a well rounded sane adult for the Blackthorns to rely on, but as I said before, she could have her own novella or anathology story just to trim the pages.

Also Perfect Diego may have broken Cristina’s heart but he won mine for his deep dive in deception, love of his brother and having the angst of realizing everything he thought he knew was wrong and standing up to it. I also want him to feature in Cristina’s book. Not as a romance, they are so over after the way he betrayed her but still. Perfect Diego is always perfect to me.

Like I said before the villains are darker in a realistic way and I can’t emphasize enough of how despicable the Cohort is. Seriously, they are the worst with how close they hit to real life. And Malcom Fade does seem like a bit of a ripoff of Hodge Starkweather and Axel Mortmain , what with the whole betrayal of his family friends and revenge on Shadowhunters. But he also presents a powerful reminder of exactly why the Cohort’s new mandates shouldn’t go on. Because their harsh prejudice against all of those they disagree with create vengeful monsters unto themselves.

As for the fey villains, like the Unseelie Court are perfectly malicious and intriguing with their Court battles but I feel like they could hold their own spin off series of their own. Maybe an anthology if Clare wishes because there is a lot to unpack there and adding the fey to the trilogy was relevant but also padded the book with Clare’s exceedingly long descriptions. Same with the Thule dimension in book 3.

Now onto the rankings where I discuss a bit more of the failings that infringed on my enjoyment of the characters:

Lady Midnight: This one was the best in the series because it did a great job in building up the mystery, the characters and their dynamics and laying the foundation for the whole trilogy. It was exciting yet emotionally resonant. And as the first book it doesn’t have the weight of multiple plots and expectations weighing it down nor the pressure to create a satisfying ending for everyone. Honestly this book felt more compleated than the other two so it is my favorite of the trilogy.

Queen of Air and Darkness: Honestly this one is tied with Lord of the Shadows but this is saved by having some very memorable moments. For one thing Cristina and Diego get to have more POVs and personal triumphs so I enjoy that. Furthermore, even though I hate the Cohort, Clare keeps their deceptions intriguing so I was waiting for what would happen next and how the Blackthorns would counter them. Buut again the 900 pages made it feel like a slog especially the Thule section. Also the return of the TMI gang felt too much like fanservice. Enjoyable fanservice in the case of the Malec wedding but a bit on the nose. Especially as it brings back minor Clary/Jace drama and the return of Sebastian as an antagonist which feels so redundant. Additionally, the way Clare shoves in so many POVs which are intriguing in their own right feel like whiplash. Same with the inclusion of the faerie court politics.

You could have three books out of this one book, just split them up and rake in more dough. And I said that I enjoyed Cristina’s moments, and I did but the love triangke-we can’t be together got tedious after awhile since I knew Clare would have them end up together somehow. Also the necromancy plot felt like such a minor blimp to give Ty/Kit something to do that it should have been its own story in a anthology or something.

Additionally, the one thing I cannot forgive in this book is killing off Julie Beavale and Vivian Penhallow. First Jon Cartwright in Lord of Shadows, now this. Clare is killing off all of Simon’s Shadowhunter Academy friends. Which feels like a loss since they were the prejudiced Shadowhunters that changed their views because of Simon’s presence in their lives. We don’t get to see them fully change and they get killed. What, because they were formerly nasty they get killed off first for Simon angst?

And I know, it’s probably supposed to represent how life is unfair in having good people die etc. etc. while freaking Zara Dearborn gets to live but I don’t care. I was far more attached to them. Clare already used her life sucks, people die route with Livvy, why add to it?

Overall, there was so much going on in this book it almost felt separate from the previous two books that had one central plotline with several minor ones in the background.

Lord of Shadows: This one comes last because that it feels like a filler book. It setting up the stage for the big finale so there can’t be too much action-epicness and there can be no questions answered. Not that it’s not entertaining as it gives more fuel to how dangerous the parabati bond is, shows Emma’s chosen one status by killing the Riders and the big ending. But it was also somewhat forgettable, lots of descriptions, lots of emotional talks, forbidden romance, the usual. Though I may be forgetting some things because QoAaD took up so much space and time in my head. Also this was the book where Jon got decapitated, enough said.

In summation, The Dark Artifices shows some of Clare’s best writing in characters, emotions and descriptions. The sheer length of it however made it a slog as I find I’m just not as interested in the Blackthorns and another Herondale. Though if you are, this is the trilogy for you.