Queen of Air and Darkness – SPOILER Book Review

Queen of Air and Darkness

YA Urban Fantasy; By Cassandra Clare (The Dark Artifices #3)

~ “As mortals feel no sorrow, neither can they feel joy” – Faerie proverb ~

Letter Grade: A+ (96%)

What begins in sorrow ends in joy, and what begins in joy ends in sorrow…The Shadowhunter world is reeling from great tragedy in Alicante once again. The Blackthorns, Carstairs, and Herondales are once again thrust into a dangerous game by the Laws of the Clave. Every Shadowhunter is on the line, especially if the parabatai curse comes to pass.

Readers can say that Cassandra Clare ticked off a lot of boxes in this third and final instalment of The Dark Artifices trilogy, but I say that she did a great at tying loose ends in Emma and Julian’s story, while opening the doors for more adventures relating to The Last Hours, The Wicked Powers, and to The Eldest Curses. Other things that really made this book when I really didn’t expect them to: the illustrations. Gosh, those illustrations were beautiful, my favourite being the reverse jacket art by Alice Duke:

All these great characters + Church the cat in one panoramic shot next to the Santa Monica Pier? Count. Me. In. Which reminded me how each set of characters went on their own journey, some of whom had their own plots entirely. I liked that aspect, only that I wished they all tied in more nicely, without the little bows on every single problem that Cassie Clare magically fixed. That would be my only negative aspect of the book, really. How some issues were just solved so easily. We were just supposed to take other characters’ words for it and just run with it, especially relating to how Emma and Julian’s arc ended. Now, putting that aside let me focus on the positives.

Diana: Powerful and graceful, with a warrior and mother’s touch. She was so strong from the get-go, in the face of Livvy’s funeral, of all the prejudices against transgender shadowhunters seeking mundane treatments, of all the prejudices against shadowhunters and faeries being together. That it ended being Diana Wrayburn with Gwyn of the Wild Hunt may have surprised me at first – he was the evil guy at first impression, but turned out to be more complex and the least judgmental of  so many of the characters. I can only wish them happiness and that they bring much-needed positive change to the shadow world.

Let’s talk about Kit, Ty…and Livvy. Because, despite everything, Livvy was still so central to the storyline. Ty is devastated and is having trouble coping – not that Julian was helping because he decided to shut off his emotions Vampire Diaries style. And Kit knows he’d be heartbroken if he refused Ty, despite also knowing just how bad the consequences of necromancy are. I’m only disappointed that Ragnor didn’t do a better job of dissuading Ty.

Ty climbing Livvy’s pyre. Ty pushing others away. And now Ty being forced to live with the consequences of what he did, not just in pushing Kit away, but in creating imbalance in the world of the living and the dead. And some small part of me may have been screaming WHY TY, WHY – but it’s just so hard to know that kids with autism often have trouble understanding other points of view, and even truly understanding their own emotions. So I really feel for Ty, I really do. Especially in that scene where Magnus himself had to speak to him with such fatherly (but albeit) worried advice. I’m only sorry Kit felt the way he did in the end. He seemed absolutely devastated at the idea of leaving Ty, especially because he felt like he never meant anything to him. Not only that, but because of Kit’s hurt (which was so painfully obvious to Tessa), he wasn’t able to confide in Ty the things that really mattered to him: that his mother was a Herondale, that his father was also descended from shadowhunters, and that his mother was also a descendent of The First Heir (Auraline, the perfect child of the Unseelie King and the Seelie Queen).

I’m really, really interested to see how this plays out in The Wicked Powers – I theorize that Kit and Ty will reunite, and that there will be some past feelings being thrown on a silver platter like a feast. That Ty’s training at the new Scholomance will ensure that Kit crosses paths with him again and forces him to confront what they did by raising Livvy’s ghost. I theorize how that ties into Kit potentially being the very important chess piece that will bring the shadow world to its knees. Rough stuff for this new fave pairing. I’m already dying on the inside waiting for TWP.

Side note – I also theorize how Kit will be thrust into big brother role when Tessa and Jem’s baby is born ❤ So much love – Will Herondale must be so proud. I only wonder if it’s a boy if Tess will name him William Carstairs, or Adele if it’s a girl (to pay tribute to her Starkweather family). Even so: Jem and Tessa are having a baby. It’s happening, people! It’s happening!

Now…what about Kierkartina? Admittedly, I had a different ship name at first, but this one is growing on me! It was amazing to see the emergence of a polyamorous relationship – quite frankly I know nothing about them, but I’m glad I was introduced to it by Cassandra Clare. Kieran, Mark, and Christina’s intersection had literally been building since the three first appeared together in Lady Midnight. And whereas at first it was #TeamKierark or #TeamMartina or #TeamKiertina, I was so, so glad that I didn’t have to choose just one. Cassie made it such that we could get all three! Hot faerie threesome, remember? Oh, Emma Carstairs, so smart you are.

The only thing about tying up loose ends about Kierkartina is not related to having Adaon’s cottage…No. I think it relates to how Kit ties into Kieran being the new Unseelie King when The Wicked Powers begins. If Kit is supposed to be the perfect heir, wouldn’t that be a perfect opening to insert Kit in Faerie, and say Bye Felicia? Unless something would be inherently wrong with putting Kit, a Shadowhunter borne of the First Heir, as the High King of Faerie. It makes me wonder if we’ll have a repeat of the throne room scene…but I only hope all Kieran’s work won’t be for nothing if Kit decides to slay him in the end. My bones are just shaking from even thinking about this. 

And all this talk of Faerie just makes me think about things like what exactly is the connection to the Rosales family? How would the Eternidad play into TWP? Since it was important enough for Zara to blackmail Diego over. Something that made Jaime run for his life. I just think that the only good that came out of it was that Jaime and Diego sort of made up, and opened the floor to impact shadowhunters in a positive light – especially if scarred-but-Perfect-Diego ends up as the new Inquisitor for the Clave-in-Exile. It just leaves Jaime wandering around Mexico City, I guess. Unless my fave, Drusilla, is involved. Rule of thumb: don’t ever not include a smart, brave, thirteen-year-old in your plans. Because Dru is – probably alongside Tavvy – the one who saved everyone else. She literally was Livia’s Watch.

I really hope that her love for horror movies helps the new gang in some way in TWP. I’d love to see a sixteen-seventeen year-old Dru! Someone who honours every member of her family at ever turn. Someone who grew from resenting Helen to loving her and becoming a part of Ty’s private world.

And before I get into the juice of this Bible that is QoAaD, let me mention Clace. Clace, who began the journey into the shadow world, who introduced everyone to Magnus, Alec, Simon, and Isabelle. Clace who stood strong, who are on their way to start the next chapter of their lives…unless the Jace from Thule doesn’t mess it all up. I was kind of worried we wouldn’t see Ash again, but now I’m kind of eating my words because Clary hates him and because Ash was the bargaining chip to the Seelie Queen in exchange for bringing Clary to the Jace from Thule. Son of a Sebastian Morgenstern and Seelie Queen – WHAT. EVEN. IS. HAPPENING. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if the Shadowhunter Chronicles ends with everyone dying in massive fireball just because Raziel had had enough of everyone’s drama and bullshit. But hey, what a way to create even more new conflicts, Cassie. Thanks for setting me up for more Shadowhunter books for the next decade and a half.

And you guys. This was only the background drama. I haven’t even gotten to Emma and Julian yet. 

If I were to summarize Emma and Julian in this book in so many words or less, it would be: Cortana-feelings-giants-Annabel-little-bow-on-a-silver-platter.

We can all agree that Annabel was trash. Even the Eidolon demon posing as Annabel on orders of Horace Dearborn. Wretched bitch killed Livvy Blackthorn and Robert Lightwood, was enthralled by Ash, and claimed that it was all an accident and that she didn’t mean it??? Bull. Shit. THANK THE ANGEL Jules did away with her in Thule. I only despair that it didn’t end his suffering when he had his feelings in Thule because of seeing Livvy alive and knowing that she witnessed everyone else’s deaths.

Bottomline: I loved Thule. Not the actually place, but the role it played in the story. I would really love to see Livvy from Thule again, hopefully having somehow rescued Cameron and made contact with Ty from our world to knock some loving sense into him about burning her letter to him! That tore my heart out, when Ty actually did that.

OH. Let’s get back to the silver platter stuff. UM WOW, gee thanks Cassie for making it sooo easy for Emma and Jules to realize that Lake Lynn water cured the warlocks. I still don’t get why, though. And I’d be hard-pressed to think why no one had thought of it before. Otherwise, cool way to introduce how the blight in Faerie and Brocelind was actually coming from Thule because the old Unseelie King was conspiring with Horace to mess some shit up. Which may have led to poor Dane Larkspear’s death. But thank the angel Diana cut his arm off, you know, in preparation for Emma and Jules to kill him.

Which may have led to the two climaxes of the whole book, imo. Emma and Cortana’s connection in Faerie and elsewhere, and the battle on the Fields just outside Alicante. I had a major Star Wars Ep. VII moment when Emma whooshed Cortana to her straight. from. Zara’s. hands. Serves her right for imprisoning Diego and causing Kieran so much pain in that weird pool and for taking Cortana in the first place. And then Emma does the honourable thing and lets Zara go. Only for Zara to fucking stab her in the back and heart. Literally. Emma was dead. And for all the blackmailing Zara did about Emma and Jules being in love and being parabatai, that’s what kicked her ass in the end because Emma and Jules became giants. True Nephilim. I was so scared they’d both Romeo and Juliet out of existence but oh thank goodness for Dru and Tavvy and an easy cop-out of burning off their parabatai rune. Jace almost died from heavenly fire (even with all his angel blood) and Emma and Julian are just okay? I guess it’s because of the parabatai bond’s magic?

Honestly? At least it was a better cop-out than having Emma destroy the original parabatai rune in the Silent City. Because that would have killed Clary and Simon, and Jace and Alec. You. Cannot. Just. Do. That. So again, thank you (I guess?) for Cassie’s cop-out that allowed Magnus to be healed so that he could removed the spell from Julian so that Jules had the sense to stop Emma in the Silent City. But also – I feel very concerned for the happily ever after on the beach in LA with the Malec wedding without any consequences??

I guess the only thing we can think of is how Zara and the Cohort sympathizers reacted in the Accords Hall. Good riddance, but also I know it’s going to come back to bite us. And thank the angel for that because I seriously don’t know what I would do without any shadowhunter books lined up for the next ten years.

“I love you. I love you. I love you.”

I don’t know what else to say other than QoAaD was a perfect set up for all of Cassie’s other works. She tied in great new characters and sprinkled in the old faves, while continuously finding new conflicts and wars to fight. What would Shadowhunters be without wars to fight for the ones you love? I can’t wait for next year’s adventures! And all this excitement should ensure you all know to read the Shadowhunter Chronicles because – what is life without them? ❤