Review: Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy - Cassandra Clare

Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy by Cassandra Clare

Rating {★★★★★} 

“We all change the world, with every day of living in it"

What a great collection of stories for any Shadowhunter lover. Now, I'm not sure how these would go down for someone who hasn't read all or some of the Shadowhunter series before as I cannot put myself into that bubble. I already know and love a lot of these characters and through Simon's eyes I came to know and love so many more. Not only does this have flashbacks and guest appearances to characters from all the series before (Will Herondale, Jem Carstairs, The Lightwoods and many more) it introduces a new cast of people and a new type of Shadowhunter that I cannot wait to read more about in the future books.

I read this as a 'warm-up' for Lady Midnight and I'm so glad that I have. The stories take a bit of time to get on a roll with the first being a lot of rehashing and scene setting but they quickly transport you to Simon's new world and introduce you to his new 'family' in the Shadowhunter Academy.

There is a lot on the brink of this world with the events from The Mortal Instruments still echoing and repercussions still being felt. The new generation of Shadowhunters will have a lot on their shoulders and (hopefully) they will be the turning point for the entire race. There are a lot of deeply layered issues here - the treatment of Downworlders in general, Simon figuring out what sort of person and what sort of Shadowhunter he would eventually like to become, the pride (and prejudices) of the Shadowhunters that have come before and the beginning of the buildup for what I believe will be the major climax in The Dark Artifices.

I would recommend this book to anyone who has enjoyed a Shadowhunter series before and I am now beside myself to start reading Lady Midnight

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