Chain of Iron (2) (The Last Hours)

Product Description

The Shadowhunters must catch a killer in Edwardian London in this dangerous and romantic sequel to the #1 New York Times bestselling novel Chain of Gold, from New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Cassandra Clare. Chain of Iron is a Shadowhunters novel.

Cordelia Carstairs seems to have everything she ever wanted. She’s engaged to marry James Herondale, the boy she has loved since childhood. She has a new life in London with her best friend Lucie Herondale and James’s charming companions, the Merry Thieves. She is about to be reunited with her beloved father. And she bears the sword Cortana, a legendary hero’s blade.

But the truth is far grimmer. James and Cordelia’s marriage is a lie, arranged to save Cordelia’s reputation. James is in love with the mysterious Grace Blackthorn whose brother, Jesse, died years ago in a terrible accident. Cortana burns Cordelia’s hand when she touches it, while her father has grown bitter and angry. And a serial murderer is targeting the Shadowhunters of London, killing under cover of darkness, then vanishing without a trace.

Together with the Merry Thieves, Cordelia, James, and Lucie must follow the trail of the knife-wielding killer through the city’s most dangerous streets. All the while, each is keeping a shocking secret: Lucie, that she plans to raise Jesse from the dead; Cordelia, that she has sworn a dangerous oath of loyalty to a mysterious power; and James, that he is being drawn further each night into the dark web of his grandfather, the arch-demon Belial. And that he himself may be the killer they seek.

From School Library Journal

Gr 9 Up—In this sequel to Chain of Gold, James, Cordelia, Lucie, Matthew, and the rest of their friends must figure out who is killing Shadowhunters. In the previous novel, Cordelia was able to fatally wound Belial, one of the Princes of Hell and James’s maternal grandfather, but James fears they have not seen the last of him. Grace and Lucie are secretly working together to reunite the ghost of Jesse with his body, which had been preserved all these years by Tatiana. Cordelia and James have entered a sham marriage to protect Cordelia’s reputation, living together, playing chess, and enjoying one another’s company. While Cordelia loves James, the boy’s heart is still bound to Grace for as long as he wears her bracelet. The more time he spends with Cordelia, however, the weaker the bracelet becomes. New romances blossom while friendships are tested amidst secrets and murder in Edwardian London. Characters have various skin tones. VERDICT Fans of the “Shadowhunters” novels will not be disappointed with the second installment of Clare’s latest trilogy and will eagerly await the concluding novel. Recommended for all young adult collections.—Marissa Lieberman, East Orange P.L., NJ

About the Author

Cassandra Clare is the author of the #1 
New York Times, 
USA TODAY,
Wall Street Journal, and
Publishers Weekly bestselling Shadowhunter Chronicles. She is also the coauthor of the bestselling fantasy series Magisterium with Holly Black. The Shadowhunter Chronicles have been adapted as both a major motion picture and a television series. Her books have more than fifty million copies in print worldwide and have been translated into more than thirty-five languages. Cassandra lives in western Massachusetts with her husband and three fearsome cats. Visit her at CassandraClare.com. Learn more about the world of the Shadowhunters at Shadowhunters.com.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Chapter 1: The Bright Web

1 THE BRIGHT WEB

And still she sits, young while the earth is old,

And, subtly of herself contemplative,

Draws men to watch the bright web she can weave,

Till heart and body and life are in its hold.

The rose and poppy are her flower; for where

Is he not found, O Lilith, whom shed scent

And soft-shed kisses and soft sleep shall snare?

—Dante Gabriel Rossetti, “Body’s Beauty”

A smoky