Queen of Air and Darkness (The Dark Artifices #3) by Cassandra Clare - Restarting September 23rd 2022

[Aaron]

Akshita wrote: "Aaron wrote: "Chapter 9
Maybe Julian is feeling more than he’s letting on. He must be tired of not feeling things properly. Maybe lonely? His plan was smart but he should’ve let Emma in on it.

T..."

(view spoiler)[ you’re right. I completely forgot about that promise. Both Emma and Julian are being a bit impulsive. I guess Emma has just had too much going on in her head to properly think everything through. (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Chapter 11
(view spoiler)[ This series is doing really well in terms of representation and keeping it normal. Looks like we have a polyamorous relationship starting to develop as well now.

I’ve noticed I’ve been more interested in every characters aspect of the story this time rather than having one storyline as a clear favourite. I wonder if that will continue throughout the series. (hide spoiler)]

[Akshita]

Aaron wrote: "Chapter 11
..."

(view spoiler)[Yes, It's great to see all the casual rep in this series.

I feel like her books have always been more about the characters than the plot. It's just done especially well in this series.
Though I'm liking the plot and characters equally this time.

It's gotten a bit slow in the last few chapters. I hope it picks up again soon. It'll take me much longer to get through if the pacing drops. And I really want to finish before the end of this month. (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Chapter 13
(view spoiler)[ I haven’t got much to say at this point. Those 2 chapters seemed a little slow but it picked up near the end. I wonder where Cristina has gone. I have literally no idea.
The plot isn’t moving as fast in any of the storylines right now. I would like Ty and Kit’s story to start moving forward faster soon. The further we get through the book, the less time there is for them to try and bring Livvy back and deal with the outcome. I hope that part isn’t rushed. (hide spoiler)]

[Akshita]

Aaron wrote: "Chapter 13
I haven’t got much to say at this point. Those 2 chapters seemed a little slow but it picked up near the end. I wonder where Cristina has gone. I have literally no idea.
The plot isn’t..."

(view spoiler)[My only guess is Diego, as Cristina doesn't know yet that he's imprisoned.

I don't really mind the way Ty and Kit's story is moving. But yeah, it would be nice to speed things up a little bit.

I'm curious about the parabatai thing now. That's one part of the plot for which i can't make any guesses. They can't possibly consider destroying every parabatai bond. That would be an extremely selfish move. But so far, that's the only solution we've been told about. So I'm not sure.

I don't know if it's because of my slow reading pace that it's starting to feel a bit dragging, but there's just so many pages left. Knowing that we still aren't anywhere near the conclusion isn't helpful at all. (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Akshita wrote: "Aaron wrote: "Chapter 13
I haven’t got much to say at this point. Those 2 chapters seemed a little slow but it picked up near the end. I wonder where Cristina has gone. I have literally no idea.
..."

(view spoiler)[ it is definitely seeing how many pages we have left that is making this one drag a little more for me. I know everything’s kinda been in trilogies but I think this series should’ve been split into 4 books. It would make the books way less daunting.

I think Julian might destroy all parabatai bonds before he gets all his feelings back. (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Chapter 15
(view spoiler)[ That’s where they are then. None of them are doing very well in faerie. It’s a good job Adaon and Gwyn are there to help.
It was nice seeing Ty and Kit letting Dru get involved. I like how the family dynamics are constantly changing. (hide spoiler)]

[Akshita]

Aaron wrote: "Chapter 15
That’s where they are then. None of them are doing..."

(view spoiler)[i didn't expect Adaon to agree to go against the king this easily. But it's good that he did.
And yes! I'm glad they included Dru. It was about time they stopped treating her like a kid. (hide spoiler)]

[Akshita]

Chapter 16
(view spoiler)[
Kit is honestly such a wonderful person, simply existing as the best one in this whole series while the other characters barely acknowledge him. His PoVs are getting increasingly better and I can't appreciate his empathetic nature enough. I hope this ends on a happy note for him and Ty.

That aside, this was overall a really good chapter. Now that we are done with part 1, I'm hoping it will maintain a nice pace.

I'm trying to guess if the First Heir is someone we know. Maybe Kit's mom? Kit does have faerie blood, and it would also explain why people are looking for him. (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Akshita wrote: "Chapter 16

Kit is honestly such a wonderful person, simply existing as the best one in this whole series while the other characters barely acknowledge him. His PoVs are getting increasingly better..."

(view spoiler)[ That was a great but long chapter. I thought I’d accidentally skipped onto the next one.

I do like the way that most of Kit’s parts are just him thinking about the people around him and the situations rather than action. It’s needed with so much action elsewhere in the story.

I think you’re right about the first heir being Kit’s mum. I can’t think of any other way of connecting her. She could be a relative a few generations before Kit rather than his mother because of the way time works in faerie though.

Also, that scene with Diana was pretty cool. I’m glad someone stood up to Horace. Her and Gwyn are gonna have to stay on the run for a bit though. (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

[Akshita]

Hey
I won't be on GR till Monday. But I'll still be reading like 2-3 chapters each day.

[Aaron]

Chapter 19
(view spoiler)[ This world is really interesting. I’m enjoying these chapters a lot. I love how events from earlier in the book are becoming important now, like the way to communicate with Tessa and Simon’s toy a couple of chapters ago. I also really like how the 2 worlds link together and how the events are foreshadowing what could happen in Emma and Julian’s world. It’s clear how the book manages to be so long with the whole separate story in the middle. I’m not mad about it though. (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Chapter 22
(view spoiler)[ that scene with Ty and emotionless Julian was one of the most frustrating so far. I hope Julian can go back to normal for good soon. At least they know how to help Magnus now.

There is so much happening in this book. I feel like I’ve read like 3 different books so far. I’m glad I can look back at my comments every 2 or 3 chapters to remember everything.

I like how much of the old characters we get to see in this one. It was great to see how other Raphael reacted to what’s happened in this world. (hide spoiler)]

[Akshita]

Aaron wrote: "Chapter 22
..."

Aaron wrote: "Chapter 19
[spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[The whole Thule part was interesting. And it was there for the right amount of time too. Neither too short, nor too stretched.

I agree about too much stuff happening. This is why her books are always so entertaining. Though it's also the reason why they usually end up not being my favorite...because I can never really remember enough from the books, and all the events in the series get muddled up.

I'm wondering if Emma would be more willing to consider Julian's suggestion about breaking all parabatai bonds now that she knows what happened to parabatais in Thule.

I didn't expect Ash to just stay back in Thule. I had thought he'd have a bigger role in the book?
Also, I just realised that the faerie plot is practically over now since the King is dead, Black Volume is no longer in faerie and Ash is gone?

Yeah, It was really upsetting to read about Ty trying to open up when Julian was emotionless. Especially the part where Ty wanted Julian to ask more about his plan. This is probably the worst part about the spell on Julian. Ty needs that emotional support right now, and Kit alone can't help much. (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Akshita wrote: "Aaron wrote: "Chapter 22
..."

Aaron wrote: "Chapter 19
[spoilers removed]"

The whole Thule part was interesting. And it was there for the right amount of time too. Neither too short, nor too stre..."

(view spoiler)[ The whole Ash thing was over very quickly. I wonder if we’ll see any more of him in one of the other books or short stories. It seems a bit of a waste to introduce him otherwise. (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Chapter 25
(view spoiler)[ It feels like everything is building for something big. These chapters seem to be setting up the characters to where they need to be.
I’m glad Magnus is better and the other warlocks soon will be. They have a decent advantage against Horace with that and Jace and Clary being secretly alive. If it does come down to some kind of battle, they have a good chance. At the very least they can probably turn public opinion against Horace.
I feel like Ty trying to bring back Livvy is gonna interrupt something either for better or for worse. (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Just finished catching up to where I should be after 2 days of no reading. Should be able to finish this by the end of July.
Chapter 28
(view spoiler)[ I can’t tell if the last few chapters have been shorter or I’ve just been so invested that they’ve seemed shorter. It’s all building so it’s getting pretty exciting. There isn’t really much to say yet. There are still quite a lot of pages left despite the fact that it feels like we’re coming to the end. I hope the ending does these books justice and isn’t dragged out. This series has been the best of the shadow Hunter books so far.
I wonder what Dru is planning though. I’m glad people are communicating in this book. Pretty much every character has shared something they were keeping quiet about with another character. It’s making everything a lot smoother. (hide spoiler)]

[Akshita]

It'll take me quite a while to catch up. I don't even know if I want to finish it right now. There's no motivation left.

Currently on chapter 24. Hoping to read at least till 26th tonight.

[Aaron]

Chapter 31
(view spoiler)[ This has gotten a bit random. There’s a lot happening and not much of it makes sense. So Kit is definitely a relative of the first heir but it seems like he is quite a few generations down the line. His mum was a Herondale though so the first heir bloodline must have merged with the Herondale bloodline a little while ago.
I didn’t expect Emma to get stabbed but I’m guessing she’ll be fine.
There haven’t been as many implications from Ty trying to bring back Livvy as I expected yet. It didn’t become important in the main storyline either. I’m hoping there is more to it at some point. (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

I don’t think I’ll have time to read tomorrow so I’m gonna try and finish this tonight

[Akshita]

Aaron wrote: "Just finished catching up to where I should be after 2 days of no reading. Should be able to finish this by the end of July.
Chapter 28
I can’t tell if the last few chapters have been shorter or ..."

(view spoiler)[You're right about better communication. I especially appreciate how easily Mark, Kieran and Cristina are able to talk to each other. And not just in this book, but from the very beginning, these three have talked through conflicts in the most mature way.

The author has so far been great at writing the perfect endings to the series. And since this series overall has been really good up till now, I have even higher expectations. (hide spoiler)]

[Akshita]

Chapter 29
(view spoiler)[I'm confused. Was Emma trying to break the parabatai bonds because of her and Julian, or because of that black lines thing?
From what i remember, Diana in Thule never told why those parabatai turned into monsters, right?
So we can't say it was because they all fell in love.
That means the if the monster thing is happening in our world, then Emma shouldn't be the only one to realise that. Won't every parabatai be affected?
Then this isn't about her and Jules at all. And she should be able talk to others and explain why destroying the bond is necessary..? (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Done
(view spoiler)[ I’m really satisfied with that ending. I liked how we got nice conclusions for all the characters but also got to know what they’re doing next. I appreciate that they weren’t all the obvious happy endings. Mark, Cristina and Kieran got a kind of compromised happy ending since they can’t be together all the time but they have a place they can be together sometimes. Ty and Kit didn’t get the ending we would’ve expected but it was still a happy one with what they both really wanted. It would’ve been a bit unrealistic for all the relationships to work out perfectly.

I don’t really get why Emma and Julian turned into giants or stopped being parabatai because of it but I’m willing to overlook that because of how much I enjoyed the last few chapters.

I don’t know much about the order of the other books after this one. I’m guessing this one directly leads to the next one though based on that ending. It makes sense that Ash is back. I’m glad the author is doing something with him. (hide spoiler)]

[Akshita]

Aaron wrote: "Done
I’m really satisfied with that ending. I liked how we got nice conclusions for all the characters but also got to know what they’re doing next. I appreciate that they weren’t all the obvious ..."

(view spoiler)[ I personally didn't like the ending as much. It felt sort of chaotic and abrupt? Like, even till the very last page, there was just too much going on.
And while i know the author has done this thing several times before, where she introduces a new plot at the end of a book/series, it kinda annoyed me this time. Like, we were just done! And it felt too exhausting to even read about a new conflict.

I didn't get the whole giants thing either. But it was interesting when they were explaining its history.

It was good to see Ty coming to terms with Livvy's death at the end and figuring out what he wanted for himself moving forward.
I was a bit sad for Kit. But also glad that he'll be staying with Tessa and Jem now.

The author has planned to write another series in the future: The Wicked Powers, following Kit and Ty.
No idea when it'll come out, but I'm excited for it.

Going with the order that we've been following, and skipping novellas and story collections, Chain of Gold is the next one. (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Akshita wrote: "Chapter 29
I'm confused. Was Emma trying to break the parabatai bonds because of her and Julian, or because of that black lines thing?
From what i remember, Diana in Thule never told why those para..."

(view spoiler)[ I think it was more about her and Jules than what they learned in Thule. And every parabatai being affected was quite a way off in their world so maybe she thought nobody would believe her? (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Akshita wrote: "Aaron wrote: "Done
I’m really satisfied with that ending. I liked how we got nice conclusions for all the characters but also got to know what they’re doing next. I appreciate that they weren’t al..."

(view spoiler)[ it’s interesting that we had such different opinions of the ending this time. I don’t think the length helped since it was more effort to get through. I can see where you are coming from with being annoyed with another new plot. It is almost like there’s no ending with all these books. I didn’t mind it though. I think it’s gonna get more annoying to me as we start getting into books where the whole series isn’t out yet. (hide spoiler)]
ok that series should be good. Surely she must be running out of ideas by now with all of these books.
Do you want to read chain of gold later this month then? I don’t know when we should read the short stories now. I’m more interested in reading them now.

[Akshita]

Actually I'll be taking a long break from reading and Goodreads, starting next week, and I probably won't be back until June/July next year.
So I won't be able to read with you now.

[Aaron]

Akshita wrote: "Actually I'll be taking a long break from reading and Goodreads, starting next week, and I probably won't be back until June/July next year.
So I won't be able to read with you now."

Ok that’s alright. I’ll see where I get with these books then.

[Jenn]

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Date changed. Restarting September 23rd 2022. Happy Reading ☺

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