City of Bones chapter 3

So to recap City of Bones so far:

Apparently there are clubs in New York City that will let minors, and by minors I mean "Under eighteen", dance indoors, Clary met the Murder Trio and witnessed a murder only she could see, and she apparently has the same "Shiny object shiny!" ADD that Bella Swan has re: Hot guys and murder, because the only thing she cares about is the color of Murder Trio boy Jace's eyes. Does this get better? Does it?

In a word? No.

Clary and Simon go to their friend's poetry reading. A girl hits on Simon, who doesn't care. Simon hits on Clary, who not only doesn't care, she suggests other girls that Simon is most definately Not Interested in, because he's got serious hots for Clary. Her mom is still frantically calling, which in any normal universe ever would be your signal that something is SERIOUSLY wrong back home, but Clary is ignoring her mother in favor of seriously bad poetry. How bad?

“Sorry about that, guys!” he yelled. “All right. I’m Eric, and this is my homeboy Matt on the drums. My first poem is called ‘Untitled.’” He screwed up his face as if in pain, and wailed into the mike. “Come, my faux juggernaut, my nefarious loins! Slather every protuberance with arid zeal!”

It's a little too much like Zogon poetry, though, and a little too pretension free.

Simon tries desperately to tell her how hot he is for her, and she desperately tries to pretend he isn't--trust me. You don't not notice a boy drooling on your lap--and then Jace from the Murder Trio shows up.

 He was wearing the same dark clothes he’d had on the night before in the club. His arms were bare and covered with faint white lines like old scars. His wrists bore wide metal cuffs; she could see the bone handle of a knife protruding from the left one. He was looking right at her, the side of his narrow mouth quirked in amusement. Worse than the feeling of being laughed at was Clary’s absolute conviction that he hadn’t been sitting there five minutes ago.

So, boys and girls, let's play "Human decision making Multiple Choice" one more time. You are a young woman who witnessed a murder only you could see last night. Now one of the murderers, who once more only you can see, has stalked you and your best friend through New York City. He is very visibly still armed with his prefered weapon. Do you:

1. Get up, call police and leave building.

2. Ask your friend to please take you home, and start running if stranger danger here starts following you home

3. Get up, go over to the VISIBLY ARMED MURDERER and strike up a conversation.

4. ANY OTHER POSSIBLE THING OTHER THAN NUMBER THREE.

If you answer one, two, or four, congradulations! You are smarter than Clary!

“I don’t care about Eric’s poetry.” Clary was furious. “I want to know why you’re following me.” 

“Who said I was following you?”

Uh, the fact that you're here at the poetry slam the night after SHE SAW YOU STAB ANOTHER BOY IN THE THROAT.

After a quick exam, Jace decides that Clary isn't a Shadowhunter, which is what he is. He shows Clary his tattoos, which were apparently made with Acme Disappearing, Reappearing Ink, because they blink in and out of existance like freaking neon. Now, he has to take her to Hodge, his tutor.

Let me repeat this. Clary, our heroine, has followed a strange boy out into the street precissely because she saw him murder someone, he shows off his dangerous tattoos, talks about magic and fairies, and then states his intention of kidnapping her and taking her to another man.

And she doesn't run away.

Jace then explains that he is a "Shadowhunter" and his job is to hunt demons AKA "Downworlders."

“Downworlders?”

 “The Night Children. Warlocks. The fey. The magical folk of this dimension.”

And I really can't ignore this any more. The entire purpose of Jace and the rest of the Murder Trio are to hunt down and kill demons. Out of hand. Without anything resembling a trial. Because they are evil demon things and deserve to die. And mundane humans also have to be protected against this because we are mundane humans. No better reason is ever given.

Not to invoke Godwin's here, but you know who else did blanket discrimination against an entire population group, with total extermination as their goal? (I just invoked Godwin's. You know exactly who I'm talking about) And I think this is why City Of Bones fails to deliver on its concept. Jace is Draco, "Shadowhunters" are Death Eaters, and what made sense in Harry Potter makes no sense in City of Bones because the negative nature of these actions--again, Jace murdered a man in front of Clary--is never addressed. No qualms are given. The motives for many of these characters makes no sense at all in this book, mostly because those motives came from many other books. 

The circumstances and situations in this world are never explored. Characters go from one scene to another without suffering any consequences for the last scene, unless those concequences serve the plot. You feel no connection to anything whatsoever, and to me the reason is most clearly seen in this: the Shadowhunters are a lot like the Nazis, in almost every imaginable way, and the author never acknowledges this blanket hatred as a negative trait. Shadowhunters hate Downworlders. The freaking end.

So while Jace is trying to convince Clary to let him kidnap her, he allows her to answer her cell phone.

Please read that sentence a second time.

It is her Mom. Calling in a panic, so Clary, freaked out by having a murderer state his intentions to kidnap her, decides she'll go home.

“No!” Terror scraped Jocelyn’s voice raw. “Don’t come home! Do you understand me, Clary? Don’t you dare come home...Go to Simon’s and call Luke— tell him that he’s found me—” Her words were drowned out by a heavy crash like splintering wood.

Naturally, Clary yanks herself away from Jace--who does offer to help her--and goes running off for home, all by her sweet little self.

Jace, you are the worst kidnapper ever. 

 End of chapter. TOMORROW: What happened to Mom? And how long will we have to wait to find out?

A while, blog readers. A while.