Yeah. So I'm as addicted to doing this as you guys are to reading it.
Ian--Hi Ian!--brought up an interesting thing in the comments, and I wanted to bring it up here, even though it's basically what I've been saying since I started blogging like this. He mentioned that he missed the names from Harry Potter. And it brought up what the biggest issue with this book is:
It's derivitive. It's derivitive without bothering to figure out what made the source material so valuable. Ian brought up the Voldemort/Valentine connection (if you don't mind me taking that thought and running with it for a sec). There is a reason--a good one--for Voldemort to be Voldemort. One, it's a scary name to a kid, and two, to an adult it sounds like the pretensious nonsense a mixed up emo sociopath would come up with to make himself sound awesome. Ian said this. I did not. I think he's absolutely right, and that's probably why, after book two, then name stopped driving me batshit. Finding out that Tom Riddle pulled that name out of his psychotic ass made it perfectly fine. It didn't matter that I didn't consiously acknowledge this. My brain got it, and that made the world okay.
So tell me, boys and girls, when you hear the name "Valentine" do you feel creeped out? Do you think of scariness and racism and self-importance and Hitler? Or do you just think of candy hearts with "Be Mine" printed on them? Because I think of candy hearts.
There's no thought put into this book, is what I'm saying. And because there's no thought, there's no grace. There's no beauty. And I, for one, did not give a shit when Hodge face-heeled and then died. Because I did not care about Hodge.
So last time, the Cup, Valentine and Jace all up and vanished while Clary sat and watched. Proving she is a useless bag of rocks and do NOT give me that "If she had tried she'd be killed" shit. I've hit that barrier about nine times with Casey Winter, a couple times in Starbleached and...sadly, I have yet to seriously hit it with Leythorne because he's (intentionally) an overpowered son of a bitch. My issues with him are less "he'll be killed" and more "He doesn't know how to do X yet and can't until after Y happens." The dynamic that makes scenes dramatic is when the character tries even WHEN they'll be killed.
Now it does turn out I was technically wrong. Hodge survived the wound long enough to write a letter and give Clary a long "Nobody understands me" speech about how even when he's helping Valentine, he's basically a good guy."
They said the same thing at Nuremburg.
Clary screams that Valentine killed Jace's dad and now he has Jace so Jace will die soon too, and Hodge says basically "Whatever" and walks out of the room.
Hodge stuck Clary in a magic bubble before the fighting, so some of her inaction gets a pass. ALL of it, though, is stupid. Especally as NOW she remembers she's got Jace's magic wand and can magic herself out of the bubble using shit she's never been trained in. She chases after "Imagoodguy" Hodge and is rescued by a werewolf.
Who drags her off dramatically and then reveals himself to be Uncle Luke. After, of course, Clary is knocked out again.
I read an article not too long ago that said you can't just shrug off being knocked out the way they do in Hollywood. After about a minute or two, you're talking about brain damage. After a few hours, it's a miracle if you will ever be able to talk or feed yourself again. Clary should be a veggitable.
So these are the same werewolves who rescued Clary and company from the vampires a couple chapters ago. All of whom are on Clary's side, because Luke is their alpha.
So you remember a few chapters back, how I said it's Jace's fault Clary's in this deep shit she's in? And how if he hadn't gotten in the way Clary would have had supernatural help? Uncle Luke would have found her, sheltered her, and most importantly of all, wouldn't have exposed her to traitors.
Clary, natrually, repeats the lines that the Murder Trio fed her about how terrible Downworlders are, and accuses Luke of abandoning her and her mother. Luke tells her she's being a racist bitch, and then sighs and says "Well, you'll need to hear the whole story."
End of chapter.
Next chapter: I would have loved this book to death if it were about Luke and Simon. Can we have this book now please?
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