The Bane Chronicles

Magnus Bane has always been a favorite of mine from the Shadowhunter series – he is a wonderfully complex character, who is simultaneously the funniest and gravest character. Also, he is immortal which means his story spans through centuries and across the various Institutes and series. But the Bane Chronicles, while set in the Nephilim world, gives us a better view of the Downworlders through him. They are the marginalized denizens of the Shadow World, and the Nephilim are barely more than a cruel policing force, a fact that is made apparent several times during the course of this anthology. There are funny stories like What Really Happened in Peru and serious ones like The Midnight Heir, cute ones like What to get a Shadowhunter who has Everything. Overall, it is a wonderful addition to the Shadowhunter Universe and adds plenty of background to characters and missing pieces of the puzzle. Like the fact that Ragnor Fell and Raphael Santiago are basically besties who regularly gossip about Magnus; how Tessa and Jocelyn first meet; how Magnus came to have a cat – all these little things that wouldn’t probably add much to the main series but give depth to the characters. A must if you are a Shadowhunter fan.

In the interest of full disclosure, I was predisposed to be delighted by this collection of short stories, as I adore Magnus Bane. They lived up to my expectations and left me pining for more. From start to finish it was quirky, irreverent, well paced, unapologetically eccentric.. In a nutshell, It was highly entertaining. If you enjoy Magnus in the 2 shadowhunter series, you should definitely treat yourself to this.

Not what I expected from Cassandra Clare but then again she had a Co author. Choppy story collection of Bane's life...had so much more potential as this was one of the more colorful characters ,and also a favorite of mine! Should wait till a sale or paperback version is available, not worth much more:)