The Bane Chronicles: What Really Happened in Peru

Cassandra Clare, along with her author friends Maureen Johnson and Sarah Rees Brennan, has teamed up to create a spin-off (sort of) of her The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices series. This centers around the life and adventures of the famous warlock, Magnus Bane, known to be one of the favorites from the two shadowhunter series. The synopsis/blurb from goodreads says every possible brief detail about The Bane Chronicles. Here it goes...

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What Really Happened in Peru

by Cassandra Clare and Sarah Rees Brennan

Goodreads:

Fans of The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices know that Magnus Bane is banned from Peru—and now they can find out why. One of ten adventures in The Bane Chronicles.

There are good reasons Peru is off-limits to Magnus Bane. Follow Magnus’s Peruvian escapades as he drags his fellow warlocks Ragnor Fell and Catarina Loss into trouble, learns several instruments (which he plays shockingly), dances (which he does shockingly), and disgraces his host nation by doing something unspeakable to the Nazca Lines.

This standalone e-only short story illuminates the life of the enigmatic Magnus Bane, whose alluring personality populates the pages of the #1 New York Times bestselling series, The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices series. This story in The Bane Chronicles, What Really Happened in Peru, is written by Sarah Rees Brennan and Cassandra Clare.

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Date Read: April 20, 2013
Rating: 3 Stars
"short thoughts..."

For those who are really fond of Magnus Bane from The Mortal Instruments or The Infernal Devices, this might be a little disappointing. It succeeded with its easy humor and we got a glimpse of how deep Magnus can be when family or mortal love is mentioned. But the fact that it did not bring much satisfaction after reading the ebook really sucked.

Reaction upon finishing the book: "That was it!?", "What really happened in Peru? Nothing of great importance.", "Aaaaah! I hope this gets better."

A bit disappointing, but I still love Magnus. (view spoiler)[ It was not his fault that the reason was not disclosed by the High Council of Peruvian Warlocks.  (hide spoiler)]

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BOOK BLURB: Unspoken (The Lynburn Legacy #1)

Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Goodreads:

Kami Glass loves someone she’s never met . . . a boy she’s talked to in her head ever since she was born. She wasn’t silent about her imaginary friend during her childhood, and is thus a bit of an outsider in her sleepy English town of Sorry-in-the-Vale. Still, Kami hasn’t suffered too much from not fitting in. She has a best friend, runs the school newspaper, and is only occasionally caught talking to herself. Her life is in order, just the way she likes it, despite the voice in her head.

But all that changes when the Lynburns return.

The Lynburn family has owned the spectacular and sinister manor that overlooks Sorry-in-the-Vale for centuries. The mysterious twin sisters who abandoned their ancestral home a generation ago are back, along with their teenage sons, Jared and Ash, one of whom is eerily familiar to Kami. Kami is not one to shy away from the unknown—in fact, she’s determined to find answers for all the questions Sorry-in-the-Vale is suddenly posing. Who is responsible for the bloody deeds in the depths of the woods? What is her own mother hiding? And now that her imaginary friend has become a real boy, does she still love him? Does she hate him? Can she trust him?

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Date Read: January 28, 2013
Rating: 4 stars

Unspoken is that kind of book that will keep you reading until the very last page because you really want to uncover the truth behind all the secrets and mystery surrounding the plot. It's that kind of book that obviously doesn't give out anything in beginning so you'll have to find out when it ends. It was good but sometimes you almost want to just shout in frustration because it takes a bit too long to reveal who the Lynburns really are. But the magic and mystery worked out pretty well all throughout the book. I definitely didn't see all those things coming in the end. I probably would have but I didn't really make an effort to wack my brain and guess what's going to happen or who's killing who. I even felt creeped out a few times which isn't a surprise because I easily get freaked out by a lot of things.

The characters, I guess, were well-developed too, but the setting wasn't as appealing. Apart from having a weird name, Sorry-in-the-Vale was your typical mysterious town where everybody knows everybody. I have read quite a few books with the same kind of town. The people in the town, though, were more interesting than the place they live on.

Kami Glass is a very lively and an extremely entertaining character. She's smart and funny, which makes her one of the reasons that I enjoyed the book. Another thing that I like about Kami and what sets her apart is that she doesn't constantly swoon over Jared, or even Ash. Maybe she does, but not the exaggerated adoration a lot of girls in books do. Jared, on the other hand, was not placed on a pedestal and showered with redeeming qualities, which I liked as well. What didn't please me is their very confusing relationship. Are they friends or are they more? What happened when they were fourteen? It was just so difficult to think if they would really work out. The ending did not help either. But despite their weird connection and their puzzling relationship, I still enjoyed some of their shared moments.

Holly and Angela were the minor characters that were fairly entertaining, tolerable and very unexpected. I didn't even thought that the secret was like that. I just didn't see that coming.

What else? The ending was nice. It was intense and a bit thrilling. It didn't really end with an annoying cliffhanger. Just the right sentences to lead you to the next books. :D

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