When I first heard about Chain of Gold, I wasn't sure how to feel about it. Yet another Shadowhunter series? I enjoyed the drama and intrigue of the Infernal Devices trilogy but had yet to dive into anything else -- the timelines and family trees are just confusing to me. But when I discovered that this series would followed the Infernal Devices' Will, Jem, and Tessa into adulthood, I picked it up and finished it in what felt like three seconds. Then I went on to read the entire book, and then all the preview short stories on the author's blog. That's the addictive nature of Cassandra Clare and her Shadowhunter world -- it starts with initial skepticism and tentative delving, then leads to full on indulgence. Edifying? Not exactly. Fun? Yes!

The battle against the demonic realm and the secret links between hellions and the Nephilim continue with Chain of Gold, which tells the story of the children of Will, Tessa, and their friends from Infernal Devices. It's atmospheric, addictive, and melodramatic. The start of the book introduces ghostly and otherworldly aspects to offset and shake up the stuffy London institute's established ways. Although there were too many characters to keep track of, and many of them seemed too good looking for their own good (or to be believable), the tangled threads of story caught me up and kept me going.

What I enjoyed most were the dreamy Edwardian worldbuilding, the exploration of James (and Lucie) Herondale's bloodlines (a perpetual "where is the answer??" throughout), and the exploration of outsider-insider dynamics. What didn't quite work for me were the multiple romances, whether clearly-sinister-yet-strangely-accepted or not. They were sometimes sweet and ardent in a way that my teenaged self could connect with, yet sometimes unbelievably fiery in a way that was totally out of character (and not altogether fitting for younger readers, in my matronly opinion). I also wanted to like Cordelia more as a main(ish) character -- if she is truly an independent and strong heroine, make her so without her breast a-fluttering every moment after a guy! I also really wanted more of Lucie's perspective, especially after the opening flashback. She could have been so much more than a romance story-writing sidekick. The way things came together throughout, especially at the end, was also forced and a little too over the top for me -- but I had to remind myself that this was a Shadowhunter novel. It's bound to be rather ridiculous.

So, with a little reluctance, yet with much semi-concealed enthusiasm, I will continue to indulge and look forward to the next book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the initial preview of this book. That first taste worked!

I cant wait to get the book to continue reading!!!!
Cassandra Clare only gets better with each new series on the Shadowhunter world

This book is charming and heartwarming and another beautiful addition to this huge Shadowhunter world that Cassandra Clare has created, from reading this book I now have so many more favourite characters

The Merry Thieves, Lucie and Cordelia are such a loving group of friends and make a great team, each is brilliant in their own way

I keep wanting to look up the family trees because I need to know who ends up with who but so far I’ve managed not to!

Cordelia is a delight, I love everything about her, I love that she has Cortana and this is yet another character that shows you can be both kind and incredibly strong.

I love that we get to see James’ and Lucie’s different abilities

Matthew Fairchild ❤️ I don’t have words yet for how I feel about him

Anna Lightwood is perfection
This book was everything I needed!

Another amazing book by Cassandra Clare. I devoured this book from start to finish. Returning to the world of Shadow Hunters is my favourite thing to do and this latest novel did not disapoint.

This book had so much action and lots of demon fights, which is what I always look for with Cassandra Clare books. I loved every character so much - loved everything about this book.

This world is always magical and fun to get back into. Cassandra Clare weaves her stories with interesting characters who already have you hooked from the start, and since I loved the Infernal Devices and all of its characters I can't wait to see their futures too. This might be the Cassandra Clare book that will make the Shadowhunter world even more intriguing. Still, I think I'll need to finish the whole book to figure out how much I love it.

I downloaded this excerpt to my reading device but it has never shown up in my list. I cannot review what I cannot read, however, I have enjoyed other titles by this author so I am sure this was on a par with her other well written works.

This excerpt was awesome! Does a good job of getting potential readers hooked enough to want to read the rest of the book.

Reading this excerpt makes me want to read the entire Mortal Instruments and Infernal Device series all over again. This new Cassandra Clare series sounds as thrilling and amazing as her previous stories. I am hooked and can’t wait to read the entire story.

there is no way i can not praise this book for the beautiful story and writing, just read it ! a beautiful companion series to the infernal devices full of your favourite characters !

Love what I've read so far. Looking forward to reading more.... Fingers crossed that the paperback reaches on time 🤞

I have now read the entire book and I loved it. One of my favorites of the year and of the entire Shadowhunter Chronicles!

I read a "sneak peek" of this story. It was so much better than I expected, so exciting and well done.

This book sounds amazing already! Can't wait to read more from this series and see where it will progress! It was engaging and interesting and I think this could be an instant hit with teen readers!

Just like as if Cassandra Clare's other stories of us beautifully written and does a marvelous job at connecting together other storylines. It was certainly a great start to what I know will be a wonderful book (have my copy just need to read it) and triology.

5/5 for me! I'm so excited to read the finished copy of this book, I love the Shadowhunters universe and am soooo excited to meet new characters.

Thankyou to NetGalley, Simon and Schuster and the author, Cassandra Clare, for the opportunity to read an excerpt from the upcoming novel, Chain of Gold.
Wow, what a great start to what promises to be a very intriguing read. I can't wait to read the book in its entirety.

What can I say, Cassie Clare has done it again, this is going to be a fantastic book. Already own a complete copy and plan on reading it ssoin, I know I'm going to love it.

And of course now I can't wait to go and devour the book. This excerpt did exactly what it intended <3

Cassandra Clare has literally never let me down, and she hasn't started to now. Chain of Gold is the first book in a new series set in her Shadowhunter universe, This book follows the events of The Infernal Devices trilogy and picks up with the children of the characters of that series. ain't could feel very daunting to try and step into the Shadowhunter universe but I promise you won't be disappointed. Clare does an amazing job of reintroducing the basics of the world building with each series to bring in new readers and keep the old ones. If you are a fan you need no convincing, and I can't wait for everyone to read it.