This reread probably made the most difference so far. Reading it after a complete reread of The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices made it so much better. The tie-ins with Infernal Devices just seemed much sweeter and more recognizable. I also don’t remember locking on to Julian and Emma very much when I first read this book, and their origin story is more interesting to me now that I’ve read The Dark Artifices series, which is their series. I was also able to read The Red Scrolls of Magic in it’s “chronological” position, and there are some tie-ins with that too.
To sum up - This book wraps up The Mortal Instruments and leads into the next series, which is The Dark Artifices. If this was a TV show, I would say that the Julian and Emma scenes are a backdoor pilot. Each of the main characters gets their own featured moments, which is really nice.
This is also a reminder that The Mortal Instruments series takes place within the span of 3 months. All six books, and they’re still in 2007.
Next, I’ll be rereading Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy, which was one of my favorites at the time of its release when I first read it. Then I’ll read The Lost Book of the White for the first time!