Audiobook Review - City of Fallen Angels

Written by: Cassandra Clare

Read by: Molly C. Quinn and Ed Westwick

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Audio

Source: Purchased and received from Publisher

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - This audiobook is a must have!

* * SPOILER FREE REVIEW * *

Synopsis (from Simon and Schuster's web page):

The Mortal War is over, and sixteen-year-old Clary Fray is back home in New York, excited about all the possibilities before her. She's training to become a Shadowhunter and to use her unique power. Her mother is getting married to the love of her life. Downworlders and Shadowhunters are at peace at last. And—most importantly of all—she can finally call Jace her boyfriend.

But nothing comes without a price.

Someone is murdering Shadowhunters, provoking tensions between Downworlders and Shadowhunters that could lead to a second, bloody war. Clary's best friend, Simon, can't help her. His mother just found out that he's a vampire and now he's homeless. Everywhere he turns, someone wants him on their side—along with the power of the curse that's wrecking his life. And they're willing to do anything to get what they want. Not to mention that he's dating two beautiful, dangerous girls—neither of whom knows about the other one.

When Jace begins to pull away from her without explaining why, Clary is forced to delve into the heart of a mystery whose solution reveals her worst nightmare: she herself has set in motion a terrible chain of events that could lead to her losing everything she loves. Even Jace.

Love. Blood. Betrayal. Revenge. The stakes are higher than ever in City of Fallen Angels.

I listened to the City of Fallen Angels audiobook after I read the book itself; I’m that much of a Cassandra Clare fan that I like to immerse myself in her world and yes, as a result, I own multiple formats of her stories. I know you're not judging here, MMs, and that a lot of you do the same.

But, I’m very picky about my audiobooks. I’m a busy mom with lots of commitments, so if I’m going to spend a thirteen hours listening to something, well, it better be good. Simon and Schuster Audio understands that because they consistently produce quality audiobooks and in this case, yes, they’ve done it again.

They cast the always adorable Molly C. Quinn (from the TV show “Castle”) as the voice of the female point-of-view chapters in City of Fallen Angels. And Molly delivers these kick-a$$ girls brilliantly. Her intonations when she’s reading Isabelle bring to life one of my favorite characters. We all know how confident and all-knowing Izzy is in the books, and MMs, she sounds just that way in the audiobook. As for Clary, I have an absolute love of how Molly presents Clary’s dialogue – what I heard was the stubborn, smart and oh-so-in-love-with-Jace character I’ve known throughout the stories. Major credit to Molly for delivering the boys’ dialogue in a believable and snarky way and for reading through those That-Did-NOT-Just-Happen Kissy Scenes. I’m not sure if this is her first audiobook, but I hope it’s not her last.

As for Ed Westwick (of "Gossip Girl" fame), let me start off by saying that I’m a huge fan of his and I was dying of curiosity to hear his take on the chapters featuring the boys’ points-of-view. There were things that surprised me – like the fact that he gets all the characters. His interpretation of Simon’s dialogue was especially perfect. In my head, Simon always sounded just like that – nerdy, sweet and sometimes surprised by his own conclusions. As for Jace, I may be sighing a little here, Ed does a perfect Jace. That sleepy, drawn out way that Cassie describes Jace’s sarcastic remarks and side comments? Picture it delivered right to your ear. But Ed reads the narrated parts in his own gorgeous British accent and I was so enamored with it that I started making a list of words which Ed could say at any time on truly any occasion. I’ll place those in the comments section for your amusement and mine.

I know that those of you who have already read City of Fallen Angels will agree that it is a complex plot with a large cast of characters. Now imagine that story being delivered by two actors who bring ALL the roles and those heart-pounding moments to life and you have the audiobook version. Go on, you need to hear it for yourself. iTunes and Audible both have samples for you to enjoy. In the meantime, I may just go back to hear how Ed, as Magnus, gets just the right tone of exasperated wisdom as he says, “Alexander…” in a voice that implies he’s been around for centuries. Oh, yeah, this is a pause-repeat kind of audiobook.

For a review of the book, read KatieB's no-spoiler thoughts, here.