CITY OF BONES Read-Along: Chapter 8

In honor of the movie coming out in theaters on August 21st, I have decided to join the City of Bones Read-Along. If you haven't read this book, now is the perfect opportunity! Especially if you're planning to see the movie. If you would like to join, click here for more info. NOTE: If you haven't read the book, please beware of spoilers in the Read-Along posts. There will be quotes and chapter summaries, as well as my own thoughts on certain events that occur within the story and I don't plan on holding back.

Chapter 8: Weapon of Choice

Summary:

After going through the portal, Clary winds up at Luke's house. With Jace landing on top of her. Jace convinces her to go inside. It is here that they run into Simon who has been hiding in the bushes. Simon confesses he's been worried sick about her and was there hoping to find Clary.He saw Luke packing a bag full of weapons--knives, daggers and a sword, all of which were glowing-- and Clary decides it's time to explain to Simon everything that's been going on the past three days. She expects Simon to freak out, but instead he thinks it's "so awesome". They search through Luke's house, Jace finding manacles with dried blood on them on the wall behind some boxes of books in the storage room. It's obvious that Luke hasn't been gone very long because Simon finds that the coffee is still warm. Clary walks around the apartment looking for anything suspicious and goes into the guest bedroom to grab the backpack she keeps there with clothes and other necessities in it and changes clothes. She then finds Jace in Luke's office examining the bag full of weapons and finds the picture frame Clary threw at the Ravener demon among them. He concludes that Luke was the last person to use the Portal and that's why they ended up at his house. Simon runs into the office with a warning that someone is coming: Luke and two other men. Warlocks. Jace asks for a back way out of the house but Clary tells him there isn't one. He motions for them all to get behind a screen. Jace draws a square on the back of the screen and Clary finds that she can see everything that's going on through it. The two men are called Panghorn and Blackwell and they call Luke by a different name: Lucian Greymark. The men say that Valentine sent them to see if Luke has changed his mind. He hasn't. They discuss the Mortal Cup and how Clary's mom is unconscious. Luke tells the men that he plans on staying out of Valentine's way and that he doesn't care what happens to Clary's mother. The men tell him that if he remembers anything at all to call them. Then they all leave. Jace asks Clary if she had ever seen those men before and she says she hasn't. Jace then confesses that the two men where the ones who killed his father.

Quotes:

"Well, you didn't leave me much choice, did you?" he asked. "Not after you decided to leap merrily through that Portal like you were jumping the F train. You're just lucky it didn't dump us out in the East River."

"All the myths are true. . . Or have you forgotten that?"

Thoughts:

This entire chapter is a little unnerving, except for the part where Simon is in awe about all of the fantasy creatures being really. I remember reading this for the first time and thinking "wow. This guy is nothing like who I thought he was" and feeling really sorry for Clary because he was a HUGE part of her life, almost like the father she never had and to her it was a big lie. There are a lot of revelations in this chapter about Luke, Clary's mother and Valentine. Clearly, Luke is part of the Shadow World as well and knew more about what was going on than he led Clary to believe during their brief phone call. Clary also hears about her mother's condition; she's alive but unconscious and Valentine has her. She knew Valentine when she was a Shadowhunter, as did Luke. So many things in this chapter answer questions, but they also leave more questions to be answered.

Do you have any thoughts to add/share about this chapter? Maybe a favorite quote?

Feel free to leave a comment!