Review: Lady Midnight (Audiobook)

Source: Library

Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare
Series: The Dark Artifices
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Length: 19 hours and 45 minutes
Narrator: Morena Baccarin
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Description:

In a secret world where half-angel warriors are sworn to fight demons, parabatai is a sacred word.
A parabatai is your partner in battle. A parabatai is your best friend. Parabatai can be everything to each other—but they can never fall in love.
Emma Carstairs is a warrior, a Shadowhunter, and the best in her generation. She lives for battle. Shoulder to shoulder with her parabatai, Julian Blackthorn, she patrols the streets of Los Angeles, where vampires party on the Sunset Strip, and faeries—the most powerful of supernatural creatures—teeter on the edge of open war with Shadowhunters. When the bodies of humans and faeries turn up murdered in the same way Emma’s parents were when she was a child, an uneasy alliance is formed. This is Emma’s chance for revenge—and Julian’s chance to get back his brother Mark, who is being held prisoner by the faerie Courts. All Emma, Mark, and Julian have to do is solve the murders within two weeks…and before the murderer targets them.
Their search takes Emma from sea caves full of sorcery to a dark lottery where death is dispensed. And each clue she unravels uncovers more secrets. What has Julian been hiding from her all these years? Why does Shadowhunter Law forbid parabatai to fall in love? Who really killed her parents—and can she bear to know the truth?

My Rating:

My Review:
The Blackthorn family returns.  First introduced in an earlier series, we now join an older Emma Carstairs and Julius Balckthorn, who are both talented Shadowhunters in their own right.  Emma has been banned from looking any further into the death of her parents.  But when a surprise drops on the steps of the Institute, Julian and Emma have the opportunity to solve two mysteries at once.  Who is killing Downworlders in a strange ritual-like fashion and is this the same person that murdered Emma's parents long ago?  With the hold of some new and old friends, they rush to solve the most important mystery in both their lives.

On the Story...
In the return to the Shadowhunger's world, we see many familiar names and faces, but it doesn't feel repetitive.  We simply branch into a different direction.  The mystery didn't pull me in much but I was intrigued by the concept of the parabatai bond, a non-romantic magical bond that ties two Shadown hunters together.  Diving into Emma and Julian's bond really captured my imagination.  The book started slow and dragged most of the way through.  While their were many in the cast of characters, little time was spent with the younger members of the family.  The end more than made up for the sluggish pace.  I was surprised and excited with the solving of the crimes and I'm certainly ready for the next book.  Ms. Clare did a great job of leading the reader into the next read without using a cliffhanger.

On the Narrator...
Ms. Baccarin did a great job.  I felt I could hear Emma's strength through the narrator's voice.  I think she captured her well.  I could easily tell the different characters apart and her voice was pleasant to listen to.  This is certainly important in a 19 hour audio.

Overall, the end of the book and the parabatai magic made this book well worth the read.  I will be back to follow Emma and Julian's next adventure.  Though I enjoyed the narrator, I'd suggest reading this one rather than listening simply because it is a long listen and the beginning drags a bit.