City of Bones

· The Mortal Instruments Book 1 · Simon and Schuster · Narrated by Mae Whitman
98 reviews
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13 hr 44 min
Unabridged
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About this audiobook

A New York City teenager stumbles into the paranormal world of angels and demons in the book that started it all—the “funny, dark, and sexy” (Holly Black) first installment of the New York Times and internationally bestselling Mortal Instruments series. City of Bones is a Shadowhunters novel.

A simple night out with her best friend, Simon, transforms into a nightmare when fifteen-year-old Clary Fray witnesses a murder at the Pandemonium Club. The culprits are three teenagers covered in strange tattoos and brandishing weapons no one else seems to notice. In fact, Clary is the only one to see the violent display. The next day, more impossible sights make Clary wonder if she’s going crazy.

When a desperate phone call from her mom brings Clary home to a scene of destruction and a grotesque monster that almost kills her, Clary finally gets some answers. One of the teens from the club—Jace, who looks like an angel but acts like a jerk—rescues her and introduces himself as a Shadowhunter, part of a secret cadre of warriors dedicated to driving demons out of the mundane world and back to their own. Jace and his friends Alec and Isabelle hunt their prey on the streets of New York City, unseen by humans…except for Clary.

The Shadowhunters want to know how Clary can perceive the paranormal and Clary wants their help finding her missing mom. Their tentative alliance brings Clary deeper into the world of Nephilim, werewolves, vampires, and demons, where she adapts better than anyone expected. Could this be where she’s belonged all along?
A New York City teenager stumbles into the paranormal world of angels and demons in the book that started it all—the “funny, dark, and sexy” (Holly Black) first installment of the New York Times and internationally bestselling Mortal Instruments series. City of Bones is a Shadowhunters novel. A ...

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Ratings and reviews

98 reviews
Penelope Noce
April 26, 2021
The second worst out of the repetitive love triangles. So glad I got to read the Clockwork series before this one or I would have written all of these books off (that series is amazing). Every trilogy has a love triangle of some sort and these characters were the second worst, second most immature of them all. There is always the cocky love interest with a burdened past and the gentle love interest, and it is never a surprise which one is going to be chosen. I feel like I'm reading the same story over and over again, just a different era.
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Tia Kiiskinen
February 22, 2025
Love the story. Cannot stand the narrator. If you must use a British accent, why not take a Britt? All shadowhunters sound super theatrical and unnatural. Just read the ebook.
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Lindsy Lockhart
June 8, 2023
the book can get annoying but I love Mae Whitman, her voice is perfect for this :) I wish they would have kept her for the other books.
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About the author

Cassandra Clare is the author of the #1 New York Times, USA TODAY, Wall Street Journal, and Publishers Weekly bestselling Shadowhunter Chronicles. She is also the coauthor of the bestselling fantasy series Magisterium with Holly Black. The Shadowhunter Chronicles have been adapted as both a major motion picture and a television series. Her books have more than fifty million copies in print worldwide and have been translated into more than thirty-five languages. Cassandra lives in western Massachusetts with her husband and three fearsome cats. Visit her at CassandraClare.com. Learn more about the world of the Shadowhunters at Shadowhunters.com.
Cassandra Clare is the author of the #1 New York Times, USA TODAY, Wall Street Journal, and Publishers Weekly bestselling Shadowhunter Chronicles. She is also the coauthor of the bestselling fantasy series Magisterium with Holly Black. The Shadowhunter Chronicles have been adapted as both a major...

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