“Love may be ruinous, but perhaps it is also salvation.” 

Better in Black, Cassandra Clare

Oh … I am so disappointed.

I put my money where my mouth is and backed Cassandra Clare’s kickstarter last year. I love supporting the authors whose work moves me, and honestly it wasn’t a bad deal. I think I paid a little over $100 for four gorgeous special edition books. However, this fourth book was a disaster and a half. As mad as I was at Chain of Thorns, I’m devastated by Better in Black.

Better in Black is a collection of short stories centered around 10 Shadowhunter couples all themed around love.

Overall, it was so hard to get through this book. The hardest I had to work to read a Shadowhunter book yet. It was just so boring and worthless. 

Clare can write phenomenal short stories and novellas. Take a look at Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy. It’s a masterpiece.

So what were my biggest gripes?

The errors.

Maybe if this was just a kickstarter project, I could forgive the many typos. However, it’s not. Clare went back on her word that these would be exclusives and sent BiB to a publisher. So backers pretty much paid to have a poorly edited version of a book they could’ve bought just a few months later. And trust me, I could’ve waited those couple months. There were literally several times where she started writing a sentence and used different phrases that mean the same thing back to back because she obviously decided to go with one midway through but didn’t backspace the old version. I’d dig an example out but I don’t want to be bothered picking up that garbage again.

Other than the errors, it felt meaningless. I like collections with a purpose. The stories I did like had some connection to the upcoming Wicked Powers series — Blackstairs, Clace and the Seelie Queen. They had a purpose while also having those frivolous plots to make them unique. The earlier stories didn’t do that. It made it boring and just confusing. The plots were too silly. I didn’t care enough about them.

Let’s just go through each story.

“The Good Storm” (Will and Tessa)

• The most boring. I honestly forgot a lot about it.
• I can’t fathom Will would be that stupid to wish to forget his sister. Even if it was painful. It just doesn’t make sense to his character. He’s goofy and moody but also smart as hell. 
• Also why did they bring the wish orb on their honeymoon? Seems to be a weird thing to pack.
• I honestly don’t like Wessa as much as most people. I don’t like Will as much as most people. So there’s that.

“The Beautiful Ajatata” (James and Cordelia)

• This one was just weird. 
• I love Jordelia but this was more about Lucy than them. 
• This could’ve been the story of Jordelia putting on their wedding runes. That’s what fans want; not whatever this was.

“Who the Wolf Loves” (Jocelyn and Luke)

• This one just felt repetitive. This is all information we kinda knew already? 
• BORING 

“Zachary’s Day Out” (Alastair and Thomas)

• The premise is cute but also so weird.
• This one did add some character development for Alastair, at least.
• RIP Thomas’ wallet lol
• This was all about Alastair rediscovering his childhood whimsy. Or perhaps just discovering it …
• Also I liked the domesticity of this story. It felt warm and cozy.

“The Judgement of King Kieran” (Christina, Kieran and Mark)

• This is another one that was a yawn fest.
• They were acting as if Kieran was a monster in the court. We saw nothing of the sort. I honestly wish we had a harsher judgement from Kieran. Don’t take away splitting the role because I thought that showed Kieran’s character well. But I wish there was a side judgement or something where we saw more of Kieran having to make tough decisions that could be considered cruel. It comes with the job.

“A Surfeit of Annas” (Anna and Ariadne)

• Happy Matthew mention!!! I love how at rest Ari said he looked. He deserves that.
• Another plot that was absurd.
• I wish Anna was more than her sexuality tbh. I love how confident she is in her sensuality but I felt this story focused too much on her past promiscuity rather than breaking free from her grief.
• This is the first we really see the aftermath of Christopher. This is the heartbreak I wanted in Chain of Thorns. Anna is rendered paralyzed, a shell of her former self almost. We should’ve zeroed in more on that.

“Bred in the Bone” (Emma and Julian) 

• This was the first story I actually enjoyed. But I’m also the biggest Blackstairs fan.
• I know a lot of people hated the cheating plot, but I thought that it showed Julian’s desperation. He was willing to hurt his Emma, to go against his own morals, to find info on Thule!Livvy.
• It also breaks my heart how he wants to bring Thule!Livvy to his world. As if he could replace the bleeding hole in his chest that his Livvy’s murder left. Or at least he could protect one Livvy. To keep her safe the way he couldn’t the Livvy in his world. It’s the festering guilt that always lives within Julian that I absolutely love.
•  Something about Julian telling Emma how it feels quiet. How he pauses before saying the word. How he deliberately chose that word. Because yes, life is quieter without the pitter patter of so many children under one roof. It’s quieter without an institute to run and kids to raise. It’s quiet without listening to Dru’s new true crime obsession or trying not to freak out about the latest critter Ty brought home. It’s quiet without Tavvy crying in his arms. And while mostly it’s crushing to realize they’ve grown up, I bet he feels so guilty for the quiet. That he’s given up the chaos for the quiet. He handed the institute and parenting responsibilities off to Helen. That’s how it should’ve gone to begin with. But there’s still something that feels so wrong about it. To not finish what he started. To give up on his kids. And the quiet has its perks but it also feels like a failure. Quiet is nice but it’s also a wound.
• Clare previously said Thule won’t have a big impact on TWP but this definitely felt as if it will. That’s also just a gaping plot hole for the TSC universe. 
• I also thought it was interesting to see Emma and Julian wrestle with their past selves. Who they had to be to survive and who they are now that life has settled. The vengeance, the cruelty, the anger … where does all that go now that the dust settles?

“City of Broken Hearts” (Isabelle and Simon)

• I didn’t care for this one at all.
• I felt Simon should’ve grown out of all his insecurities. At least partially. Simon took two steps back in this story from where he was.
• Blah.

“The Time of Two” (Jace and Clary)

• This was another story I liked. It gave us a piece of purpose with Max giving Jace the prophecy manuscript. That sets something in motion at least.
• I hate the double wedding idea. It’s so stupid.
• I thought the plot for this one was good. It showed how the Clave is changing for the better. The morals of the Clave Alec is building as Consul.
• I’m honestly not the biggest TMI fan but I do love Clace’s dynamic. It’s so sweet and silly despite everything. It’s adorable.
• I think the concept of stripping Marks is so fascinating — to strip away divine purpose is major. So seeing the impact of that through Max and Maryse soothed my intrigue. And I liked the message of how it was worth it even though Max’s wife died young. He loved her, and the span of the life they had together doesn’t define his choice. And how that relates to Clace. To not have regrets, to go through everything again because on the other side is love.

“Too Wise to Love” (Sebastian and the Seelie Queen)

• This was my favorite story by far. 
• Nene being the narrator was perfection. An insider who’s not too close to be biased. Plus she’s relevant to the story since she raises Ash.
• Oh the Seelie Queen … beautiful and cunning and cruel … falling in love with someone not incapable of love but incapable of loving her. How you can be a queen and heart break can still haunt you. A child who should’ve brought joy, bringing pain. Unbearable pain. … A reminder of your own weakness. Of the man you loved but only loved what power you allowed him in return. … A kingdom in ruins as a reflection of your own heart.
• Sebastian and the Seelie Queen are honestly my favorite villains of the entire series — like the entire TSC universe. Sebastian’s unfettered cruelty is delicious, and the Seelie Queen is so damn clever. I think they make an obvious pairing. It’s only surprising how the Queen caught the feels. It makes her more human, while continuing the dehumanization of Sebastian. 
• Oh baby Ash … my heart. Nene mentions he knows who his mother is. … When does he start to question why she doesn’t love him? Because as much as Nene loves him, to know your own mother doesn’t have to be something … that you will always be a reminder of what she lost. Ouch.
  • But also baby Ash being raised by Nene means he is raised with care and love. To have some type of childhood of games and surprise cake and so much love. To know warmth. It’s a childhood he never would have had if Sebastian lived. 
• Sebastian knew the Seelie Queen was pregnant before he started turning Shadowhunters Endarkened … Idk why but it makes what he does more hitting. As if he has an even bigger purpose. To make the whole he envisions for his son. Not out of love but a lust for power. The son of shadow and the wild. He was preparing the Earth for Ash.
• Ash being named because “that is all that remains” is so heartbreaking. A son birthed out of heartbreak. 

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