Fellow Shadowhunters, it is time to witness a new adventure of our favourite couple. On April 9th, Cassandra Clare and co-writer Wesley Chu published the first book in The Eldest Curses series which focuses entirely on Magnus Bane and Alexander Lightwood.
This series takes place between City of Glass and City of Fallen Angels. Remember those postcards Izzy received? Yup, they have been written at the beginning of this book.
After defeating Valentine all Magnus wants to do is spend some time with his new boyfriend, Alec. A normal date would not do it for him, so he takes Alec across the big pond. In Paris, Magnus tries everything to make this trip unforgettable. Who would not be in awe of having dinner at the top of the Eiffel Tower with the most beautiful man sitting across the table? But Alec just can’t relax and enjoy his first ever vacation as his mind is on high alert since Magnus is his first boyfriend and he has no clue what he should do or what is expected of him.
When Alec notices something strange above Paris’s roofs, he switches to hunting mode and wants to help his French colleagues. Little does he know that he would replace their vacation with an investigation of a greater demon worshipping cult called the Crimson Hand, which was founded by Magnus and his best friend Ragnor Fell. They may not be on vacation anymore, but that does not mean they cannot travel through Europe to stop the cult from summoning someone, who Magnus never wanted to see again.
Compared to the other Shadowhunters books, Red Scrolls, with its 300 pages, is quite short. For those, who have read everything Cassandra Clare has written, at first, not much is new. We know that Malec went to Europe for a while and we read a bit about this trip in the second trilogy of The Mortal Instruments. However, it is nice to have Alec at the center of a book. Clare already wrote a book of short stories about different parts of Magnus life, which also included Alec, titled The Bane Chronicles.
However, it always felt, like the readers would never really get as much as they wanted to of him. The perfect soldier, who built walls so high around his heart to not show a single emotion, finally shows us that he is so full of them and quite shy and unsure in this new situation. These feelings go both ways. Alec cares about his home, New York, the Institute, and for his family and friends. The only person he completely trusts is his sister Isabelle, besides his parabatai Jace, of course, so you do get some very beautiful moments between the siblings. You will shed a tear when Max’s name comes up and cry from laughter when Jace fights Izzy for the phone.
And then there is Alec’s vulnerable side. He loves Magnus with all his heart, but he still does not know much about him and probably never will know him completely. There’s also this “problem” that Magnus is way more experienced as he is and Alec feels lost when he only things about going further with him.
Magnus on the other hand does not worry about their relationship, but now with the cult, who he must stop, he does not know where he should start digging. How could he forget about it? The cult soon turns out to be even more personal as he would have thought and what could happen if they succeed with summoning a greater demon, he does not want to imagine it. A character such as Magnus’s has thousand stories to tell. I think that it never gets old to hear about his past from who he met, where he lived, and what adventures he has had.
What makes Clare’s book so special is that she never forgets to bring some other beloved characters into the story from Tessa saying hi, followed by Raphael, Helen, and Aline, along with Max and Ragnor being mentioned.
In case you are new to the Shadowhunter world, this timeline could help you guide through all the books and short novels which have been published so far.
The Red Scrolls of Magic is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers.
Have you read The Red Scrolls of Magic? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
From #1 New York Times bestseller Cassandra Clare and award-winner Wesley Chu comes the first book in a new series that follows High Warlock Magnus Bane and Alec Lightwood as they tour the world after the Mortal War. The Red Scrolls of Magic is a Shadowhunters novel.
All Magnus Bane wanted was a vacation—a lavish trip across Europe with Alec Lightwood, the Shadowhunter who against all odds is finally his boyfriend. But as soon as the pair settles in Paris, an old friend arrives with news about a demon-worshipping cult called the Crimson Hand that is bent on causing chaos around the world. A cult that was apparently founded by Magnus himself. Years ago. As a joke.
Now Magnus and Alec must race across Europe to track down the Crimson Hand and its elusive new leader before the cult can cause any more damage. As if it wasn’t bad enough that their romantic getaway has been sidetracked, demons are now dogging their every step, and it is becoming harder to tell friend from foe. As their quest for answers becomes increasingly dire, Magnus and Alec will have to trust each other more than ever—even if it means revealing the secrets they’ve both been keeping.
