City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Genre: Fantasy Fiction/Novel
Age range: 12 and up
Summary: Clary, a fifteen year old girl who knows very little about her mother's past..or let alone her own, sets out for a night with her best friend Simon when she stumbles across a few rather eerie looking figures. Captivated, she follows them and discovers that they are really a group of demon-fighters called Shadowhunters. So the story goes, Shadowhunters are actually half angel and are granted certain privileges in the world. This gives them a leg up when it comes to other Downworlders such as vampires, fairies, werewolves, and witches and warlocks. One evening, Clary comes home to find her apartment ripped apart and her mother missing with only a demon scrounging through her stuff to keep her company. She fights and wounds it rather well but it still nearly kills her. Fortunately, the leader of the Shadowhunters-Jace-was there to finish it off. Jace protects her with a sort of rune--something the Shadowhunters draw on their skin with something called a stele (which is sort of like their version of a magic wand). If she was a Shadowhunter herself then it would protect her, if she was not it could turn her into a cyclops. Thankfully, she did not turn into a cyclops. Clary's mother was still missing however and Clary teams up with her new friends to find her. Along the way she discovers a lot about her past and a lot about her own courage. Eventually, Jace and Clary find her mother but Jace is told he is the son of a rogue Shadowhunter, Valentine, who everyone believed was dead. Jace loves the idea of being somebody's son so he accepts it. Valentine also tells Clary that she is his daughter. This complicates things since Jace and Clary sort of had a chemistry going on. Clary rescues her mother's body but before her mother left she had put herself under a spell so as not to reveal where the Immortal Cup was-a cup that could make an army of more Shadowhunters that Valentine would use to destroy all of the Downworlders. Only Clary's mom knew where it was. And luckily, Clary and Jace live through the battle that is held in Valentine's castle. Jace finally sees through Valentine's facade. And they all go back to the Institute where the Shadowhunters live. This book is just really fun to read though it may be scary for those under the age of 12.