Simon is at the farmhouse, still trying to talk to Clary through the ring.  It’s been…how many chapters now since we were promised an angel-raising?  I can’t even remember.  And yet there’s been so much mindless padding that they can only progress with this plan by baby steps.  In one chapter, they come up with it.  The next, they debate it.  Heck, last chapter all the progress they made was driving.

Simon spends a while angsting over how much he likes the farm and has fond memories of the place.  Um…is this really something to feel angsty about?  Come on, book, dig deep and pull up some fond nostalgia or something.  There’s more to the human repertoire of emotions than just “lust” and “woe.”

Magnus draws the circles and spells he’ll need in the sand, then gives Simon the words he’ll need to summon an angel.  Before Simon gets started, he gives Magnus the fairy ring so people can still talk to Clary in case he dies.  And then there’s long, drawn-out melodramatic goodbyes to everyone before they leave him to his angel summoning alone.  …yeah, we’ve reached the point where legit drama just doesn’t feel real thanks to everything that’s come before.  I’ve been waiting like five chapters for this, book, get on with it.

Simon does the spell, and it makes the lake explode.  It’s a pretty cool image, if a bit overblown, and then the angel appears in the middle.

Simon’s first and rather bizarre thought was that it looked as if someone had taken Jace and blown him up to the size of a billboard.

Ugh.

Too much of anything could destroy you, Simon thought. Too much darkness could kill, but too much light could blind.

Or, you know, also kill you.  Seriously, this book really likes to harp on the whole “hell is actually more powerful than heaven” subtext.

Raz is not happy at being summoned and starts to kill him, but he’s stopped when he realizes Simon has his uberspecial mark. 

The angel already knows what Simon wants (but still asks what he wants anyway, because we need more padding!) and refuses to give it.  He doesn’t like having been summoned, and…he’s kind of acting like a rebellious brat.  I mean, fine, he’s got the grandiose word choice and the big presence, but all his arguments are “psh, I’m pissed off, so no.”

We try to save them. If Heaven didn’t want it that way, we ought never have been given the ability to love.”

That’s got to be the weakest argument I’ve ever heard.  Simon, we love people because of hormones.  In a more metaphorical sense, we love people because love is awesome even when it’s short.  It doesn’t exist solely to convince you to save a pretty boy.  It’s not put in place by fate. 

And, hey, here’s a thought, since you want to insist on love and fate and heaven being all intertwined: maybe love exists so Jace can love the world enough to do what he’s got to do.  Did that ever cross your mind?  Of course it didn’t.

Raz says he’ll do it so long as Simon promises never to “bother” him again.  No, really, that’s the word he uses.  This isn’t an angel, this is just some pissed off geezer yelling get off my lawn.  This book has sucked the majesty and wonder out of heaven.  Also, Raz wants to take the mark off Simon’s forehead, since he’s not supposed to have it anyway.

It was a curse, one that had terrified him and made him an object of desire and fear. He had hated it. And yet now, faced with giving it up, the thing that made him special…

Object of desire and fear?  What?  Also, it’s vaguely creepy that Simon thinks that the power to turn people into salt is the only thing he’s got going for himself.  I mean, it’s not like he’s the only vampire around who can stand daylight or nothing…

But you are of the blood and faith of the Maccabees. Some say the Maccabees were Marked by the hand of God. In either case you are a warrior of Heaven, Daylighter, whether you like it or not.

Naturally the text will have none of that and wants to heap some extra specialness on him.

So, Raz takes away his mark and gives him the sword of the archangel Michael.  Also there’s a bunch of bible verses and lore to accompany it, just in case you forgot that the bible is totally and absolutely true in this world.  Well, the old testament, at least.  I can’t wait for them to travel back in time and disprove evolution. 

Everyone else comes out of the house once the light show is over and they’re all happy over how Simon’s “curse” is gone now.

—

Clary does not like Jace’s “die in order to save the whole fucking world” plan, and she tries to convince him that his prettiness is worth more than everything else on the planet combined.

“Saving myself is treason. It’s putting a weapon into the hands of the enemy.”

“Who cares about treason? Or the Law?” she demanded. “I care about you. We’ll figure this out together—”

Indeed, who cares about treason?  You know what I care about?  NOT LETTING THE PLANET GET TAKEN OVER BY DEMONS.

PRIORITIES, CLARY, COME ON.

So, since Jace is ready to go do the right thing over her protests, Clary calls Jonathan down  and tells him the whole deal, so that he’ll stop Jace for her.  This is our heroine, boys and girls.  She’s just doomed the planet so she can have a few more days of snuggle time.

Jonathan puts a healing mark on Jace, and before he changes back to being mind controlled, Jace admits that the plan with the cup was his.  Jonathan knew what he wanted to do, but Jace came up with the method.  Eh, so what?  Mind-control, remember?  The fact that Jace came up with the plan doesn’t really change anything.  It’s not like they’ll have to go about defeating it a different way for some reason.

And then he changes back to mind-controlled Jace and doesn’t remember anything that happened.  Apparently there’s something planned for that night, because Jace asks “is it time” and Jonathan says it is and sends him on his way.  Jonathan and Clary have a creepy moment together, and I think Clary almost regrets saving Jace, but then it passes and we’re back to garden variety, guiltless angst.