The Bane Chronicles
The Bane Chronicles is a series of short stories that take place throughout the long life of everyone’s favorite Warlock, Magnus Bane. Starting in the 1700’s and ending in modern times, these stories help us to understand everything that Magnus has lived through… his troubles, his triumphs, his adventures, his heartbreaks, and everything in between. If you are not a Magnus fan already, you will be after this book. Regardless of whatever is thrown at him, Magnus never looses his zest for life. No matter what he has had to go through, at the end of the day, Magnus just wants to be loved, and who can’t relate to that?
In order to fully appreciate all the tales in this book, it is important to have read both The Mortal Instruments, and The Infernal Devices series. There are characters from both series that make prominent appearances in these stories, and help to provide some much needed context for some of these stories. For example, one of the stories literally starts “following a certain incident in City of Lost Souls”.
Magnus Bane is one of my favorite characters in the Shadowhunter world because of his style, his humor, and his heart. If you are a Shadowhunter fan, or a fan of Magnus Bane, then you will love all these stories about his past and present adventures.
Here are some additional reviews for each specific short story:
What Really Happened in Peru - It’s been an ongoing joke throughout the Shadowhunter books that Magnus is no longer welcome in Peru, but no one ever really explains why. This story has Magnus visiting Peru a multitude of times, each time having a different adventure that ends with a problem for someone else…. He looses peoples money, he annoys whole towns with her terrible music playing, goes on drinking sprees. While I thought that these various tales were humorous, we are still left to make up our minds about what really happened, and I would have preferred a more direct answer.
The Runaway Queen - In this tale we find Magnus being hired to help Marie Antoinette escape the people trying to behead her. Of course Magnus only agrees to help because of a handsome young man. This story was probably my least favorite of the book, because I did not really see the point of it. Most of the other stories have a unique message or lesson, and I didn’t feel that here. The only message I see here is that Magnus played a small role in a historically significant incident.
Vampires, Scones, and Edmund Herondale - In this tale we get one of the first instances that shows that Magnus’s life has not been all sunshine and rainbows… that the people that Magnus has loved and cared about have not always loved him back. Because I am such a Magnus fan, I hate seeing him be hurt in any way. I find it very interesting that Shadowhunters are presented in such different ways depending on what story you’re reading. It makes one ask the question… are the Shadowhunter really the heroes that they say they are?
The Midnight Heir - This was a very interesting story featuring the child of well known characters from the main Shadowhunter books. At first, I wasn’t quite sure what the point of this story was, other than featuring some new and interesting characters that I was not familiar with. I definitely found myself wanting to know more about the characters in this story, and what was going on with them. Magnus was more of an observer here, but he still stepped in and tried to help a troubled young man as best he could. Because that’s the thing about Magnus, he always tries to do the right thing.
The Rise of Hotel Dumort - I loved the time period that this story takes place in… and the image of Magnus running a magical Speakeasy was just fantastic! At this point in the timeline, Magnus is not High Warlock of New York yet, so I was very curious to know more about how he ended up with that job. I don’t want to spoil what happens… but I found it super interesting that Hotel Dumort was known as being a vampire holdout, but apparently that is not how it started.
Saving Raphael Santiago - If you’ve read the Shadowhunter books you’re familiar with Raphael, and the fact that Magnus cares for him. I don’t recall what was specifically said about their relationship, but this story really helps to explain why Magnus cares for Raphael like he does. Not only do we get to see how they meet, and what they mean to each other, but we also get to see Raphael and Ragnor together, and that added another layer of cuteness!
The Fall of Hotel Dumort - One of the more heartbreaking tales in this book, because of Magnus’s relationship with Camille. I don’t recall if there has ever been a mention of drug use in the Shadowhunter world, but it plays a big role here. Humans are using drugs, and then vampires and drinking their drugged blood, and it’s causing all sorts of issues. Watching Magnus have to try and deal with this, clean up the mess, was really sad. He really does care about Camille, and so he has a hard time dealing with what has become of her. Seeing how hurt he is, it just made me want to hug him.
What to Buy the Shadowhunter Who Has Everything (and who you’re not officially dating anyway) - Finally, our first story in this book about Magnus and Alec. As always, their relationship is just the best. It’s been a while since I read The Mortal Instruments series, so I forgot about how awkward their relationship was in the beginning. Both men were experiencing new things, and scared about how the other would react. Each is so worried about saying, doing the right thing, they don’t realize that the only thing they need, is each other. Not only is this story super cute, but it’s also slightly steamy as well.
The Last Stand of the New York Institute - This story was not what I was expecting, and actually jumps back into the distant past when Valentine and The Circle were still in power. Again, we have another story that really shows how hard it is to be a Warlock in a world that doesn’t want you. This story very clearly shows how horrible The Circle really was. We’ve heard about in various books before, but nothing makes it so shockingly clear as this one. We also have another example of Magnus standing up for others who can’t, and doing the right thing.
The Course of True Love (and first dates) - Probably one of my favorite stories in the whole book, is Magnus and Alec’s first date. It was so funny to see them struggle through their awkward first date just like a lot of people do. I loved that Magnus had an “out” set up, just like so many people do. Everything seemed to keep going wrong for them, but at the end of the day, they were able to work together to help someone, and that solidified their relationship. This story is just another of many stories that shows that Magnus and Alec are perfect for each other.
The Voicemail of Magnus Bane - Here is a series of voicemails left on Magnus’ phone after his temporary break up with Alec. The voicemails span from Alec, members of his family, random friends, and business associates. While I did find these voicemails cute, funny, and sometimes informative, I’m not sure if this was the best way to end the book. I would have switched this with the first date story to end the book on a more positive note, but that’s just me.
