Cassandra Clare shares several ‘Queen of Air and Darkness’ snippets + Q&A

The excitement for Cassandra Clare’s final book in her The Dark Artifices trilogy is growing day by day and after today’s three snippets and a Q&A, I can imagine that the wait for Queen of Air and Darkness is only going to be more difficult. We can do this, though! Together we’ll make it until December 4!

Let’s have a look at the snippets first before we dive into the Q&A.

Snippet #1

#Snippet #2

#Snippet #3

And the various questions and answers:

Do Tessa/Catarina/Ragnor love Magnus? Like platonically. I alays thought ragnor did even tho he acts like he doesn’t

C: Of course they do! They’re some of his oldest dearest friends and they absolutely love him even when he drives them bonkers with strange action, like accidentally starting a demon cult, becoming a pirate, dating a Shadowhunter … (x)

will the parabatai curse in regards to emma and julian be resolved in qoaad?

C: Yes, it’s the central plot of the books so I promise, it will be resolved — one way or another. 😉 You will find out why it’s really forbidden and what happens when the curse is activated. (x)

I was wondering why it’s Horace that drops the first F bomb of the series? Many people thought it would be Emma, or even Kit who would have that honor, but it’s neither of them who does.

C: I don’t consider it an honor. It’s neither hugely important, nor clever (depending how you use it — but Emma and Kit are both witty and clever, and Horace is not, so falling back on plain old profanity is what he’s got.) I’m not saying swearing is particularly terrible, but in this case I was using it to indicate that Horace isn’t going to treat these kids the way the Clave would normally treat other Shadowhunters, especially young ones. This is the opening to a scene where he treats them barbarically and that language is the first clue that he isn’t going to play by any rules. It’s the equivalent of a slap in the face. (x)

I have a question about the new Excerpt from QOAAD. Will we find out what exactly Robert wrote in his notes about Julian and Emma?

C: Oh yes. It’s central to Horace’s plans. (x)

Will we find out what is happening with the warlocks on QoAaD or will we have to wait till TWP?

C: No, you’ll find out in QoAaD. (x)

I was wondering if we meet any other of Kierans brothers in QOAAD and if we find out more about what Kierans life was like in the unseelie court?

C: We do indeed meet one of Kieran’s other brothers — Oban. He’s fairly important. We find out a bit more about what Kieran was like in the Unseelie Court before he left. (x)

Will we see more of Cameron in QOAAD?

C: My whole friends group just burst out laughing, is all I have to say — you definitely will! (x)

I have a few questions about the curse, but I’m not sure if you’ll be able to answer them so I’m sorry if this is a waste of time. In lm and los julian coughed up seawater when emma was drowning and they were both feeling the affects of each other’s wounds in the second battle with the riders but in the chapter sampler emma didn’t have the same cuts that julian did on his hands. Is the curse somehow selective with things like this? Or has it just not taken it’s full affect on them yet?

C: The curse works differently at different times. You’ll certainly see why it’s working strangely in that part of QuaaD when you read it but I can’t tell it to you — it’s a big spoiler. (x)

I really want to know more about Kieran, Mark and Cristina in QoAaD. Can you tell me something about their relationship in this book?

C: It grows more complicated, and the three of them grow closer. (x)

How many pages will QOAAD have?

C: I don’t know, because it hasn’t been actually set into pages by the publisher yet. Page count is affected by margins, footer and header size, font size, etc. That’s why writers figure out how long things are by word count, not page count. QuoAD is about 250,000 words making it slightly longer than CoHF. (x)

Will we finally know the identity of kit’s mother in QOAAD or will that be the focus of TWP?

C. We’ll know who she is/was, but not entirely what that’s going to mean for Kit — that part is TWP. (x)

Will we find out what the secret mission is that Clary and Jace are doing in QoAaD??

C: You definitely will! (x)

I love Helen and Aline in your books, but I have a query about Aline. When she is saved by Isabelle in COG by a demon, did she later experience any sort of PTSD of such due to the demon’s intentions? I know that shadowhunters have different understandings of health and wellbeing than mundanes, but I’m not sure that it’s explicitly in the books that she encountered any such experience.

C: Shadowhunters do experience traumatic events more and differently than mundanes, and react to them differently, but yes, as we’re seeing more of Aline in both The Red Scrolls of Magic and Queen of Air and Darkness, I did want to address this issue. Aline has dealt with her feelings and isn’t deeply damaged by the experience, but of course it has left its mark on her. In TROSM, Aline reacts badly to the sight of the specific type of demon that attacked her, and Helen perceives that and reaches out to comfort her. It’s one of the things that makes Aline begin to fall in love with Helen. (x)

This might be too spoilery, but can you say how many deaths there will be in QoAaD, or just something about any deaths that isn’t very spoilery?

C: Not this time around 🙂 (x)

I’m nervous but excited to see how Ty is doing in QoAaD. Will he and Dru (and Kit for that matter) become closer in this book? And she supposedly has her own friends in TWP, so will we meet any of them in this book? Or does all this happen in the time jump between TDA and TWP?

C: He does become closer to Dru, and also to Kit. As for Dru making new friends, keep in mind QoAaD happens in a short period of time — like a week — so we can’t expect everything that makes the characters’ lives different in TWP to happen in QoAaD. A lot of things will happen to change Ty and Dru and their circumstances between TDA and TWP so that essentially, in TWP we are able to tell a new story, not just a continuation of the Dark Artifices. (Though if you keep your eyes REALLY peeled, you will glimpse one of Dru’s new friends in TWP in a crowd scene.) (x)

is there anything to be added that ty does that isnt too spoilery?

C: He goes to a diner. He finds a woodrat. He toasts marshmallows. He eats potato chips for breakfast. He encounters a dancing warlock. (x)

i was wondering if we’re going to see Raphael and Max in QoAaD?

C: Yep! They are always toddling about and they do some comforting of Tavvy after Livvy’s death. (x)

Will we find out who Shade is in QOAAD?

C: Yes. (x)

About the last Dru’s question, I loved her and I always have thought that she’s kind of underestimated so… will she at least have her little moment of greatness and bravery in qoaad? And will her brothers and sister see her with new eyes?

C: Absolutely she does! She’s badass. It’s not a little moment, either. (x)

will qoaad parallel to cohf? or will the clave be worse off by the end of qoaad than they were at the end of cohf, etc.?

C: They will be very different. (x)

The “second part” of A Long Conversation wil take place before, during or after QoAaD?

C: During the epilogue. Actually, there’s sort of two epilogues. 😉 Let’s just say it takes place during QoAaD. (x)

Will kit and jace get to interact in Queen?

C: Yes, they do. (x)

Everyone always addresses the fact that Julian was like a father to the Blackthorns, and I know we are probably going to see how he reacts to Livvy’s death in that parameter. But I was wondering if in QoAaD the fact that Emma was (kind of) like a mother to the younger Blackthorns is going to be addressed and if we will see Emma’s reaction to Livvy’s death in that parameter?

C: Yes, though Emma was more like an older sister than a mom. She grieves for Livvy like a sister would. Her grief is very raw and intense — in one scene she sobs uncontrollably over some of Livvy’s old clothes because she was about to put them in the wash for her, and then remembered there was no point. 😦 (x)

Will we find out what the Seelie Queen did, if anything, to have the Unseelie King hate her so much and take the person she cares for? Is there a long rivalry between the two courts or is the animosity fairly new?

C: Yes, it’s a long and complex story, and I’d say the Queen may be the more wronged party. There’s definitely a lengthy animosity and it actually does come up in GoTSM too. (x)

Will Jace and Zara Dearborn meet? More importantly, will he, in any way, put her in her proper place?

C: While they may meet, putting Zara in her proper place is Emma and the Blackthorns’ job! (x)

You mentioned in your BookCon panel with Kelly that the Shadowhunter Fairy Tail art will be collected in a book and then sold only when you pre-order QoAaD. I was wondering if you can give us any details of that at the moment?

C: We won’t be selling it with QoAaD — it will be part of the pre-order campaign. As in, if you pre-order QoAaD, save your receipt. You can scan it and upload it on a website and you’ll be sent the fairy tale book. It’s basically a free prize for buying QoAaD early!

Example of how pre-order campaigns work:

https://blackholly.com/pre-order-cruel-prince-get-gifties/

It doesn’t matter where you pre-order the book — online, in real life, whatever. (x)

will jaime appear in qoaad? will the family rosales/zara trouble be solved in the next book?

C: Jaime is indeed in QoAaD, and he and Diego work through some of their issues. As for the Dearborns, they’re, well, very bad people, so we’ll have to see what happens with them. (x)

can you tell us something about Clary and Jace in QOAAD? the fact that Clary is having these dreams is nerve wrecking so will that be resolved in the book or do we have to wait for The Wicked Powers? also will Jace find out?

C: It will be resolved in QoAaD — one way or another! (x)

I was wondering if we would see more of Ash in QOAAD or if we would have to wait until TWP.

C: You’ll definitely see more of Ash, and in unexpected ways. He’s important to the story going forward. (x)

And that’s it!
I hope you liked the Q&A 🙂
Don’t forget to read the shocking Queen of Air and Darkness snippet that Cassie shared in her most recent newsletter.