The Mortal Instruments

The Mortal Instruments is a series of six young adult fantasy novels written by American author Cassandra Clare, the last of which was published on May 27, 2014. The Mortal Instruments is chronologically the third series of a planned six in The Shadowhunter Chronicles but was the first one published. It follows Clary Fray, whose chance encounter with a group of elite angelic superhuman beings—known as Nephilim or Shadowhunters—leads her to make life-changing discoveries about herself and her family history. The mission of the Shadowhunters is to protect the world of human people, also called mundanes or "mundies," from dark forces beyond their world. A recurring theme throughout all Shadowhunters Chronicles books is that "all the stories are true"—and as a result, many creatures popularized in fantasy writing (e.g., vampires, werewolves, faeries, warlocks, etc.) play a role in the books. The book series falls under the young adult genre, specifically the paranormal romance/urban fantasy and supernatural genres.