Reviews with content warning for Grief - Jade Legacy

I can’t believe I finally finished this trilogy. It’s one that will definitely sit with me for a long time because I love books that make the reader question what it means to be a good or bad person. For about a week, I’ve lived inside this book and felt a roller coaster of emotions. The Kaul’s and all of the characters in these books are extremely flawed but Lee portrayed each person with such complexities, individuality, and empathy that I felt connected to them. I desperately want to see this trilogy as a film series or streaming show.

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jessiereads98's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Truly an epic. A fitting ending to the trilogy. Fonda Lee has done a masterful job bringing readers on this journey and wraps everything up here in a way that feels true to the story.

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cardanrry's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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theespressoedition's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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josefinemartensson's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

The Grand Finale!!!
This book was a once-in-a-lifetime kind of book that I will never forget.
What Fonda achieved with this trilogy is astonishing and unforgettable. Fonda created a world with people that will stick with me for a long time. Reading and experiencing the Kaul family's lives over the span of 20+ years, seeing their flaws and strengths bring them together, was truly inspiring. This trilogy changed the standard settings for fantasies to come.
The greatest thing about The GreenBone Saga is its characters. Hilo is probably one of the most complex characters ever written. From the way, he's harsh and brutal to kind and loving. He had one of the best character arcs in the series. Anden started out as a side character for me but had my entire heart and soul by the end of the series. Amazing to see him finding not only who he was as a person but also stepping up and taking his role in the clan. Shae, my girl. Throughout all the darkness and evil she still remained kind and mercifully which, in this world was impressive. All the characters shined in this finale. It was a different kind of emotion seeing the new generation of greenbones grow up and take on roles in the clans. The dynamic between the parents and kids really shined.
The world-building is the second most incredible thing about this trilogy. I was truly impressed and touched by the way Kekon fought for their island. Fought for what was their legacy as they faced threats from outside forces but also from within the island itself. The jade itself was the star of the show. Fonda Lee did not just show us how people with access to jade treated and handled the privileged that comes with being jade warriors, but also the jade-less people and how they were affected by the clan wars and the jade.
The Greenbone Saga is for those who love to read about complex characters that make equally bad and good choices in life. That loves family dynamics and relations. That loves politics with scheming and plotting. That loves action and fighting scenes.
The Greenbone Saga is for those who wish to find a series with characters that will make you love them, care for them and defend them for better-or-worse

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leanne_miron's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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just_one_more_paige's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I did it! This chonk of a book, over 700 pages, is the final installment of the Green Bone Saga...and I have conquered it! It took me an extra four renewals at the library (thank goodness for staff privileges and no one else having it on hold - the guilt of someone else waiting would have really stressed me out). I buried myself deep into it over the recent Holiday long weekend and, once I gave myself that space and time to settle in, got through the final two thirds in just two days. And what a finale it was!

In Jade City, the story focused on the city of Janloon, in the country of Kekon, introducing us to the Kaul family, leaders of the No Peak clan and their rival Mountain clan. In Jade War, the story moves outward, as other countries get involved in the fight for dominance of jade, the substance that enhances a person's innate physical/intuitive abilities, and No Peak and Mountain start leveraging international influence against each other in sort of proxy wars. And here in Jade Legacy, the focus is split between the intra- and extra- national struggles for power. As the Kaul family grows, despite familial angst and drama, they stand together against all their enemies: the Mountain clan in particular, and in defense of Kekon against outside interests in general. While at the same time, the Mountain clan, whose ruthlessness and willingness to partner with any ally, has long been a step ahead in their years-long feud, seems on the verge of finally "winning" in the fight to control Kekon and the jade trade worldwide. However, the Kaul family has a few final moves to make, that could prove with finality that family is the strongest of all powers, and with a new generation of leaders on the horizon, maybe it actually is possible to move beyond grudges and vengeance in partnership for a better future.

Y'all, the scope of this novel is extraordinary. Never once, in the 700+ pages, did I think that it was too long or wish for it to end faster. It was a page-turning rollercoaster of emotions and nonstop action (violence and tension and kidnapping and politics and loss and grief and so much drama) from start to finish. There was all the violence and political maneuvering that we've gotten used to, but with messy and complex and deeply human relationships (Shae and Woon, Hilo and Wen, Niko and his whole family/legacy, Ayt Mada and Shea, Anden and his role within the family) smoothly interwoven into everything. I didn't have any inkling how much time we'd traverse throughout this novel, but watching the next generation come into their own was an unexpected bonus. We only get her as a primary focus towards the end, but I loved Jaya's fire, like a young Hilo. Across the board, the way the Hilo and Wen's kids "aged up" was fun to watch, and watching the young generation we met at the beginning becoming "old hats" was fulfilling in its own ways.

Worth mentioning: I cried for a single death in this entire series (and there were so many) but when it happened, I full-on sobbed, I was that invested. But other than that, I don't really want to say too much more about the plot itself, the relationships and growing up and deaths and subplots and plot twists, because the journey is one that I want everyone to take fresh and clear-eyed, like I did. Suffice it to say, that *a lot* happens and it's the edge-of-your-seat type stuff mixed with complicated machinations that Lee has shown herself to be a master of. Honestly, Lee’s ability to create such complex growth, with so many moving pieces and all the meandering and complex paths and decisions of the characters, and pull it all back together perfectly for this stunning finish (with nothing getting lost) is so impressive.

Side note: I have been waiting through this entire series to see where Bero’s story finally goes and it delivered, but in a really unexpected way. Like, he was part of a major moment, but not at all the way I (or he) expected, and it easily could have been a kind of letdown. Yet, his subplot gave fascinating insight into the way the rest of the “normal” people in Kekon dealt with the excessive "slow war" and clan based war stuff in a way that was a great narrative balance and perspective.

Thematically, I thought what Lee did as the story got darker, in addressing the harder truths of always dealing in death and violence, the mental health aspects, was an intense (but necessary) piece of this closing book. I also really appreciated that, as the war over jade became more widespread, the fight over control of the market and its approved uses/roles was fought both in military and political spaces, above and below ground, in a frighteningly familiar demonstration of the privatization and monopolization of war (through governments, mercenaries, criminal leaders and more), and the way that civilians are caught in the crossfire so often in modern warfare as a result. Plus, the way this modernization of war brings in so many platforms that were hitherto "out of bounds," like cinema, medicine, athletics, and in the court of public opinion into the game as actual difference makers was also really accurate to real life and added dimension to the breadth of the novel.

I was here for the culmination of feuds closed, but with the twist of future generations being better and moving forwards. The way Lee balanced holding on to traditions that are important and the backbone of culture in a way that is safer and more accepting and truly opens options for a new future, but within the cradle of respect and honor for the past, gives the reader a lot of hope for what's to come in our own future, tbh. And what a gorgeous bringing together of how the depth of ties and support of family are, in the end, what makes a person powerful, as opposed to the more measurable/objective power of money and influence (and can, in fact, lead to the latter, in a stronger way).

In the Acknowledgements at the end, Lee writes that this is the “epic urban fantasy gangster family saga of my heart” and OMG was it ever. It was the epic urban fantasy gangster family saga that my heart didn't even know it wanted/needed and I loved every minute of it. What a f*cking finale - breathtaking - this is how you bring a spectacular series to a spectacular conclusion and I could not recommend it more highly.

“No one is destined to become like their parents. In fact, we can learn from their mistakes and be less likely to repeat them. […] You’re your own person, Niko. You have many people who love you and are proud of you.”

“Why not escape reality, when it was so unbearably cruel to wives and sisters and mothers?”

“…he’d imagined that the foreigners were right - the world of Green Bones was brutal and outdated, nothing like the rest of the world. Now he knew better. There was jade and blood and cruelty everywhere.”

“Clans and jade, murder and vengeance, burdens and feuds and failures passed down from father to brother to son - none of it was a myth…”

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jakepasseri's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful reflective relaxing sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

An amazing ending to an amazing trilogy of books. I highly, highly recommend it. Fixed the only issue I had with the previous book, and only improved

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