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lynn_x5452's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
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
4.5
dkadastra's review against another edition
3.0
This series is good, and I'm stoked to finish it out. The world is pretty cool, and the slow build of the different cultures and countries that make it up is satisfying. I just really wish there was more on the Jade disciplines. I love the magic system, but in a story about warring gangster fashions, there's not really a ton of action, apart from the relatively explosive climax, but the person doing the magicking wasn't even the point of view character. Basically, I just wish there was more action.
muzashi79's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-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
4.25
ngallion's review against another edition
3.0
I find this book extremely difficult to rate. On the one hand, it’s written in a style that moves along quickly and is exceptionally easy to follow. It has characters that feel distinct and interesting with clear motivations and personalities. In the other hand, this book is sloooooow for something called “Jade War.” Maybe “Jade Cold War” would have been more accurate, because the clan warfare that happens is (mostly) political maneuvering. There are a few memorable fights, and the last 100 or so pages really start to move, so it’s not all characterized by the slow pace.
Here’s my issue, though: A slow paced book is fine with me as long as I’m really getting to know the characters. That does happen here, but because there are multiple POVs, just about the time a slow plot thread involving one character starts to get really interesting, Lee chooses to immediately shift focus to another character, which immediately slows the momentum. In a faster paced book, that would be just fine, but this is not that.
I spent half of the book wishing it was over, but found myself at the end both not wanting to read on AND wanting to know what happens to the characters in the next book. How in the world am I supposed to rate that? It’s probably not objectively a 3 star book, but because of the frustration I felt, that’s where I’m landing.
Here’s my issue, though: A slow paced book is fine with me as long as I’m really getting to know the characters. That does happen here, but because there are multiple POVs, just about the time a slow plot thread involving one character starts to get really interesting, Lee chooses to immediately shift focus to another character, which immediately slows the momentum. In a faster paced book, that would be just fine, but this is not that.
I spent half of the book wishing it was over, but found myself at the end both not wanting to read on AND wanting to know what happens to the characters in the next book. How in the world am I supposed to rate that? It’s probably not objectively a 3 star book, but because of the frustration I felt, that’s where I’m landing.
guppyur's review against another edition
4.0
The rare "middle book" that stands on its own merits. Still excellent, tons of consequential action. Expands more on the geopolitical intrigue without losing the clan war aspect. Can't wait for the third book.
m00dreads's review
adventurous
dark
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? No
4.0
Finished the last 70% of this book in the last 16 hours. What a rush. I was this close to having a personal vendetta against Ms. Fonda Lee. But ah well, Wen is alive and my boy Andy is going to med school.
Naturally, this installment was bigger in both scope and scale than its predecessor. Lee zooms out of Kekon and pans to cities from other nations in her fictional map, crafting them with the same sharp-eyed care.
Stakes have been raised on all fronts so expect a lot more closed-door maneuvering here and significantly less action than Jade City. Very heavy on the politics, which, head’s up, might put off some readers. For my part though, I applaud Fonda Lee for having such a profound understanding of how society’s macros trickle down and affect even the most quotidian detail of life. Her grasp on class, gender, race, economics, and politics is sure and steady; and it manifests in the tightly-woven ruling systems and social structures of her work. You know it’s world-building par excellence when you could probably write a whole paper on text-specific niches. Like the correlation between Green Bone isolationism and the rise of jade’s demand in the black market. Or a discourse on the regulation of jade: should the people whose cultural and ethnic identities to which the material is invariably tied, have sole proprietorship over its production and distribution, or is jade first and foremost a natural resource that should be relegated to the free market? I could also go on about the implications of war, diaspora, so much more, and spend hours nerding out about everything 😭
This was also the first fantasy I’ve read that saw a main character get an abortion, and Fonda Lee did not drop the ball. Impeccable execution and character work right there.
The world she had created is in 4k, but even for me it was too dense at times—a quality exacerbated by the rapid changes in POV across chapters. I would say this falls behind Jade City in terms of flow and snappiness; it would’ve transitioned better had information been diffused sufficiently from the very first book. You get flash-banged with a lot of new names, new pieces of history, that sometimes it felt staggering. On the other hand, the sheer ambition and scale that Jade War was able to achieve is what solidifies the series as an urban epic.
Naturally, this installment was bigger in both scope and scale than its predecessor. Lee zooms out of Kekon and pans to cities from other nations in her fictional map, crafting them with the same sharp-eyed care.
Stakes have been raised on all fronts so expect a lot more closed-door maneuvering here and significantly less action than Jade City. Very heavy on the politics, which, head’s up, might put off some readers. For my part though, I applaud Fonda Lee for having such a profound understanding of how society’s macros trickle down and affect even the most quotidian detail of life. Her grasp on class, gender, race, economics, and politics is sure and steady; and it manifests in the tightly-woven ruling systems and social structures of her work. You know it’s world-building par excellence when you could probably write a whole paper on text-specific niches. Like the correlation between Green Bone isolationism and the rise of jade’s demand in the black market. Or a discourse on the regulation of jade: should the people whose cultural and ethnic identities to which the material is invariably tied, have sole proprietorship over its production and distribution, or is jade first and foremost a natural resource that should be relegated to the free market? I could also go on about the implications of war, diaspora, so much more, and spend hours nerding out about everything 😭
This was also the first fantasy I’ve read that saw a main character get an abortion, and Fonda Lee did not drop the ball. Impeccable execution and character work right there.
The world she had created is in 4k, but even for me it was too dense at times—a quality exacerbated by the rapid changes in POV across chapters. I would say this falls behind Jade City in terms of flow and snappiness; it would’ve transitioned better had information been diffused sufficiently from the very first book. You get flash-banged with a lot of new names, new pieces of history, that sometimes it felt staggering. On the other hand, the sheer ambition and scale that Jade War was able to achieve is what solidifies the series as an urban epic.
straw_hat_kd's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Jade War continues the journey of the Kaul family, the leaders of the No Peak clan. Here we see the clan take their jade export internationally to keep up with the Mountain clan. This book takes a deeper look at the steps taken to achieve that goal. Taking things beyond the island of Kekon and the main city of Jonloon helps flesh the story out even more. Fonda did a great job of fleshing out the characters as individuals within the clan. I enjoyed seeing Anden growing up more in Espenia. He was in a teenager in Jade City, so some of his parts in that book were painful, but for reasons. Being on his own forced him to see the world outside the narrow scope of the Kauls on Kekon and it really helps his growth as a character. Hilo continues to be a character walking the line. I found myself questioning his choices, but by the end of the book you can see his thinking ten steps ahead which is what I, and many of the characters in the book failed to give him credit for. Wen and Shae both see similar growths, but Wen's I was most impressed with. She really steps into the role of being the Pillar's wife and more. Ayt Mada continues to be a powerful and elusive character and she happens to be one of my favorites. A great read. An improvement in many ways over Jade City.
_dinma3's review against another edition
I was very excited about this series but this book felt like i was reading a newspaper. I don't mind politics in bookk, in fact i love when books have politics but this was too much and so many new characters kept being introduced i just couldn't keep up.