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Fonda Lee doesn't waste one sentence and I have nothing but respect for her exquisite writing and character development. I was so impressed with the level of depth, complexity, and uniqueness that all of her characters are imbued with. I was constantly holding my breath to know what happened next, and despite having plenty of books currently in my queue, I kept coming back to this one first.
There were multiple times throughout where I was truly shocked by the turn of events or the culmination of a plotline. Lee isn't afraid to make big moves to advance the story and I was gripped by every one of them.
I am a bit squeamish about gory violence, so I was concerned I'd hit a point in this book and not want to continue. I will say that none of the violence feels gratuitous and it's done with a purpose. That being said, this book is definitely dark and there were many times when I was gutted by a major revelation or character's actions. It all feels incredibly real, which I think helps this novel stand apart from many other fantasy stories where you have immortal or seemingly indestructible protagonists; Lee's characters bleed and die as any other human, despite their use of the magic gemstone of jade which imbues them with special magical abilities and strength.
I have seen a lot of other reviews that complain about the complex political storylines, but I found them incredibly compelling, as they bring in outside forces that the clans must contend with.
I know I'm setting myself up for more heartbreak (it feels inevitable) but I absolutely cannot wait for book two and have a feeling that I will devour it just as quickly as I did Jade City.
Graphic: Addiction, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Moderate: Infidelity, Sexual content, Death of parent, Abandonment, Alcohol
Graphic: Death, Sexual assault, Violence, Death of parent, War
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Rape
Moderate: Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Self harm, Violence, Suicide attempt, Murder, War
Graphic: Death, Violence, War
Moderate: Drug use, Gun violence, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail
I was a little annoyed by the lack of female characters and how long it takes before any of them are allowed to actually do anything. There's one in particular I feel was very underutilized, and I'm glad this is a series so I can hope to see more of her in the next book. The more I think about it, the more it bothers me how some things shook out. (There's a plotline I'm thinking of in particular that was given a lot of pages that just... disappears by the end of the story.) Great start to a series and I'm eager to continue, but as a self-contained book I keep picking at it.
Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Self harm, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Gun violence, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Torture, Dementia, Stalking, Death of parent
Minor: Infidelity, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Violence, War
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Drug use, Gun violence, Murder
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Drug use, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual content, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Classism
Graphic: Death
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse
Moderate: Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Blood
Minor: Violence, Kidnapping, War
There wasn't a lot of spice, and what there is is written more emotionally than pornographically, which I appreciated.
It's written in third person, and I prefer having a strong narrator that shows us the thoughts and feelings of multiple characters to a first-person narrator.
So far there is plenty of tragedy in the series, and I expect there to be more.
Graphic: Death, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Dementia, Colonisation, Classism