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A review by ergative
Jade Legacy by Fonda Lee
5.0
This was a really satisfying conclusion to the Green Bone Saga. It maintained all the twisty turny politics and intrigue of the first two books, and wasn't afraid to take a sweeping perspective of international relations and the march of history. I really enjoyed how the passage of time allowed the story to trace out the technological (and international) developments of the second half of the twentieth century. When the trilogy begins it's all vintage-feeling, 1960s-ish, with this nice retro vibe, but as the decades pass--most of them in this book--the world replicates the developments of our world. Two of the larger countries that govern world affairs are embroiled in a 'slow war' (=Cold War), and people start adopting cell phones and internet. Every single development feels so real, so plausible. It's very convincing world-building.
The one thing I think that didn't quite work was the sense that the author wanted me to sympathize with and root for the No Peak clan. However, they'd already done some truly unforgiveable things in previous books, so I started this book feeling no concern whatsoever about their ultimate fate. When the rival Mountain clan does some really, really clever intrigue that might defeat No Peak for good, I'm not concerned or anxious; I'm thinking hey, cool--good job, Mountain Clan! When No Peak fights back with some really clever intrigue, I'm not relieved or triumphant; I'm thinking, ooh, nice recovery, No Peak Clan! For a while I was even hoping that the Clanless Future Movement would overthrow the whole system and we might see some completely new power system emerge instead. (Indeed, I'm still a bit disappointed that we didn't go there. There's a definite moment in the book when it looked like something like that might happen.) It's like when people go to a basketball game or whatever, and say that they're not rooting for any particular team; they're just hoping for a good game. Likewise, I can't love or care about these characters. The whole family-honor moral system of these books, while exquisitely well-developed and fascinatingly explored in many real-world-feeling situations, precludes any possibility of my love. So instead I just sit back and watch a really, really good game. Nicely played, Fonda Lee.
The one thing I think that didn't quite work was the sense that the author wanted me to sympathize with and root for the No Peak clan. However, they'd already done some truly unforgiveable things in previous books, so I started this book feeling no concern whatsoever about their ultimate fate. When the rival Mountain clan does some really, really clever intrigue that might defeat No Peak for good, I'm not concerned or anxious; I'm thinking hey, cool--good job, Mountain Clan! When No Peak fights back with some really clever intrigue, I'm not relieved or triumphant; I'm thinking, ooh, nice recovery, No Peak Clan! For a while I was even hoping that the Clanless Future Movement would overthrow the whole system and we might see some completely new power system emerge instead. (Indeed, I'm still a bit disappointed that we didn't go there. There's a definite moment in the book when it looked like something like that might happen.) It's like when people go to a basketball game or whatever, and say that they're not rooting for any particular team; they're just hoping for a good game. Likewise, I can't love or care about these characters. The whole family-honor moral system of these books, while exquisitely well-developed and fascinatingly explored in many real-world-feeling situations, precludes any possibility of my love. So instead I just sit back and watch a really, really good game. Nicely played, Fonda Lee.