A review by straw_hat_kd
Jade War by Fonda Lee

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.