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A review by thenovelmaura
Jade City by Fonda Lee
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? Yes
5.0
"Screw you, Hilo. I can kill my ex-boyfriends myself." I love a good out-of-context quote, and this is one of my favorites from a new favorite book. I'm so glad this was chosen as our #ViolentQueensBookClub pick for May, even though I'm shamefully late in reviewing it!
Jade City is a beautiful array of contradictions that defies genre categorization. The description makes this book sound like a sprawling epic fantasy, and while it has plenty of epic elements, it's also an urban fantasy unlike any I've read before. Despite its large cast of characters and constant political intrigue, it's simultaneously an intimate look at the Kaul family and all the complexities that come with growing up as leaders of a crime syndicate—heavy responsibility, competitive relationships, privilege and corruption. The primary antagonist of the rival clan is so well-developed and captivatingly cunning that I can easily imagine the book being told from her perspective instead (and I'd be totally fine with that).
I will say that it took me about 100 pages to wrap my head around the world that Lee has so elegantly designed, but after that I was completely hooked. Everything I learned about the magic, the system of government, the history of Kekon, and the characters' relationships made me want to learn more. There's so much more story to be told here and Jade War is going to be making its way onto my shelves very soon. I have no idea why I waited so long to read this book, but I won't make the same mistake with the rest of the trilogy!
Jade City is a beautiful array of contradictions that defies genre categorization. The description makes this book sound like a sprawling epic fantasy, and while it has plenty of epic elements, it's also an urban fantasy unlike any I've read before. Despite its large cast of characters and constant political intrigue, it's simultaneously an intimate look at the Kaul family and all the complexities that come with growing up as leaders of a crime syndicate—heavy responsibility, competitive relationships, privilege and corruption. The primary antagonist of the rival clan is so well-developed and captivatingly cunning that I can easily imagine the book being told from her perspective instead (and I'd be totally fine with that).
I will say that it took me about 100 pages to wrap my head around the world that Lee has so elegantly designed, but after that I was completely hooked. Everything I learned about the magic, the system of government, the history of Kekon, and the characters' relationships made me want to learn more. There's so much more story to be told here and Jade War is going to be making its way onto my shelves very soon. I have no idea why I waited so long to read this book, but I won't make the same mistake with the rest of the trilogy!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Death
Moderate: Addiction and Self harm