Mob-like families use magic powered by jade to wage war on one another. Some clarity issues in the writing (especially action scenes), mixed with an interesting magic system, but the characters are distant.

3.5 stars, Metaphorosis Reviews

Summary
The Mountain and No Peak clans control the use of jade magic in the island nation of Kekon. But tension between the clans is growing, and the leaders of the No Peak family clan may not be up to the challenge of keeping power.

Review
Ursula Le Guin famously criticized Katherine Kurtz’s Deryni books as being too political – not really fantasy at all. I disagree, partly because I did enjoy Kurtz’s books as fantasy, but also because they’re not primarily political but religious, with politics as a facilitator.

Fonda Lee’s Jade City is primarily a political book – about a struggle for power between two clans – that happens to have some fantasy elements. Those elements are interesting, but the book never really digs into them; they’re primarily a motive and power source. The story wouldn’t have been vastly different if instead of bio-energized jade, the rare item had been uranium, or gunpowder, or steel.

That’s not to say it’s a bad book. It’s well written, well structured, the characters are reasonably developed, the world thought through (it’s a modestly alternate Earth). I didn’t, though, find it a very interesting or engaging book; it’s 486 pages long, and it felt that long; it didn’t speed by without my noticing. I also have the sequel, Jade War, which is 100 pages longer, and I can’t say I’m thinking, “I’m really glad there’s so much more.”

I do think political books have a genuine place in fantasy, and there have been a lot of them. This one has a promising setting and premise, but I didn’t find the characters engaging enough, or the magic intriguing enough, to draw me into the story, and without that, the politics just wasn’t very interesting. It’s possible that the next one will work better for me, but I can’t say I’m really optimistic.

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you so much for letting me review this title. Unfortunately this just was not the book for me and I only made it through about the first 80 pages. I don’t write reviews for books I don’t finish as I feel this would be unfair.

This was a very interesting premise and awesome world-building. It'd been so long since I read the synopsis of the book that I'd forgotten exactly what it was about but I loved that it was a fantasy combined with almost noir with all the mob/gang elements. The characters were all fascinating and well-developed; I loved the variety of perspectives that were in one book. There were some great twists and turns I didn't see coming and it made me appreciate the unpredictability and inventiveness of the author. Can't wait to read the sequel.

All in all, this was a great fantasy/noir with fantastic world-building and intriguing characters that should appeal to anyone looking for a fresh and interesting approach to magic. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me early access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

The story begins with an act of violence and an act of mercy. And it ends when the consequences of those acts come full circle.

It also feels like the result of one of the strangest mashups ever. It’s as if urban fantasy and The Godfather had a book baby, midwifed by the Shogun phenomenon of the late 1970s. And yes, I know just how strange that sounds.

Jade City reads like an urban fantasy. It has that noir-ish feel that seems part and parcel of that genre. And yet, the magic in this story, the magic that is enabled by the wearing of bioenergetic jade, is actually science rather than the type of magic that usually powers urban fantasy. Likewise, the ability to use or tolerate jade – or be immune to it – is also science-based, and can be manufactured through the use of drugs, also created by science.

So the Green Bone Saga is one of those rare series that walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, but is not a duck. It feels like urban fantasy and reads like urban fantasy – but it’s actually science fiction. Sorta/kinda.

I called The Godfather the book’s second parent, because this isn’t a story about good vs. evil, as fantasy so often is. Instead, this is a story about warring criminal organizations that are also clans. The two clans, the Mountain and No Peak (and I’m kind of ashamed at how long it took for me to get that pun) control the city of Janloon and the country of Kekon. The clans don’t govern, but they definitely control. As the saying goes in Kekon, gold and jade don’t mix.

It seems as if every single person in Kekon is part of one clan or another. And certainly the clans control all economic life in the country. The “Fists” and “Fingers”, under the control of the “Horn”, are the enforcers and, if need be, warriors. They protect the clan and its interests. The “Luckbringers” and “Lantern Men”, under the aegis of the “Weather Man”, run the clan’s businesses. Every business in Janloon pays tribute to one clan or the other. It’s not merely “protection money” the way it is in other criminal organizations. That tribute goes into the clan’s coffers, and goes out again whenever a member of the clan, including those Luckbringers and Lantern Men, needs help or a favor.

The clans seem to serve as both family and protective association. It’s a complicated system, but it also works. (Even though some of the titles use the words “man” or “men” not all Lantern Men, not all Weather Men, and not all the Fists and Fingers are actually men. There are several key female players in this drama, and more as the series continues.)

The clans also control the mining of that bioenergetic jade, the country’s major source of wealth – and the biggest bone of contention between the two clans as well as the reason that the major powers that surround Kekon eye the country like hungry scavengers looking for vulnerable prey.

Which Kekon has been in the recent past and has no desire to be in the foreseeable future.

And that’s where our story begins. Not that it seems that way at first. At first, what we see is two young idiots trying to steal jade from a drunken old Fist of the No Peak clan, and their punishment by the Horn of No Peak, Kaul Hilo, and his older brother, the Pillar and leader of the clan, Kaul Lan.

Events spiral out from that seemingly minor incident that expose the weakness of No Peak, the insidious strength of their enemies in the Mountain, the deception of the No Peak Weather Man and the rot at the heart of their family.

In the end, honor is only temporarily served. But it exacts a high price just the same.

Escape Rating A+: Jade City was a book that didn’t let go of me, and I didn’t let go of it, either. I was listening to this one – and the audio is marvelous – but I couldn’t listen fast enough and eventually switched to the book. Which I finished in one binge-read of an afternoon/evening. Then I immediately started on the second book, Jade War, which is just as fantastic and just as hard to let go of.

An observation that at first may seem like an aside – listening to the audiobook means that you have no idea how anything is spelled, while reading the text means that you have no idea how anything is pronounced.

That’s relevant to Jade City because of that third book parent or influence I listed above, the book Shogun by James Clavell and the TV mini-series that it spawned. While Janloon and Kekon are not Japan, they are not Japan in the same way that so many of the classics of epic fantasy are not set in the United Kingdom or Europe. The Shire is not rural England, but it is intended to have that feel. Epic fantasy in particular is rife with examples where the map was influenced by Western Europe as are the cultures and mores of the fantasy kingdoms without being exact analogs. (Although sometimes they are, particularly in the works of Guy Gavriel Kay and Jacqueline Carey).

Janloon and Kekon are both inspired and influenced by the history and culture of Japan and the author’s own heritage in ways that fascinate the reader and add to the depth of the story. The Green Bone Saga isn’t just a good story, it’s an immersive experience and I’ve loved every minute of it.

At the same time, both Shogun and The Godfather were also products of the 1970s. (The Godfather was published in 1969 and Shogun in 1975). The setting of this story, not just Janloon itself but the levels of technology that the reader sees and hears about from the rest of Kekon and the world, are meant to feel like the 1970s, with TVs and cars and records and pay telephones and many other things that were part of life in the 1970s but that have changed immeasurably since.

(It may be difficult to imagine now, but at the time Shogun was originally broadcast, it was at the height of the mini-series boom and was an excellent example of its kind. Also, it (loosely) portrayed a period of Japanese history when the country pursued an extremely isolationist foreign policy – if that’s not a contradiction in terms. There is resonance between the fictional history of Kekon and the real history of Japan in that Kekon is coming out of a period of isolationism and is dealing with the results of that change in policy – among other changes – during the story.)

The Green Bone Saga, at least so far, is not a battle between good and evil. While the series is definitely epic in scope, it is not epic fantasy in that sense. The readers follow one side of this clan war, and we’re meant to empathize with the Kaul family – and we do. That doesn’t mean that they are “good” in the way that epic fantasy defines its heroes.

But they are, every single one of them, absolutely fascinating to watch. I’m in the middle of Jade War, the second book of this series, right now – and loving every minute of it. My only regret about the whole thing is that the final book in the series, Jade Legacy, does not yet have a projected publication date. It’s going to be a long wait to see how the Kaul family – and Kekon – survive the mess they are now in.

Jade City features a brilliantly rendered fantasy world filled with a rich, deeply interesting history and multi-faceted characters that value honor and family ties above all else. This is a society constantly on the verge of war. No past slight or betrayal is left buried, and we see tensions continue to grow until they reach a breaking point. Lee continuously alters viewpoints, giving us insights into the family members of the No Peak clan and their ongoing struggles with the Mountain Clan. Everything seems to be holding on by a thread and that constant risk of all out battle is on the edge of every page.

The utilization of jade as a personal power source is especially original. It straddles the line between a practical, everyday object and a mystical fighting aid that turns men and women into gods. There’s a deep history behind its discovery and its use in their culture. As with all parts of this meticulously crafted world, Lee has put a lot of thought into the role it plays in the ongoing conflicts.

If you do a little research, you’ll see that Lee was greatly influenced by mafia culture when writing the book. That connection rings true, especially in the deeply ingrained familial structures of these families. They live on the verge of royalty, with each business and individual pledging allegiance to a clan in exchange for protection. Verbal insults often seem to be on the same level as assassination attempts, further adding to the constant tension in the most basic of scenes.

Lee’s character work is especially admirable. We’re able to attach deeply to the top three members of the No Peak Clan, from the constantly calculating Lan to the impetuous Hilo to the hesitant Shae. Each has their own strengths and weaknesses, played to great effect throughout the novel. Lan begins as this larger than life figure but, as we get to know him, we see him as a man with great responsibility who must work tirelessly to uphold his family’s power. Hilo continues to be a hotheaded enforcer, yet he has a soft side as well. Shae is torn between familial obligation and the desire to forge her own path. Together, they make up a fascinating family.

Overall, Jade City is a brilliant novel, much deserving of its accolades. I only regret waiting so long to experience this wonderful creation.

NOTE: I was provided a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest, unbiased review.

Any commentary on Jade City which does not mention The Godfather is avoiding the the obvious comparison. The thing is that even though the comparison is obvious and easy does not mean that it isn't apt and on point. Jade City is the story of two rival gangster clans vying for control of Janloon, a city of on the island of Kekon. The No Peak and Mountain clans control neighborhoods and collect tribute / protection money from businesses in their districts and are in a perpetual state of armed rivalry with each other for more territory and resources.

Fans of crime and mob fiction will find plenty to love here. The setting of Jade City feels much like a 1970's era city and the novel plays out like The Godfather with Magic. The novel is told much more from the perspective of the No Peak Clan, so the characterization there is much stronger, coming across as both familiar and fresh. To give balance to the narrative, in just a few bold strokes, sentences, and scenes, Fonda Lee absolutely nails down two major characters of the Mountain Clan and breathes greater life into the war between clans.

Jade City is one of the best novels of 2017 and my only regret is that I did not read it earlier so I could have nominated it for all of the awards.

I don't think I've ever read a book quite like this. It's a bit of David Wingrove's Chung Kuo series, a bit of Hong Kong gangster movie, a touch of Daniel Fox's Moshui series. This description may not help you at all, so I'll explain further.

I am not familiar enough with Asian history to know if the author is referencing any real country here, but I think she wanted to keep clear of that and create her own world. The island country of Kekon is no longer under a Western-style imperial thumb, but it is still recovering from its wars of independence. The Green Bone clans, once organizations of guerilla fighters in this war, are now "protectors" and patrons of the government and merchants of Kekon in something of the same way that the Mafia protects neighborhoods. It's a bit different- the ideas of clan loyalty and grift are taken as a given and seemingly not resented by those paying for protection, and the clans also give back to the communities in times of hardship, providing for families, taking in young men as foot soldiers, and helping to repair damage from disasters.

The Green Bone clans have an edge over your average citizen, because they have a genetic anomaly that allows them to channel energy from jade into physical strength and prowess. This leads to some pretty cool fight scenes, as these soldiers can take and dish out more damage than a normal person, not to mention move at enhanced speed and have heightened awareness of their surroundings.

The story centers around two clans, the No Peak clan and its rival the Mountain clan. We get to know the three adult children of the founder of the No Peak clan. One is its Pillar, or administrative leader. One is its Horn, or battle/street leader. And the daughter, Shae, was supposed to be the Weatherman, or far-seeing business advisor and councillor, but she left to get an education at a Western university and she doesn't want to get pulled back into the old-fashioned loyalty network of the clans. The Mountain clan is making some moves on smaller clans and it looks like things could get complicated.

In this book, the clans are really the power behind the "legitimate" government and they are still coming to grips with their changing roles. The world is changing. Other countries want to be able to use jade, and a drug called shine has been invented which lets people who otherwise couldn't handle jade use it like the clans do. There are obviously some long-ranging implications for this development.

I didn't rate the book five stars because although the main characters were quite well-developed, I always felt a bit of distance from them. It could be that I didn't want to get too attached to them, though, because a lot of these gangster stories end in tragedy, and the seeds of tragedy are definitely baked into these characters through their personalities and choices. I wasn't expecting this to be the first book of a series, so I was a bit surprised at where the story ended, with plenty more to explore.

I do have a feeling, though, that this series is going to end up being one of the best epic stories ever, spanning multiple generations and changing everything for its world. I am really excited to read the next book, and fear that some (or most) of my favorite characters may not make it through the sequel. I'm impressed that the author can make this so personal and so majestically fantastic at the same time.

'Jade City' by Fonda Lee is part mafia story, part wuxia, kung-fu movie and I really liked it.

The city of Kekon has two sets of jade warriors controlling it. The No Peak Clan is run by the Kaul family and The Mountain is run by the Ayt family. Jade embedded in the skin gives warriors power, but users must be trained. When an enemy is defeated, the victor gets their jade. This story follows the Kaul family, and throughout the story, they seem to be in decline. Events lead to leadership changes in the Kaul clan and an increased battle in the streets.

I liked this story of an alternate Asian city. I want to hang out in the Twice Lucky and be an an Espenian spy. There are a lot of characters and a few surprises along the way. I like the interesting world and characters. I wouldn't mind revisiting this world.

I received a review copy of this ebook from Orbit Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.

Jade City combines what its author, Fonda Lee, calls the 3 Ms: mafia, magic and martial arts.

Lee’s talent for depicting complex characters struggling with both internal and external conflicts earned Jade City nominations for the Nebula and Locus Awards. The book is her first written for adults. (Her previous books, Exo and Zeroboxer, were written for young adults and both were shortlisted for the Andre Norton Award).

Set in the fictional post-colonial nation of Kekon, Jade City (Orbit, 2017) introduces readers to an economic system governed by family-run clans, where power is obtained through conventional assets, such as the loyalty of businesses and politicians, as well as through use of the gemstone jade. Jade’s special powers include strength, agility and the ability to deflect weapons. But to harness these powers, a Green Bone warrior needs both an innate affinity for jade and extensive training.

Lee says jade was “the natural choice” for a magic substance. “In Eastern culture, jade is considered more valuable than any other substance. It’s been referred to as the stone of heaven.” It was also a natural choice for Lee—who has black belts in karate and kung fu—to require Green Bones to undergo years of practice before they’re allowed to use jade on the streets.

“One of the things I find frustrating/annoying about some fantasy stories is this idea that the magic is just given and you are just born with it, or you … get the magic sword and now you have the power. As any martial artist knows, achieving a level of proficiency involves a long arduous amount of discipline and schooling.”

In her New Books interview, Lee discusses her characters’ struggles with tradition and the challenge of balancing their personal desires with familial responsibilities. She also offers insight into the writing process—specifically, how she managed to polish an epic tale told from multiple viewpoints into a fast-moving page-turner.

I finally got around to reading this one, It was fun, and filled with a wonderful sense of te world Fonda Lee is building.

Editor’s note: The Nebula Awards are often described as the Academy Awards of SFF literature. Like the Oscar, the Nebula is voted on by the professional peers of the award nominees—members of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. There are seven nominees in the best novel category this year; every two weeks between now and the awards ceremony on May 19, Ceridwen Christensen will be taking a look at each of them, and figuring their odds of taking home the prize.


The pitch:

Fonda Lee’s Jade City is a sprawling story as much about the rough history of the fantastical island state of Kekon as it is about the crime family at its focus. It’s a generation and some past Kekon’s occupation by a foreign power, an invading force that was ultimately repulsed by the Green Bone warriors. The Green Bones are members of an ethnic minority who, through a combination of culturally-specific training and genetic propinquity, can wear and wield the near-magical jade, a local resource that confers almost superhuman powers. In the decades since the reestablishment of Kekonese home rule, the cadre of Green Bone warriors—now quasi-mythic war heroes—have broken into rival clans, the biggest of which are the No Peak and Mountain clans. The clans have, in the intervening decades, turned into something more respectable than organized crime, but something less impersonal than government. Jade City is a collection of neighborhoods where allegiances can shift with a street fight, and where the superhuman enact violent family squabbles alongside a populace just trying to keep its head down.

When we first meet the members of the No Peak clan, down on the streets of the Kekonese capital, they and the Mountain clan are in an uneasy truce. Their leaders (called Pillars) have heretofore been estranged war heroes, old men whose nostalgic camaraderie kept true bloodletting at bay, even in a rapidly modernizing world. But of late, the leader of the Mountain clan has died, and his ambitious daughter has ruthlessly eliminated anyone who might question her power within the clan. Now, she has her sights set on overtaking No Peak.

The No Peak clan’s warrior leader nominally stepped aside to allow his grandson, Kaul Lan, to take over as Pillar, but this is a retirement as fraught as King Lear’s. Kaul Lan’s brother, Kaul Hilo, runs the clan’s street operations—its muscle and fighters—while their grandfather’s hidebound associate continues on as consigliere. Rounding out the family are a sister, Kaul Shae, who has returned in disgrace after a failed romance with a foreigner, and an adolescent ward of the Kaul family, taken in after his mother succumbed to a lethal jade sensitivity.

The current Pillar of No Peak, Kaul Lan, is a measured man. He’s doing his best to keep his hot-headed brother and his slippery, inscrutable adviser from waging civil war within the clan, even while open conflict with the Mountain clan threatens. The Mountain clan is working to extend the sale of shine, a drug that allows laypeople to wear and wield jade, without the intense training required of a true Green Bone warrior. Which is to say, the Mountain clan is looking to supply jade to the very foreign powers which occupied Kekon just a generation ago. The conflict between the clans is both internecine and international, a complex division that must take into account both the nuance of the ethos of the Green Bone warrior, and the larger geo-political machinations of an island state both separated and unified by the power jade grants.

Jade City is a peripatetic story, moving from rough dockside dives to the gilded homes of the city’s most vaunted citizens. It owes as much to The Godfather as to Hong Kong action movies like Infernal Affairs, with a twisting, incident-packed plot in which loyalties are both up for grabs, and impossible to divine.

Why it will win:

The scope of Jade City is impossibly broad; it’s also the kind of ambitious narrative that grounds itself down into the inevitably of character. Through 10 or so well-voiced individuals with their own motivations and weaknesses, we get the portrait of a nation on the cusp of something—something brutal or beautiful, depending on the placement of its characters. In scope and ambition, it reminded me a bit of Ken Liu’s The Grace of Kings (which was nominated for the Nebula a few years back). There are important differences—The Grace of Kings details a medieval country ruled over by an emperor, while Jade City is a modern place, more post-War Hong Kong than shogunate Japan, despite its warrior caste—but both novels tell the stories of nations through the sometimes martial, sometimes criminal actions of their casts of characters. Both novels have scope.

Why it won’t win:

Alas, The Grace of Kings didn’t pick up the Nebula, and I feel like it’s unlikely this one will too. For better or for worse, Nebula voters have a general preference for science fiction over fantasy (with exceptions made for well-established authors; Jade City is Fonda Lee’s first novel for adults, though she has written several excellent books for YA readers). Jade City does something very cool with the national epic, bending it according to the crystalline nature of the near-magical jade, but it might be that it is too beholden to other genres for Nebula voters: the mafia family saga, the crime novel, the action film (I said much the same about fellow nominee Amberlough, shot through with spy novel DNA). That said, Jade City is a beautiful, dangerous place, and it’s well worth a visit. Just keep your eye on the street.

Solidly meh.

The clash between feudal Japan / clan warfare and modern technology was incongruous and just didn't mesh well, for me. And maybe this is a pet peeve, but as someone who is somewhat familiar with Asian culture, the fact that all the names are a mashup of several Asian languages just seems super weird to me. I get that this set in a completely new and fictional world, but it just didn't work for me.

Honestly my biggest complaint was how boring this was. Literally, it's 150 pages before anything really starts to happen, and all throughout the book there are short chapters detailing religious beliefs that I just... skipped. The whole narrative with Bero is completely unnecessary and isn't even remotely resolved at the end of the book. The ending is anticlimactic and doesn't make a ton of sense... but honestly by about page 400 I was skimming like a motherfucker anyway. This book would have been a LOT better if it was around 350 pages instead of 500. 2 stars. (less)

Fonda Lee’s Jade City was a complete and complex delight that kept one jump ahead throughout. I have recommended it to all my crit partners and am delighted Lee’s Jade City is a finalist for the 2017 Nebula Award for Best Novel and Exo is a finalist for the Andre Norton Award.

I can’t wait for the second book in Fonda’s The Green Bone Saga!

Thank you, NetGalley for introducing me to this amazing author!

Orbit Books and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of Jade City. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

Jade City is an epic tale of family honor, tradition, and the power of jade. Combining elements of a mafia crime novel, a kung fu movie, and the fantastical world of magic, this book is unmatched in its world building. The island of Kekon comes to life in author Fonda Lee's skilled hands and I could clearly picture this book being made into a movie. Although the setting and the plot were compelling, I found it hard to find a connection with the characters. The balance is a little off, leaving the development of the characters a little on the light side. As the ending points to the possibility of a sequel, the next book may be where the characters shine.

Fantasy novels can be hit or miss for me and, although Jade City does have some thrilling elements to it, it was not a raging success. In her desire to provide readers with a clear picture of the world, the author gave almost too much information. The book was long and I never really felt settled into the characters. There is definitely imagination at work here, so readers who like a great action book with a fantasy backdrop will certainly find Jade City to their liking.

This is the first book in a projected trilogy. The Kaul family is one of two clans who control jade in the post-war city of Janloon. This is a spawling saga of their struggle against the other major clan. The clans were once unified, but split apart in a previous generation. Now the No Peak (Kaul) and Mountain clans are in open conflict, and the city is being torn apart.

The author has said she was looking for a combination of the sprawling gangster saga and the kung-fu narrative, and I think she hit her mark.

My only complaint about the book is that certain things (all of them too spoilery to specifically mention here) happen "off-camera" which I believe should have occurred "on-camera." If you've read the book, I suspect you know exactly what I mean.

This book had so many gushing reviews so I was excited to read it. For me though, it fell a little flat. I’m not really sure what it was. The world created was really quite fascinating. This small island is the one source of jade, which can give people pretty much superhuman powers. But the only people that can use that power naturally are the natives of the island. These people are in various clans, with 2 main ones. We follow the 3 grandchildren of the Kaul family (leaders of the No Peak clan). But there is a lot of tension between the 2 main clans and soon war breaks out. Throughout it, we get the POV of all 3 Kaul grandchildren; the leader, the muscle, and the reluctant sister. And I think that is where this book lost me. Now, I’ve read plenty of multiple POV books, but i felt the characters ended up being a little flat and pretty cookie cutter. As in, they really didn’t leave their little mold; they were predictable. Along with the 3 main characters, we also got several smaller POVs. It almost seemed like too much for a single book. Because of that, I didn’t really care for the characters, and that always hurts a book in my opinion. That isn’t to say this book doesn’t have merits. As I said, the world building is fascinating with a great blend of innovation and the “old ways.” If you enjoy mafia-esque stories with a dash of magic, political maneuvering and action, you will likely enjoy this story.

In the fictional Asian city of Janloon, two rival clans control everything--including jade, the most-important and valuable commodity that exists. For certain people, known as Green Bones, having it next to (and often embedded in) their skin provides them with enormous magical power. The Green Bones showcase their jade with pride, and it's taken from defeated enemies like a trophy. And if it's taken away from a Green Bone, he suffers terrible withdrawal, like it's a drug.

Jade City is the first in a trilogy about the clash between these clans. We follow the No Peak clan, and three main members of it, as they learn to navigate each other, and the rich world Lee has created. It's a kung-fu gangster novel, and it works. I will say that it's heavier on the political side of things than I expected. I wanted a kung-fu gangster book to have a lot more dang kung-fu! It's my only ding at the book. But the characters are compelling, the magic system is very cool (if underutilized), and I'll happily return to this world whenever the next book comes out.

If you loved The Godfather series this book will be right up your alley. I loved this spin on the brothers and the use of jade as a currency.

In recent times I have been quite fortunate when taking chances with authors either unknown to me or publishing their first book, and Jade City was no exception: I read that the author Fonda Lee published a few YA stories before branching out into adult fiction and into this very peculiar genre that is a mix between urban fantasy and a noir, and I must say that the attempt was not just very successful, but also resulted in a deeply engaging story, one that drew me in completely and kept my imagination captive for the whole journey.

The background of Jade City has a fascinating Far Eastern flavor and it’s coupled with a time setting that reminded me of the early ‘60s, conferring to the story a unique feel that is part of its appeal, even though the lion’s share goes to the story itself and the characters. The island of Kekon rests on huge deposits of jade, mined not for its ornamental qualities but because it confers extraordinary powers to those who are able to harness its energy: Green Bones, as they are called, are capable of incredible physical and mental feats – as an individual’s tolerance to jade increases with use, so do the abilities he or she can employ.

One could say that jade has shaped Kekonese society: at its top are Green Bones, of course, organized in clans governed by a rigid set of rules and gaining or losing influence according to the economic power wielded over the big and small businesses of “common” citizens, those who are unable to wear jade. A clan is ruled by the Pillar, whose immediate lieutenants are the Weatherman (who advises the Pillar on matters of policy) and the Horn, the enforcer, who through the Fists and Fingers deals with any circumstance requiring a show of strength – or violence. The two major clans on the island are the Mountain and No Peak, the latter ruled by the Kaul family, who are at the center of the events: Lan, the Pillar; Hilo, the Horn, and their younger sister Shae, who some years before gave up all her privileges and jade to go live among foreigners and try to forge a different kind of life for herself. Her return home coincides with a series of events that will bring her clan to open war with the Mountain and force the Kaul siblings toward paths no one of them would have expected.

As I said, this novel is a very engaging one, and it took little time for me to be enfolded by the story while learning the fascinating details of Kekon’s past and the Kaul family history. The impression one derives from the narrative is that until recently Kekon was very similar to a feudal holding, moving into a more modern outlook only in the last few decades, after a bloody independence war sanctioned its freedom from foreign occupation: modern conveniences like cars or television sets seem like a novelty that’s slowly spreading through the populace, while many of the older customs and ways of thinking still linger on and still inform everyday dealings. The parallel with Japan after the end of WWII is quite striking and serves very well to illustrate the uneasy transition between the older and younger generation: in the Kaul family, for example, the aged, ailing patriarch still clings to older methods of conducting business and interacting with competitors, while his grandsons either try to balance the old with the new, or seek different paths for the changing times. Then there is Shae, who falls somehow in the middle, having tried to sever ties with her past, only to return home and find herself entangled in family business and deadly feuds.

The beauty of these characters is that they are all flawed in one way or another, and those flaws help in making them more human despite the incredible abilities bestowed on jade wearers, powers that allow them to channel enormous strength for physical feats, or to create shields out of thin air, or again to perceive other people’s thoughts and emotions. Without these flaws they might have looked like cartoonish characters, but instead they suffer, and bleed, and make terrible mistakes, and through it all they grow and evolve: Lan is a man of peace, maybe not the best choice for Pillar of No Peak since he lacks the aggressiveness that’s sometimes necessary to withstand the Mountain’s plays for power, and yet there is such a depth of honesty to him that it’s impossible not to understand where his attitude comes from, just as it’s impossible to mistake it for weakness as others do. His brother Hilo is quite the opposite, brash and violent on the outside, but fiercely loyal on the inside and capable of enormous acts of generosity: I must admit that I liked Hilo quite a bit, especially when he finds himself forced to juggle his deeper instincts and the need for shrewdness required by the clan war.

And last, but not least, Shae and Hilo’s lover Wen: being a woman in Kekonese society is not easy, given the cultural restrictions imposed on them by past customs that are not evolving as rapidly as one might wish. And yet – each in a different way – they manage to leave their mark on the people around them and to show that strength is not a quality that comes from jade or physical prowess, but from the depths of one’s soul. These two women are perhaps the best indicators of the slow but inexorable changes that are starting to take root in Kekon, and it will be interesting to see how these first seeds of change will bloom in the next books for this series.

In short, Jade City was such an immersive reading experience that I often found myself needing a conscious effort to transition back to the real world: to me, that’s the mark of strong writing and expert storytelling, elements that make me want to explore more of this author’s works.

Highly recommended.