Silvia hasn't disappointed me yet. Her latest novel involves Mayan gods in Jazz Age Mexico, and features another well-developed and intriguing female character. Thoughtful and poignant coming of age for a girl from humble origins who overcomes the odds in her walk along the Black Road of Xibalba, the Mayan underworld.

Casiopea has a life of drudgery in a small town in Yucatán state, Mexico, with no end in sight. There’s no hope that she will be able to get away from the family house, even after her awful grandfather (who Casiopea tends to because no one else will) dies. But on a day when everyone else is gone, Casiopea makes a strange discovery that offers her a way out—if she’s brave and strong enough to survive the adventure. Gods of Jade and Shadow, by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, is a fantastic story that blends elements of the Popol Vuh with a 1920s Mexican setting, to make something that looks an awful lot like a new chapter in a legend.

Casiopea discovers a box in her grandfather’s always-locked closet, on a day when she’s alone in the house. When she opens the box, she discovers a pile of bones. She pokes them and accidentally embeds a shard of bone in her finger—which causes the bones to reassemble themselves and transforms into Hun-Kamé, the Supreme Lord of Xibalba. Casiopea has unwittingly step into a chapter of a story of betrayal and ambition. Hun-Kamé, he explains, was deposed by his brother. He needs to reclaim missing parts of himself that were not in the box in order to regain his place in the Underworld. Because of the shard, Casiopea has to go along if Hun-Kamé is to have any hope of succeeding. Oh, and if Casiopea doesn’t go, she’ll have to face her family and possibly die if Hun-Kamé dies.

Casiopea and Hun-Kamé’s quest for the rest of his body and his powers take them all over Mexico, from the Yucatán peninsula to Mexico City, to El Paso and then to Tijuana, where the book hits its outstanding climax in a stunning Art Nouveau/Mayan pyramid-inspired hotel and casino. In Hun-Kamé’s company, Casiopea discovers that there are a lot (for lack of a better word) creatures, witches, and wizards living in plain sight for those who know how to see. Casiopea had been told all her life that Mayan beliefs were just stories that need to be forgotten and that she should be a good, modest, obedient Catholic woman. Casiopea’s talents were clearly being wasted by her family. She was definitely meant to be a Mayan heroine.

Gods of Jade and Shadow is the kind of book that invites you in and then doesn’t let go until the last page. The plot races along and, in the brief breaks, we see a beautiful relationship develop between Casiopea and Hun-Kamé. This book was full of things I loved: remixing old legends, gorgeous setting I’ve never “visited” before, challenges that reveal a character’s inner strength, oodles of character growth. I sincerely hope that Moreno-Garcia writes more—not just adventures featuring Casiopea, but anything that is as interesting and vibrant as this book. I’m going to keep an eye out for Moreno-Garcia in the future.

Treat yourself to a tour de force guest of epic proportions featuring a heroine who is strong willed and on the cusp of womanhood. and aching for fulfillment. Casiopea Tun is a Cinderella-like figure stuck in a wearisome and
non-pr0ductive life servicing the needs and weems of her ungrateful grandfather. An outsider would never guess that she is actually biologically part of this wealthy family. She is left behind one day when the rest of the family ventures off for excitement and adventure.. She comes upon a strange large decorated wooden box in her grandfather's bedroom .... although locked she finds the key and by opening she frees the spirit of the Mayan god of Death - Hun-Kame. He successfully entreats her on a quest to recover his throne from his treacherous brother. This journey extends from the jungles of the Yucatan to the glitter of Mexico City and finally to a magical city in Baja California.
Silvia Moreno-Garcia spins a fairy tale steeped in historical significance with prose that is poetic, lyrical and visionary.. Horrendous visions come to life with beautiful imagery.. We are treated to a melange of Mayan, Greek and Roman mythology that becomes alive and personified in every day life... The dramatic denouement culminates in an unexpected sense of fulfillment and enlightenment and a dollop of romance.
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for supplying an Uncorrected Proof of this Masterpiece in exchange for an honest review.. This is my first encounter with this artist, but certainly won't be the last!!!

Two words. Mayan mythology. Oh if that doesn't grab your attention the words fantasy and 1920's surely must. This adult novel is filled with magic and remarkable places and the twist between the immortal and mortal are not to be missed.

Mayan mythology and Mexican folklore to love! I am a Silvia Moreno-Garcia fan, and what I like most is her ability to write such different stories every time - from contemporary with magical realism to vampire fantasy... this is another excellent entry to the pack. This fairytale follows Casiopea (amazing name) as she goes from Cinderella to... well I don’t want to spoil it! There is some romance and lots of adventure, and while I was really excited by the characters, the plot felt like it was dragging at times. It took me longer to make it through the novel than I expected, but it might just be that I didn’t want to miss any of the nuisances of the story and the symbols hidden within. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC - all opinions are my own and this was one of my most anticipated reads of the year!

I love this book! I really like Silvia Moreno-Garcia's straightforward writing style. The story is compelling and the characters are delightful. I love mythology, so I enjoyed delving into a mythology that I don't know much about. I want to read more from this author!

Gods of Jade and Shadow has been one of my top reads so far this year. Set in 1920's Mexico, we get to follow Casiopea Tun's story as she ventures into a life-changing journey along with the god of death and rightful heir of Xibalba, Hun-Kamé. Besides the fact that this story takes place in Mexico, I also loved the fact that our main character is a full-on latina. I really loved how she was portrayed with her insecurities and her fears, but what I loved the most about her was to see her grow and deal with everything that came her way while staying true to herself. Another thing I really loved about this story—which should be obvious—were the elements of Mayan mythology that were used through the story like Xibalba, the Black Road and everything else that Casiopea and Hun-Kamé went through. But if I were to blabber about one thing in particular regarding this book it would be just how good it feels to finally read something that hits close to home.

As Moreno-Garcia does a great job through the story, everything that comes to life through this story feels fluid and intriguing. I really enjoyed how she manages to pull you into Casiopea's story and her struggles, and how you actually end up caring about every single character you come into contact with. But another thing that the author manages to do well is making things feel relatable. Why? Because even when this story is set around the 1920's, as a latina myself, I can't help but relate and understand on a deeper level to Casiopea's fears and the injustices she faces through life. Which, by the way, made me love the book even more, okay? Okay.

Now, as Casiopea and Hun-Kamé make their way across Mexico trying to find the missing pieces of the puzzle, we get to visit, enjoy, and even dread plenty of places. First, we find ourselves in the small city of Uukumil where Casiopea lives and works with her mother on her grandfather's house. And from then on we move to other cities like: Merida, Yucatán, Mexico City, Veracruz, Tierra Blanca, and, eventually, the Mayan underworld. As it can be expected, I loved ever single one of these places we visit not only because of the events that unfold within them nor Casiopea's curiosity but because of the fact that I finally get to read a fantasy book with a setting that I can visualize without problems. Why? Because as a fellow Latina who has a thing for history it's just, you know, easier to see things and relate, which is something that I wish we could have in fantasy stories more often.

Besides getting to know our stubborn main character Casiopea and our favorite god of death Hun-Kamé, we also get to meet a few other characters that show us that taking risks is only natural. From Casiopea's side, we get to meet plenty of her family memebers like Cirilo Leyva, also known as her grandfather, we also have Martin Leyva, her unlikable cousin, her mother and other members that even if they're not that important they still make an impact. Now, from Hun-Kamé's side we have his twin brother Vucub-Kamé, two very interesting demons known as Loray and Xabay, and other powerful beings that will stop at nothing to keep Hun-Kamé and Casiopea from accomplishing their goals before they run out of time. I really loved dealing with every single one of them because of the effects they had between each other whenever they interacted, which made the story feel more real and personal.

In the end, Gods of Jade and Shadow ended up being a gem that I didn't know I needed.

A Jazz-Age fairy tale based on Mayan myth, Gods of Jade and Shadow is both tantalizingly original and inexpertly crafted, the sort of book that feels like it should have been far more exciting than it was. (Making it something of a prototypical 3-star book.)

Casiopeia Tun is a (lampshaded!) Cinderella, a poor relation used as an unpaid servant in her wealthy grandfather's household. After an encounter with her cousin (and tormentor) Martin, Casiopeia opens a locked chest and accidentally releases a weakened Mayan death god, partially dismembered by his jealous twin brother. Casiopeia then gets shanghaied on a quest to find the god's missing body parts, which takes her everywhere from the Yucatan to Baja California to the depths of the Mayan underworld. The story plays out exactly as you'd expect, this being a fairy tale, and also nothing like you'd expect, this . . . not actually being a fairy tale. Ahem.

The setting is tremendous, and is by far the book's best feature. Jazz-age Mexico and the Mayan underworld aren't settings that get used very often in fantasy works, so there was a freshness here that really drew the eye.

The characters swim between archetypes and complexity--intentionally so, as the book makes clear--but while some of them were well-done (the Martin/Casiopeia relationship was a classic fairy tale trope given a degree of depth and complexity that twisted it around a bit) many of the others, especially the variety of demons and sorcerers encountered along the way, felt wooden. (And I would have liked more development of the Caiopeia/Hun-Kame relationship, which felt a bit like it was following tropes so clearly that it didn't think it needed internal development of its own.)

Where the story fell hardest, I thought, was the prose. Something about the author's word choices kept clunking against my ear. Too many sentences just didn't really . . . ring true? It was the sort of thudding you often get from translated works, where the translator sacrifices prose flow in favor of meaning, and often ends up losing the meaning as well. (I realize this is not a translated work, I simply use that as an example of where I've encountered similar qualities.) And the prose style, which is clearly meant to evoke a sort of fairy-tale , too often comes across as merely dull, yanking the reader out of the story.

Overall, I really liked parts of it, but I just didn't love the whole.

I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Moreno-Garcia is hands down my favorite recent fantasy author, so naturally I was excited to get my hands on an ARC of her latest work, coming to a library/bookstore near you this late-July/early-August.

The attention cultural detail in this title is stunning - 1920's art-Deco Mexico truly comes alive. There are so many different locations described too, from Casiopea's hometown in Uukumil, the Yucatan peninsula, Mexico city, and more. Her description of Xibalba (The Mayan Underworld) is so breathtakingly dark and gorgeous. And that's just the setting! Garcia does for Mayan mythology what Neil Gaiman did for western lore in American Gods, creating a world where the old Mayan gods, demons and sorcerers still exist due to humans beliefs in them. I often found myself googling their names to learn more about their places in this particular mythos (all of which is very spot on).

I'm not really a big fan of romance, but I thought the relationship between Hun-Kamé and Casiopea was sweet and not too overdone. If you liked how she wrote the romance in Certain Dark Things you will probably enjoy this one too. The only critique I have is that the villains come up a little flat in places. I feel like there are attempts here and there throughout the book to make them a little more three dimensional, but it would have made it even better to see more of that.

Overall a solid 4.5 though. Haunting, dark, memorable, and beautifully crafted.

This was a really gorgeous book. The writing and the imagery create an amazing world. Cassiopeia's journey is well paced and kept my attention. It was one of those books that I didn't want to put down. I loved that the elements of Mayan mythology were set against the Jazz age in Mexico. The book was really original and I really enjoyed it.

This book was beautifully written.
Combining ancient Mayan deities and the Roaring 20's shouldn't work, but it does.
An act of reckless desperation leaves Casiopea tethered to Hun-Kame, the Lord of Death. They set out on a quest to regain what has been taken from him by his brother, and to reclaim his throne. Each day he grows a little bit stronger but also a little bit more human, and in doing so is slowly draining Casiopea of her life. Even so, as her body grows weaker she becomes stronger and more determined in her hopes and dreams. This is a journey of self discovery and love and magic and possibility.

Gods, fantasy, 1920's....need I say more? Beautifully written and magical.

"Virtuous child who has not known the true measure of unhappiness, how could you ever imagine the breadth of my enmity? What games do you think gods play?"

I was immediately drawn to Gods of Jade and Shadow by the colorful and gorgeous cover. Author Silvia Moreno-Garcia has done a great job infusing Mayan mythology and Yucatan culture into the story of Casiopea, who is used and abused by her extended family after the death of her father, and crosses paths with a death god who needs the help of a mortal. Bound to his side through a dark journey, Casiopea starts to discover her worth, identity, and the very origins of her society, as well as her place within it.
This story had great potential, but the writing was bloated with clunky syntactical choices such as repeated adverbs and explanations of the actions of characters.

Gods of Jade and Shadow, a novel by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, is a great story, flawed by a slow start. The book runs through several chapters before the reader arrives at the inciting event, and much of the start could have been removed, making the story much better.

But, once it gets going, the "road trip" between a young woman and a deposed god of the underworld takes flight and from that point on, I couldn't put the book down.

If you like young adult fantasy, you will love Gods of Jade and Shadow.

Oh man, I don't even know where to start with this book. So I'll start with what drew me to it. I believe I saw the cover first and if you don't think that cover is pretty and interesting I just don't know what to say about your taste. I love the colors and style and all the Mayan design elements. Then I read the synopsis and was super intrigued. I have never read a book that discussed Mayan mythology even though it is so incredibly interesting. The added highlight of setting this book during the Jazz Age just really cinched it for me.

I finally picked this up and started reading despite being approved for a copy quite a few months ago. I didn't love what I was reading. I didn't care about Casiopea or her plight. Though I did like that the author included a Cinderella reference knowing her audience would be thinking it. It wasn't even that I disliked Casiopea as a character she just didn't do anything for me. I was bored with her. Surely, I thought, once we get to the Mayan God of Death it will get much more interesting. It just didn't. He fell as flat for me as Casiopea did. They just didn't seem to have much of a personality. This perhaps makes sense for Hun-Kame because he's an old God who happens to have spent a few centuries lounging in a state between sleeping and dead. For Casiopea, our heroine, it felt a little unforgivable to have her be so lackluster. Nonetheless, I was absolutely obsessed with the setting and descriptions of Xibalba as well as the various towns they visited in their quest. I also loved learning so much more about Mayan mythology. Every time a new element was introduced I just found it so fascinating. So this book pushed me on with fantastical descriptions of the journey and I learned to deal with my apathy for the characters. For a person who needs to love the characters to really love the story, this was a hard problem for me to tackle. I'm not sure when it happened but I did eventually find them a little better towards the end of the book. This book really was saved by its beautiful descriptions. I'm still thinking about Xibalba and it's inhabitants.

I won't lie, it was the cover that made me request the ARC (look at it!). 1920s Mexico is not a setting I've seen before either, I'm a sucker for mythological fantasy...in short, I was intrigued. And I can now safely say I did not regret it - if you like the idea of it too, it's definitely worth a read.

Casiopea Tun works as a servant in her grandfather's household, undervalued, abused, and dreaming of the day when she will be able to move to a bigger town...then she accidentally frees a Mayan death god when cleaning. They end up travelling across Mexico in search of his stolen body parts to recover his full power and defeat his twin.

The middle of the book was fun, but fairly predictable and repetitive (go to a new town, convince someone to hand the finger or eye or whatever over, repeat). On the other hand that's pretty much how a lot of myths are - just think of Greek mythology and Hercules - so I'd say this is a feature more than a bug. It doesn't help that I used to be a huge mythology nerd either. Plot-wise, it's the kind of book the ending either makes or breaks and I'm glad to say the ending was perfect. It made sense, it tied everything up, it was satisfying, and totally not what I expected.

Though this is an adult fantasy book, it has plenty of crossover appeal with the YA audience. Casiopea and Hun-Kamé have the exact sort of "god and sassy mortal girl who takes no shit" dynamic that I suspect will make it quite popular. The trope is very hit or miss with me, but here I thought it worked pretty well. 

However, the worldbuilding is where it really shines. 1920s Mexico, various elements of Mayan mythology...plus there's a lot of travelling around, so we get to see quite a bit of it. From tiny backwater villages, to Mexico City, to the lively port of Veracruz and many other places. If well-realised settings that are not medieval Europe are a draw for you, I'd highly recommend it just for that.

Gods of Jade and Shadow is the latest book by author Sylvia Moreno-Garcia, an author whose works I've found myself really enjoying despite their often very different genres - the two books I've read of hers include a Mexican Vampire story (Certain Dark Things) and a Romance Novel with fantastical elements (The Beautiful Ones), and both had strong settings and characters I really enjoyed. Moreno-Garcia describes herself on her website as "Mexican by birth, Canadian by inclination," and her Mexican heritage seems to form a common basis in her work (well not The Beautiful Ones as much), leading to settings and characters very different than that I'm used to. And that's a good thing, especially when those works are as well-executed as those of Moreno-Garcia.

Gods of Jade and Shadow is absolutely no exception, with it using Mayan myths as the foundation of its story: the journey of a young woman with a Mayan death god to regain what the god has lost in the battle with the god's younger brother. In a very general sense, the story follows a very typical structure, but the book's Mayan setting twists that structure into less familiar and often fascinating ways, with a conclusion that totally took me by surprise and yet works completely. In short, the Mayan-myth based setting, excellent characters, and surprising yet satisfying plot make Gods of Jade and Shadow a clear winner, and a definite recommendation.

-------------------------------------------------Plot Summary-------------------------------------------------------
Since her father died, Casiopea has grown up with her mother in her grandfather's household in the drab Mexican town of Uukumil. She has always dreamed of leaving the town, driving an automobile - still new in the 1920s - and seeing the rest of Mexico and perhaps beyond.....but instead has suffered being treated as an unwanted servant for her grandfather and her arrogant and bullying cousin Martin. But one day, Casiopea is left behind in the house all alone, and finds the key to a weird chest in her grandfather's room and opens it to release Hun-Kame, one of the twin gods of Xibalba, the Mayan Underworld.

Casiopea finds herself tied to Xibalba by a bone shard driven into her hand, promising her death if she cannot help Hun-Kame recover his lost body parts...and his lost power. For Hun-Kame was imprisoned by his twin brother Vucub-Kame, who stole his place as Lord of the Underworld, and has been hidden away Hun-Kame's lost body parts with several other beings out of Mayan myth throughout the Country of Mexico. Casiopea soon finds herself discovering the parts of Mexico and the American Southwest she only ever dreamed of....in addition to discovering more about herself as well. For the longer the journey takes, the more mortal Hun-Kame becomes, and the more interesting he seems.....

Yet Vucub-Kame will not be content to allow Casiopea and Hun-Kame to complete their journey unopposed, and his plots, using some familial persons as tools, may be the greatest threat of all to Casiopea and her death god's journey to find their rightful places in life.....

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I am hardly familiar with Mayan mythology, and Gods of Jade and Shadow uses such myth to fill its setting with fascinating creatures, characters, and places - in addition to the real world places in 1920s Mexico and the American Southwest. Into this extremely well written setting is this story, told in general from the perspectives of three characters: Casiopea - who gets most of the narrative as the central character; Martin - Casiopea's bully cousin who finds himself unwillingly chasing after her; and the antagonist Vucub-Kame himself.

But again, the main focus of this story is on Casiopea, and she's a terrific character. New to the world outside her small town but far from naive, willing to make tough choices while still occasionally feeling afraid, wanting more for herself but feeling unsure and anxious about how her actions affect others - Casiopea is a fully three dimensional character whose growth throughout is wonderfully written, making her naturally easy to root for. Her companion, Hun-Kame is not quite as three dimensional, but he's written well as he transitions more and more into mortality, and his and Casiopea's growing feelings for each other - while predictable - grow naturally and make complete sense.

The lesser characters are also excellently done. I worried at first that the story was going to try and exculpate Martin for his bullying behavior towards Casiopea, but the book does not do that at all: it explains how Martin became this way, through his own being-bullied, his own privilege, and his own insecurities, but does not expect him to be forgiven. It's really well done honestly, making him an interesting character throughout. The other lesser mythological figures are all rather interestingly done (although as having no background in this mythology, I couldn't say anything as to their accuracy), and even the main antagonist Vucub-Kame is both believable in his motives and interesting in his choice of actions.

These characters form the basis of a plot that has elements of the familiar but is done in a satisfyingly different way. The story of the mortal and immortal traveling together on a journey and the immortal growing more human along the way is a classic one, but Moreno-Garcia executes it really well, and with some very different touches specific to this setting of Mayan myths and Death Gods. Even the familiar twists are thus done rather surprisingly in how they're adjusted for the themes of this mythology, making them feel fresh and new. And the ending takes a turn that makes complete and utter sense - and yet is totally not the way these things tend to go, to my surprise. It forms a satisfying, if bittersweet conclusion, and it's nearly perfect.

So yeah, really really enjoyed this one, and writing this review is only reminding me more of how I did. Definitely recommended.

When I first requested to read this book through Netgalley I thought it was a present-day retelling. Not the case, this novel is set in the 1920s. It’s not a bad thing, but just something I thought might be of interest for others to know. I really enjoyed this story. I love most mythology themed novels, but this one dug deep and asked us to really consider what it means to be human and what it might mean to be a god.

The characters, as always for me, were a huge selling point. I think the author did a fantastic job of making her characters dynamic. There was no all good or all bad. I really vibed a lot with what Casiopea was feeling as a young woman and I think that really endeared her to me. She’s got a temper, but in this case, it was to her benefit. Then, Hun-KamÉ, honestly, he was probably my favorite. I loved the exploration between godhood and humanity that Moreno-Garcia did with him. While I love stories wrapped in myth I’m also very picky how gods are portrayed. This was a representation I really enjoyed.

World building was minor in that it was 1920s Earth, but the mythology and how it would interact with the world today was beautifully done. It was seamlessly woven. I feel like I learned a lot about certain parts of Mayan mythology.

Diversity. This was based purely on Hispanic/Mayan characters. Casiopea was also our main character. So, double points for having a woman of color as the protagonist!

Overall, if you enjoy the modernization of old gods I’d say you will definitely enjoy this book. Also, if that isn’t your cup of tea, but you enjoy a book that gives you some little bits to think over then you could still very much enjoy this book. It’s deeper than what you first might expect. Don’t forget to keep an eye out for its release this July!

What would you do if you opened Pandora’s box and were faced with the God of Death? Would you help him or her or run away screaming?

Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is about a young girl, Casiopea Tun, who lives in Mexico during the Jazz Age. Her family treats her more like Cinderella than an actual family member. One day she was mending some of her grandfather’s shirts when a mysterious box caught her attention. So of course Casiopea opens the box.

Before she knew what was happening, the Mayan God of Death, Hun-Kame’ was standing before her. He demanded that she help him reclaim his throne from his brother, Vucub-Kame’. She was not especially willing so he placed a shard of his bone in her hand. By placing the bone in her hand, they become linked. Eventually, she will be drained of life unless he removes it.

Casiopea decides that she will help Hun-Kame’. Her life at home is less than desirable. Her cousin, Martin, is jealous that the grandfather favors Casiopea in some way. Martin is a bully and makes her life miserable whenever he can. He even ends up working for Vucub-Kame to destroy Hun-Kame. The cousins, Casiopea and Martin, are pitted against each other in a race which determines the winner.

I chose this book based on the description given by NetGalley. The book is a surreal fairytale. Anyone who likes mythology will love this book. I don’t know very much about the Mayan Gods but after reading this book, I’m curious to learn more.

I was given this free ebook by NetGalley in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own. Obviously.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia is an author I admire for her genre bending stories. It was so refreshing to read a story set in Mexico, but also in 1920s. It was a fun and engaging read, the mix of folklore and mythology was at a perfect balance. The protagonist Casiopea reminded me a lot of Sophie in Howl's Moving Castle. I really enjoyed this book's plot which was packed with fun information about Mayan god's and Mexican folklore which just brought the entire story to life (no pun intended that this is a book about the Mayan god of death.) Fun and exciting read definitely recommend.