Refreshing setting and fantastic story line. The characters were slightly flat, and the writing didn't blow me away, but I enjoyed this diverse fantasy title.

Gods of Jade and Shadow was such a fantastic, original urban fantasy! I loved reading about Mexico in the 1920's, as so much historical fiction set in the 20's is very Anglo-centric. I also loved the influence of Mayan myth.

I really enjoyed this! The setting was so unique and such a breath of fresh air, the characters were vibrant, and the concept was absolutely incredible. The dynamic between the main duo was incredibly fascinating, and I loved watching it progress. I did struggle a bit with the writing and pacing at moments, but overall this was a wonderful read.

What a fantastic book. The mixture of folklore and forbidden romance was delightful, and the character development was superb. I wish it had come out sooner, since we devoted this years Summer Reading Program to retellings with diversity in mind and this would have been a wonderful fit. Would definitely recommend!

I ended up enjoying this even more than I thought I would! I was not expecting this to be a love story and was blown away by how wrapped up I became with Casiopea and Hun-Kame and their slow burn romance. Gods of Jade and Shadow is full of dazzling and detailed descriptions of Mexico and the United Stated during the Jazz Age and because of all the traveling their journey requires, those descriptions became as much a part of the story as the rest of the plot. I think this is the first time I've read any Mexican folklore and I definitely want to rectify that in the future. The quest created a very fast paced plot that made this one hard to put down once I started reading, and my heart was completely broken by the end. I will be thinking about these characters for a long time to come and highly recommend this one!

This book was incredible. The writing is so lush and vivid it made me feel like I was there. The style is slow, but not in a bad way. Every scene builds, every character is revealed in pieces, leaving you feeling heavy and full. The descriptions of the underworld against the backdrop of a Mexico in transition in the early 1900s feels magical.

*An advanced reader ebook copy was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

"There was sadness in her, of course, but she didn't wish to crack like fine china either. She could not wither away. In the world of the living, one must live. And had this not been her wish? To live. Truly live.” - Silvia Moreno-Garcia

I finished it during my Europe trip this past summer. It’ll forever be tied to sitting on trains going through Central European countryside and becoming immersed in this magical story. I absolutely loved it! There’s something about reading Latinx fantasy that speaks to a deep part of my soul. There’s a since of comfort and a since of coming home. I know that probably sounds odd but reading about a young female Mexican protagonist struck me to the core, which is why representation and diverse authors in ALL genres are needed and wanted. I found the writing to be lyrical, beautiful, dreamy, and contemplative. I’d highly recommend this is you like fantasy but I think even folks that don’t always read fantasy would enjoy it too! It reads like a fairytale or myth and it feels like an automatic classic to me.

Included as part of my #50BooksbyWOC reading round-up for Rewire News: https://rewire.news/article/2019/09/13/more-books-i-loved-that-will-carry-you-into-the-fall/

It’s 1927, but in Uukumil, a southern Mexican town where Casiopea Tun spends her days waiting on her grandfather and other wealthy relatives, it may as well be 1807. Casiopea dreams of escaping: of seeing the world, dancing, and learning to drive an automobile. One afternoon, she pries open a wooden chest in her grandfather’s room, accidentally releasing Hun-Kame, the Mayan god of death, and binding her fate to his. Betrayed, killed, and trapped by his twin brother Vucub-Kame, Hun-Kame must find his missing body parts. He and Casiopea embark upon a quest that takes them across Mexico, into the United States, and even into Xibalba (the underworld).

Moreno-Garcia has said her book was inspired by the Popul Vuh, the ancient Mayan text about the creation of the world. But you don’t need to have read the Popul Vuh to enjoy the vivid sights and sounds of both 1920s Mexico and Xibalba, or Moreno-Garcia’s equally enthralling descriptions of the feelings that slowly grow between the long-dormant god and Casiopea.

This book was beautifully written from start to finish. Moreno-Garcia has crafted an intriguing blend of Jazz Age politics and society with Mayan mythology.. I knew very, very little about Mayan mythology before reading this book, but that definitely shouldn't deter anyone from picking this up. That lack will not take away from your enjoyment of this book.

Moreno-Garcia's prose is beautiful and I thoroughly enjoyed Casiopea. Halfway through the book I was wondering how it was going to end, and I can definitely say I was not disappointed. My only thought is the narrative jumps from a third person POV of the characters to this omniscient narrator and back again, sometimes in the space of a couple of paragraphs. But I thought it worked for this story, since it evoked more of a story-telling/oral retelling of a myth and added to that aspect of the story.

Its not everyday that I read Adult Fantasy, but in those rare moments that I do, I am almost always swept off my feet. Gods of Jade and Shadow is the epitome of those moments. Set in the roaring 20's in Mexico, the fantasy tells the tale of eighteen year old Casiopea, a girl who dreams of getting away from her rundown and abusive life where she lives to serve her grandfather and cousins. Her chances of freedom and the things she could only imagine are given an opportunity when she accidentally frees a Mayan death god, Hun-Kame. Irrevocably tied to the death god, Casiopea is tasked with helping Hun-Kame reclaim his thrown and gain the revenge on those who betrayed him. Forced into a world wind of adventure, Casiopea takes on the journey of learning the true meaning of love, revenge, and what it means to be truly alive.

“Words are seeds, Casiopea. With words you embroider narratives, and the narratives breed myths, and there's power in the myth. Yes, the things you name have power.”

This book was as riveting as it was vivid. Casiopea was probably one of my favorite things about this book. Her never failing determination and loyalty to Hun-Kame were what grabbed me and stole me away. I felt like I connected and related to our heroine as well as her companion in so many ways that the book became more than a story for myself--but it became a real and tangible thing. Moreno-Garcia's writing style is beautiful in this novel as she entrances you with her dialogue, and description of the characters, setting, and world building.

"The imagination of mortals shaped the gods, carving their faces and their myriad forms, just as the water molds the stones in its paths, wearing them down through the centuries."

I honestly cannot do justice to just how beautiful this story was. From the pacing, writing, characters, to even the concept--everything was thought out and executed phenomenally. I found myself in these pages, and learned new things about not only me but the world around me as Hun-Kame faced his own questions of mortality and what it truly is to be self/someone. His own story line was one that made my heart soar as I watch him battle against giving in and letting go of who he is, and fighting to keep a hold of the man he knows he is and should always be.

Moreno-Garcia paints a lyrical and lively portrait of the culture and life of Yucatan during the jazz age, to the point where you almost feel like you are right there in the midst of it. However, Gods of Jade and Shadow is so much more than a historical fantasy. As the pages are turned and I devoured more of the story I found that Moreno-Garcia beautifully interweaves a track of social and political issues that not only were relevant to the day and age that the novel was set--but also to present day as well. Blending fantasy, lore, and history together, Moreno-Garcia shows the struggle and the issues of female rights, living and fighting against varying ranges of abuse (domestic, physical, mental, and verbal), discrimination based on socio-economic status, and stereotypes based upon where one lives.

"Fear is generous and does not exclusively lodge in the hearts of mortals."

Concise, riveting, and yet beautifully powerful and commanding, Gods of Jade and Shadow combines lyrical Mayan mythology with adventure, life, and important political and social issues that can be related back to our current day and age. A breath of fresh fantasy, this is a book that you will not want to skip. I highly recommend anyone and everyone to give this book a try. It will forever change your view on life and take your breath away at the same time.

Huge thank you to Netgalley for sending me an ARC for my honest review! Quotations taken from an uncorrected proof and may change upon final publication.

Casiopea Tun accidentally rescues Hun-Kubé, lord of the underworld, from imprisonment. The two embark on a quest to restore Hun-Kubé’s godhood, but the road from the Yucatan to Baja is paved with peril and populated with demons sent by Hun-Kubé's treacherous twin brother.

Set in 1920s Mexico, this is a beautiful and vivid novel rich with Mayan fairytales. Casiopea is delightful and pragmatic and Moreno-Garcia crafts probably the finest ending to a supernatural quest that I have ever had the pleasure to read.

Recommended for fans of historical speculative fiction, indigenous stories, and readers who loved Katherine Arden’s Winternight trilogy.

Ugh, I loved this. Gods of Jade and Shadow was delightful, evocatively written, and so fast-paced. The characters were deeply drawn, and I loved Casiopea so much. The story is reminiscent of a fairy tale, but not one that I know well, and so it was both familiar and unfamiliar in the most compelling way.

I highly recommend this to any fantasy fans. I think would also function well as a crossover novel for any YA fantasy fans looking to dive into adult fantasy!

From the first page, this retelling of “Cinderella” crossed with the Orpheus legend captivated me. The language is vividly evocative, the characters – both human and supernatural – are compelling, and the depiction of the culture, setting, and history, not to mention the rich folklore and language – are first-rate. I found myself reading more slowly than usual just to savor the luscious prose.

It’s 1927, and elsewhere in the world, the Roaring Twenties are in full swing, but not for Cassiopea Tun, who lives with her downtrodden mother in the small Yucatan village of Uukumil under the despotic thumb of her grandfather and the maliciousness of her vain, useless cousin. By accident, she re-animates Hun-Kamé, Lord of Shadows, the Supreme Lord of Xibalba, land of the dead, and the two embark upon a quest to retrieve the lost parts of his body (an eye, an ear, etc.) and wrest his throne from the clutches of his twin brother. Cassieopea discovers her inner strength, even as associating with her renders Hun-Kamé progressively more human. In this world populated by gods and witches, ghosts and flappers, Mexico itself becomes a character, stretched between desire for modernity and its ancient, compelling heritage.

Gods of Jade and Shadow is a brilliant, satisfying cultural fantasy that pushes the boundaries of the field while offering a sweet story of love, courage, and sacrifice.

The usual disclaimer: I received a review copy of this book, but no one bribed me to praise it. Although chocolates and fine imported tea are always welcome.

I very much enjoyed the Jazz Age Mexican setting of this book. It's a time and place I hadn't really thought about before and the author brings the locations to life. Casiopea and the god companion Hun-Kame travel the country in his quest to find his missing pieces (literally) and defeat his brother for control of the underworld. Moreno- Garcia includes wonderful details of each place, creating a wonderful visual of Mexico in the 1920's.

While I obviously enjoyed some aspects of the book, I found the plot rather slow moving. Hun-Kame defeats his enemy's with ease and there's not much at stake. I liked that Casiopea was very practical and realistic about her circumstances. She is able to keep her god-friend in check.

First. let me say that I really enjoyed the complexity of the characters, especially Martin. I mean, I totally hated him and thought he was a horrible person, but I understood him and how he had been shaped by his surroundings to become the little jerk that he did.

I also liked Casiopea and her internal struggles. And yet, at the same, I really didn't like her all that much for some reason. I don't know why! I also didn't quite like Hun-Kamé but at the same time I actually kind of did. I think the issue is that while they were interesting I never actually connected with them and therefore couldn't quite get as invested as I would have wanted.

In fact, my inability to get invested was one of my main issues and it happened through all the parts of the novel.

At times the book reads almost like a fairytale. Better yet, like a myth. And while I love that style of mostly telling rather than showing and of using a very particular form of language in things like fairytales and myths, I don't love in a novel.

I wanted to be shown things, not told. I wanted writing that was easier to follow and dive into and that's not what I got.

In the end, I didn't love this book. No matter how much I tried. I'm certain that many will love it, and I'm happy for you if you do. Sadly, I don't think it was quite for me.

What is it about?

Cassipoea Tun accidentally frees a mayan god of death and is then forced to help him get his throne back from the brother who betrayed him.

Was it good?

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley AND I bought it from Book of the Month because I had forgotten about the ARC at the time. All opinions are my own.

The story was okay. It felt very slow, and reminded me very much of The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden, only it wasn’t as beautifully written, and the characters were less likable.

That’s not to say that this book was not enjoyable. It was very interesting from a cultural stand point and I did enjoy the tension between Cassipoea and her cousin, Martin.

I’ve been spending a lot of time researching homeschooling, and preparing for the days ahead and as such I just don’t have a lot of time to read lately. This makes me very eager to make sure I am really enjoying what I read. I had to set this book down and come back to it again later, but I am glad that I finished it.

Gods of Jade and Shadow is a novel that centers around one of my favorite tropes of all time, which is Death and the Maiden. When Casiopea accidentally releases Hun-Kame, the Lord of Xibalba, she finds herself accompanying him on a journey to recover his throne from the brother who imprisoned him. Casiopea's relationship with the Mayan death god is at the heart of this book; they very slowly develop deep feelings for one another. Every interaction between the pair of them was absolutely wonderful, intense and compelling, and I adored their relationship.

But it did take me over a month to finish this, and that may partly be because I've been struggling with a reading slump lately, but it's also because this book centers another trope that I don't generally like: the Journey. I just don't like journey books. Casiopea and Hun-Kame essentially go on a journey across Mexico trying to find certain lost items to help him regain his power. It was difficult for me to remain engaged, especially with the removed, omniscient narration. The narrative style was absolutely intentional and necessary to evoke a timeless, mythic tonality that lends the book the quality of an old legend, but I think that works better in short stories than in novels. I will say, though, that I didn't like the writing here as much as in Moreno-Garcia's previous novel, The Beautiful Ones, which is one of my favorite books of all time.

Though I struggled with the climax, which involved a trek through the underworld, with all the weird and random things that come along with something like that (I'm just...not a fan of the Alice in Wonderland trope either), so that was kind of boring, but the story wrapped up nicely, giving Casiopea the agency she's been chasing for the whole book.

One of the most magical books I've ever read, which is saying something as a huge fan of fantasy fiction. From the very first page, I was hooked. The prose is breathtaking right from the get-go and Casiopea is so easy to fall in love with. The weaving in of Mayan and Mexican mythology was done with such a masterful hand. So often fantasy set in the real world feels a bit shoehorned in and doesn't quite fit. But here it's seamless. This novel is a great example of when that balance is achieved; the magical feeling wasn't lost when Casiopea was doing usual activities one would do while traveling but the magic also never took a backseat to the reality.

Casiopea is a great protagonist. Easy to root for, her thirst for life and experiences jump off the page. You can feel her desperation to get away from the life she's known, no matter the cost, and you want it for her. She has a wanderer's soul but has been pinned down by a wretched family. Despite the craziness of her situation, her first tastes of freedom and of being herself is great to see. Of course, the gods and demons are great characters too. Hume-Kame is really enjoyable, watching him balance his nature as a death god while humanity creeps through him. I also really enjoyed Loray; a mischievous demon is always fun. Martin was the big surprise for me; his development through the story is so well-done.

The climax of the story and the wandering through Xiabalba is fantastical and very enjoyable. I loved the darkness of it because it really suited not just the plot but where the characters are emotionally. Even though you can see the romance developing from far-off, that didn't make me enjoy it any less. It's a sweet but doomed romance of course but that makes it all the more lovely. This novel has what I consider to be a perfect ending. I don't want to spoil it but the mix of bittersweet and triumphant matches Casiopea perfectly. I love the open door left at the end of this story and how it lets me imagine what all the characters went on to do with their futures.

Highly recommend this one to any fantasy reader but if you're a mythology fan, it's a real treat.


Note: I received a free Kindle edition of this book via NetGalley in exchange for the honest review above. I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher Random House Ballantine, and the author Silvia Moreno-Garcia for the opportunity to do so.

The nitty-gritty: Mexican mythology mixed with a 1920s vibe makes this a stand-out fairy tale.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Certain Dark Things is still one of my favorite books, and it’s always exciting when she releases something new. Somehow I completely missed her last book, but I was determined to read her latest, not only because of the stunning cover, but because I love how complex her stories can be. Gods of Jade and Shadow is completely different from her other books, which is one of the things I love about her: she never seems to write the same thing twice.

This time she tackles Mayan mythology and gives us a tale filled with magic, gods and a dark journey to the underworld. Eighteen-year-old Casiopea Tun lives with her grandfather Cirilo Leyva, a very rich but cruel man who beats Casiopea and treats her like a servant. They live in the small town of Uukumil, but Casiopea dreams of going to the city of Mérida someday, far from her grandfather and her equally nasty cousin Martin.

And one day she gets her chance. While the rest of her family is out of the house for the day, Casiopea’s curiosity gets the best of her and she opens the old chest at the foot of her grandfather’s bed. Inside is nothing but a pile of bones, but when she gets a bone shard embedded in her thumb by accident, the bones suddenly come to life, forming a man who calls himself Hun-Kamé and claims to be the Lord of Xibalba, the god of death. Hun-Kamé explains that he’s been imprisoned in the chest for fifty years, tricked by his brother Vucub-Kamé, who then took over his throne in the underworld. Vucub-Kamé also stole Hun-Kamé’s eye, ear, finger and jade necklace and scattered them throughout the land.

Now bound to him because of the bone shard, Casiopea agrees to join Hun-Kamé on a dangerous journey to find his missing possessions and take his rightful place in Xibalba. But Vucub-Kamé knows that his brother has escaped, and he’ll do anything to keep him from taking back the throne, even using Casiopea against him.

Moreno-Garcia has written a dreamy, fairy-tale-like story with vivid world building. Her descriptions of 1927 Mexico and the fictitious Xibalba are part of what made this story so wonderful, and I had no trouble at all visualizing Casiopea’s journey from Uukumil to Mérida to Mexico City and beyond. Every detail seems to be well researched, and even though I stumbled a bit over the unfamiliar names and places, they made this story authentic and immersive.

One of my favorite things about this book was watching each character change and grow. Casiopea was a wonderful character, a practical and optimistic girl who dreams of leaving her controlling grandfather and traveling the world. Her wants are simple: she wants to see the big city, meet new people, and have the freedom to make her own choices, and when Hun-Kamé enters her life, she suddenly has the opportunity to do all these things. But traveling with a god and venturing into the realm of the underworld is dangerous, and so she also learns more about life than she expects.

Even the horrible Martin shows surprising growth, and I was shocked to find I felt sorry for him by the end of the story! I never quite warmed up to Vucub-Kamé, however, who sets out to trick his brother and Casiopea in every way he can. There are some very dark parts to Gods of Jade and Shadow, especially near the end, but I suppose when you set your story in the underworld and pit two gods against each other, it isn’t that surprising.

There is also a romantic element to the story, although it’s quite subtle, and the author integrates it so well that you almost don’t see it coming. Yes, Casiopea and Hun-Kamé start to develop feelings for each other, but both are convinced that those feelings can’t possibly be right, so they fight them for a long time. Part of Hun-Kamé’s growth is that he’s becoming more and more human the longer he spends in Casiopea’s company, and of course part of becoming human is dealing with emotions. I loved his gradual change from god to human, although it’s bittersweet because he wants nothing more than to reclaim his godhood. But don’t expect a typical, romantic ending, because Moreno-Garcia pulls some surprises out of her hat that I didn’t expect.

As for the ending itself, it didn’t turn out quite the way I expected, but I loved it anyway. In fact, it’s one of my favorite endings ever! Fans of fairy tales, mythology and well-drawn characters will love this book.

Big thanks to the publisher for supplying a review copy.

An excellent tale weaving elements of Mexican myths. Cassiopeia, a “poor relation”, is tired of being second-rate to her cousin Martin who will not only inherit the family property but will be her authority figure, head of the family, in Mexico around a hundred years ago. As she grows more and more discouraged by her fate, she accidentally sets free an imprisoned god and, well, life ceases to be boring! Excellent world-building, characters, and a strong female lead.