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.

I did not want this book to end. I had to stop reading because it was well past my bedtime and I knew once I finished, the story would be over.
I absolutely loved everything about this story-the characters, the setting, the plot, the writing...it was all very well thought out and flowed fantastically. Casiopea’s character to me was a brown Latin Cinderella. Though this is not a rags to financial riches story, it is a story about a young woman who goes from living a terribly mundane and unhappy life to one full of adventure, and ultimately she finds what she’s longed for.
Gods of Jade and Shadow is definitely a great read and I look forward to learning more about Mayan mythology and Latin America during the
Late 1920’s and 30’s.

“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.”

Casiopea Tun is living a Cinderella-type life on her grandfather’s estate in rural Mexico, spending each day doing chores around the house and taking orders from her cousin Martín, while dreaming of the possibilities of a life far away, in Mexico City, enjoying the wonders of the Jazz Age. One day, she discovers an ancient wooden box in her grandfather’s room and, daring to open it, frees the spirit of the Mayan god of death (Hun-Kame). Trapped in the box for years, Hun-Kame requests Casiopea’s assistance in getting revenge on his brother, who had treacherously imprisoned him in the box with her grandfather’s help. Casiopea agrees. And thus she and Hun-Kame set off on a journey through the jungles of the Yucatán, some of Mexico’s most dazzling cities, and the dark, dangerous roads of Xibalba.

The first thing I have to say, and I really hate to say this, is that I was a bit disappointed by this book. I wanted so badly to love it, but it just fell short for me. Here’s the thing, and it’s important because my biggest issue with this book is one that *could* be because it was an early copy: I was put off by the writing itself. It felt choppy and, especially at the beginning, quite poorly paced. I struggled to get into the story to start because it felt very convenient and contrived. Casiopea’s “bad luck” and “need to get out of her village” are all very common tropes in fantasy, and so I understand their presence, but since it all was introduced so quickly, with considerably more telling than showing, the entire premise felt thin…which is just a tough way to start. As the story went on, this issue smoothed out slightly, and the choppy tone took on more of a “fairy tale” type vibe, which mostly worked, even though it never quite fully clicked and we were slow to get there. Basically, I am hoping that the final published version got some feedback and edits for flow and that some of those early chapters were smoothed out and given a little more time to develop.

On the other hand, I deeply and truly enjoyed reading and learning about all the culture, tradition and Mayan mythology and Mexican folklore that was included in every part of this novel. It was not just woven in, but rather created the meat of the tale. On almost every page there was a new god, belief, tradition, myth or spirit to learn about and I loved it! Although at times I wish the author had taken the time to give more background on everything, that’s a personal thing. She explained what she needed to for the story…and it prompted me to go do some more research on my own for more information, which was some of the most fun google time I’ve ever had! Along the same lines, the 1920s ish culture in Mexico and the Yucatán was educational for me as well. I really enjoyed learning the vocabulary and traditions; they were so naturally included and set the scene and ambiance very well. It made me very glad I was reading it on my kindle though, because I had to look up a number of words (mostly food/crop and nature-based items). While not everyone may like being dropped into a foreign setting like this, with an assumption from the author than you know what she’s talking about, I enjoy that. It makes for a much more authentic reading experience and I feel strongly positive about the way it puts the onus on the reader to learn outside their knowledge-base and not on the author to explain their own history to anyone who doesn’t know it (which is a “majority” assumption that should absolutely be gotten rid of, especially since there are now so many easy ways to access information).

One other thing I want to note, before wrapping up. I was not super sold on Casiopea’s relationship with Hun-Kame… It was fairly realistic that, sheltered and emotionally mistreated as she had been, even his rude “caring” might be seen as gentlemanly, but, for those same reasons, it rankled a bit to read it. However, despite my feelings throughout the novel, the way their relationship ends was exactly what I wanted from this book. It’s not always what I hope for, but it was in this case. In other news, I am all about some future Casiopea-and-Loray shenanigans.

All in all, I’m struggling with how to rate/recommend this book. I learned so much, truly loved what I learned, and have never read anything with this setting or atmosphere before, so from that perspective, I want to tell you to read it. However, as I have mentioned, I felt like it could have been written and developed in a much better way. In the end, it’s probably a toss-up that comes down to what is more important to you as a reader: what you experience or the way you experience it. And, in the end, I can say that I do not, at all, regret the time I spent reading this, so that’s worth taking into consideration as well.

This was my first Moreno-Garcia novel and it won't be my last. She is a genre-bender and I love it! I didn't know she wrote [book:Signal to Noise|22609306] and I won [book:Certain Dark Things|28220785] in a Goodreads Giveaway a few years ago that I still haven't read. I know, I know. Anyway, GoJaS is unlike any book I've read. I don't know much about Mayan mythology, or rather I know <i>nothing</i> about Mayan mythology! I enjoyed the banter between Casiopea and Hun-Kamé and the trials Hun-Kamé had to go through in order to reclaim his throne. I loved learning about Xibalba and the different immortals and demons. A very enjoyable fantasy read with GORGEOUS cover!

Casiopeia Tun lives with her extended family in a small town in the Yucatán peninsula in 1927. She is treated little better than a servant, so she opens a box her grandfather had hidden away. This unwittingly opens the prison for Hun-Kamé, the former ruler of Xibalba, the underworld. Now Casiopeia is drawn into his plans to regain his throne as ruler of the Black City of Xibalba, even as his twin brother tries to thwart them to remain on the throne. Her life is on the line, but this is also the grandest adventure she would ever hope to be on.

Gods of Jade and Shadow is a fascinating look into the mythology of Mexico as well as some of the politics and culture of the Jazz Age as it swept through the country. Not only are there gods in the underworld, there are hungry ghosts that can be summoned for information, demons, and entities that used to be human but carry incredible magical skill. Casiopeia is on a journey that mirrors those of classic epics taught in literature courses: she has to leave behind everything she has ever known to fulfill a grand quest, retrieving items to make a fallen god whole. Along the way, she learns more about herself, the world around her (and in this case, the reality of the underworld that the Catholic priest in her village wants to disavow), and grows up as a result.

Casiopeia was immediately a woman I felt for and connected with. She is frustrated by her small-town life and how claustrophobic she feels caught up in the day to day minutiae where she's judged by cousins, aunts and uncles, and her grandfather. Townsfolk or the church aren't any better, so she feels little kinship when forced to leave on her quest. As our entry point into this fantastic world of magic and gods, she is believable in her reactions to the situation and people around her. Hun-Kamé starts off as a haughty god that is emotionally distant, but as he draws energy from Casiopeia to regain his lost godhood, he also becomes more human and approachable. His twin is a consummate Bad Guy, sacrificing animals and people without care to find the prophecies that would leave him victorious and able to rule over the modern world.

As with many mythic tales, there are multiple interpretations made, as well as temptation offered for Casiopeia and Hun-Kamé. I found weaving Mayan mythology into the family and potential relationship drama wonderful to read about. The ending carried bittersweet tones to it, and was entirely satisfying as well.

3.5 stars rounded up. I liked this more than the other two books I've read by Moreno-Garcia's (The Beautiful Ones and Certain Dark Things), although I liked both of those as well. I really liked the world building and Casiopea's character arc, and the writing is gorgeous. Ultimately, though, this is a fairy-tale, and it leans heavily on fairy-tale tropes, especially, I thought for the character arc of Hun-Kame. If you like fairy tales with a hint of sorrow, or are looking for fantasy based on Mayan mythology, this is for you.

Review copy provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

First of all, the cover of this book is fantastic. The blurb mentioning a Mayan death god in the Jazz Age got me interested right away and this book didn't disappoint. This book follows Casiopea, a girl growing up in rural Mexico in the 1920s. It starts off with some Cinderella vibes with Casiopea and her mother having to go back to live with her (not really evil but definitely grumpy) grandfather after Casiopea's father died. Instead of wicked stepsisters, we have Martin, the unpleasant cousin, who orders Casiopea around.

One day, she is left alone at the house as a punishment and decided to open the chest in her grandfather's room and finds a pile of bones. When she cuts herself on the bones and bleeds on them, the Mayan death god Hun-Kame is resurrected. He had been cursed and imprisoned by his brother. The catch here: Hun-Kame isn't completely whole yet and Casiopea is now connected to him through her blood. So she joins Hun-Kame on a quest to make him whole again and regain his kingdom, the Mayan underworld.

I really enjoyed this book. The author did a fantastic job of taking Mayan mythology and bringing them to life in a new setting. The descriptions of the towns and people were very vivid and it was fun to see how the mythological figures were woven into the towns and villages that they visited. Casiopea was a great character to watch on this journey as she grew out of the shadow of her grandfather into a strong woman. The POV jumps to Hun-Kame's brother and Martin helped round out the story so that the reader was better able to understand everyone's motivation besides just thinking that they were super evil or huge jerks. Also, I really liked the ending. Sometimes a book will be great up until the very end but this author wrapped things up nicely and in a way that makes sense for the characters. Highly recommended and I am going to look up the author's other books now.

I’ve always adored fairy tales and folklore and that love has carried on to my adulthood. So this tale was one I wanted to read for sure. Our heroine, a young woman named Casiopea Tun who may have been born under an unlucky star for all she knows, is wasting her youth away in her grandfather’s house. Doing laundry, cleaning floors and overall being treated like a servant without much regard. She’s a survivor with a quiet fire within her that refuses to be extinguished as day in and day out she endures cruel words and a beating here and there. She doesn’t fancy herself as a Cinderella type but dreams of life– of being able to true start living her life free from her grandfather’s house – that doesn’t feel like a home despite his wealth – and out of the dusty, little southern Mexico town.

The Jazz Age is in full swing, and Casiopea wants freedom, to drive a shiny automobile, to go dancing, to travel, to wear pretty things, hell to be able to have a day off. She’s been living in the suffocating presence of those she calls her kinfolk for way too long. Even the relative closest in age to her, her cousin Martin, is a horrid excuse of a human being who thoroughly enjoys his status of being the next (undeserving) head of the family. Martin reminds her of their respective stations every day. Her life takes a huge turn when, as a punishment, she’s left home. She’s left behind as her family leaves on a day trip. Casiopea snoops around in the bedroom of her ornery grandfather to find that he’s left his most prized possession behind: a mysterious wooden box with intricate Mayan artwork and a key he rarely takes off. In opening this chest, she sets herself on a journey where she’ll see sights brighter than many a star and end up changing her own destiny: she accidentally frees the spirit of the Mayan God of Death, who requests her help in recovering his throne after being betrayed by his brother.

The Mayan God of Death, whom we learn is “Prince of the Starless Night, Firstborn of Xibalba,” gives Casiopea the name of Hun-Kame’ to refer to him by and is an imposing force. Both girl and God are linked, their destinies tied together as their lives depend on each other to make the trip. Casiopea, named after a constellation by her kind hearted, poetry-loving, dead father, is doomed if they fail, and if she succeeds she is promised her heart’s content. Unbeknownst to her, if they fail, the God braced in the flesh will face a different kind of fate. It is a different type of death, yet one that is far more ideal than her end. It is absolutely fascinating to see these two on the pages, traveling together, experiencing the cities together and meeting all the supernatural bumps in the night together. It’s a visual hourglass of The God becoming more and more human and the girl losing more and more of her life force and what makes her, her.

Moreno-Gracia did such a superb job with her characterizations of not just our main two characters who are connected by fate and duty. Throughout the book there are plenty of others that have a rich presence. The unlikely duo have to meet with a handful of different persons belonging to the supernatural world. These beings linger in the earthly plane and each encounter brings something new: violence, introspection, gifts and advice. While some are less volatile, each new being is an interesting character with their own motivations and desires. They have been hiding in plain sight and molded by their circumstances of the new rule after Hun-Kame was dethroned. My favorite of these beings is Loray. Loray is a green eyed individual whom our destined two meet first. He has honeyed words and a youthful appearance but eyes that immediately suggest otherwise. He makes a hell of a first impression. It is with his help the two make some actual headway on their journey, and Casiopea has her first real clue on how she might survive this ordeal.

With each page that brought me closer to the end, I mourned. Yet I wouldn’t dare stop reading and be left wondering who made it to the Black throne and whose life was forfeit. I wouldn’t mind taking another trip, being on another ship with this book close to my heart. I wouldn’t mind re-reading this odyssey that had everything from the bright lights of Mexico City to the darkness of the Mayan underworld. I wouldn’t mind being rocked to sleep by waves big and deep again, with my eyes too heavy to continue reading of the young woman who dared to live and who dared to not give the God of the Underworld his new heart’s desire.

Holy AMAZING. I love a mythology based fantasy, AND to have it be a Mayan mythology based fantasy made this book so awesome! The story flowed well, there was constant action (but not an overwhelming amount). The author did a great job painting the scene and did justice to such a vibrant culture!

Sorry for the delayed posting here at NetGalley. The review appeared on the Dear Author blog on July 23, 2019.

Dear Ms. Moreno-Garcia,

It was the setting of your new fantasy novel, Gods of Jade and Shadow, that first caught my attention. I had never read a book set in 1920s Mexico before. This one also promised to feature a young woman on a quest with a Mayan God, and that sounded good too, so I took a risk and did something I rarely do: requested an ARC of a novel by an author whose books I had never read before.

Read the rest at this link:

https://dearauthor.com/book-reviews/overall-a-reviews/a-minus-reviews/review-gods-of-jade-and-shadow-by-silvia-moreno-garcia/

I love the dark, historical fiction background of this story based on the Mayan mythology. Stories that come from a unique perspective, with a different culture and a story that is compelling. This book does all of these things. And that cover is gorgeous.
Recommend.

#GodsofJadeandShadow #NetGalley #RandomHousePublishingHouseBallantine #DelRay

3.5☆
ARC received from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All of my opinions are my own, and are in no way affected by the exchange.

I feel like I have been reading this book forever. This was actually really good though. I really enjoyed the rich world building and the fact that it was about a mythology that isnt really seen or talked about. I loved Casiopea as a main character. She was strong willed and very independent but it felt very true to the time period and she struggled with her own autonomy and desires. She was my favorite part of the story. I found her cousin Martín, to be extremely annoying but I liked the bits we get from his perspective which show us how men in this era thought.
I ended up enjoying this more on audiobook than in ebook form as I felt that I gained more from the pronunciation of the Mayan/spanish culture. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes mythology, death magic, or historical fiction.

This book blew any expectation out of the water. The flowery writing, the vivid imagery of the 1920's, Mayan gods and a main character that had me rooting for her from page one??? Even the ending was great (though bittersweet endings are usually my jam). The pacing in the beginning was a bit slow, but everything does up so fast and by time time u looked up, I was already 80% done. I'm actually really pleasantly surprised by Caseopia's cousin, making me in a way sympathize yet not forgiving his doing was so well done! I'm definitely looking out for more books by Garcia 100%.

When I was young, my mother and grandmothers would read fairy tales to me and tell me stories of folklore from far away places. Silvia Moreno-Garcia's Gods of Jade and Shadow brought back those memories with her fabulous telling of a fairy tail based on Mayan folklore. It was just as wonderful as the stories I heard as a youngster, and I loved it! I want more!

An in-depth review can be found on our podcast, Genre Junkies. We both have nothing but high praise for this beautiful, fanciful retelling of Myan mythology. The author decided to set this tale in jazz age Mexico. Weaving for the reader a beautiful tapestry of myth and not so distant past. Our heroine is the worthy and endearing Cassiopeia. A “Cinderella” type who demonstrates courage, wit and humor despite her circumstances. The bleak and frightful underworld and it’s gods are alien, romantic, luscious and vivid. We are so thankful we got to experience the culture and imagination this story had to offer. Most importantly, we had the chance to encourage others to read it.

This is definitely one of the nicest fantasies I've had the pleasure of reading this year. The protagonist, Casiopea, is a young girl with the defiance and wit of three grown men. When she mistakenly releases the Mayan god of death from his imprisonment in her grandfather's chest, she joins his quest to reclaim his missing body parts to restore him to his former power and glory and reclaim his usurped throne.

Casiopea refuses to settle with the lot she's been given in life. Forced to clean and tend house for her vile grandfather and his family of equally-vile relatives, Casiopea dreams in secret of a life filled with adventure, color, and liveliness. She doesn't expect to have that wish granted when she opens her grandfather's chest and finds a pile of bones inside belonging to the Mayan god of death, Hun-Kame.

What really endears me to Casiopea is her adamantly rejecting the notion that she behave in a meek manner. She's a very spirited and engaging lead, and it's so much fun seeing her argue with Hun-Kame, especially when you factor in that he's *the god of death* and she's casually tossing oranges at him. I love the development of their bond!

The world-building is rich and beautiful and the storytelling itself flows flawlessly. Reading this sparked the same giddy, absorbed feeling I got when I read Harry Potter and Rick Riordan's different series' when I was a kid. I've been looking for something to tickle me in that same way, to provide that feeling of nostalgia and wonderment at a piece of work so beautiful and fun, and I found it in this novel.

I’ve become a huge fan of Silvia Moreno-Garcia in recent years, with books like Certain Dark Things and The Beautiful Ones. I just love her imagination and vision, and so when I first heard about her new book set in the Jazz Age, my curiosity was immediately piqued. Then I found out that it was going to be a fairy tale-like story steeped in Mayan mythology, and I was officially excited!

Gods of Jade and Shadow takes place in a small town in southern Mexico in the 1920s, following young Casiopea Tun who spends her days working as a servant at her wealthy grandfather’s estate. Between running her tedious errands and being tormented by her infuriating cousin Martin, Casiopea has about had enough with the status quo around the place. Dreaming of one day leaving her rural little town and tired of being ordered around, she decides to break the rules and open the wooden chest in her grandfather’s room that he keeps locked up at all times. Expecting the old man to have squirreled away gold or something equally valuable, Casiopea is instead surprised to crack open the box and find a dusty pile of bones.

But little did she know, she had just freed the spirit of Hun-Kame, the Mayan God of Death, from his prison. He informs Casiopea that he was a victim of treachery from his own twin brother, who killed him years ago and trapped his spirit in a locked box with the help of her grandfather. Now Hun-Kame is determined to take back his throne, but to do that, he’ll need help. To Casiopea, he makes an offer to make all her dreams come true, if she would agree to accompany him on his journey across Mexico to gather his resources and enact his revenge. Even though the costs of failure are high and the road ahead is unknown, Casiopea agrees after only a slight reluctance for she knows this is her chance to see the world. Not that she has much of a choice. Thanks to a small shard of Hun-Kame’s bone embedded in her skin, their two fates have become inextricably linked.

And so, a peasant girl and a Mayan god embark on a road trip across the country. And yes, this is as fun as it sounds. I loved traveling to new places experiencing the sights and sounds, meeting all manner of vibrant characters, both earthly and supernatural. The easy and smooth style of the writing also made the time period come to life on the page so that you could practically feel the energy in the air and in the bustling crowds around you, or see the colors of the clothing people are wearing and smell the food scents wafting in the breeze. Moreno-Garcia is just so good at transporting her readers to new times and places, which is why I love her books.

I also enjoyed the dynamic between Casiopea and Hun-Kame. She’s a simple girl from a simple village, he’s a death lord of Xibalba, and you think to yourself, heck, this will either be a train wreck or totally awesome. Happily, it was the latter. Considering how many things could have gone wrong with this premise and all its moving parts, it’s even more impressive how the author has managed to bring it all together. Casiopea is a delightful protagonist, innocent in her youthfulness and sheltered life but definitely not fragile. She’s a force to be reckoned with, holding her own against a proud and broody god who doesn’t always seem to know what to make of his traveling companion. Compared to everything Casiopea has had to go through, poor cousin Martin didn’t even stand a chance, despite the lengths he goes to try and stop her and Hun-Kame.

There’s really not that much more left to say, not only because I think I’ve made my love for this book clear, but also because I don’t want to spill any more of the story’s secrets. I had high hopes Gods of Jade and Shadow and Silvia Moreno-Garcia surely did not disappoint, her creativity and writing talents as ever phenomenal. Dazzling, evocative and passionate, this novel is definitely best experienced firsthand, so if you’re a fan of irresistible characters, grand adventures, and mythological fantasy, don’t wait to pick this one up.

Gods of Jade and Shadow was a dazzling Cinderella-esque tale of growth, finding your own way, and love. Using Mayan lore and with a critical eye on the effects of colonialism, Moreno-Garcia wrote a fantasy quest that will have your heart from page one and bring you to tears - while simultaneously smiling - on the last. Casiopea grew up being hated by her family who judged the native blood than ran through her veins and treated her no better than a servant. When she awakened a sleeping god a death, she agreed to help restore him to power as the two tracked across Mexico and encountered fantastical creatures and myths. As the two journeyed together, they found healing, understanding, and an opportunity to change their outlook on life. This book is downright beautiful and I hope more people get to experience it!

4.5 stars