What I loved about Jade Fire Gold is that it examines power and monstrosity. Revenge and forgiveness. This dual POV story explores what we will sacrifice for power, salvation, and revenge. Do we allow ourselves to become weaponized? How do we know if the costs of action are worth it? While Jade Fire Gold is certainly slower paced than I was expecting, I enjoyed the character development for Ahn and Altan. How Ahn has to come to terms with her power, with her lack of control, and with her own responsibility. How Altan thinks he has nothing left to lose, but there's always more.

Jade Fire Gold explores the ways history is permeable and susceptible to erosion. The ways that history is like fabric - and it's all in the way its cut. All the ways we are confined by our legacy, our past, and our family. So while I was expecting more action at the beginning, what ended up captivating me were the thematic explorations. In some ways, they're both convinced of their own monstrosity, but could they find pieces of themselves in each other?

A decent YA fantasy debut. The plot was very fast paced but the writing felt rather simple. It would be a good book for readers who are new to fantasy or not fans of complicated fantasy writing. The magic system felt a bit wishy-washy and because the story moved so fast I never felt connected to the characters. The character’s romantic relationships also didn’t feel well developed. Overall it was a decent read but I wouldn’t rush to pick of the sequel.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

3.5/5 stars!

Jade Fire Gold is a promising debut filled with sweeping adventures, wild magic and enjoyable action. I loved the world that June C.L. Tan created, lush in Chinese mythology, interesting magic and the Avatar the Last Airbender vibes were impeccable. I had really high expectations for this book after reading the synopsis, so I was a little disappointed I didn't love it and only liked it. There are many aspects of the book I thought could have used more work on, however overall it was a good debut that I think many will love.

I really enjoyed the writing style of the book and found myself immersed in the picture of the world that Tan paints. The plot had a lot of promise and kept me intrigued throughout the entirety of the book, and I really appreciated the different tropes that were sprinkled within (the I was sent to kill you trope, exiled prince meets orphaned girl, the chosen one, etc.).

This book definitely kept me on my toes, however I found there were many elements of the book that were really promising, but ultimately fell flat. I think the biggest issue I had with the book was the pacing. At times the book would be super slow and then all of a sudden action was sprung out of no where without any build up at all, making it feel rushed. In addition I wanted a little more world-building. I loved the magical aspect of the book and really wanted to learn more about that. I thought the characters were likable, but needed a bit more development along with the romance. The romance to me was a bit average as I felt more like I was told they were falling for each other rather than feeling/being shown that they did (I really liked the banter and wanted more!).

Jade Fire Gold was still so much fun despite the few things I felt needed a little more work. I liked this book and all the crazy adventures that came with it. I do recommend this book to others and have a feeling many will like it, if not love it!!

In this lusciously crafted world, we see a land where magic is viewed as evil, and people who have this magic, the Tensai, are seen as traitors the empire. We follow the point of view of Ahn, a young peasant girl living in the desert with her Ama. Ahn is definitely one of my favorite characters. I loved her so much, from the beginning to the end. She was so totally awesome, and I am a sucker for women with swords, so I instantly fell in love with her. I enjoyed seeing her remember her past, reconnect with people in her life, and figure out what to do with everything that happens. She really was a cool character, one of my favorites for sure.

As Ahn is plunged into a world of court and priests, we also see Altan. The heir to the empire, though no one knows it, as he was abandoned in the desert when he was young. Everyone believes Altan is dead, and he wields that to his advantage as he plans his vengeance. Altan's character was so interesting, and I enjoyed delving into his past and present as the story moved on.

This book was very fast paced. I enjoyed that, but it also was a little unbalanced at different points, which was my only problem with this book. The action scenes just seemed to blow by at times. It was a light read and impossible to put down from the very beginning, very easy to follow. I knew I would love it within the first page.

The world building in this was spectacular. We see this beautiful land inspired off of Chinese mythology, some of my favorite worlds to read, We see settings from a small town to the desert to mountains, a wide expanse of this world is viewed, which I always love.

All of the characters in this book were so enjoyable. Asides from Ahn and Altan, we also see Tai Shun, Leiye, Linxi, and Tang Wei. I loved all of these characters so much. Especially Tang Wei. She literally owns my entire heart now. I mean, she was the most perfect character ever. I was very very happy when I found out this book had a sapphic side couple in it and they were literally the cutest. I also loved Tai Shun, he was definitely a favorite. The current emperor, he was a lot more fun than I was expecting him to be. Also, as far as I know, he didn't seem very straight, and that makes it all the better.

There were so many good tropes in this book too! We got to see some enemies to lovers, my very favorite, especially when it's the "I'm here to kill you" that turns to reluctant allies and eventually makes its way up to lovers type. There was the chosen one trope, which generally I'm not a fan of, but it was done so well in this book that I hardly even noticed it.

I'm so happy to have received an arc of this book, and cannot wait for book two, especially after that ending! I don't know how I'm going to be able to wait, I'm just dying over here.

I. Loved. This. Book!

What can I say about this book? June CL Tan creates a world that I was able to delve into and wanted to stay!

The characters depth and history was engaging and liked. This was one of those books that I didn't want to put down when I started it.

I thought that this book was good but it wasn't overly innovative. It has a long journey trope, which I love when they're well done... but this wasn't quite to my preference. I loved the East Asian setting but I didn't think that there was enough world-building or deep enough characters. The tone of the book was a touch young, and if there wasn't so much death in the book, it would read like a middle grade book. It was so close, yet the author didn't quite go deep enough. It was cute, and I would read other books by the author in the future.

I absolutely adored this book by debut author June CL Tan. What an incredible fantasy full of love, heart (so much heart, ahhhh), reckless danger, family ties, and incredible imagery that sweeps you away. I could feel the dust in my teeth from Ahn’s POV. Could feel the heat during Altan’s desert trip. And the twist!!! Ahhh! Took me by surprise. I’ll read whatever Tan writes next! Loved every second. :-)

I mostly liked the plot of the book but felt that it got a little muddled towards the end, the writing however was a little more tell not show than I'd like and it drew my interest away. I'm sure many readers wouldn't have a problem with it but it just wasn't for me.

Jade Fire Gold expertly intertwines the dual perspectives of two characters from vastly different backgrounds. Their social positions do not define them, but each character must overcome their pasts to forge their futures. I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy action and searches for identity beyond social class.

I thoroughly enjoyed June CL Tan’s intricately woven and diverse tale. The unexpected plot twists had my jaw on the floor and the world that Tan built was incredibly vivid and immersive. Though a little slow, the story was still extremely enrapturing and pulled me in from the first sentence and kept me interested until the end. Amazing read for anyone who enjoys fantasy, mythology, and diversity! What’s not to love?

Ahn is just a country girl living in the desert trying to earn enough money to care for her ailing grandmother, but Ahn has a deadly secret. Altan, on the other hand, is an exiled prince who's desperately seeking for a way to end the magical blight on the land and regain his right to the throne. Quite coincidentally, they each find something they need in the other, and a quest full of betrayal, secrets, assassins, magicians, priests and a bit of romance ensues, leading both Altan and Ahn to question what is truly worth fighting for.

Once I got into it, this book was a really gripping read. It has excellent pacing and a style particularly suited to action/adventure. It's most obvious flaw was a lack of world building. Because of the names and a number of cultural references, I got the impression it was set in a pseudo far East area reminiscent of China or Mongolia, but this was never clearly explained. Since I assumed this to be the case, I was occasionally shocked to find strong Western influences cropping up, which rudely took me out of the scene and made me question where we were all over again. Since this is a fantasy world, it shouldn't be surprising that it doesn't follow my expectations of the real world, but many other things were simply assumed, which made it hard to get my bearings at times.

Aside from that one problem, this book was a thrilling foray into intrigue and magic, and I found it both easy to read and thought-provoking. The characters were fairly well constructed and the scenes were expertly crafted to make this an enchanting visual experience.

I requested this book because several reviews compared it to Avatar The Last Airbender. You can tell me a hat was inspired by ATLA and I would probably buy it, to say I'm a fan is an understatement. However I really didn't see too many similarities between this and ATLA. But I did love it none the less! Our two main characters start off as polar opposites, but time brings them closer together, both literally and figuratively. The side characters are all great and fleshed out. They provide a wonderful showcase for the authors writing skills. The only thing I didn't like about this book was that ending! It was amazing, but how dare you leave me hanging like that! 5 out of 5!

A good book with a strong premise. I enjoyed the mythology and the characters were likeable. The book was an easy read, however the story felt rushed with the action scenes being more tell than show. I wish that the story's transitions had been smoother as there were some jumps and leaps that were jarring to the reader. The mythology was something that I wished could have been explored more as it held great potential, but wasn't given the chance to shine. The last few pages though really left me shocked and excited for the sequel.

Avatar the Last Airbender inspired? Got me hooked from that alone.

Sent by NetGalley to review, I thank them for this opportunity. Well, after a while of reading and re-reading with notes galore, I want to say this book is perfect for the fans of "Ember in the Ashes".

The world-building is fantastic, magic is glorious, and the characters are developed finely like wine. These, in my opinion, were the strongest points of the novel and possibly for the rest of June C.L. Tan's series.

Even though I've read it a few numerous times, there was only one issue that I had with the book. One is the pacing of the book, it was like a rollercoaster going slow at times and then went to full-blow magic/action/whatever scene then it became slow once again.

A good book I recommend for those looking for the new "Avatar the Last Airbender" and/or "E!ber in the Ashes".

I wish I could give this book more than five stars. Prepare for students to be completely obsessed with the world that June CL Tan has created. This debut inspired by Chinese mythology will engage and delight fans of books with incredible world-building, slow burn romance, and twisty plots. Highly recommended.

An enjoyable fantasy with a constantly shifting plot, the reader is never quite sure who is who and who is betraying or allied with who but it all comes to a wonderful conclusion. Ahn is a strong female heroine although at times she appears very naive and vulnerable. Altan seems bent on revenge for his family but can be quite supportive of his friends.The characterizations are brilliant, so vulnerable and alive. The story is a beautiful mix of adventure and friendships. The plot continuously leaves you spinning. I really enjoyed this read. If you liked this, then "We Hunt the Flame" by Faizel is in this same genre and an excellent read as well.

2 stars - Sadly DNF @ 42%

I regret to say I found this book extremely boring. The writing style was very generic and the narration from both of the main characters did not work for me. While I thought the author did an alright job of trying to characterize the two mains, the writing was too safe to evoke any sort of emotional response from me. However, I did enjoy Leiye's character from what I saw of him. The other secondary characters had potential and I loved their concepts (as seen on the author's website).

On another note, I thought the worldbuilding with respect to the different countries of the world was weak. The other countries are at most name-dropped and it was difficult to find differentiating features of each kingdom (as of ~40% in the book). All the concepts in Jade Fire Gold were fine, but I feel the writing was not strong enough to support all these great ideas as it was in the ARC I received. This could either be down to my personal taste in how information is relayed, or a sign that some passages that seemed info-dumpy could have been reworked.

I really wished I had liked Jade Fire Gold more. I hope the author finds success and that her next book is a banger.

Things I liked:
- Lovable characters, especially Ahn. She can't be boxed into one personality type.
- Commentary on historiography, power, and truth: gets rewritten to serve the narrative of the powerful
- Worldbuilding: the magic and politics are so interesting to explore
- A beautiful blend of different media inspirations: wuxia, xianxia, anime, Kdramas

Things I did not like:
- I felt lost in some parts of the book, and I'm not sure if I chalk it up to mood or pacing

Thank you to HarperCollins Children's Books & Harper Teen for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Jade Fire Gold was absolute magic. This YA fantasy inspired by Chinese mythology took my breath away within the first few chapters. I was completely enthralled in Ahn and Altan’s story, as well as the world building and magic system. I’d give this book 4.5 stars and I’m excited for everyone to read it when it hits shelves on October 12!

Jade Fire Gold tells the story of Ahn, a young village girl in possession of forbidden magic with no past and no family. Altan is the lost heir of their empire, presumed to be dead at a young age. When Altan and Ahn’s paths cross, Ahn sees a way to unlock her past and understand her arcane magical abilities. Altan, on the other hand, sees Ahn as a means to reclaim his throne, even if it means destroying her in the process.

Aside from the amazing world building and magic system, I think the characters of the book are one of the most significant highlights of the story. I really loved this book’s cast of characters. When starting this book, Ahn did seem like the typical YA female protagonist on a quest to become the “chosen one,” but in the case of Jade Fire Gold Ahn isn’t revered as the “chosen one” because she can save everyone, but rather targeted by everyone because her powers will destroy everything in her path. I also loved how even though Ahn had the vibes of a typical YA protagonist, you can tell that this is Altan’s story just as much as Ahn’s. The slow burn between the two from the “I have to kill you” to “reluctant allies” to “friends” to “maybe something more?” was well done. Overall, I really liked how the book interwove Ahn and Altan’s stories even while they were embarking on their own personal journeys of growth and discovery. Even the side characters’ stories and backgrounds interwove with Ahn and Altan’s journeys in such a unique way. I loved reading about Tai Shun, Leiye, Tang Wei, and Linxi and learning about their histories with Ahn and Altan. I’m excited to see this group reunite in Book 2!

I’ve been screaming about this book for months since I heard that the main couple had been inspired by zutara from ATLA and I now plan to scream even harder now that I’ve gotten an ARC of the book. It was genuinely spectacular and I love it so much. The plot, the worldbuilding, the characters, the- literally everything about this book is amazing and I’m literally obsessed.

**I will be editing this review to add more in a few weeks