Jade is a dutiful daughter of two immigrants, a successful on-the-rise lawyer in London, and a loving girlfriend. When she wakes up the morning after a work event with no recollection of how she got home, she feels unsettled but tries to brush the feeling aside. Jade chalks it up to a night of overindulgence and buries her unease. She doesn’t want to disrupt her well-crafted life but shortly after, she is forced to address what really happened. ⁣
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Jaded explores racism, sexism, assault, and corporate cultures of silence. It felt like a real story, for better or worse, and is a reminder of the difficult, unfair positions women are too often put in. I felt for Jade and the gamut of emotions she experienced as she tried to process 1) what happened and 2) what happens next.
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I flew through this moving, debut novel and look forward to seeing what Ela Lee writes next — 4.5 stars

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for my ARC copy! This review contains my personal thoughts and opinions.

Jaded by Ela Lee is a poignant exploration of a story that resonates deeply with many women. It bravely delves into challenging themes with care, shedding light on various difficult experiences. Jade’s journey is heartbreaking and deeply emotional, and one that I think will stay with me for a while.

The first half of the book felt a bit disjointed to me. The pacing and flow didn’t quite match the intensity of the story, making it harder to stay fully immersed. That said, the second half picks up considerably and delivers a powerful emotional payoff.

Overall, Jaded is a compelling read that tackles a number of sensitive topics. I recommend checking all trigger warnings (there's a ton!) before reading it. I think in the end, it's worth picking up if you’re prepared for the heaviness and complexity it brings.

Rating: 4/5

Ela Lee's debut novel, Jaded, is a poignant and thought-provoking exploration of sexual assault, its aftermath, and the complex journey of healing. The story follows Jade, a young woman who is grappling with the devastating consequences of a workplace assault.

Lee's writing is both raw and compassionate, capturing the emotional turmoil and confusion that Jade experiences. The author skillfully delves into the intricacies of trauma, exploring the physical and psychological effects on Jade's life. The novel also sheds light on the societal challenges survivors face, from the disbelief and judgment they often encounter to the difficulties of navigating the legal system.

This novel is the story of Jade (her Starbucks name) who is a rising star attorney at a prestigious firm in London. She experiences a life changing encounter with a colleague that sets her on a path that completely changes her and upsets her ‘normal’ life. As the child of a Turkish dad and Korean mom, Jade has had to navigate subtle (and not so subtle racism) and sexism. The story takes us through Jade’s navigation of the morning after, the days that follow and ultimately the decisions that lead her to the ‘what can I live with’ conclusions regarding her future. I struggled with some of the overall narrative; but would recommend this book.

3.75/5 ⭐️ (rounded up to 4)

After Jade is wakes up naked and alone after a work party, she isn't quite sure what happened. However, as she starts to piece things together, she realizes that she was raped by someone she thought was a friend. As she struggles to deal with this, she is also struggling with her boyfriend and work. Even her parents don't seem to understand. This novel dives into Jade's struggle with her trauma, especially as the world does not seem to want to help her.

This one was really hard to read. I wouldn't pick it up if you're not in a good headspace. Do I regret reading it? Not really, but I also didn't enjoy reading it. I've read heavy books before that at the end I'm glad I read because the message is so powerful. Here, though I just felt so down because Jade has such little good happen. Even in the epilogue when we get hints of things, it just let me feeling unresolved. I don't think a happy ever after would've worked here, but I honestly would've been fine if it had just ended at the last chapter when she calls someone for help. That would've been a poignant ending for me.

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

DNF at 11%

It wasn't the book for me. It seemed well written but I didn't like the storyline so didn't continue.

*Thank you Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

JADED By Ela Lee

Heavy topic but so well done. I couldn’t stop reading about Jade and what happened to her - so much to pack in this novel - the narrative and writing was engaging and skillfully done. Impressive!

Ouch, this book was a gut punch.

It's hard for me to separate my feelings about this book from my feelings about my own experiences, but in that vein, it's clear to me that the author was either exorcising some of her own pain or had done excellent research on the topic. The feelings of loss and betrayal, the tangle of guilt and uncertainty and fury, all felt so raw. The way she made her assault a centerpiece of the story without losing all other plot was also handled quite well.

I hope that readers approach this book with care, but I also know that it will offer a mirror for those who are ready to look. Thank you to Ela Lee for this beautiful and complex novel, and to Simon & Schuster for offering the opportunity to read and review.

This was a tough read. Jaded is about a woman who is raped and how she navigates the complicated aftermath in her professional and personal lives. Her relationships with her partner, her colleagues, her friends, her parents...all changed. It's a well-written account of the process of coming to terms with what happened--including devastating self doubt--avoiding her attacker at work and trying to bring consequences.

Unfortunately, as we are all too familiar with, men who commit sexual violence, at best, face minimal repercussions and, at worst, end up benefiting or failing up. I will always remember Dr. Blasey-Ford in the Senate hearings for Brett Kavanaugh's SCOTUS confirmation. I've never been more disillusioned and infuriated with the gross level of misogyny both in government and the country at large. While I imagine victims of rape are affected in many different ways, this story is important, because it shows examples of a range of reactions to the news that are both supportive and utterly inappropriate, some even dismissive.

It really should be required reading for young adults to learn about the devastation caused by sexual violence as well as helping define what sexual violence actually is. It also depicts the types of behavior that contribute to the kind of environment that supports predators over victims.

Note for anyone concerned: The attack is not explicitly described.

I loved this book! I do admit it took me a little while to get into it. I put it down then picked it back up a few times. I liked that it was a bit dark. I like complicated characters that are flawed and Jade is definitely one of them.

This was a DNF for me, I tried getting into the story and just couldn’t. Sometimes it’s the right book just not the right mood.

Okay, this wasn’t bad but I expected more. I think it needed more of a punch with the intended purpose. Plus my copy was strange with the formatting. I do thank you for the EArc

This is a heartbreaking read but a very important story. After a work party, the protagonist is raped by a coworker. She only has a hazy memory of what happened but the ripple effect on her life (boyfriend, co-workers, management, friends, family) ultimately has a huge impact. Questions of doubt about consent vs. not creep into conversations while her experience with the trauma and PTSD becomes tiresome for her circle. In the end, she is still healing and she reckons with being forever changed by the assault. I can't say it is a hopeful ending but it an important story to tell/read.

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for an ARC and I voluntarily left this review.

This was a very well written book. The main character Jade is struggling between two worlds. During a company party there is a sexual assault that happens where her life is thrown into a tizzy. She starts to recognize she is torn between who she is and who she presents to the world and figuring where she will go next.

Highly recommend, but please check content warnings. The author manages to tell a cohesive, nuanced, and authentic story while hitting on a lot of difficult topics.

It was hard for me to stick with this one because my netgalley copy was all over the place. Would the experience have been different if my copy had proper formatting? I’m not sure. It felt very disjointed and jumped around a lot.

This book has to be one of my favorites of the year. I'm so glad that I had the opportunity, through NetGalley, to read and review this one. It holds so many important lessons for women of all ages. A lot of books cover the topic of rape, but this book touched me a in way that no other book has done before. The actual event is not fully detailed, and I think that was intentional to show that it's not just the act. It's the feeling of a loss of agency, of a loss of power, and a loss of who you used to be. Thank you, Ela Lee.

As Lee puts it, "all children of immigrants have a Starbucks name", and so our Ceyda, is known throughout the book as Jade. Jade, as the daughter of Korean and Turkish immigrants, has always tried to pursue the dreams of her parents. A lawyer at a prestigious London law firm. A good boyfriend from an affluent family. But the world that Jade occupies is also full of immense pressure -- the pressure to swallow the inappropriate behavior of the partners she works under, the be fully present (i.e. drinking and hobnobbing) at outside work events while also putting in 120% for her clients. The pressure to move in with her live-in boyfriend. All the pressure. And then she is raped by a co-worker after a work function. Jaded follows Jade as she pieces together the events of that night, and the aftermath that falls on her, rather than her rapist -- first the physical pain, then the mental and emotional anguish of the event and her decision to tell her close friends, her boyfriend, and her workplace.

This one will stay with me for a long time. Five stars. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed reading Jaded. I appreciated the author's insight into expectations from society and family. I liked the play with memory

This was... a lot. I'd wanted to read Jaded very much ever since I first heard about it and feel privileged to have gotten to.

The prose was beautiful, raw, heartfelt and genuine. I found the portrayal of sexual assault and trauma to be very realistic, and my heart broke for Jade. I could (unfortunately) resonate with some of what she felt and went through. The book also does a fantastic job delving into race, gender inequality, class, privilege, family and other social issues in a sensitive yet balanced manner.

While the ending was not wholly satisfying, it felt right.

I felt like I was suffocated when Jade was saying how pressure inside her was building. I could feel the same pressure in my lungs and my heart. It shouldn't be this hard to explain people why you want to talk about something while you want to forget it all together or expect them to believe you even when you had the hardest time to figure out what to believe.

Ceyda, or as she was known to her friends Jade, was a half Turkish, half Korean girl, living in London and trying to find her way around in cutthroat law scene. She did all the right things to get her the "right" job but she lowkey was feeling out of place. She wasn't one of the white men; she was more of an assistant or "work horse" for them. She had to dress nice, speak intelligently, and get the job done when I asked. And of course she also had to ignore sexual advances and accept that it was part of the game. Until she was raped on those white boys... then of course her life came crashing down

I was impressed by the tension, heartache, and panic attack this storytelling was reflecting. It was small gestures, tiny reactions that made it way too realistic. Although I think this is a 5 star story, I could have lived without the epilogue. It's human nature. Eventually one perseveres and continues to live a life. Because right before epilogue started, Jade managed say the hardest words to say out there