This was absolutely beautiful and delightful. The world was so interesting, the pace was perfect, and the entire story was just really fun. Definitely a top read of the year.

If I had read this 15 years ago, maybe I would've just loved it. But here today...

I don't mind a number of tropes if they're used well, but I don't think this one did it for me. This one felt like it was using some classic elements of fantasy (let's throw in some trials, cross-dressing, and princes!) and formulaically making a plot. (Surprise, the plot was underwhelming.) The prose was also pretty unremarkable.

1. Ying's character and family - she's presented as this pretty flat character -- smart but impulsive. We don't get that many opportunities to see her be... smart though. She's mainly just reckless. Her family members are not given much context either. Her father is larger than life amazing but dead. Her mother is just dead. Her brother is sexist, overbearing, and easily manipulated. Her sister is a nice and "socially acceptable female." All of them don't really have much beyond these 3-4 word descriptions.

2. Ye-yang was... a pretty boring person tbh. I was really hoping he'd be the big bad in the end, and it was slightly satisfying that he was complicit. It didn't make sense for him to be the person to tell Wen to *not* investigate the murder though, since he used Ying's investigation of the murder to help him kill his father.... Plot inconsistencies smh.

3. Allllll the side characters were useless. None of them were notable or important in any way.

4. The trials were a joke. I feel like I didn't get any sense that they learned much or proved much from these. No major feats of engineering were really described... I wish we got more extensive descriptions of Ying's engineering prowess as well.

5. The romance... sucked. Besides Ye-yang's stormy eyes, Ying didn't seem to care about any other feature of him (or know anything about him really). It would have been more interesting if Ye-yang was honeypot-ing her the whole time too, but nah.

If I were to read the second book, it would be purely for Ye-kan.

Asian steampunk/silkpunk engineering academy retelling of Mulan with a murder mystery twist
🐉
Review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨(3.75)
Aihui Ying is an engineer and inventor like her father, but she’s a girl so she is not allowed to enter the Engineers Guild in the capital. But when she witnesses her father’s murder and finds a secret journal, she disguises herself as a boy and enrolls in the Guild trials to compete for the loan spot available to become an Engineering Apprentice, and to hopefully learn more about her father’s time with the Guild, why he left, and who murdered him.

But who can she trust?
🐉
I enjoyed the story and the creative world building of steampunk meets ancient Asian culture.

The story had some issues with unbelievable plot lines.

And I’m not sure how I feel about the ending. However, I guess it’s a series or trilogy so the story isn’t over yet.

I am curious where the story will go so I will probably continue the series when the next book is released.

**I received an electronic ARC from the publisher through NetGalley.**

Actual rating: 3.5

Amber Chen debuts with her Asian-inspired YA fantasy, Of Jade and Dragons. Marketed as a retelling of Mulan, main character Ying disguises herself as her brother as she pursues information about the man who assassinated her father. When the clues lead her to the esteemed, male-only Engineering Guild, Ying decides to sit the exam for entry aided by the eighth prince of the High Command who has promised to keep her disguise a secret. When the capital is revealed to have secrets on top of secrets, Ying must learn whether knowledge and vengeance are worth the price she must pay to obtain them.

I am a fast reader. I read 58 books in June. This book took me an embarrassing amount of time to read. I got about 21% of the way in and realized that I was completely not feeling the writing style, which was a true YA conversational-type style despite the characters being new adult ages. In order to give this book the best shot, I waited for the book to be on audio at my library which is how I completed it. I would have otherwise DNFed. I also knew this was going to be June's Illumicrate book and skipped it after the initial 21% since I knew it would not be a book I kept on my shelves after reading it.

That being said, I did enjoy my time with this book. The steampunk approach to fantasy with heavy emphasis on weapon design and engineering was very much my kind of thing. There were a lot of complicated relationships with family and with characters exploring the morality of their situations. The audiobook narrator did a great job at maintaining Ying's youthful, small-town naivete while also ensuring that she came across as capable and intelligent.

I was happy to have read Of Jade and Dragons, and would not hesitate to recommend it. I would consider picking up the next book in the series, provided I had access to the audiobook.

Thank you NetGalley and Viking Books for Young Readers for this early review copy.

Initially what caught my attention with this book was the description of a Mulan retelling. Mulan is one of my all-time favorite Disney movies. It was not quite a Mulan retelling, more just the young girl pretending to be a boy to achieve a goal in a culture that does not allow it typically. I did love this though. Overall, I loved the story. And the ending, (no real spoilers here, but slightly hinting at it) not what you'd expect! And I absolutely loved how the author took what I feel is an unpopular approach to a love story. Ying holds true to her strong and independent character. She refuses to compromise her values.

I struggled to get through this book, I wanted to DNF multiple times, but there were sections of the book that were appealing and had me interested. We follow Aihui Ying as she seeks revenge for her father's murder. She has always wanted to follow in his footsteps and go the the Engineers Guild to become a master guild member. When her father is murdered and clues lead to the guild, Ying travels to Fei where the guild is testing potential new arrivals disguised as a boy. She accidentally gets saved by the eighth prince Aogiya Ye-Yang who ends up sneaking her into the guild. Surprise surprise a romance starts to bloom between them. As Ying goes through the trials to become a guild member she starts to learn the city isn't as wonderful as she thought, and there may be a reason her father left this life behind. The bad guy wasn't surprising in this book. I didn't feel attached to any of the characters. I thought the side characters were ok., though it didn't make since it took almost 6 months for the supposedly protective mom to find out her son the 14th prince was hiding at the guild. The ending was frustrating. After everything that happens, the wedding between two characters is still going to happen? I felt that we jumped around during the 6 months Ying was at the guild., we didn't get to see her grow. She always knew what she was doing, and didn't seem to ever make mistakes with engineering. I will not be continuing this series.


Thank you Netgalley for the ARC from Penguin Group

Don't mind me as I sit here and impatiently wait for the next book. After that ending??? I need to know what happens next. Will Ye-Yang continue to grovel? Will the wedding happen?

This book did have a definite Mulan inspired story line. Ying is a great character and is fueled by her need for revenge after her father had been murdered. The romance plot line definitely took a back seat in this book, but I did not mind it one bit.

I did appreciate the fact that Ying was not a one-dimensional main character, and she was very intelligent.

Thank you Amber Chen, Penguin Group, and NetGalley for the eARC of this book.

Awesome setting, characters, and story backdrop. I fell in love with the characters pretty early in the story and the plot kept me hooked until the very last page. As the old saying in show business, leave them wanting more, the end of this book definitely left me with hopes that there will be a sequel. Not that the ending of the first book was not enough, it's just that I would love to spend more time in this world. Only minor complaint I have is the pacing seemed a bit disjointed at times, but it never ruined my enjoyment of the book. Easily 5 stars, this book is incredible and well worth a read or three.

This book has everything you can want in a fantasy. Betrayal, dragons, magic, suspense, and tests! Yang is the female main character and she comes home to find her dad near death from an assassin. The assassin is still in the house and she tries to stop him but only tears his black clock with a jade stone on it. On the brink of death Ying's dad tells her to burn his journal. she does the opposite and goes on a quest to find why he was killed. In order for her to do this she needs to disguise herself as a man and complete to be the next best engineer as was her father. The only problem is women are not allowed to compete, so she does the only thing she can think of, disguise herself as her brother and she gets nominated. What she learns along the way is more than she bargained for.

Thank you NetGalley and Viking for this ARC Copy!

I am not one who wants to know anything about a book going into it. I don’t usually read the blurb or listen to reviews beforehand because one of my favorite parts of the stories is learning everything along the way.
For this book that was a mistake. I went off of the name, cover, vibes alone, and I expected it to be something that it absolutely was not… I was looking for dragons, and dragons were no where to be seen for the major majority of this story, and even then.

I think that if I had known what I was getting into I may have enjoyed it more than I did.

I read a lot of YA books and I know that sometimes they have allowances that are given to the world building, lack of rules/explanation of the magic systems, and being able to get away with some things that just aren’t believable. Personally there were just too many things left unexplained, or issues overcome without a reasonable or logical explanation.

There were moments that were beautified, and I was invested enough that I just would not give up because I had to know how it ended, but this book really just was not for me.

This book was... fine.
It tows the line of younger YA for sure. The "romance" felt a little "insta-love" and the world felt a little under developed.
I did enjoy that engineering took the place of magic. I wish that concept was leaned into even more.
The flying ships and inventions were some of the best parts of the book.
I really liked the world, I think it could be developed more and made into a more interesting story.
An eldest daughter being told by her dying father not to revenge her is no original plot and this story didn't bring much of a new take to the table.
Overall it was a little half baked, I'm interested to see if the author can develop this would a little more. (I would still give a 2nd book a chance)

I enjoyed Of Jade and Dragons. While it follows a predictable format, there is a reason this is a plotting that works. The main character must assume the identity of her brother in order to go to a prestigious engineering academy to find out why her father was murdered. Think Mulan, but make it about building weapons and you have the right idea. But mute all the potential sexual confusion by making sure the male love interest knows she is a woman from early on and introduce a possible third in the triangle that also knows. While there were some unique aspects to the story, especially as I got into the second half and approaching the ending, Ib found this one hard to fully invest in as I read. Still the conclusion raises some interesting questions and I will likely read the next book in the series to see what happens.

Let's be honest, the beautiful cover was the first thing that drew me in. Then the summary mentioned a girl who wanted to become an engineer and I grew more interested.

Upon receiving it, I was hesitant (a children's book ?) but ended up loving it !
Ying was a bold, smart and lovely character that spoke straight to my heart. Ye-Yang and Ye-Kang were both engaging and not exactly who they seemed to be at first. I didn't expect the steampunk feel of this universe, I had assumed this would be more traditional so it was exciting !

To sum it up, this is a solid beginning to an enthralling series and I can't wait to read the next !

I loved this book. I loved everything about it. We have a strong FMC who knows what she is about, and is striving for a goal. We have a morally gray MMC who is the love interest. I love that Ying (Fmc) is an engineer and goes on to prove herself, and while it’s a big part of her experience, it’s not the main reason she enters the contest.

It was a fun read and it had an ending that DEFINITELY made me want to pick up the second one right away! Thank you, NetGalley for the eARC. I can’t wait for #2!

This book was originally described as a Mulan retelling, which is loosely accurate. It felt like Mulan meets Steampunk. The story felt unique. It was a fast read that had me engaged through the entire story. Aihui Ying strives to be an engineer like her father, but the Engineers' Guild only accepts male students. It was never a possibility for Ying to enter the guild until one day she witnesses the murder of her father. Now she must disguise herself as a boy to enter the guild and discover the truth behind her father's death. Along her journey, we are introduced to many wonderful characters that we can easily fall in love with.

The character development was wonderful. The MC goes on a hero's journey that allows growth within her self, but influences growth to those around her.

I would have enjoyed more world building. I feel with the setting, the possibilities for world building are endless. I want to truly feel like I'm within this story watching all the creations the engineers have created going by. I want to fall deeply in love with the Nine Isles so when they describe conflict between the Nine Isles and the Empire, my heart aches for the land as well as the characters.

Overall, I really enjoyed Of Jade and Dragons and would recommend it to anyone that wants a thrilling story with little to no spice.

Thank you NetGalley, the Penguin group, and Amber Chen for the ARC!!

I originally was drawn to this book because it's described as a Mulan retelling. Although I guess it loosely is, I personally wouldn't really categorize it that way. The main character, Ying, disguises herself as a boy, and that's about as far as the similarities with Mulan go. However, that is not a negative observation. I loved this book. It was fast-paced and interesting the entire way through. Sometimes it was predictable, but other times I thought I for sure knew what was going to happen just to be completely wrong. Ying is fantastic. She pretends to be a boy to travel to the capital city and join the Engineer's guild to avenge her father's death. I don't know how to talk more about the book without giving much away, so I won't, but I do recommend picking this one up and I will definitely be continuing the series. I'm very excited to see where Chen takes the story in the next book.

4/5 stars. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Net Galley for sending an arc, "Of Jade and Dragons". Amazing! This is a beautiful book and I was upset when it ended. I can not wait for Amber Chen to write more of this saga.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

Of Jade and Dragons is an excellent start to a new series. I recommend this book to fans of fantasy, good worldbuilding, and strong female characters.

*Thank you to Viking Books for Young Readers and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review*

I wanted more from this book. I loved the cover, the general plot, and the Mulan-esque elements. An engineering competition is just up my alley! I just felt like the stakes were glossed over and we didn't get much character depth. Like, yes we get that Ying is trying to solve her dad's murder... but it felt like so much TELLING and less showing us that. I'd be interested in reading book 2, but hopefully the writing evolves a bit.

Such a beautiful story! I was hooked from beginning to end. I definitely wasn’t expecting the ending but it was absolutely amazing!

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and Penguin Publishing for letting me read it early!