Fonda Lee: Jade City (2017)
498 pages
English language
Published Jan. 5, 2017
"Stylish and action-packed, full of ambitious families and guilt-ridden loves, Jade City is an epic drama reminiscent of the best classic Hong Kong gangster films but set in a fantasy metropolis so gritty and well-imagined that you'll forget you're reading a book." -- Ken Liu, winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy Awards and author of The Grace of Kings and The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories FAMILY IS DUTY. MAGIC IS POWER. HONOR IS EVERYTHING. Jade is the lifeblood of the island of Kekon. It has been mined, traded, stolen, and killed for -- and for centuries, honorable Green Bone warriors like the Kaul family have used it to enhance their magical abilities and defend the island from foreign invasion. Now, the war is over and a new generation of Kauls vies for control of Kekon's bustling capital city. They care about nothing but protecting their own, cornering …
"Stylish and action-packed, full of ambitious families and guilt-ridden loves, Jade City is an epic drama reminiscent of the best classic Hong Kong gangster films but set in a fantasy metropolis so gritty and well-imagined that you'll forget you're reading a book." -- Ken Liu, winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy Awards and author of The Grace of Kings and The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories FAMILY IS DUTY. MAGIC IS POWER. HONOR IS EVERYTHING. Jade is the lifeblood of the island of Kekon. It has been mined, traded, stolen, and killed for -- and for centuries, honorable Green Bone warriors like the Kaul family have used it to enhance their magical abilities and defend the island from foreign invasion. Now, the war is over and a new generation of Kauls vies for control of Kekon's bustling capital city. They care about nothing but protecting their own, cornering the jade market, and defending the districts under their protection. Ancient tradition has little place in this rapidly changing nation. When a powerful new drug emerges that lets anyone -- even foreigners -- wield jade, the simmering tension between the Kauls and the rival Ayt family erupts into open violence. The outcome of this clan war will determine the fate of all Green Bones -- from their grandest patriarch to the lowliest motorcycle runner on the streets -- and of Kekon itself. JADE CITY begins an epic tale of family, honor, and those who live and die by the ancient laws of jade and blood"--
This book was good, but I kind of felt like I had to force myself to get through it. It has a magic system that is very loosely explained but is internally consistent. I don't know why it didn't grip me.
This book is competently written, but is not for me. I had no connection to any of the main characters and while the author made attempts to explain their motivations to make them more endearing, most of it rang untrue for me. A few of the lesser characters had far more interesting and complicated storylines, notably Doru, Wen, and Anden.
The biggest letdown for me was after 600 pages of hearing about honor, even between clans as part of some unwritten code of rules, the climax comes from winning a battle by feigning a surrender and then using that as the element of surprise to triumph. From everything I'd been told about Hilo up until then, it feels that while he would do that, it doesn't seem like he'd take satisfaction from winning in that way, yet he does.
I'm interested to know how some of the minor characters progress, …
This book is competently written, but is not for me. I had no connection to any of the main characters and while the author made attempts to explain their motivations to make them more endearing, most of it rang untrue for me. A few of the lesser characters had far more interesting and complicated storylines, notably Doru, Wen, and Anden.
The biggest letdown for me was after 600 pages of hearing about honor, even between clans as part of some unwritten code of rules, the climax comes from winning a battle by feigning a surrender and then using that as the element of surprise to triumph. From everything I'd been told about Hilo up until then, it feels that while he would do that, it doesn't seem like he'd take satisfaction from winning in that way, yet he does.
I'm interested to know how some of the minor characters progress, but not enough to read the additional novels.
I'm not usually all that excited about either really martial fantasy or mob stories, because both tend to rely on either very flatly good/evil dichotomies, or just telling the reader that one set of characters are the good ones and should be sympathised with.
At first, this book felt like it was going down that road, since our introduction to some of the core characters is them dispensing a lot of violence for profit, against some thieves who I found myself sympathising with. But by about 1/4 of the way I was getting reeled in by the Kauls' charm even as I was never convinced by their goodness. I think that ambiguity is one of the great strengths of Lee's writing. She could so easily have brought the world another set of Atreides/Skywalkers/Gandalf-and-the-hobbits, and instead we got some much more interesting, real and complex characters fighting a much smaller war. …
I'm not usually all that excited about either really martial fantasy or mob stories, because both tend to rely on either very flatly good/evil dichotomies, or just telling the reader that one set of characters are the good ones and should be sympathised with.
At first, this book felt like it was going down that road, since our introduction to some of the core characters is them dispensing a lot of violence for profit, against some thieves who I found myself sympathising with. But by about 1/4 of the way I was getting reeled in by the Kauls' charm even as I was never convinced by their goodness. I think that ambiguity is one of the great strengths of Lee's writing. She could so easily have brought the world another set of Atreides/Skywalkers/Gandalf-and-the-hobbits, and instead we got some much more interesting, real and complex characters fighting a much smaller war.
Along with that, Janloon feels like a living breathing city, the combination magic/technology/martial arts system strikes a good balance between epic powers and finite, human limitations, and the geopolitical background adds a little grounding without intruding too much.
Some criticisms: aesthetically I don't like magic systems being described as discrete Abilities--that can make a fight feel a bit like narration of a video game--and some of the world-building is a bit front-loaded. But overall I loved this book and I'm looking forward to the rest of the series.
