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iono's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Death, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Xenophobia, and Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, War, and Classism
Minor: Body horror, Cursing, Homophobia, Rape, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
crybabybea's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The plot, inspired by old-school kung fu and Chinese gangster movies, was fresh and interesting, but it didn't push the envelope or add anything new. There are high-stakes politics, with a couple of good twists at the end. The plot is fairly generic, with real-world elements changed to imaginative fantasy ones.
The world-building was well-done. I appreciated the author's focus on small details. The world follows a stereotypical Confucian blueprint of patriarchal values, filial piety, and honor. Since it's urban fantasy, there wasn't an overwhelming amount of new information to process, making it easy to grasp the setting and its culture. The focus on Kekon made the setting feel intimate and immersive, and the capital Janloon felt bustling and full of life. Again, it's urban fantasy, so don't expect sprawling Fellowship of the Ring adventures.
I liked the characters but wanted to see a bit more from them. Anden had the coolest characterization, with an interesting backstory that made his motivations feel complex. I would have liked more from the villain, who has an intriguing story. There is a serious lack of complexity when it comes to the female main characters, so I hope they are explored more in the next installments. I see potential in the characters and their relationships despite not fully connecting with them here.
The choice to use jade as a magic amplifier is a unique idea that fits well with the old-school kung fu themes. I liked that the magic had drawbacks and didn't feel overwhelmingly powerful. The idea of the magic being akin to an addiction that harms the body over time, while not being the adds depth to the story. The addition of
The writing itself was okay. I liked the author's tendency toward simplicity, but explaining actions and emotions overtly rather than letting them unfold naturally was distracting. There were some hard-hitting lines but nothing that wowed me. The POV switching was well done and added a cinematic quality to the book that made the experience satisfying. It never felt confusing or unnecessary and didn't take away from the pacing.
Overall, pretty solid as the first in a trilogy. I expect the first book in a fantasy series to be a bit slower and less in-depth than the following books, and Jade City does its job well: setting up the world and characters, introducing action, and leaving things up in the air to make you want to continue the series.
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexism, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Suicide attempt, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, and War
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Torture, and Mass/school shootings
The plot heavily revolves around a street drug that is similar to amphetamines. The drug and its usage are described in detail, including the use of needles and the characters' feelings after usage. The magic system itself behaves like an addiction, if characters use too much jade or use jade for too long it causes a mental sickness that drives them to things like dementia or suicide. A minor character is shown in a flashback committing self-harm and suicide. A minor character is revealed to be pedophilic with a past of abusing children and there are no repercussions. Heavy usage of violence and guns, with a scene involving a planned mass shooting.mads_reads_books's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Ableism, Drug use, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Violence, Dementia, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Suicide attempt, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Outing, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
pri_lakshmi's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Violence, Blood, Grief, and War
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Dementia, Medical trauma, Stalking, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Bullying, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Xenophobia, and Colonisation
lissi_k's review against another edition
4.5
The worldbuilding is insane - at first it seems very straightforward, but throughout the story the author effortlessly weaves in more and more details that make you realise how deep it actually goes, and how every part of it is inextricably intertwined with the characters and the story at large.
All the characters are three-dimensional, morally grey and very human, and it is so interesting to follow their thoughts and actions. Every action always has far-reaching consequences, nothing exists in a vacuum.
Bonus points are the fight scenes, which are remarkably realistic both regarding what happens, and how the characters feel during.
Graphic: Violence and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Death, Drug abuse, Pedophilia, Sexism, Sexual content, Xenophobia, and Murder
anni_swanilda's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Confinement, Mental illness, Sexism, Sexual content, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Minor: Racism
vnderseelie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
The characters are really interesting and actually carry a lot of the story, since their flaws and decisions let the events progress and escalate further, which makes them feel alive and well merged with the world Fonda Lee built. Nevertheless, a lot of the actions that the characters took did not make a lot of sense in specific situations or were needlessly cruel, even given the topics the book deals with. Especially the grandfather gave the impression that he just appeared to talk the others down. Additionally, I really disagreed with some scenes and the behavior in them, which made it hard for me to continue the book sometimes.
Some scenes felt a bit too long or they were repeated in almost the same way too often, which made them repetitive to read and it seemed to just add to the page count of the book, without providing a real impact on anything.
All in all the idea of Jade City was really interesting to me, but I think the actual translation into the story was lacking in my opinion.
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, and War
elizas's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Overall, however, this three-book series is some of the most innovative and dramatic fantasy of the last ten or fifteen years. The decades-long blood feud between the Kauls of the No Peak clan and the Eits of the Mountain clan ebbs and flows. It’s a drama of move and counter-move, and each time you think one clan is winning, the other clan makes a surprise move.
Graphic: Death, Sexism, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Racism, Colonisation, and War
allauthors's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Graphic: Violence, Kidnapping, and Murder
Moderate: Racism, Sexism, and Sexual violence
rnbhargava's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
This is the first part of a fantasy tinged saga about a crime family. All the violence and tropes of mafia stories are present here. Certain things are also essentially superpowers. That said, it’s also very gritty with hard hitting violence. There’s mental illness, there’s drug addiction, there’s deteriorating health of the elderly old leader. There’s suggestions that one character is a sex offender and pervert. There’s essentially ableism surrounding certain figures born to Jade user families but can’t use Jade abilities, ableism suggestions. There’s vilification and racism toward certain outside nations albeit because they’re also colonizing forces. Also, certain characters’ relationships with foreign nationals are heavily talked about with racist suggestion. The connection between drug addiction and potential suicide is a major theme in the story because it’s framed within the context of jade ability performance enhancement drug usage. There’s a lot of heavy themes to suggest while reading through this mafia family novel.