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A review by tsunni
Jade City by Fonda Lee
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- 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
4.5
I read in an interview somewhere that Fonda Lee intended the setting and characters to be non specific but familiarly East Asian, and she did it perfectly. The characters in Jade City and their interactions with each other have direct analogues to my own experiences with growing up around immigrants from East Asia, with their attitudes, how they talk, and how they treat each other. Shae and Anden, the ones who don't fit in, who are exploring their identities outside of tradition. Hilo and Lan, direct successors to traditions, Hilo especially with his undercurrent attitude that things would just work out if people fell into their intended roles and would question it less. The grandfather slapping you with words that are both brutally direct and backhanded at the same time that you've been unknowingly trained your entire life to not react to. Hilo, Lan, and Shae's (and Anden to some extent) back and forth pushing on old versus new ways, on Eastern ideals versus Western ones (with a very thinly veiled Espenia standing in for the US). Jade City keeps bringing up old memories and feelings that make reading this book have a bitter aftertaste, but I think that's a testament to how well Fonda Lee captured the feel of the setting and the people the book is portraying.
The people and their relationships with each other and with East versus West thinking are the core strength of the book. The plot and events read like a gripping triad movie with superpowers, written in straightforward prose with great pacing and decent insight into character motivations; but where the overarching superpowered plot is concerned, events can fall a little flat, feel a bit forgivably contrived sometimes. The end especially felt a little anticlimatic, but only to a minor degree; I still really enjoyed it, but compared to the superb character work it was a bit overshadowed. The book ends decently well, but with plenty of plot hooks and a stinger to lead into book 2, which I'm excited for!
The people and their relationships with each other and with East versus West thinking are the core strength of the book. The plot and events read like a gripping triad movie with superpowers, written in straightforward prose with great pacing and decent insight into character motivations; but where the overarching superpowered plot is concerned, events can fall a little flat, feel a bit forgivably contrived sometimes. The end especially felt a little anticlimatic, but only to a minor degree; I still really enjoyed it, but compared to the superb character work it was a bit overshadowed. The book ends decently well, but with plenty of plot hooks and a stinger to lead into book 2, which I'm excited for!