Section 1: Urban Fantasy Books Similar to Jade City
Thematically, the stories also have similarities in that the characters in each book possess supernatural abilities and work within distinct organizations to maintain order. There’s plenty of political intrigue in both stories. O’Malley’s book focuses more on a single person, whereas Lee’s focuses on the entire Kaul family. I would say Lee’s book offers a grittier and somewhat more realistic worldview. In comparison, while full of horrific imagery, O'Malley's story ties up all the storylines into a semi-neat bow by the end, which works excellent for fiction but does not reflect how the world works.
Section 2: Most Powerful Themes Represented in Jade City
Those who are Green Bones live by a code of honor, and they consider their fellow Green Bones connected in a familial structure of clan ties. The honor and the connection of those clans often supersede blood-family ties. Nearly every conflict throughout the novel pushes that clash between being bound by honor and bound by blood.
As the Kauls are almost all Green Bones, they are duty-bound to put the clan before their own needs, yet each family member uniquely addresses this challenge. Some go full-on with the tradition, whereas others try to balk against tradition and find their own road. Sadly, all choices lead back to the family and this clan/family struggle.
As outsiders attack the Kauls and their clan of Green Bones, that clan/family line blurs even further. What will they do to maintain honor on all fronts? What are they willing to sacrifice? As the first book in the saga, this story sets up these questions and lets us see how the members of the Kaul family deal with blurred lines and difficult choices.
Section 3: What I Did Not Like about Jade City
While reading the book, you learn that jade has some supernatural quality that affects certain people and gives them powers. Wearing jade becomes a status symbol on the island, indicating how much power you can wield. Controlling the mining and shipping of jade also gives the Green Bones a position of power in the world political theater.
Nevertheless, despite these jade discussions, I was expecting more displays of magic via jade. Besides the characters sensing each other’s abilities or having their normal senses enhanced, there just wasn’t as much use of the jade for magic beyond the few supercharged fight scenes.
Section 4: Who Will Love and Hate Jade City
Readers who prefer stories that follow a typical story arc, have a smaller cast of characters, and neatly tie up all subplot loose ends may not be big fans of this novel.
Section 5: L. Rigdon’s Star Rating of Jade Cit
The intertwining of the political and personal plotlines grabbed my attention and kept me fully engaged as I kept guessing what would happen next. You will easily find yourself rooting for some of these characters or screaming at them when they do something you know will be detrimental.
Lee brilliantly constructs this alternate world, yet it feels very much like an early era of our world. Giving us a pseudo-Asian island country helps anchor us in the story and allows us to embrace the unknown of this fictional world. Just the way she describes the foreigners resonates with readers. You instantly recognize their real-world counterparts, making these foreigners all the more real.
After completing this first book, I was shocked that no one has made this into a TV series. I found out that it was optioned, but the creators have backed away from the project. I do hope someone picks it up soon.