Marginally reliable

UGH. Again, I’ve arrived at the end of an amazing series. It’s such a bittersweet feeling. Fonda Lee’s Green Bone Saga was incredible and I highly recommend it. The story is a high stakes rollercoaster with themes of tradition, organized crime, dysfunctional family dynamics, and light fantasy elements all wrapped into one. There are some jaw dropping moments that happen almost right away and each book gets just a little longer with an increase in drama each one- which is exactly how I think any good trilogy should be.

The setting is really immersive and easy to get lost in; think urban- crowded streets, clubs, excessive wealth. Oh, and great food spots. The descriptions of food in this series always made me hungry. The violence and politics keep you on edge anticipating what will happen next and the characters are so easy to connect with and get attached to. I will absolutely be picking up another Fonda Lee book soon.

Spoilers ahead

My favorite aspect of this series was definitely Lee’s character work, it was pretty impeccable. Shockingly the protagonist Lan dies not too far into book 1 and this is the event that really kicks off the story. I just want to say that this narrative choice was bold. So bold in fact that I almost didn’t believe it to be true and found myself waiting for Lan to come back to life or for it to be some sort of trick for the entire latter half of Jade City. But, Lan’s death made room for Hilo, the black sheep brother of the story, to move into the forefront. The transition was actually flawless- Lee got us attached to Lan, the seemingly perfect head of the Kaul family and then dramatically and unexpectedly strips him away from us as it seems his story is just beginning. Hilo is by far my favorite, not because his character is perfect by any means, but because of the deep thought Lee put into his growth and development. The Hilo from Jade City was absolutely not the Hilo we got in Jade Legacy (in the best way). Although no matter how crazy he was, it was hard not to root for him, and that ending was devastating.