Reviews

Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

jeansea's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

happylilkt's review against another edition

3.0

3.5 stars

My mom recommended this book in passing, otherwise I doubt I would have picked it up. This book did not disappoint! I just ordered my own copy because I know I will want to re-read it. The writing is excellent, the character development and world building is good. I had a hard time putting it down :)

*Given that the Mayan god of death is a major character, thematically it can get a little macabre, which may rule this out for some readers. There is some brief, strong language, but it is not consistent throughout. Slow burn romance.

elsa_lectora's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

If I had read it, this would have been a four star review. But the audio book makes it a better experience. I enjoy this road trip very much, and I want to know more about the Maya mithology. I may give this author another chance, we'll see... 

jade_logan's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad medium-paced

• 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? It's complicated

5.0

kellyrand's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• 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

3.5

starshipgazer21's review against another edition

4.0

This book was not my favorite. I’d been wanting to read this book for a long time, since I’m obsessed with world mythologies, but it just felt lackluster. It wasn’t bad by any means, just not as good as I had hoped. The characters felt very one-dimensional, the writing was very weirdly paced, the romance didn’t have much chemistry, and the ending didn’t hit the spot the way I needed it to. It’s not an awful book, but it’s not great either.

raavi's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny hopeful mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

The reading is dense. But the story is masterful. 

comet_aj's review against another edition

adventurous emotional slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.0

artemisiaaa__'s review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Being my first Silvia Moreno novel, I was immediately drawn in by the concept of Mayan mythology as someone who is a big fan of anything fantastical and historical. The language was like reading a love poem, caught in the whimsy of stars, Gods and jewels. However, I found the foundations of the world-building were lost to a lack of contextual knowledge presented to the reader. As someone who has no previous experience with this history, it was hard to grasp certain points of the novel as well as their stories. Additionally, the pacing seemed to lag in some aspects, especially during perspective changes between Casiopea and Martín. I loved the subtle blossom of romance between the main character and Hun-Kamè, but otherwise, the ending felt slightly lack-lustre and disappointing. A good, solid read overall, but definitely nothing that I will be remembering in the next weeks to follow. 

agrotera's review against another edition

2.0

The setting was cool, and I liked how the mythological translations for settings and characters were done.

Really felt like the reading equivalent of an escort quest. I wanted to like it, but there are just too many problems I have with the writing.