The Kaul siblings have a lot to live up to. Their grandfather helped liberate their home country from foreigners who wanted to exploit Kekon's powerful jade resources, and then set up the No Peak clan that today rules much of the city of Janloon. Kaul Lan is now the Pillar of the clan, but even though he's the leader, he's still fighting to get the respect and influence his grandfather had (many No Peaks are still loyal to the elder Kaul). Kaul Hilo is Horn, head of the street enforcement portion of the clan and a bit of a loose cannon. Their sister, Kaul Shae, has washed her hands of clan business, refusing to wear the jade that gives her supernatural powers, but can't seem to make a full break. And then there's Anden, the Kauls' adopted sibling, who is a star at the No Peak academy where he's learning to harness jade's magical properties to become a superpowered fighter. Amidst all of this, No Peak is on the precipice of war with the Mountain, a rival clan that's doing its best to take over Janloon and the jade trade of Kekon.
Marsha described this book to me as "The Godfather but instead of cocaine, they have jade," and honestly, I can't think of a more apt description. I'm not usually a mafia fan, but I like the way that Lee subverted the gender roles (though it takes a while to get there), as well as the way she wove the magic into the otherwise mundane world. There are two more books in this series (and apparently a couple of prequel novellas), so I'm probably going to have to throw those on my TBR.
No comments:
Post a Comment