Interesting setting and background mythology, but, in the end, a fairly formulaic book. I was interested, particularly, in the Mayan mythology aspects but there were lots of elements that sort of left me wanting something more.

This is Moreno-Garcia’s first novel, but it’s very hard to tell. YA novel set in Mexico in the Jazz Age that focuses on Mayan folklore. To some degree you can probably tell where it’s going to go very quickly if you know the genre, but it’s a fun journey, and the way that it ends is bittersweet but perfect. Definitely read this when it comes out in August.

Take the journey of a lifetime (literally) through 1920s Mexico with Casiopea Tun, the unhappy granddaughter of a wealthy man on the Yucatan Peninsula, and the Mayan god of death. Full of folklore, adventure and tradition, this novel is perfect for fans of The Night Tiger.

This was a fun read unlike anything else I've encountered lately. Silvia Moreno-Garcia has created a unique world that's interesting to read.

Oh my goodness, do you yourself a favor and purchase this when it gets published in August!

This standalone myth-making tale was truly one of a kind!

The narrative takes place in Mexico in the 1920s and follows Casiopeia, our servant protagonist, as she embarks on a dark journey after opening her grandfather's locked chest. Hoping to find gold that she can use to escape her dreary life, she becomes shocked to realize what the contents of the chest actually contain: the magical bones of the Mayan god Hun-Kame. As a shard of bone sinks into Casiopeia's skin - thus fusing her life with that of the god's - she finds herself forcibly partaking on a quest to assist Hun-Kame in taking back the throne of Xibalba (Mayan Underworld) from his deceitful, power hungry brother.

The idea behind Gods of Jade and Shadow was as fascinating as the world-building. Moreno-Garcia builds up the atmospheric elements of the Underworld while beautifully executing the integration of a slow-build romance, Mayan history, and a new perspective on the flapper-era. The author's writing made capturing the entirety of every scene effortless.

Whilst this book wasn't complex by any means, it still made me think about Mexican culture and how religions are being impacted by the modernization of civilization and development of technology. The concept of what eradicates a religion was also briefly addressed and made me think about all the ones that have unfortunately become extinct.

As for the characters, they all came across as clear, distinct, and relatable in their own way - which is a surprising feat to accomplish.

The only reason I didn't rate this book a full five stars was because, at times, the pacing came across as a bit slow. And not gunna lie, the ending left me just a smidge salty even tho I appreciated what the author was trying to convey. The storyline conclusion was satisfying in a logical sense, but emotionally? I was not fully sated. If you get invested in romances, you'll understand where I'm coming from when you finish this.

This book has so much to offer, and it's legitimately a good book. I'm not sure it'll be your favorite, but I can say without a doubt you'll be able to gain something from it.

Thank you, NetGalley for providing me with an ebook version of this story. Yet another awesome read urging me forth to purchase the actual physical copy.

This book is tailored for me to fall in love with it. Casiopea's life is a miserable one, being forced to serve her grandfather and cousins since the death of her father. But in a fit of rage, she unknowingly releases the ancient god of death from his prison, and a result throws everything off-balance as fate hands out a new set of cards. Silvia Moreno-Garcia has her readers and Casiopea thrown into an adventure across an ever-shifting landscape with gods and demons and witches living in the Jazz Age. A thrilling adventure for fans of Deathless and non-European folklore, this story will sink its teeth into you and never let go.

Beautifully written, Gods of Jade and Shadow is a 2019 favorite.

A copy has been provided by NetGalley and Random House Publishing. The review has been posted on Goodreads on 04/04/19.

Let me begin by saying this was one of my most anticipated books of 2019. Mayan mythology and a deal with the god of death? How could I say no? I started the book wanting very much to love it. Perhaps my high expectations set me up for a more critical read, but in the end, it was just an okay read for me.

What was Great:

I think we both know I believe this is an excellent concept. I had been looking forward to reading it for months when I got the arc. The opening of the book and the last quarter are the strongest parts, and I wish it could have been carried throughout. In the beginning, I was absolutely taken in by the mystery and the dilemma in which the main character found herself, and toward the end by the setting of the climax and the strength of the main character.

Moreno-Garcia also really understands plot structure. She continuously raised the stakes during each step of the adventure, and the second half of the book really gained steam. I do wish the pacing was slightly different. I often wanted to spend more time at each plot beat-- an early interaction with a demon set my expectations and some of the following interactions didn't quite meet them. I think so much of what was 'great' about the story was really what 'could have been' because I could often see what she was trying to do, which direction she was going (and I liked that direction) but the book never quite got there.

What Could Have Been Improved (relative to my personal tastes):

There were moments this book felt more like a framework of a story than a complete work. Most chapters were introduced with a short paragraph or two describing the new place the characters were traveling to, but we moved so quickly from place to place, and we're often so focused on overcoming the next obstacle that it was difficult to get a full feel of each location. In the cases where we did learn more about the place, it was often through repetition of information we already had which made it hard to resist skimming the book.

I also often felt removed from the characters because of the narrative style. I understand how the author wanted me to feel about Cassiopeia, and the structure was there, but because so much of the information about her was repeated, and she spent a lot of the book a passive character-- serving as a way for the author to provide exposition -- I was not able to fully connect with her.

Mainly, what this repetition communicated to me is she did not trust the reader. We are told repeatedly the qualities of certain characters but we are not given enough time or space to see them displayed. Even more frustrating, much of the exposition is communicated to us through literal interviews with gods. At one point, the narrator indicated Vucub Kame, the god of death, rarely answered the main character, Cassiopeia's, questions but we only ever really see him answering every single one. Even in the instances where she shows the god behaving in a certain way, she often follows it with a description. The reader can never infer on their own who Vucub Kame is based on his actions, they must be told by the narrator (who it seems is describing Cassiopeia's views in her chapters).


Final notes:
I will schedule the review to run after the release date.

Okay, I fell in love with this book SO BAD. As soon as I saw being compared to 'Deathless' I was on board. But also, the fact that Silvia Moreno-Garcia takes pride in the fact that she is Mexican and that she will write stories relating to the culture and history of the country makes me extremely happy. I was born in Mexico but didn't spend enough time there to actually remember much, I grew up in America, surrounded by family that continued to celebrate themselves as proud Mexicanos.

Sadly, I sort of diverged myself from that during my teen years, learning extensively about English to the point that I forgot a lot of Spanish. I no longer believed much in the Mexican tradition but I wish I did. What this book does, does what Deathless did for Russia. It captured the spirit of the country. Though it's a bit of love story, they're both beautiful books that show the hardships of woman struggling in the world of man. The feel and the grip of Gods of Jade and Shadow was unlike any other, I thought Deathless was my most favorite book but maybe not anymore. This book took my dormant Mexican soul and yanked it out. I certainly need to read more of Silvia Moreno's stories as I've heard most take place in Mexico (Mexican vampires? A Mexican thriller? I need it all!)

In reading Gods of Jade and Shadow I found myself always wanting something more. Sometimes more emotion, sometimes more personality in Casiopea, sometimes more details of the smells and sounds of the journey as she steps outside of her small town for the first time since her father died. The plot was intriguing and I appreciated having Martin as a contrasting point of view, but it wasn't enough to keep me reading. I put the book down after seven chapters and haven't felt the desire to pick it back up again.

Really incredible retelling of Mexican folklore with beautiful and haunting language. Very well done and I will be recommending this to everyone who is looking for more #ownvoices about Mexico.

Did I like this book? Yes. Did I love this book? Yes! What I completely heartbroken when I finished this book? YES!

Oh my god, how do I even begin talking about this book? I finished it and just kinda laid there unable to comprehend just how much I loved it and why did it have to end that way or why did it have to end at all? When I first heard about this book, I really hoped that I would like it, but I honestly didn’t expect it to impact me so much.

Gods of Jade and Shadows is about a girl who lives in a not so great situation and dreams about the day when she can leave. Casiopea Tun wants freedom and adventure and dreams, but instead she keeps them locked away in a little tin can so the rest of the world won't see. She’s a smart girl, a rational one and she doesn’t want to let her daydreams take control almost. So of course when she accidently resurrects a Mayan god, she takes it as and rational person would. She knows she's never been subjected to illusions, so it's perfectly logical that there's a god standing in front of her. From there it becomes a quest where she and Hun-Kamé must travel to find his missing parts and take back his throne from his brother.

If there's one thing that I love more then gods of death being bound to mortals, it's watching these gods deal with said outspoken, rebellious, yet kind mortal. The writing in this book honestly made me feel like I was both listening to someone wise and ancient tell me this story, or I was reading ancient text that shouldn’t be seen by human eyes. It's a myth through and through. It made it seem like this wasn’t a work of fiction really, but that this actually happened.

I loved these characters, even the ones that I hated, I couldn’t help but like because they were so well written. I can't stop thinking about this book. I probably will never be able to stop thinking about this book.

It's interesting to consider how little Mayan, Aztec or other native 'American' mythology is present in mainstream US culture compared to, say, Greek mythology. This especially considering our proximity to these cultures vs Europe and the rest of the world. Maybe that's evidence of our Euro-centrism left over from colonialism, but I'm glad that's changing as time goes by.

This book had a fun mix of fantasy-adventure, magical folklore, historical context (Mexico, 1920s) and a daring female protagonist who forms a bond with the God of Death. Sometimes it's easy to forget how much social mobility has changed over time and varies in different regions of the world. Casiopea has very few options before (unwittingly) falling into the service of a previously imprisoned god who must go on a quest to retrieve parts of himself stolen by an evil-er sibling. Even though she was forced(!) upon threat of death(!!) to help this god reclaim himself, they eventually form a bond which came off like a kind of Stockholm Syndrome, but whatever, maybe he was unbearably dreamy.

I also definitely read the title as Gods of *Shade* and Shadow for the first half of the book and imagined the demons and gods being super passive-aggressive to each other.

Moreno-Garcia is wonderfully descriptive and creates a lush world for readers to step into. The story was compelling and I really appreciated the characters' interactions with one another. I think a lot of people will enjoy this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me a digital copy of this book. I loved this story! The writing is well done and the characters are many layered. The plot is not a run of the mill fantasy and will please those tired of the same of fantasy plot and structure.

OMG. What a trip!!! What a fantastic, brilliant book! I want to give it a triple thumbs up.

Caseopia's back story was a little like Cinderella's, only instead of an evil stepmother, she had a grandfather. Enslaved and bullied, she wished to one day get out of this dreadful and dreary life and move to Merida with the riches that her grandfather had promised to give her and her mother upon his passing.

One day when everyone was out for a family vacation, out of spite and curiosity, she opened a mysterious box which the grandfather had kept in his bedroom. Little did she realize how much this pandora's box was about to change her entire life.

When she released Hun Kame, Lord of Xibalba, the Place of Fear, she had wokened up the entire Mayan Underworld which then, was ruled by Hun Kame's twin brother, Vucub Kame, who stole the crown from him. Hence, she got herself tangled up in the fight of the twin brothers for the throne befitting only the strongest and vilest.

I love all the characters the author created and developed! Caseopia was strong-willed, intelligent, inquisitive, bold, courageous, and loyal. Hun Kame, although mysterious, stoic and dark as death as he was, was also drawn to Caseopia's hard-headed devil-may-care attitude. I also loved how the author developed their relationship!

Her cousin, was totally despicable at first, but as his story progressed, I couldn't help but empathize with him and understand his anger and frustrations. I even wanted a good ending for him. The fact that the author was able to do that, to me, showed what a brilliant writer she is.

The writing and pacing were brilliant too. I didn't want to miss a word! I enjoyed traveling vicariously through Caseopia to Texas, Mexico City and the Mayan Underworld and awakening all my 5 senses!

Reading this was like reading The Master and Margarita which I absolutely loved! Some of the characters reminded me of those in that book. (Gahh which reminds me, I should've added The Master and Margarita to my all time favorite reads list! If you haven't read it, please please do!)

If you love magical realism, mythology and the Jazz Age, you're going to love this!

Where are you headed next, Caseiopia? Pray take me along!

And... I want this book in my shelf!

Thank you Netgalley and Random House for providing a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. Review will be published on my blog and Goodreads, and shared on Twitter and Litsy, closer to publication day.

I think people will love the mythology, romance, and descriptions. Beautiful cover. Interesting heroine.

I was pretty excited for this because I especially loved Sylvia's last book, The Beautiful Ones. And then she's done really great Mexican settings in the two other books I've read by her as well!

What I really liked here was the MC—Casiopea was the perfect character and I loved reading her wittiness in her dialogue and her remarks that she would give to Hun-Kamé. I seriously loved Hun-Kamé, too, especially as his character progressed in the book! The two together had such great chemistry!

There were several POVs in this one, but I really wish that it was only Casiopea and Hun-Kamé. I was kind of bored at times with Casiopea's cousin and Hun-Kamé's brother. Minor detail—but I felt like Casiopea's name had a lot of syllables so I had to keep shortening it to Cas in my head as I read it! 

The writing and world descriptions were beautiful and the tale was very cool. Another complaint was I wish it ended on the chapter before the last one because I'm unsure if this is a stand alone, but I think it is? But with the last chapter, I'm not sure? Anyway, I love the authors other books more, but this is still a cool, original story to check out.

Really crackerjack SF/Fantasy set in Mexico involving ancient Mayan Gods, magic, and a remarkably unremarkable woman who just wants more than her life is currently offering her. This was my first time reading anything by Silvia Moreno-Garcia and I immediately ordered some of her other books upon finishing this one.

5 stars!

Unlike anything I’ve ever read. So beautiful. This Mayan death god myth-making tale was one of a kind and its great to see one of the most anticipated 2019 YA fantasy releases living up to its expectations. Let’s have more Mexican/Mayan inspired fantasy, please!

Gods of Jade and Shadow did more than just bring us a fantasy grounded in non-Western myth--it also brought us a different writing style, an interesting immersion into 1920s Mexican culture, and a fresh take on the female protagonist. I could not get enough of this story. Looking forward to seeing more from Silvia Moreno-Garcia.

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Set in Jazz age (1920s) Mexico, this fantasy is about a strong woman named Casiopea who encounters a Mayan death God and the quest they subsequently go on.
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I had hardly any knowledge of or around Mayan mythology or really any Mexican mythology before reading this book so I was a bit nervous I’d be lost. I’m so glad I took a chance on this story though, because it’s a really good one and it wasn’t hard to get wrapped into the story..
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I loved that Casiopea was already headstrong and determined at the start of the novel. She held her own throughout the whole story; no damsel in distress story here!
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Full of trials, personal growth, and a lot of heart, this is a great fantasy read to pick up. Fair warning there are some dark parts to this story, but if you read adult fantasy you will be used to that.

“The things you name do grow in power, but others that are not ever whispered claw at one’s heart anyway, rip it to shreds even if a syllable does not escape the lips.”

After reading Signal to Noise, Silvia Moreno-García instantaneously became one of my new favorite authors. With Gods of Jade and Shadow she has cemented her place in my heart.

Within Gods of Jade and Shadow, Moreno-Garcia has created two worlds: the world of 1920s Mexico, full of cars and trains and the newness of Art Deco and flappers, and Xibalba, the Underworld, a landscape lush with strange and frightening flora and fauna. Casiopea traverses both these worlds, learning who she is, in the way of coming of age tales, but also teaching those around her what it means to be faithful, steadfast, and, most of all, kind.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read the eARC of this book.