The Jade Bones picks up right were 7th son left off. The action is straight away and you fall fully immersed in the story almost immediately. There was a bit of a slump in the middle but then picked back up by the end.

I do wonder if it has the same tone as the first though. There felt to be a disconnect between them.

I loved being able to revisit the world of the Seventh Sun again. It was great to pick up from where the last book left off. I’m not sure it needed dual POVs but that’s personal preference. Enjoyable, diverse and non-Eurocentric fantasy.

I have never been a fan of the insta-love story; the timeline here is just way too compressed. In a few days in the first book, these teenagers fall in love, she uncovers a plot to end his reign that no one else saw except for the girl brand-new to the palace, she dies for him, and a goddess tasks them with bringing her son back to life.

Unfortunately, the sequel suffers from the same problem: trying to do too much. You end up rooting for the characters because so much happens to them, not because you've actually gotten to know and love them. The most interesting characters are actually not the main pair but instead that of a side character from the first book and her new love interest. They felt more like real people and not one-dimensional characters like Mayana and Ahkin.

Very plot-driven and lots of info-dumps, as if description bores the author or she doesn't really understand her own world. This might make a better oral story than written one.

I've not read Seven Sun's but I want to now! This fantasy book was a lot of fun with political intrigue, magic, religion, and romance

The Jade Bones is a very strong follow up to Lani Forbes's 2020 debut, The Seventh Sun. It picks up where the first book left off (with Mayana and Ahkin traversing the underworld), and there are a surprising number of tests and challenges for them to face, both in terms of their magic, their strength, their ability to trust one another – and yes, even the gods.

Most surprising of all, though, is the new POV Forbes offers the reader with Princess Yemania, the Daughter of Healing, and her love interest, a Miquitz warrior named Ochix. I won't say too much more about this relationship except that I felt it was the strongest part of the book. Learning more about the Miquitz and their culture rounds out the world of The Age of the Seventh Sun, and seeing Yemania grow so much as a character is really satisfying as a reader. In fact, I think she went from being my least favorite character in Book 1 to being my favorite character in Book 2. A really nice character arc that feels well deserved. Ochix was also a very solid character who was fun to get to know since he was a Mequitz death warrior (although, for being a prince of the people who worship the God of the Dead, he maybe felt a little *too* good?). Forbes tends to add nuance to her characters as the story progresses, though (as she did with Yemania), so I expect to see more dimension to Ochix in Book 3.

In The Jade Bones, Ahkin and Mayana also grow as characters and as a couple (always a good thing), though I felt their relationships still felt geared towards the YA crowd (appropriate, given this is a YA novel). For example, there were times when both characters were too quick to demonize themselves or simply ignored each other's instincts or advice, which can be frustrating as an adult reader.

Still, given the context of the genre and its audience, I feel The Jade Bones is an exceptionally strong sequel to The Seventh Sun. If you didn't enjoy Book 1, then I doubt Book 2 would sway your opinion about the series either way – but if you DID like the first book, then you're going to get all the things you've returned for: more relationships, more magic and mythology, and more action and adventure. The climax to The Jade Bones was likewise just as strong as its predecessor, so it's nice to see Forbes stick the landing once again with several satisfying resolutions and a few massive cliffhangers.

FINAL VERDICT
4/5 stars

The Jade Bones is a fantastic second volume in Forbes's Mesoamerican-inspired fantasy series. Pick it up if you enjoyed the first book and are looking for more layers of myths and magic, more palace intrigue, and more relationship drama.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3560583472?book_show_action=true&from_review_page=1

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. My opinion was not affected by the free copy.

I found the first book surprisingly enjoyable so when I saw that the sequel was up for request, naturally I hit that button eagerly. And I discovered that this book is very much two stories trying to work in one novel. The only problem is that they're such different stories that it's a bit of storytelling whiplash to go between one and the other. Because they're so different, I feel like readers are going to favor one storyline over another.

As always, I start with the negatives so I can end on a positive note. There isn't much I can say on the negative side of things, but it shouldn't be a surprise that one of them deals with the romance. Not as much the one between Mayana and Ahkin-- I thought that was done well and they had some nice character growth-- but the new one introduced in this book. I felt it was extremely rushed. They had a nice connection and some good conversations but their leap into love felt so fast for how little time they spent together.

Mayana was an extremely frustrating character at times. She lectured Ahkin a lot about being controlling but she was pretty controlling herself and extremely stubborn, refusing to listen to him and insisting that she was right about everything. It didn't feel balanced that he was always apologizing to her and letting her win the arguments when he had some good points as well. I wish Mayana would have acknowledged that and seen that she needs his structure and logic as much as he needs her intuition and heart. I don't like spoiling things but the only time she acknowledged they should have a strategy, she didn't even let Ahkin think it up before she decided to take over and not even communicate her idea to him. There's some reasoning behind that in the story, but I think she could've worked around it so he could be included and actually contributed to something. You don't need to make your female characters strong and able to save the day at the expense of your male characters. It makes so little sense in a story that's trying to convey the importance of balance.

This is a bit more of a nitpick, but they are tasked with playing a conch shell at one point in the story and they're stumped as to how when it has no air holes. I immediately thought "well, there's no saying that it has to be played like a horn in those instructions". There are some other stupid little moments that I guess are easier for a passive reader to think of but still makes me groan.

Now on to the good stuff! The political intrigue was very interesting. I liked the pieces slowly coming together. The love angst got in the way as usual and honestly felt like it was interrupting things at times. The two of them were pretty stupid about their shows of affection in positions where someone could easily catch them at it. The actual plot was good and I hated being torn away from it to check in on Mayana and Ahkin. Which isn't to say that Mayana and Ahkin's journey was boring. I loved those sections, too! Their journey through the layers was so fascinating, horrific, chilling, scary, and fascinating. I loved every second and hated being torn away from it. I personally liked their sections slightly better as I found them to be very creatively horrific as well as building some great character.

I also really love the discussions that go on in this book. I liked Yemania and Ochix discussing the value of life and how that plays into sacrificial deaths; I liked them talking about love. I loved all the talk about faith and sacrifice and the role of the gods that went on with Mayana and Ahkin. I know this is based on Aztec/Mayan stuff but it reminded me very strongly of Christianity. Especially questioning if God is good, wondering if He is really in control, wondering why He allows suffering and the loss of loved ones, why He didn't use His power in certain situations, and so on. I'm not familiar with Aztec/Mayan beliefs so I don't know if any of this lines up with them, but I still loved the discussions and the wrestling of faith that was going on in the story.

In a way you could just read half the story. If you prefer political intrigue with a romance, read just Yemania's chapters. If you want a journey that allows for character growth as well as close examination of faith, read Mayana and Ahkin's chapters. I liked both but the tones are extremely different and can throw a reader off switching from one to another.

Book 2 starts right where book 1 left off, so make sure you start at the beginning of the series(worth it!).

Four young people risk their lives to save the world from a looming apocalypse in this captivating sequel to The Seventh Sun. Based on ancient Mesoamerican legends and mythology, The Jade Bones is a compelling and romantic adventure that builds to a heart-stopping climax.

There are books that take you on an adventure and there are books that you consume, then there are books like The Jade Bones that do/are both. After devouring The Seventh Son I was excited for more. The Seventh Son left me with a killer book hangover, and I could not get it out of my head for weeks, so when The Jade Bones was announced, you bet I was beyond excited because I needed more from these characters and more from this world.

The Jade Bones starts out almost immediately where The Seventh Son ends and it take the reader on the adventure of their life, or should I say their afterlife? We once again meet Ahkin and Mayana as they fight their way out of the darkness of the afterlife and back into their world and reality. I loved that this story was both in duel POV and in duel worlds. Being a part of both the real world as it was happening and the afterlife as the characters were experienced it, really brought the story to life.

The way the author brought to life the mythology and historical life stories of this culture and religion adds another dimension to both the characters and the story. The characters come alive within these pages and the story line keeps the reader engaged. I could not put it down and it met all my hopes and expectations from book one. I could not The Jade Bones or The Seventh Son more then I do. Both books are on my Best Reads of 2020 list and I will continue to read and love them. I received an ARC via NetGalley and Blacksone Publishing and I am leaving my honest review.

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I will be positing this review on release day (February 16th, 2021), on the following sites as well as recommending this story in many Facebook groups. My posts will consist of my review and/or option of the book, the links to buy and any graphics I can find to share:

Amazon, Bookbub, Goodreads, Kobo, BN, Google books and any other retailer website it is available on.

My blog/bookstagram page: https://www.instagram.com/elysian_fields_reader/

My twitter bookfocused page: https://mobile.twitter.com/ElysianFieldsRe

My personal Facebookpage: https://m.facebook.com/elysian.fields.520

In Facebook groups that are YA focused or with readers who enjoy YA stories as well as anyone who will listen.

I have already posted on the sites that have allowed early posting: Goodreads, Bookbub.

The Jade Bones picks up right where we left off in book one. So if you don't remember what happen to Ahkin and Mayana, I suggest you re read The Seventh Sun to get caught up.

The odds were certainly not in Ahkin and Mayana's favor in this book and these two could not catch a break. I wasn't sure they could survive everything the underworld was putting them through and I was even more worried about whether their relationship would survive.

Where book one was more romance oriented, this book is more action and fantasy, which surprisingly I liked!

There were a couple things that annoyed me in the book. One being Yamania, again. In book one I just didn't care for how whiny and "weak" she seemed. Although she seemed to be stronger and seemed to be growing a backbone, the whining was still present. I DO feel like by book three I might very much enjoy her character arc though and I actually did enjoy her situation with Ochix.

Secondly, Mayana seemed quite selfish in this book to me. Her intentions were selfless, but I felt she didn't think a lot of things through and didn't consider Ahkin or the big picture of things. So I wanted to scream at her quite a few times!

The cliffhanger was a treat since I totally did NOT know this was going to be a trilogy, and after what happened I just want to know if I can have book 3 now??

I loved the first book so I was really excited to read the second one. This story and plotline is so interesting and I am obsessed. I read it so quickly because I could not put it down. I will be recommending this book to all of my friends and patrons at the library.

This sequel follows two POVs - one takes place in the living world and is plot based, while the other takes place in the underworld and focuses more on character development and world-building. And while I appreciate the dichotomy these two journeys present, I definitely favoured one over the other.

In fact, I practically skimmed over the underworld POV entirely. Personally, I don't think it really added anything new to the story and it was only included because it's the natural progression of the story (aka filler needed for the next installment).

But the other POV was enough to keep my interest in the story going. I loved the new characters, as well as the challenges the old characters have to face. The political intrigue was so interesting to me.

Overall, this is a decent sequel and a good set-up for the next book to come in this series.