The novel excitedly begins with a break-in, confrontation and murder of Ying’s father. This propels her to pretend to be her brother at the Engineer’s Guild to ultimately seek justice and revenge for her family.

Overall, thought it has its moments and I’ll read sequel. I couldn’t connect to the romantic pairing(s). Not sure I believed it.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the arc.

Thank you Net Galley and publishers for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review from me.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a fun take of a Mulan retelling. I loved the world building and all the characters. I got to know their hardships and reasons why they had to do the things they did. There was secrecy, betrayal, love, friendship. Even though there were heavy ties to the war happening it really wasn't too political and war like. The war was still important, but more so in the background of things so I wasn't bored by the politics and war strategies. The romance is very slow burn, no spice, and they don't get a happy ever after. The way this book ends is very open ended, not quite a cliff hanger but it still leaves you wanting more. It felt like the story wasn't finished so I really hope there is more to this story soon. I really want to see the main characters happy even if they don't get together.

After seeing her father murdered, Ying seeks revenge and wants to find out who and why he was killed. She disguises herself as her younger brother to sneak into the engineering guild that her father was apart of and participate in the trials to become guild master. There she makes close friends, tests her wits and everything her father taught her, and finds out the mystery behind his murder. She becomes close to the heir apparent, the eighth prince who helps guide her along the way. Once she finds out everything she must choose between doing what is right and what her heart wants.

Rating: 3.25/5
Overall, I liked the book. A girl goes on a quest to avenge her father and has a chance to meet her goal of joining the Engineers Guild at the same time.

I thought the ending of the book was quite strong and the last quarter of the book is where it really shines. I really liked the relationship between Ying and Ye-kan and the understanding that Ying developed of her father.

The world building is somewhat weak and parts of the plot don't stand up to scrutiny. I had a hard time reconciling the level of industry required for Ying and her father to conduct experiments on their island with them being nomadic herders. Ying's father's position as chieftain is a part of the romantic plot of the book, but otherwise does not make sense (why would you send your future chieftain to learn engineering?). I also wonder if all the airship engineers were part of the Engineers Guild, because if they're only taking 3 students a year and there were at least 20 senior airship engineers, most of those airship engineers must have found a different path to that career.

There are a few parts where the writing is confusing and I had to read a sentence several times to figure out what was being said.

Despite the complaints, I could see myself picking up the second book.

Rating: Enjoyed It, 3.5 Stars, rounded up to 4

I had a really hard time deciding between a 3.5 and 4 stars for this one. Of Jade and Dragons is what I've seen referred to as silk-punk fantasy. Ying has learned a lot about engineering from her father on their remote island. When he is murdered in front of her, she decides to disguise herself as her brother and enter the trials for the Engineering Guild in the hopes of discovering the reason and the people behind it.

On her way to the capital city, she is rescued from a dangerous by Ye-yang, one of the many princes of the kingdom. He decides to sponsor her in her entrance to the all-male engineering guild, even though her discovery would be considered treason.

I had a good time with this book. I definitely think that if I had read this when I was younger, I would have absolutely loved it. The romantic tension for the first 60% or so was on-point, and I mostly enjoyed Ying's character. The plot moves forward at a good pace, and I like the tech elements that are blended into the world. That being said, it was pretty predictable, I was frustrated by the route that the romance went in the last 30-40%, and the character development felt very surface level. I think that what it really came down to was the character interactions. It never really felt like authentic interactions with significant emotions and was more a summary of those interactions. So, telling over showing I suppose.

Overall, I enjoyed my time with this book, but some of those elements just ultimately didn't work as well for me. I still haven't fully decided how I feel about continuing the series, but I suppose I will have to see when the next book comes out.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Teen for an eARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Of Jade and Dragons releases on June 18, 2024.

After 18-year-old Ying’s father is murdered, she ventures to the Capital seeking answers and revenge. Following in her father's footsteps, she enters the Engineers Guild apprenticeship trial, however, she is disguised as her brother, as the guild does not allow women to join. Along the way she meets Ye-Yang, one of the princes of the High Command, who ends up becoming an unlikely ally. Keeping a huge secret herself, she doesn't know who she can trust, and wonders if what she's doing would make her father proud.

Things I LOVED about this book

The Mulan vibes – Only men are allowed to be a part of the prestigious Engineer’s Guild, so Ying must pretend to be her younger brother to be able to enter the apprenticeship trial. Ying is such a badass and is extremely loyal to her family, willing to do whatever it takes to figure out what happened to her father.

The Technology – I loved reading about the relay systems of tracks and tubes in the restaurants to deliver the food and about the Chimera, which are beast/machine hybrids.

The Romance – Once or twice, I blushed at something that Ye-yang said. There were only a few scenes between them, but I loved them all!

The Cover - it's beautiful!! I'm obsessed.

Things I didn’t love

The Pacing – It felt a little bit off sometimes - the beginning and ending both felt somewhat rushed. I was wondering how everything was going to be wrapped up at the end when I noticed I was almost finished. There's going to be at least 1 more book though, so I know that

The Romance – I know I put that I loved the romance, but I also wanted more!! I know that it's a YA novel, but I was hoping for more scenes between Ying and Ye-Yang. 'm hoping for more development of this in book 2.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this, and I can't wait for book 2. Of Jade and Dragons is the Illumicrate June book, and I'm so excited to have a special edition physical copy soon!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

THE ENDING BROUGHT IT.

I was minding my own business reading this book, enjoying it, thinking this would be a good four star and I’d be happy to pick up the next book. BUT THEN, I just absolutely loved that the last 25% took it to another level for me. This had the classic middle ground young adult vibes (and actually kept it that way with the content) that reminded me of all the things I love about young adult books.

I loved Ying. She was tenacious and full of heart. There were some Mulan nods alongside a fantasy woman in STEM and I loved the combination. The competition and guild trials were interesting and paced well. I loved that the progression of the story kept moving forward and had me glued to my book.

The slow burn romance made me FEEL by the end. And I am HERE FOR THE DRAMA of it all. I can’t wait to see how things shake out and where they go. I love that this ended on a cliffhanger that demanded my attention. I also really loved the friendship Ying had with a few of her fellow apprentices. It showcased a true boy / girl friendship (which I feel like we don’t see enough of???) and I loved how the loyalty was truly forged in fire.

Fantastic book, can’t wait for more!!

Overall audience notes:

YA Fantasy Romance
Language: low
Romance: kisses
Violence: moderate
Content Warnings: war themes, near death experiences, murder, weapons violence

I enjoyed this book immensely. I want to give a big thank you to NetGalley and Viking Books for giving me an advanced copy.

This was such a fun retelling of Mulan that I read it as quickly as possible while working retail on a holiday weekend. Ying is the perfect female protagonist with her fiercely smart and independent personality. And while she was naive to the world's ways, she still pushed to better herself to find her father's killer and become a member of the Engineer's Guild.

Ye-Yang and Ye-Kan are amazing male leads that I can't wait to see more of. It will be interesting to see what will happen when Ying realizes just how much Ye-Kan cares for her. I can only imagine how dirty the battle for her heart will be. I just hope her sister makes it out of the fight as unscathed as possible because of the marriage contract between her and Ye-Yang.

I'm wondering with the impending war that Ying will end up back as a proper engineer to help save the country from the war. She is the brightest mind they have seen since her father in a long time after all. Things are only going to get darker as the story goes on. I just need them to not be completely traumatized in the end.

I sincerely hope that more people read this book, because of how much I liked it. Please go read this when it comes out on June 18th!

Thank you to the publisher and author for the ARC!

This is a classic YA fantasy with a “school training” arc. I enjoyed the elements of Asian culture brought into the book, but I feel like it might also have hindered it a bit when it came to the world building. The author borrows liberally enough from the real world (using the Chinese language, costume descriptions reminiscent of the Manchus, etc) that the world created never feels truly fantastical. It felt a little confusing
at times keeping track of all the elements introduced as they felt familiar-but-not to reality.

I had a hard time getting into this in the beginning and kept putting it down or feeling my attention wander, but I will say it picked up at the latter third
of the book. I am curious to find out what happens and would pick up the sequel if I came across it!

I dfn this quite early, it reminded me a lot of Iron Widow but with a protagonist that I don't really like. I think a lot of people might enjoy the book, but it wasn't for me. I don't know why I keep thinking that books labeled as "High Fantasy" are going to give me a more adult feeling, but this felt very adolescent to me (in a bad way).

Rating: 3.5/5

Of Jade and Dragons is your classic first YA fantasy novel in a series, and I enjoyed it. The main character, Aihui Ying, has always felt different from the other people in her home. She doesn't fall into the stereotypical boxes of interests that are expected of a young woman in this society, and instead is more interested in engineering and flying. The only person who understands and supports her love of engineering is her father, who used to be a famous Capitol engineer but has since returned to his home clan to be the chieftain. But when Ying's father is murdered, she goes to the Capitol herself, while disguised as a boy, in order to find her father's killer and avenge his death.

I enjoyed this story, but I don't think it was incredible. A lot of the plot felt rushed along and a lot of the characters felt one dimensional, especially her close friends at the engineering school and her siblings. I wish we learned a lot more about the characters around her, as well as the engineering school, more about her classes, more about how she hid being a boy while sharing a room, etc, I just wish this book has a lot more detail and development. I also wish we knew the exact ages of the main character and the characters around her. This book also has some time jumps where I wish we got to see more scenes instead of just jumping to a later date. I just felt like this book needed a lot more clarity and detail to feel real.

I think the next book in this series needs to be incredible in order to really set this series apart from others in this genre. While this book was pretty average and set the stage for the world and characters, the next book has to introduce something really new and exciting in order to set it apart from other series in this genre. With the ending of this book, I really have no idea where the plot will go or what the next book will entail, so I'm curious to see what the author has planned for the next installment in this series.

I'd like to thank net galley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

I really wanted to enjoy this book. The premise of an engineering guild apprenticeship had me far too hopeful for something akin to Babel or The Name of the Wind. Instead, the only remotely memorable part of the entire arc is a teacher who the author may as well have just named Severus Snape. Neither the guild nor anything that Ying learned or studied were fleshed out very well; it all felt very hollow, with a lot of telling instead of showing.

Sadly, the other main plot points of murder and war were established even more poorly. The world building felt very insubstantial, as did almost all of the characters. The relationships especially did not feel developed enough to seem believable. Ying also seemed to have the maturity and self control of a small child, never remotely thinking anything through and often acting in ways that seemed incongruous with how she should have been feeling. There seemed to be no grieving period or respect for her father, she just instantly set her sights on revenge and often acted bafflingly in opposition to what her father would have wanted.

There were so many deux ex machina moments and plot contradictions that it almost distracted me from the fact that despite the immaturity of Ying’s actions, she was such a massive Mary Sue that she was able to hold her own against the nations most highly trained assassins. She was also able to easily overcome having no formal engineering training, spending all of her free time plotting and scheming instead of studying, and still emerging as the star pupil. The largest offenses come in the end of the book, ruining the only section that actually had enjoyable pacing. I won’t go into details to avoid spoilers, but the ending was both frustrating and at odds with what how the characters should act.

Thank you to the author, Penguin Group and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you PenguinTeen for e-ARC!

Engineer wannabe in mulan retelling! this is such a page turner book for me yet i feel like the worldbuilding didnt feel like a fantasy novel for some reasons. I would like to put 3.25 stars for this book cause i need to know what happen in the second book and at that time i would change this rating too, perhaps.

I was super excited for this title, but it just wasn't for me.

I made it about 20% into this book before I decided it wasn't for me. Overall, the book was well-written and the initial plot sounded really promising. I found myself struggling to get into the story and connect with the characters. I don't think this was an issue with the book, but more so with myself. I definitely think this book has an audience out there. Sadly, it just wasn't for me. It might be a title I try to pick up again in the future though. I could see the potential, but it just wasn't clicking with me as a reader right now.

I would like to thank the author and publisher for the opportunity to review this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rating; DNF'd

Thank you to Viking Books for Young Readers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an early copy of Of Jade and Dragons!

I really enjoyed reading this, even if there were times I wanted to throttle Ying. Mostly every time she nearly got herself killed because she refused to follow her father's dying wish. I was expecting that my favorite relationship would be Ying and Ye-yang and, don't get me wrong, they're great, but I ended up loving her friendship with Ye-kan the most.

I cannot wait to see what happens in book 2!

If you're a fan of angsty teenage revenge plots, girls disguising themselves as boys because of societal misogyny, and explosions, then this book might interest you!

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the arc of this book. all opinions are my own.

This was fantastic. I really enjoyed it! I'd recommend it. Such a great fantasy! I had a lot of fun reading.

Wow! What a deput by Amber Chen!

“Of Jade and Dragons” was a journey for me. I loved the quick pacing in the first part of the book. That it didn’t take our MFC long to get to the capital city & into the school. But the first half fell a little flat for me. I found myself forcing myself to read to get through it, more than enjoying it. I think if the romance had come in a little sooner, that would’ve swayed me to be a little more invested.

However the last half was the redemption for me! I enjoyed every second of it. I found myself excited to jump back into the book when I wasn’t reading. The plot, side characters, and setting felt so original and natural. The ending felt a tad bit predictable but I STILL enjoyed it! I’m curious to see how Chen plans to continue the series. The ending felt very final.

Will come back once it’s published to add link to my review! Thank you for the advanced copy!!

** spoiler alert ** Thank you PenguinTeen and NetGalley for my very first ARC!

Of Jade and Dragons starts fast-paced, immediately sucking you into the story. You get a clear sense of Ying’s personality from the start, as well as her resolve. One of my favorite parts of the book was how she stuck to her goal, even when her father’s killer was revealed and Ye-Yang started acting shady.

I wouldn’t describe the book as fast-paced throughout, which works for building the story elements. It’s definitely an original story with a Mulan take, but I like how the love interest knew she was a girl from the start. The engineering focus is also original. It’s a fantasy with war-elements but that takes a backseat somewhat compared to the engineering aspect, since this is the main part of the book.

Now: the romance between Ying and Ye-yang (though it’s not a really main aspect of the book compared to other elements). Originally I was rooting so strongly for them. He seemed like such a respectable guy (a little too good to be true I see now) and was rooting for Ying. The scene where she kisses him on his forehead and he’s actually awake??? *Perfection* Towards the end, when he gets betrothed to her sister (and apparently sticks through with it??? Like even if she says she’s not interested in you — lie — you don’t go marry her sister if *you* care for her) and his secrets were revealed, his dynamic got a little confusing to keep up with. This could be to have readers feel how Ying is feeling — unsure of what’s real with him and what’s not. In the very end, I have conflicting feelings with him saying he’s going to come back for her and is sure he wants her — could have the potential of a morally gray character or just a jerk. Hard to tell. Especially because I feel like if he told Ying his plans from the start, she’d probably have gone through with it and then they’d be a morally gray, slightly vicious, power couple but this goes against the character arc of Ying I guess.

If Ye-Yang is going to be the ultimate love interest, it’ll be interesting to see his redemption arc. (Boy needs to *grovel* if you ask me).

All in all, Of Jade and Dragons was an interesting read and had a lot of original elements.


Disclaimer: receiving this ARC has not impacted my review.

Thank you @penguinteen @netgalley #partner for the gifted copy of this ebook!

What it’s about:
Aihui Ying just wants to be a kick booty fighter like her dad when she grows up and when he is suddenly murdered she feels utterly lost. She stumbles across one of his journals where he had written all of this engineering secrets and a pendant. She wants to understand how this could happen and more about his secrets but because she’s a girl she isn’t able to. Thankfully she’s determined and resourceful so she goes undercover as her brother to sneak into the all male apprenticeship. She has a friend who keeps her secret but she has to be careful and 💯 on her game because her competition is stiff and some are on to her. She can’t fully trust anyone and must dig to get to the bottom of these secrets and save her homeland and her life!

Thoughts: Let me first start with the cover. 👀 It is absolutely stunning and I’d buy it on that alone! The detail is incredible. 👏🏻

I absolutely loved this story! The dark academia vibes and Aihui going undercover as a male was my favorite part. I loved how she was sassy, determined, and stubborn. A favorite type of female MC. 💪🏻 The author does a spectacular job describing the setting and setting a vibe that felt perfect for this book. The pacing was perfect and i felt like the build up to the secrets being revealed and betrayal were done in a way that kept tension leading up to the end. I am excited this one is part of a series as I can’t wait to see what happens next!

This was a very fun YA fantasy story centering on a young woman disguising herself as a man in order to enter a previous engineering guild to find answers surrounding her father’s murder. The engineering aspect was really fun and creative. I liked the main character despite her inability to pay attention and propensity to run away with no explanation (a la Serena Van Der Woodsen). However, the romance subplot dragged this whole story down. There was absolutely no need for it, as it felt very superficial and added an unnecessary layer of conflict. The book could have been excellent without it.

Thank you Netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed the STEM aspects of the story where engineering was such a big part of it. I enjoyed the Mulan retelling portion where she’s disguised as a boy and having to deal with that. I didn’t end up enjoying the romance in the end which was too bad. I just felt like some of the storyline was not as enjoyable and a bit awkward which made me feel disconnected. I’m not really interested in continuing the series which is disappointing but another series I can check off my list 😂