Gods of Jade and Shadow

Simultaneously heartbreaking and heart-mending, Gods of Jade and Shadow is a wondrous and magical tale about choosing our own path. I felt weepy and happy and hopeful when I finished - everything you want to feel at the end of a great story * Kevin Hearne, New York Times-bestselling author of the Iron Druid Chronicles and Kill the Farm Boy *
An evocative and moving fairy-tale about a downtrodden girl and the Mayan God of Death and how they both find each other and their humanity together . . . Loved it. Highly recommend * Rebecca Roanhorse, author of Trail of Lightning *
I lost myself in the world, the magic, and the brilliance that is Gods of Jade and Shadow, a story that will linger with me for a very long time. Casiopea Tun will take readers on a journey they will not soon forget. She is the kind of heroine I rooted for from the very first page! * Jennifer A. Nielsen, New York Times bestselling author of The Traitor's Game *
A moving description of a young girl's coming of age and a seamless fusion of the real and the magical * Guardian *
Set in a lushly rendered and gorgeous world, this is historical fantasy at its best: a fresh, feminist coming-of-age tale that lets the ancient and the new meld and clash in a tale you can't put down * S.A. Chakraborty, author of The City of Brass and The Kingdom of Copper *
A lush, bittersweet tale of courage, love and carving your own place in the world . . . Silvia Moreno-Garcia's evocative prose will take you on an adventure for the mind and the heart * Christina Henry, author of Alice *
A beautiful work that will draw you in and keep you transfixed and reading far too late. It blends the 'real' and the mythic seamlessly, and the clear-sighted heroine is a joy to read about. It's the sort of book that will leave you with beautiful after-images for weeks to follow, and going back to re-read favourite sections * Genevieve Cogman, author of the Invisible Library series *
Silvia Moreno-Garcia's prose is like the best kind of fairytale - dark, enchanting, and makes you wish that you could live within its pages. Casiopea's journey belongs on every bookshelf * Zoraida Córdova, award-winning author of Labyrinth Lost *
A vibrant story of grit, giddiness, and glory with a protagonist whose personality burns bright as a star. Casiopea Tun will capture your heart and draw you into a jewel-toned world of myth-making and jazz music * Lara Elena Donnelly, author of The Amberlough Dossier series *
A magical novel of duality, tradition, and change . . . Moreno-Garcia's seamless blend of mythology and history provides a ripe setting for Casiopea's stellar journey of self-discovery, which culminates in a dramatic denouement. Readers will gladly immerse themselves in Moreno-Garcia's rich and complex tale of desperate hopes and complicated relationships * Publishers Weekly Starred Review *
Silvia Moreno-Garcia beautifully weaves the glamour and possibility of the Jazz Age with Mexican folklore, crafting a lush, enthralling coming of age fairytale . . .A hopeful and bittersweet tale, with a whip-smart, practical protagonist, and will appeal to fans of S.A. Chakraborty, Naomi Novik, and Katherine Arden * The Skinny *
Snappy dialog, stellar worldbuilding, lyrical prose, and a slow-burn romance make this a standout * Library Journal Starred Review *
An exotic adventure * Woman's Way *
An elegant and immersive tale, Silvia Moreno-Garcia's Gods of Jade and Shadow opened my eyes to the Mayan Underworld and took me on an adventure with a strong-willed, practical heroine and a prickly fallen godthat I never wanted to end. It feels like a modern classic, and is absolutely unforgettable * Kendare Blake, New York Times bestselling author of the Three Dark Crowns series *
Gods of Jade and Shadow was an easy, fun read that enchanted every step of the way, with the mood of a classic fairytale drifting beneath a whirl of Mayan myth and 1920s Mexico * While Reading and Walking *
Silvia Moreno-Garcia writes with verve and the Mayan mythology she draws on is fascinating * The Times *
A magical fairy tale about identity, freedom, and love, and it's like nothing you've read before * Bustle *
A richly imagined historical fantasy and one of the best I've read in a while * Reader's Retreat *
If you are a fan of magical realism, fairytales, Mayan civilisation and history in general then you will enjoy the Gods of Jade and Shadow, so make sure that you read it * Cultural Life Connection *
An astonishingly beautiful book. This is up there amongst one of my favourite books of all time and I strongly encourage everyone to read it * Esoteric Elixir *
A fantastic own voices story of Mayan Mythology, with a dark edge that brings you a brilliant and nuanced female character and is definitely a book you have to read * I Just Kinda Like Books *
A vibrant, visceral look at the duality of Mexican folklore . . . A twisting, constantly exciting story with an unmistakably sharp-edge looming in even its most innocuous scenes * Reminders of the Changing Time *
Part Jane Eyre and part Cinderella story, Moreno-Garcia's Gods of Jade and Shadow is a beautiful fantasy tale based on Mayan mythology. In a time with so much negative emphasis on Mexico, it's easy to forget that Mexico is a country with a very rich heritage, mythology and folklore. Moreno-Garcia successfully retells this myth with a beautiful prose and description of a Mexico of the 1920s * A Wondrous Bookshelf *
I loved reading about mythological characters that were new to me, in a setting that was so energetic and exciting * Alphabet Hannah *
Full of energy, vibrancy and Mayan culture * Umut Reviews *
An extremely impressive tale . . . Beautifully brilliant * Run Along the Shelves *
A great reading experience, I look forward to reading other books by this author. Highly recommended! * Annarellix *
I recommend Gods of Jade and Shadow to fantasy/mythology fans looking for something a little different * Nicki J Markus *
A page-turner that immerses you in a forgotten culture and it is a coming-of-age story about finding what you really want in the most unlikely of circumstances * The Nerd Daily *
A coming-of-age fairy tale of haunting shadows commingled with vibrant life * The i *
Well worth checking out * SFX *
An enchanting cocktail * Strange Horizons *
The fundamentals of storytelling have been, and will always be, a distinctive setting and well-drawn, memorable characters. Gods of Jade and Shadowhas both these elements in droves . . . One of the more appealing and defiant heroines in recent fantasy * Locus *
Casiopea is not a damsel in distress, but rather a young woman coming of age in a time where music, myth, art and exploration thrum colorfully around her. . . . Readers will be floored by Moreno-Garcia's painstaking attention to detail. Her descriptions of the emotionally charged interactions between realistic human characters and otherworldly gods, witches and demonic forces are unforgettable, as are the fairy-tale and folktale aspects of the plot * BookPage Starred Review *
It was exciting and adventurous and full of wants and longing and the pull between life and death, darkness and light. If you're looking for a book to sink into and really savor, look no further * The Bookish Beagle *