The Green Bone Saga by Fonda Lee: Just How Good is the Fantasy Crime Drama Trilogy?

Just how good is The Green Bone Saga?

It’s extremely, extremely good. It’s great actually. I wrote each of the following book reviews after finishing each subsequent novel in the series (without spoilers). So, if you want more of my thoughts on Jade City, Jade War, and Jade Legacy, you’ll find those below.

However, my ultimate recommendation is that you should read this series. It’s definitely not a short trilogy, with each book topping 500 pages, but reading The Green Bone Saga is certainly time well spent. With a story that crosses into many different genres and features a cast of memorable and unique characters, these books are some of the best that I’ve read in as long as I can remember.

Jade City (Green Bones Saga #1)

Jade City is the first novel in Fonda Lee’s Green Bones Saga. This first book is a fantasy crime drama that I greatly enjoyed, more and more so as the story went along.

Jade City is set primarily in the capital city of the fictional island nation, Kekon. The city has two major clans that vie for control, the No Peak Clan and the Mountain Clan. These clans operate in a manner similar to crime families, like the yakuza or mafia. There’s definitely a good amount of crime politics and strategy in Jade City.

The fantasy elements in the story come from the fact that jade found on the island can give people special abilities, like enhanced strength or perception. As a result, jade is highly prized and regulated by (and within) the clans. Fighting members within a clan, called Green Bones, adorn themselves with jade to gain such special abilities.

The story focuses on four siblings who are at the head of the No Peak Clan and the struggles within the clan, and with the Mountain (the other major clan). I felt like the novel took some time to really get going – the first third or so of the book feels like a lot of setup – but once things really got into motion, I was thoroughly enthralled with this book. It’s part Hong Kong action movie and part crime drama with fantasy elements, and it’s written by Lee in an easy-to-read manner. 

While the story ends somewhat open ended, I was still satisfied with the way the threads in this book were wrapped up. It left me wanting more, while also feeling enough like a book that stands on its own. I strongly recommend Jade City.

Grade: 9/10

Jade War (Green Bones Saga #2)

Wow. I thoroughly enjoyed Jade City, and compared to that first book, Jade War is even better. This second book in the Green Bones Saga does take a little while to pick up the pace, but once it does, it intensifies in just about every way imaginable.

Reading Jade War feels similar to watching an 8-episode season of a television show where the first six episodes are really good and the final two are downright fantastic. The story builds nicely, and then those last 150 pages offer some of the best reading I’ve enjoyed since adding the What Jeff Read section to this website.

Lee has just crafted some fantastic characters – particularly the core members of the Kaul family. The drama and family dynamics are some of my favorite parts of the series. It’s also worth noting that Lee has crafted two of the most complex and well-developed female characters I’ve ever read in a crime story of this sort.

When you think of a violent crime drama (with added fantasy elements here too of course) you usually imagine male characters being the focus of the story. That’s not the case with Jade War. Shea and Wen are both fantastic characters whose perspectives we understand perfectly. Though they are extremely different from one another, they represent, in many ways, two sides of the same coin.

There are also a lot of politics in this one, even more so than in Jade City. There’s much more conflict on a global scale and not simply conflict within the city where our clans are based. It can be a little much at times, and the list of character names and who they are at the start of the book definitely comes in handy.

Still, overall, this doesn’t really detract from my overall feelings on the book. Just the emotional impact and intensity and how good those last 150 pages are – as I said at the start of this review: Wow.

Grade: 9.5/10

Jade Legacy (Green Bones Saga #3)

Wow again. Double wow even. As I stated earlier, I enjoyed Jade War even more than Jade City. Well, Jade Legacy is the best book in the trilogy. It’s a fitting end to three books that culminate in what’s ultimately a fantastic literary achievement.

Jade Legacy, at 713 pages, is the longest book in the series. We’re dealing with a lot of characters, and the number of point-of-view characters is greater than it was in prior books. Still, time with characters feels well distributed, with enough focus still placed on the major members of the Kaul family so that they never feel neglected.

In contrast to prior books, there’s also a lot more ground covered in the pages of Jade Legacy. It’s a story that spans far more time than Jade City and Jade War, and, as a result, it feels more epic in its scope.

While prior books in the trilogy take a little while to really get going, Jade Legacy has no such issues. I’d say within the first 50-100 pages of the novel we’re firmly into, “wow, this book is phenomenal” territory. Jade Legacy is an emotional rollercoaster that’s both expertly paced and written.

Without giving anything away, the ending of the book is fantastic and fits well with the entire trilogy. Jade Legacy is a triumph that caps off what is certainly one of the best series I’ve ever read. I couldn’t recommend it more.

Grade: 10/10

Overall Trilogy Grade (taking all three books into consideration): 9.5/10