On My Bookshelf: Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Title: Gods of Jade and Shadow
Author: Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Genre: Fantasy, Maya Mythology, Death
My Rating: 5/5

Casiopea Tun dreams of dancing fast, swimming in the Pacific Ocean, and driving an automobile. Instead, she is trapped in a rural Mexican town serving her hateful grandfather and the rest of his family. One day, she opens the forbidden chest in her grandfather’s bedroom and releases the god of death, Hun-Kame, supreme leader of Xibalba. Together they must journey across Mexico and complete three trials to restore Hun-Kame to his throne. If they are successful, Hun-Kame will grant Casiopea’s heart’s desire. If they fail… Casiopea will die.

This story started off slowly, with exposition about the town, the family, and Casiopea’s hopes and personality, starkly in opposition to the show, don’t tell “rule” of writing. Based on the first chapter, I was prepared to be a little disappointed; I had my eye on this book for many months and was very excited to finally be able to read it. However, once Casiopea opened the chest, accidentally releasing Hun-Kame, the story took off and took me with it. I was completely caught up in the narrative, which does feature a lot of exposition, but it works. This is part historical fantasy, part love story, but the tone solidifies it as a beautifully-told brand-new myth.

Casiopea is as real as anyone, full of dreams, bitterness, curiosity, and love. She was inspiring in her strength, but it wasn’t a self-sacrificial strength a la Cinderella. She was always determined to save herself, and did, in the end.

As the story unfolded, I knew it was going to be a bittersweet ending and Garcia-Moreno delivered. I finished reading with a knot in my throat and stars in my eyes, hoping that Casiopea and Hun Kame could find a measure of peace in their futures. I love reading about Maya history, religion, and myth and this book was exactly what I was craving. I’ll be rereading Gods of Jade and Shadow regularly.

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.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Gods of Jade and Shadow

On My Bookshelf: The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

Title: The Hating Game
Author: Sally Thorne
Genre: Romance
My Rating: 5/5

Lucy Hutton adores her job as assistant to the co-CEO of a publishing company. The only problem is that she works opposite the worst person in the world: Joshua Templeman. Everything is a competition between the two of them, including the newly announced job opening for Chief of Operations. One of them will win the position. The other will resign.

As the interview approaches, the tension between them rises and their relationship starts to change. Lucy isn’t sure whether this is another game, but she realizes that whether she gets the job or not, she’s going to lose something important.

I borrowed The Hating Game from the library last year, read it in about a day, and then immediately reread it. I finally bought a copy for myself this month, read it in about two days (I savored it this time!) and then… immediately reread it. It will be a go-to comfort read forever, at this point.

The story has the perfect balance of plot and character development. Lucy is a quirky, likable character whose insecurities don’t hold her back from standing up to people in power. Josh is a snarky, yet shy and gentle, antagonist turned love interest. The enemies to friends to lovers trope is a tough one to get right because it has to be believable that the two people hate each other enough, yet not so much that they couldn’t form a connection (and then fall in love). Sally Thorne executes this trope well, in my opinion. Yes, Josh is Lucy’s adversary, but anyone who reads between the lines will quickly realize that Lucy is obsessed (not in a super creepy, weird way) with Josh and wants his attention and the same goes for him. The sexual tension between Lucy and Josh practically sizzles off the page and comes to a very satisfying (hah) conclusion.

The Hating Game is a really delightful romcom. I read Sally Thorne’s second book, 99 Percent Mine, and reviewed it a while back, because I liked The Hating Game so much. This is a stronger story than that one, but both are solid romcoms and earned Sally Thorne a spot on my “will read anything by this author” list.

Have you read The Hating Game? Do you love or hate the enemies to lovers trope?

I have a theory. Hating someone feels disturbingly similar to being in love with them. I’ve had a lot of time to compare love and hate, and these are my observations.

The Hating Game, Sally Thorne

On My Bookshelf: 99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne

1 Comment

Title: 99 Percent Mine
Author: Sally Thorne
Genre: Romance
My Rating: 4/5

One of my latest reads is Sally Thorne’s “99 Percent Mine,” a delightful friends to lovers romance. I feel like giving this book only four stars is a little unfair of me. I couldn’t help comparing it to Sally’s first book, “The Hating Game,” which I loved so much that I read it twice in a row. Despite my bias, “99 Percent Mine” is worth a read. The main character is both flawed and loveable and the love interest, thankfully, is a well-rounded character in his own right. Though the book oozes with sexual tension, both characters have their own growth arcs that don’t revolve around each other. Sally Thorne has a strong voice and a fresh take on romance tropes. I will read anything she writes in the future.