#kaul Lan

[fionacreates]

Day whatever of drawing through my obsession with Jade City/Green Bone Saga by Fonda Lee

Kaul Lan, oldest idiot of the Kaul siblings.

[ramblingsofalunatic]

underrated jade city moment

[mythrender]

Back to Tumblr after years away (hi folks!), so I guess I’ll share the cover art I painted for THE JADE SETTER OF JANLOON by Fonda Lee!

This is a wraparound cover for Subterranean Press’ limited edition of the novella; I got to do the title lettering too:

When coming up with ideas, I wrote a mini brief for myself: balance, power, mystery, family ties. The jade setters' neutrality is central to the story and a counterpoint to the clans’ power. (Alternative brief: make it jade as fuck.)

Figuring out the composition was tricky—the piece's rhythm has to work not just when viewed as a whole, but also in smaller sections like the back and front flaps. And while the novella introduces new characters, the Pillars and Horns still loom large as symbols over Janloon...a nod to both their power in the city as well as how readers would be coming off JADE CITY or JADE WAR  familiar with the Kaul family or Mada and Gont Asch.

While reading the manuscript I jot down ideas as they flash by. The seed for this cover can be seen in the top left of this sketchbook page:

I then develop each thumbnail into a very rough colour sketch and put them together with reference images to send to Fonda and Bill Schafer at Sub Press. Sort of a combination of moodboard and thumbnails:

Got the go-ahead to develop thumbnail D, so I make a more detailed sketch of the full composition, with two options for characters’ gestures on the front cover:

And then it’s off to paint! I sneak in little references to the story where I can. The mansion is based on the Straits Eclectic architectural style of shophouses in Penang, where I live, while some of the buildings in the city are based on Hong Kong. Many hours of painting and finagling later, it’s finished, gets sent to the publisher, then the printers, then to Green Bone fans everywhere.

I recently turned in the cover for JADE SHARDS, a short story anthology that’s my favourite Green Bone Saga title so far, and I can’t wait for everyone to see it when pre-orders open next year! Don’t take my word for it: https://twitter.com/FondaJLee/status/1574248123463266304

Fonda’s also posted a peek at the signature page over on her Instagram, showing a crop of Shae and cormorants from the cover art. It’s been a real honour and pleasure getting to draw for a world I’m a fan of :)

[the-guild-codex-and-other-things]

The Entire Green Bone Saga Summarized in 1 Line:

“What the fuck have you done, Kaul?”

- Jade Legacy

[feysandfeels]

Fonda Lee gave us one of the sexiest moments in modern literature when, in Jade City, she had Hilo go “Heaven help me Shae, I’m going to kill them all”. But oh at what cost, at what godammend cost.

[greyscalemoon]

rip kaul lan u ate ur 31 chapters

[4amethyst]

Me I'm the horn's kitten 🙏🏽

[tbookblurbs]

Jade City - Fonda Lee

5/5 - Irresistible world-building, politics (national and gang), intrigue, family tension, everything you could want out of an urban fantasy. MAJOR spoilers below!

Jade City is the first novel in the Green Bone saga and it is deliciously well-written. Character voices are distinct, the mistakes they make are realistic, and even when I didn't like some of the main characters or the actions they were taking, I wanted them to succeed. I was emotionally invested in the outcome of every character's fate, from the secondary characters to the Pillar of the clan, Kaul Lan. Sometimes this did mean I was invested in watching them fail (Bero) but I was invested nevertheless!

The world-building within the novel was incredibly rich. The "magic" system of jade is a very hard magic system but I really enjoyed how effortlessly it was woven into everyday life. Lee takes the time to mention, in an offhand fashion, details about Kekon and the greater world that make it that much easier to fully sink into the world she's built. I read this entire book in one long sitting.

Kekon itself really reminded me of the Philippines. The Kekonese war for independence was with Espenia (Spain) and overall the positioning of Kekon on the global stage is really reminiscent of how formerly colonized nations have to act in our global geopolitics. That said, my interpretation did mean that I don't really jive with a lot of the fanart of Lan, Hilo, and Shae. In my mind, they all have darker skin and a lot of the fanart has them pretty pale (like k-pop idol pale).

I also loved that this book took place over a realistic timeline. Weeks would go by in a few sentences before we'd get a fleshed out scene because Lee understands we don't need to see the minutia of day-to-day life. It also means that the characters were aging, falling in love, graduating school, etc. at a normal rate. There was no instantaneous love, no "I'm better than everyone else and do this without schooling" and this was, for me, really refreshing (especially after reading the All Souls Trilogy, which suffers from this).

The twist with the death of Lan was truly something I never saw coming. Up until, and even after, the point where he falls into the harbor, I was convinced that he would make it. He was so confident, so level-headed, and everyone relied on him so much that, in my head, his death never entered the realm of possibility. And thus I fell into the same trap as the other characters. Scrumptious writing here.

By far my favorite characters are Shae and Anden. They both have internal struggles with their heritage that are realistic and heartbreaking at times. Even when they make mistakes and are rightfully called out for it in other perspectives, I still have such a soft spot for the position they're both put in. It makes sense that they're also close in the book. Plus, seeing Anden struggle with wanting to come out as gay but being nervous about it and ultimately being accepted without conditions, hesitations, or reservations was really heartwarming.

Overall, this book is the combination of urban fantasy, the Godfather, and the Shanghai/Hong Kong gangster movies from the 80s. I would recommend those who love fantasy and thrillers alike, it's a amazing entry into the trilogy.

[austenwazright]

Could we all just take a moment and talk about the stark difference of Lan giving Anden a way out, saying he would be no less family if he decided he didn't want to wear any jade and Hilo straight out tossing him out the family and calling him a mongrel for it?? Like come on

[cikebabbler]

I only had like half a book with lan but I miss him all the same :(

[fionacreates]

Day 4 of this book won’t leave my brainspace. Hilo and Lan from Jade City by Fonda Lee.

Did I give Lan long, well groomed hair just so i can draw him with it all mussed up later? 1000% yes.

[ma1dmer]

Fonda Lee the woman that you are!!!!

[insignificantly-notorious]

I created a Green Bone Saga playlist because I was bored:

LINK: Green Bone Saga | Jade City

[indie-luna]

How will I ever emotionally recover from reading jade legacy

[feysandfeels]

Being a book wife is hard because my book husband is, well, fictional, but being a book widow is even worse BECAUSE MY BOOK HUSBAND DIED!

[shesaidfcukyou]

THE GREEN BONE SAGA: Current depression sources 😭