Blood and Jade [Paperback]

Sally Kohonoski (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 2001

Step into the exotic land of the Classic Maya when majestic cities scatter the jungle like jewels, when lords of The Blood wage taboo wars, and when a small, club-footed boy and his mother become entangled in ancient prophecy.

BLOOD AND JADE is about Lady Quetzal. When a treacherous noble seizes the kingdom of Balan-Ke and murders all the king's children, she flees into exile with her small son, Pacal, vowing to return and regain the Jade Crown. Exiled from all she loves, hunted by enemies, she must protect her son and unborn child and, at the same time, seek allies for her besieged kinsmen.

The novel also tells the story of nine-year-old Pacal, whose adventures take readers on a perilous journey through ancient Maya places.

Based on historic figures gleaned from the translations of Mayan glyphs, BLOOD AND JADE tells of the Bone Clan's dynastic struggle to survive in a land of jungle kingdoms, a time of warlords and heroes, and a world of magic and myth.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...a unique and refreshing work in the oft-times trite and mundane world of historical fiction." -- The Beaufort Gazette, Sunday, July 28, 2002 --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From the Author

The idea for BLOOD AND JADE was sparked during a hieroglyphics seminar ten years ago. We were translating a passage from the Temple of Inscriptions at Palenque in Mexico. And there it was. A drama, right between those ancient lines: a mother fighting for her son's birthright, a little club-footed boy thrust into prophecy, and a kingdom savaged by vicious warfare. I had to write it! --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 500 pages
• Publisher: Xlibris Corp (December 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401026893
• ISBN-13: 978-1401026899
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,501,849 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Magic Realism from a Time of Blood and Honor, April 19, 2002

By 

Mary A. Turzillo "Marite" (Cleveland, OH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Blood and Jade (Paperback)

I loved Pacal. He alternated between the baby boy he'd been before his people were brutally massacred to the brilliant strategist who escapes his savage enemies to rejoin his regal and fascinating mother, Lady Quetzal and rebuild the empire to which he is the rightful and benign heir. Yes, it's history, very good history, but as I read, I forgot the fact that it happened years ago and far away. I was there, in the steaming fleshpots, in the court, in the trials of the flesh.

There are moments of tenderness -- with two such complex characters, how could there not? But most of all, the book takes you into itself, into a time and a culture that is no more -- but
that Kohonoski makes live in a deep and impelling way.

Fabulous book. One can only hope for a sequel. I have to see Pacal as a lover and king!

4.0 out of 5 stars Exciting Saga, February 26, 2002

By 

Astrid Julian (Cleveland, OH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Blood and Jade (Paperback)

Blood and Jade by Sally Kohonoski

Meticulously researched at libraries, workshops on Mayan culture and language, and by an expedition to the actual jungles that made up the ancient Mayan kingdom of Balan-Ke, Sally Kohonoski's Blood and Jade brings to life one of the most complex cultures that ever existed in the Americas.

When the king and all his children are killed, long before the arrival of the first Europeans to the Americas, a small and weak boy named Pacal finds himself heir to the throne. Will he live to fulfill the great destiny the jungle goddess has promised him? Or will he die at the hands of the kingdom's many enemies as he and his mother Lady Quetzal fight to save the kingdom of Balan-Ke? The narrative follows mother and son over dangerous mountain passes, along crocodile-infested waters, and through the jungle kingdoms of rival lords.

Not just the historically significant events are depicted in this novel. The day-to-day life of the Maya is also described -- their food and clothing, the flowers, the weaving and the games -- giving this novel a gritty reality that makes us wonder if perhaps somewhere deep in the jungle, the descendants of Pacal aren't still weaving their huipils and baking honey-bread.