The Queen Jade: A Novel (Red Lion) (Spanish Edition) [Hardcover]

Yxta Maya Murray (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2005 | Series: Red Lion

The secret history of an empire
The mythical power of a stone
The quest to solve the legend of ... The Queen Jade

For centuries, explorers and scholars of the New World have been captivated by a legend involving the tragic life of a King, a Witch, and a giant blue jade stone whose beauty is intoxicating -- a stone whose possessor is said to be granted a life filled with power -- that stone is called the Queen Jade.

In 1998, Hurricane Mitch tears through Central and South America. A mine of blue jade the size of Rhode Island is uncovered in a Guatemalan mountain range known as Las Sierras de las Minas. For hundreds of years, blue jade relics have been found in the Americas, but the actual source of the precious stone has never been discovered -- until now. The revelation of the blue jade mine solves an archaeological mystery that has baffled scholars for centuries and gives hope to those who have staked their lives on finding the Queen Jade.

The novel unfolds on the eve of the hurricane and centers on Lola Sanchez and her archaeologist mother, Juana. Juana believes that she has discovered the key to unlocking the mystery of the Queen Jade and has gone into the jungle alone to find the stone -- the same week that Hurricane Mitch ravages the land. When her mother disappears in the storm, Lola sets out to find her and embarks on a course of action that will lead to the adventure of her life.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A trek through the Guatemalan rain forest helps a Mexican-American woman heal old family wounds—and solve a centuries-old archeological puzzle to boot—in this atmospheric, long-winded adventure story by Murray (The Conquest). Lola Sanchez, a 30ish Californian bookseller, is long accustomed to dispatching her difficult mother, Juana, on archeological missions to the "jaguar-and-relic-filled jungles of Guatemala." But this time is different: Hurricane Mitch has devastated much of the country, and Lola fears that her mother's quest to discover the "magic queen of all jades"—a rare blue relic whose fabled power has obsessed centuries of European explorers—will lead her into dangerously flood-ravaged terrain. So she closes shop and heads for the rain forest, accompanied by Juana's academic rival, Erik Gomara, a paunchy lothario; her own intensely bitter ex-friend, Yolanda de la Rosa, who boasts expertise with a machete; and Manuel Alvarez, her frail, panicky father. These entertaining characters are all sharply drawn, and the depiction of the teeming jungle is breathtaking. But Murray is less successful at conveying the mythos of the Queen Jade and the history of its pursuit. Too much of the novel consists of the characters reading documents aloud to one another or pedantically lecturing. The repeat appearances of a menacing mustached soldier add zip to the plot, but seem forced and implausible, as does the family tree–altering conclusion in an amazing cave.
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From Booklist

Murray has fashioned a good old-fashioned lost-treasure tale fleshed out with plenty of action, intrigue, and romance. After her intrepid archaeologist mother disappears in the Guatemalan jungle during an epic hurricane, meek bookstore-owner Lola Sanchez is determined to find and rescue her with the ironic--if able--assistance of one of Juana Sanchez's most detested professorial rivals. Of course, Lola and Erik soon discover that Juana was hot on the trail of an archaeological grand prize: the legendary Queen Jade, a rare blue jade stone said to possess mystical powers. As they traipse through mountains and jungles, passions flare, family secrets are revealed, and danger lurks along every obscure footpath. In the finest tradition of adventure yarns, the would be lovers succumb to their ever smoldering attraction to one another, and the treasure is located, though it is not at all what it first appeared to be. A rip roaring page turner that concludes with a satisfying twist. Margaret Flanagan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Rayo (February 1, 2005)
• Language: Spanish
• ISBN-10: 0060582642
• ISBN-13: 978-0060582647
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,192,324 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More than an adventure mystery, March 3, 2005

By 

Osprey (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Queen Jade: A Novel (Red Lion) (Spanish Edition) (Hardcover)

I've loved adventure tales like Indiana Jones since I was a kid. But let's face it, when it comes to character development, most of them are a bit one dimensional (daVinci Code anyone?). The Queen Jade has all the elements of a great adventure tale - a disappearance in an exotic locale, a mysterious treasure, clues that must be unraveled, terror, jeopardy and a final surprise, but it's much more layered than that. Below the treasure hunt is another adventure that we all go through - unraveling the mysteries of our relationships with the people closest to us. The characters are sympathetic (you know who the good guys are) but they're also complex and flawed, which makes for interesting and believable interpersonal dynamics. The two adventure tales are woven together by Murray's rich, evocative prose. You'd swear you can see that sunset and smell the rich jungle earth. The best of genre fiction plays to the genre's conventions but at the same time transcends them. The Queen Jade is one of those books - a great yarn that leaves you with much to think about even after you've finished the book. I've heard that this is the first of a trilogy. Can't wait to read the next adventure.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Choppy...., June 22, 2005

By 

C. Klock (Madison, WI) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Queen Jade: A Novel (Red Lion) (Spanish Edition) (Hardcover)

This novel reads more like an outline with big holes in both the character development and the plot. Unlike the professional reviews, I didn't mind the excerpts that were the foundation of the historical quest - what bothered me were the characters themselves. I found their behavior to be at times bizarre and had a hard time liking any of them. The situations and the characters' reactions were far-fetched with no surrounding build-up of detail to back up the plot. I give this 2 stars for originality and 0 stars for detail and character development.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Heart-thumping, pulse-pounding adrenaline rush of a story, April 1, 2005

By 

K. Pratt "Code sleuth" (Pacific Palisades, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Queen Jade: A Novel (Red Lion) (Spanish Edition) (Hardcover)

Good news for Yxta Maya Murray fans. The Queen Jade is every bit as good as her last book, The Conquest -- and that's saying something. Both books have exquisitely defined characters who display the complexity and unpredictability of real people. Both books transport you through time and place to intriguing worlds grounded in historical fact. Both books provide such rich, evocative descriptions of what the characters see, hear, feel, smell, and taste that you feel you are THERE yourself. Both books appeal to armchair travellers who love exotic locales.

How does The Queen Jade differ from The Conquest? In a few ways. The most obvious difference between the two books is pacing. The Conquest balanced action sequences with contemplative reflections more equally, but The Queen Jade is a heart-thumping, pulse-pounding adrenaline-rush of an adventure, punctuated by brief but searing moments of revelation. Reading The Conquest was the literary equivalent of sipping a delicious liqueur from an ornamental cordial glass in a European drawing room; the Queen Jade is like pounding shots of premium Tequilla with a best buddy in a tropical dive. Both are fun, but for different reasons. Also, both books revolve around an historical mystery, but the mystery in The Queen Jade may appeal more to readers who like codes and code-breaking. Another difference in The Queen Jade is more mythic imagery. The reader feels the pull of the emerald path and the arrow of birds that the adventurers follow deep into the jungle in the wake of the hurricane. My only disappointment with The Queen Jade was that it was over too soon! I look forward to following Lola on more adventures, and hope they will be forthcoming soon.

A final note for readers who like historically based books about codes and code breaking. I liked The Queen Jade much better than Gang of Four. Perhaps in part that's because I'd rather vicariously experience the exotic Guatemalan jungle, teaming with life and the Force of Nature, than the steaming, claustrophic bowels of an Ivy League college dormitory.