Of Jade and Dragons by Amber Chen

Eighteen-year-old Aihui Ying dreams of becoming a world-class engineer like her father, but after his sudden murder, her life falls apart. Left with only a journal of her father’s engineering secrets and a jade pendant snatched from the assassin, a heartbroken Ying follows the trail to the capital and the prestigious Engineers Guild—a place that harbors her father’s hidden past—determined to discover why anyone would threaten a man who ultimately chose a quiet life over fame and fortune.

Disguised as her brother, Ying manages to infiltrate the guild’s male-only apprenticeship trial with the help of an unlikely ally—Aogiya Ye-yang, the taciturn eighth prince of the High Command. With her father’s renown placing a target firmly on her back, Ying must stay one step ahead of her fellow competitors, the jealous guild masters, and the killer still hunting for her father’s journal. Complicating everything is her increasingly tangled relationship with the prince, who may have mysterious plans of his own.

The secrets concealed within the guild can be as deadly as the weapons they build—and with her life and the future of her homeland at stake, Ying doesn’t know who to trust. Can she avenge her father even if it means going against everything he stood for, or will she be next in the mastermind’s line of fire?

Hardcover, 466 pages

Published June 1, 2024

 by Viking Books for Young Readers

4/5 stars

This was a recent OwlCrate book box selection. I went in totally blind, but how can one go wrong with a dragon on the cover. I love the owl crate cover but gotta say I like the other cover available, see images below.

For 18 year-old Aihui, her life is shattered with the death of her father. She saw the murderer escape and has now setout to discover the identity of the assassin and the why.  There is nothing in his past to give her a clue why this happened.  Disguising as her brother she manages to get into a guild to learn more about her father‘s past where she discovers secrets that he had been hiding.

This is the first book in the Fall of the Dragon series, which, as we know with series, the first book doesn't usually answer all of our questions. There was a lot going on, not just dragons. There is STEM content, along with mystery, betrayal, and of course a little touch of romance. 

I enjoyed this book. I found it intriguing with the world building, it was mysterious as to her father‘s unknown past, the secrets within the journal he wanted her to destroy and why someone would kill this man who was just quietly living with his family.

Book 2, The Blood Phoenix, comes out in June and I will continue this series.

This book was part of my 2024 reading off my shelf challenge.