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The main character Zetian is an obviously flawed character who has risen from commoner prisoner to empress and now has to deal with balancing the politics of her new position as well as her relationship with the new emperor, while trying to protect the two men she loves (a polyamourous relationship).
I would have been interested to see Zetian fighting against true gods but I am curious to see where the third book will go in terms of introducing an intergalactic landscape and the challenges that come with it.
Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Murder, War, Classism
Moderate: Body horror, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Gun violence, Blood, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Colonisation
Minor: Mental illness, Rape, Medical trauma
I am enthralled with the character advancement and changes in detail as Zetian becomes more informed on deeper layers of her main struggles with gender politics, societal constructs, and power dynamics around personal vs community freedom. Its great watching her work with what she has and try to make the most of her situation.
Moderate: Ableism, Chronic illness, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Grief, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, War
Graphic: Ableism, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Medical content, Murder, Pregnancy, Colonisation, Classism
Graphic: Addiction, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Genocide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Colonisation, War, Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Alcohol
Minor: Rape
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Body shaming, Confinement, Physical abuse, Sexism, Police brutality, Murder, Classism
Minor: Child abuse, Sexual assault
Zetian is the perfect encapsulation of the sentiment "I support women's wrongs". I think that the way this book explores the complex emotions that Zetian has about her rise to the heights of power is incredibly interesting. Zhao's writing emphasizes Zetian's internal struggle for independence versus her feelings of belonging within a group. This inner battle is explored in even greater detail as the story progresses and Zetian develops her political alliance and fosters the integration of women into greater places of power.
Also, Zhao's finessed writing of the side characters made me feel the same way about them that Zetian does throughout the story. They each served to highlight the war occurring within and outside the court demonstrating authoritarian and patriarchal approaches to conflict. As Zetian is often swept to the side during important political decisions for a man's opinion the plot continues to highlight the rage that builds inside Zetian throughout the first book. Furthermore, it helps to improve the reader's understanding as Zetian begins to make her political calculations.
Layered on top of exploring the characters, Zhao also articulates the political intrigues of the imperial court. This subplot has a strong sense of authenticity, due to the book's roots in the biography of the real Wu Zetian. The nuanced discussion of the problems encountered by the revolutionary government was also approached in such an interesting way that allowed Zetian to show growth in her political understanding as well as demonstrate her humanity to the people of Huaxia. Zhao was also able to highlight that having a seat at the table is not the same thing as having equality within a society.
The ending of this book was wild. I know that there is some source material used for the basis of this book that I am not aware of, but I did feel that the final portion of the book was a bit rushed. I am also confused about where the battle lines are now drawn between the different factions of the book. Maybe a reread or the next book will provide some clarity, but I'm not entirely sure what to make of these events. Also, I'm not sure what Zetian gained through her actions.
Overall, an enthralling read. If you love morally grey characters, battles, and political intrigue I would highly recommend it.
Graphic: Ableism, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Child death, Confinement, Hate crime, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Classism
Moderate: Eating disorder
We've waited so long for the sequel (the author talks about why that was on their social media) and it's finally here! It's filled with action, mechas, complex power struggles, political action, revolution, destroying the patriarchy, and eating the rich.
The exposition was great and engaging. I was immediately sucked in. Even in parts where it got heavily political, I was still into it because I agree with the author's stance on politics and our need for a revolution. Qin Zheng was a great addition to the cast. He's a formidable opponent/ally to Zetian and the power struggle between them is interesting. In the times that it read as a manifesto, it took me out of the story a bit. I wanted it to be more integrated in the story and I think readers who kind of get these concepts and ideas would have an easier time absorbing and thinking about them. I think a lot of the scenes were necessary and interesting, like
They kind of lost me in the last 75 pages. I was honestly a little confused about the setting and the things they encounter. While it is a sci-fi, I felt like it broke my mind a bit and challenged what I thought, but that was happening to Zetian so I experienced what she did. I don't mind the ending, I wasn't sure how it was going to wrap up anyways. BUT we got a lovely "To be continued" so Zetian story continues!!!
I like the first book more, but this was still a strong sequel! I'm still waiting and hoping for a screen adaptation because seeing this story visually come to life would be incredible.
Make sure you check the author's social media and website to make the author's amendment to page 434. Right after the line,
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Misogyny, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Sexual content, Torture, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Alcohol
Minor: Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Sexual assault
My biggest issue with the Iron Widow was that Zeitan's railing against the patriarchy (fair!) was always rehashed in full every time it came up in the novel. This happened again in Heavenly Tyrant, but in addition to pages and pages of rehashed explanations about the patriarchy, there were now also pages and pages (each time) of explanations against end stage capitalism and for communism. There were, admittedly, lines about the cruelties being enacted in the name of the New Order. But for a character famous for questioning authority in Iron Widow, Zeitan just kind of...accepted the atrocities of the New Order without question.
A lot of the events of the novel were also just summarized after the fact by one or two sentences. Instead of detailing, for example, the formation and day to day running of the Phoenix Alliance, we're just told that it happened. There's a council! But who's on it? How did the other organizations feel about being absorbed? Was it without discussion? I don't know, because despite Zeitan telling me how important this is to her and how involved she is with it, Zhao doesn't prove it in their writing.
There is also very little dialogue in the book, despite there being plenty of opportunity for discussions. Meetings between characters are summarized. Zeitan and Qielou apparently spend many evenings dream sharing. What was that like? How did it make them feel about each other? It's said it's a very intimate experience. But I would not be able to point to a single passage demonstrating that, other than the one sentence where it's told to me without backup. What dialogue there is, is often exclamations by both characters that sound frighteningly like a TikTok skit script where a single TikToker is the single actor playing multiple parts - uniformly staccato.
I had a lot of hopes for this book, and I did enjoy some parts of it (notably, the first 50 pages and last 100). It was a quick read, if not an engaging or satisfying one. I'll definitely read the third and final book when it arrives, but I'm not sure I would recommend the series as a whole as it stands now.
Moderate: Ableism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Pregnancy
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Police brutality
Minor: Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Slavery, Trafficking, Abortion, Pregnancy