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dark
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I LOVE that Zeitian maintained So much of her feminine rage. Loved how hateable but reasonable Qin Zheng was. I’m a big fan of sneaking conversations about power wealth and consent into a YA novel but comes off a little dry and educational in some spots. I can’t decide if I like where the author seems to be directing the series, but I like that scope they’ve given the story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Medical content, Trafficking, Medical trauma, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, War, Classism
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I knew this book was likely to be a cliffhanger again, but goddamnit I didn’t want to be right. More pain, less polyamory in this book vs the last. Much slower than the first, and more dealings with politics(not that politics wasn’t present in Iron Widow). Iron Widow was very sad at points for me, but this one read much sadder overall IMO. Definitely lived up to my hopes for it, and I will be impatiently waiting the third book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Violence, War
Moderate: Sexual assault, Torture, Pregnancy
Minor: Miscarriage
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Rated it a step lower because the pace was slow for my personal liking. I think this is going to be a very important book for 2025, especially with the new polical cycle we will be facing. Honestly. My first thought was "this is what happens when we let children be in control of a government" 😂 I am absolutely looking forward to book 3. It's also important to note that bodily consent is not limited to sexual acts. It's includes anything done to your body with or without your knowledge and this is violated several times in the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Minor: Body shaming, Child abuse, Abortion
adventurous
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was very ready to find out what the firey Iron Maiden would be up to next. She goes through quite a lot of emotions that don’t make sense to me or her, but I enjoyed the journey as she tried to figure out how to accomplish her goals. I didn’t care for the ending, and we’ll have to wait for the next book to find a conclusion
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, War
Minor: Pregnancy
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Heavenly Tyrant was a huge shift from Iron Widow. Going from the tender romance of the three in the first book to the abusive and controlling relationship in this one gave me whiplash. Seeing ideologies that I believe in be used by a tyrant was also jarring. All in all, the book was a good story on its own, but it took me a while to get on board with it after book one. I do like where it left off and how it is set up for the next book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Sometimes you like a book so much that you don’t know how to talk about it because there’s just so much to say.
Heavenly Tyrant picks up just where Iron Widow ended, with Wu Zetian, having overthrown the government of Huaxia with the help of just one giant Chrysalis, one barely-conscious two-hundred year old emperor, and one of her boyfriends, ready to take on the Heavenly Court, the mysterious “gods” who live about the surface of her planet and claim to be holding her other boyfriend in a semi-alive state. But while I felt that Iron Widow (which I loved, this isn’t a complaint) was fairly predictable in its plot until the end, Heavenly Tyrant is a very different book, so immediately the story goes shooting off in a new direction. It turns out that it wasn’t just his high spirit pressure - the ability to manipulate qi that makes a Chrysalis pilot effective - that made Qin Zheng, recently-comatose two-hundred year old former emperor - so formidable in his time. He’s capable of things modern pilots can’t even dream, and in short order, he’s taken over Zetian’s revolution. Before she entirely knows what’s happening, Zetian finds herself the subject of the returned emperor, who has seized control of the government she left in shambles, instituted a “laborist” (ie, Marxist) revolution, and is demanding that Zetian marry him to consolidate his power. As Zetian says, “same shit, different man.”
Zetian is the last person who is going to submit to a marriage against her will, but she’s smart enough to realize that Qin Zheng could be easier to take down from within his court, and there’s also the minor matter of his ability to help her challenge the gods and get back her lover, Li Shimin. So Zetian agrees to the marriage, and becomes Empress of Huaxia. And then… like a million things happen, this book is very long, but that’s not why it’s a difficult one to summarize or review. It’s because there are so many ideas and themes and character arcs, and I’m a bit in awe of how smoothly Zhao manages to make them all work together while still keeping Heavenly Tyrant a compulsive read.
So, in no particular order, things I liked about this book:
- The handling of its politics. Zetian in the first book was not a political character in the traditional sense; she had strong views about the horrendous treatment of women in Huaxia, and to a lesser extent some anger about other marginalized groups, but her rage was very much rooted in the personal experiences of herself and those she loved, not some greater political consciousness. And while there were political ideas in Iron Widow beyond the overt feminism, such as a criticism of late-stage capitalism, that wasn’t really the focus. But in Heavenly Tyrant, Zetian finds herself the co-ruler of a Marxist empire and has to get a crash course on a lot of political ideas. This sounds like it could have been very boring, but it isn’t, mostly because Zhao is delivering all of this through character - both Zetian’s development as someone who may not be educated in political theory but has a strong sense of justice, and that of her would-be teachers, including the often hilarious Qin Zheng (the whole private vrs personal property thing, with its very funny payoff, was one of my favorite jokes). And it’s not as simple as just explaining the political ideas of the book; Zhao is addressing the flaws and benefits of the system Zetian is helping create, but also the problems of power itself. Having ended the previous book by overthrowing a government, Zetian learns the hard way that rebuilding one is a much more difficult task even before you take into account that she can’t trust the emperor or anyone in his court and that they are being manipulated by the “gods.” Some of the most chilling moments of the book are those when we see Zetian, without fully realizing it, succumbing to the lure of power and justifying atrocities as necessary. But Heavenly Tyrant isn’t a dark book, not in that way, and so for all that the systems and the people involved in this new empire are deeply flawed, it’s still a book about people who do have good intentions and want to make the world better, even if they sometimes do deeply fucked up things to get there. It manages to be both realistic and idealistic about the chances of making the world a better place and that’s impressive.
- Qin Zheng. The old/new emperor is a major force in this book and he’s a fascinatingly drawn character, simultaneously a horrific monster who achieved ultimate power and was corrupted by it, an idealist with a genuine desire to improve life for his people, and a weird little guy who has no idea how to handle personal relationships or basic communication of any kind. Zetian’s relationship with Qin Zheng is the heart of this story and it’s incredible. There is so much going on between them - distrust, lust, betrayal, common goals, vying for power, partnership, hate sex… even, oddly, moments of affection and understanding. They are very similar characters and there’s a lot of denial to the way Zetian feels about Qin Zheng; at no point, including the end, did I feel I truly understood what was going to happen between them, nor did I think Zetian did either. If you’re someone who’s never understood the appeal of relationships where the two people involved genuinely do hate each other but also want to screw like bunnies, this one could convince you. I started out wanting nothing more than for Zetian to get away from Qin Zheng, but the more he was on the page but more I just wanted to see more of him, without ever forgetting that he is in many ways a terrible person.
- The other new characters. Zetian has friends now! After being betrayed by one of the few people she thought might be a friend in Iron Widow, in Heavenly Tyrant Zetian gets a whole new crew of female friends and they are excellent. Qieluo, Wan’er and Taiping are all very different people from different walks of life, but they have a bond as women that is deeply important to the story. For all that Heavenly Tyrant is moving into other political and social ideas, feminism remains at its heart, and I loved that in this book, that meant hearing from different women with different perspectives. I didn’t mind that Zetian had so few relationships with women in the first book because that was thematically appropriate - Huaxian society works to keep women focused on men, not each other - but with Zetian getting a chance to put some of her ideas into practice, it was so great to see her connecting with other women. And this went beyond her personal friendships; I loved the part of the book where she was helping women organize and expand their role in the empire.
- Worldbuilding. Zhao continues to build on the really interesting world she’s created in these books, deepening the mystery of what the Hunduns are, fleshing out the gods and expanding the possibilities of qi manipulation and the pilot system. Zetian learned to do all kinds of cool new things in this book, but there was also a lot of emotional depth to the way she confronted her feelings about the war with the Hunduns or the exploitive pilot system. The Zetian of book one was focused on the way the pilot system hurt women, but now that it’s becoming more equal, we got to see what it was like to be on the other side, fighting an unjust war and being in the position of the person who might drain her partner of qi in order to survive. Tantalizing hints at what might be possible if humans could find a better way to pilot their Chrysalises, if they could communicate with the Hunduns, not to mention the big twist at the end of Shimin becoming some kind of Hundun/human hybrid all left me really excited to see where the story is going.
- Yizhi. I said in my review of Iron Widow that Yizhi felt a little idealized to me, the perfect boyfriend to reward Zetian and Shimin for all the shit they’d been through, sweet and supportive and accepting with just enough of a dark side to match them. But Heavenly Tyrant strips away a lot of Yizhi’s cover and gives us a glimpse of who he really is. In this book, we see Yizhi’s manipulative side, the lengths he’s willing to go to even if it means hurting those he loves, his ability to lie and scheme and play politics on a kind of terrifying level. And we also finally see the trauma and fury that turned him into his person, easily enough to match the people Zetian and Shimin became. I spent a lot of his book angry at Yizhi; at one point, I actually hated him. And I came out of it not sure exactly how I feel about him, or what I need him to do to be forgiven. But he also still remains one of my favorite characters, maybe even more so now.
- Zetian. Wu Zetian is definitely one of my favorite characters, not just in this series but in recent fiction. Her anger, her drive, her capacity for both love and sacrifice and also coldness and pragmatism - she’s excellent. This book, even more than the last one, put Zetian into situations she was completely unprepared for, whether that was taking on a public role as the empress, navigating political ideas and negotiations, or moral qualms like having a pilot partner she could kill, and all of them caused her character to grow in interesting ways that still felt true to the core of who she is. She remains always a sympathetic character to me, even when she’s doing things I don’t like or that seem designed to make a reader question her. And as in the first book, I really loved that for all that Zetian was forced to question herself and what she believed, for all that she was put in positions where she doubted her own judgement, whether that was in her relationship with Qin Zheng or her position as empress, she still stayed true to who she is: someone who fights for women, who refuses to compromise on the things that matter, and who is always determined not to be controlled or owned. The entire storylinearound Zetian’s refusal to get pregnant and her fury at the men treating her reproductive system as a political tool had me wanting her to burn everything down while I cheered her on. Also, and this was true in Iron Widow too, I really appreciate that Zetian is a character who deals with chronic pain and spent a significant period of this book sidelined by injuries and post-surgery limitations while still managing to be a badass and fully involved in the plot.
- The ending. The final section of this book once again saw Zetian and her allies zoom away from the main plot to take explosive action against an enemy, but I felt it was much better paced here than in Iron Widow. The whole last section of this book was exciting, shocking, and full of action, but it also hit the emotional beats better than the climax of Iron Widow did, especially Shimin’s death and rebirth and Zetian’s attempt to kill Qin Zheng. . The book ended in a place where there are so many possibilities for what could happen next that I don’t even want to try to predict it.
Heavenly Tyrant picks up just where Iron Widow ended, with Wu Zetian, having overthrown the government of Huaxia with the help of just one giant Chrysalis, one barely-conscious two-hundred year old emperor, and one of her boyfriends, ready to take on the Heavenly Court, the mysterious “gods” who live about the surface of her planet and claim to be holding her other boyfriend in a semi-alive state. But while I felt that Iron Widow (which I loved, this isn’t a complaint) was fairly predictable in its plot until the end, Heavenly Tyrant is a very different book, so immediately the story goes shooting off in a new direction. It turns out that it wasn’t just his high spirit pressure - the ability to manipulate qi that makes a Chrysalis pilot effective - that made Qin Zheng, recently-comatose two-hundred year old former emperor - so formidable in his time. He’s capable of things modern pilots can’t even dream, and in short order, he’s taken over Zetian’s revolution. Before she entirely knows what’s happening, Zetian finds herself the subject of the returned emperor, who has seized control of the government she left in shambles, instituted a “laborist” (ie, Marxist) revolution, and is demanding that Zetian marry him to consolidate his power. As Zetian says, “same shit, different man.”
Zetian is the last person who is going to submit to a marriage against her will, but she’s smart enough to realize that Qin Zheng could be easier to take down from within his court, and there’s also the minor matter of his ability to help her challenge the gods and get back her lover, Li Shimin. So Zetian agrees to the marriage, and becomes Empress of Huaxia. And then… like a million things happen, this book is very long, but that’s not why it’s a difficult one to summarize or review. It’s because there are so many ideas and themes and character arcs, and I’m a bit in awe of how smoothly Zhao manages to make them all work together while still keeping Heavenly Tyrant a compulsive read.
So, in no particular order, things I liked about this book:
- The handling of its politics. Zetian in the first book was not a political character in the traditional sense; she had strong views about the horrendous treatment of women in Huaxia, and to a lesser extent some anger about other marginalized groups, but her rage was very much rooted in the personal experiences of herself and those she loved, not some greater political consciousness. And while there were political ideas in Iron Widow beyond the overt feminism, such as a criticism of late-stage capitalism, that wasn’t really the focus. But in Heavenly Tyrant, Zetian finds herself the co-ruler of a Marxist empire and has to get a crash course on a lot of political ideas. This sounds like it could have been very boring, but it isn’t, mostly because Zhao is delivering all of this through character - both Zetian’s development as someone who may not be educated in political theory but has a strong sense of justice, and that of her would-be teachers, including the often hilarious Qin Zheng (the whole private vrs personal property thing, with its very funny payoff, was one of my favorite jokes). And it’s not as simple as just explaining the political ideas of the book; Zhao is addressing the flaws and benefits of the system Zetian is helping create, but also the problems of power itself. Having ended the previous book by overthrowing a government, Zetian learns the hard way that rebuilding one is a much more difficult task even before you take into account that she can’t trust the emperor or anyone in his court and that they are being manipulated by the “gods.” Some of the most chilling moments of the book are those when we see Zetian, without fully realizing it, succumbing to the lure of power and justifying atrocities as necessary. But Heavenly Tyrant isn’t a dark book, not in that way, and so for all that the systems and the people involved in this new empire are deeply flawed, it’s still a book about people who do have good intentions and want to make the world better, even if they sometimes do deeply fucked up things to get there. It manages to be both realistic and idealistic about the chances of making the world a better place and that’s impressive.
- Qin Zheng. The old/new emperor is a major force in this book and he’s a fascinatingly drawn character, simultaneously a horrific monster who achieved ultimate power and was corrupted by it, an idealist with a genuine desire to improve life for his people, and a weird little guy who has no idea how to handle personal relationships or basic communication of any kind. Zetian’s relationship with Qin Zheng is the heart of this story and it’s incredible. There is so much going on between them - distrust, lust, betrayal, common goals, vying for power, partnership, hate sex… even, oddly, moments of affection and understanding. They are very similar characters and there’s a lot of denial to the way Zetian feels about Qin Zheng; at no point, including the end, did I feel I truly understood what was going to happen between them, nor did I think Zetian did either. If you’re someone who’s never understood the appeal of relationships where the two people involved genuinely do hate each other but also want to screw like bunnies, this one could convince you. I started out wanting nothing more than for Zetian to get away from Qin Zheng, but the more he was on the page but more I just wanted to see more of him, without ever forgetting that he is in many ways a terrible person.
- The other new characters. Zetian has friends now! After being betrayed by one of the few people she thought might be a friend in Iron Widow, in Heavenly Tyrant Zetian gets a whole new crew of female friends and they are excellent. Qieluo, Wan’er and Taiping are all very different people from different walks of life, but they have a bond as women that is deeply important to the story. For all that Heavenly Tyrant is moving into other political and social ideas, feminism remains at its heart, and I loved that in this book, that meant hearing from different women with different perspectives. I didn’t mind that Zetian had so few relationships with women in the first book because that was thematically appropriate - Huaxian society works to keep women focused on men, not each other - but with Zetian getting a chance to put some of her ideas into practice, it was so great to see her connecting with other women. And this went beyond her personal friendships; I loved the part of the book where she was helping women organize and expand their role in the empire.
- Worldbuilding. Zhao continues to build on the really interesting world she’s created in these books, deepening the mystery of what the Hunduns are, fleshing out the gods and expanding the possibilities of qi manipulation and the pilot system. Zetian learned to do all kinds of cool new things in this book, but there was also a lot of emotional depth to the way she confronted her feelings about the war with the Hunduns or the exploitive pilot system. The Zetian of book one was focused on the way the pilot system hurt women, but now that it’s becoming more equal, we got to see what it was like to be on the other side, fighting an unjust war and being in the position of the person who might drain her partner of qi in order to survive. Tantalizing hints at what might be possible if humans could find a better way to pilot their Chrysalises, if they could communicate with the Hunduns, not to mention the big twist at the end
- Yizhi. I said in my review of Iron Widow that Yizhi felt a little idealized to me, the perfect boyfriend to reward Zetian and Shimin for all the shit they’d been through, sweet and supportive and accepting with just enough of a dark side to match them. But Heavenly Tyrant strips away a lot of Yizhi’s cover and gives us a glimpse of who he really is. In this book, we see Yizhi’s manipulative side, the lengths he’s willing to go to even if it means hurting those he loves, his ability to lie and scheme and play politics on a kind of terrifying level. And we also finally see the trauma and fury that turned him into his person, easily enough to match the people Zetian and Shimin became. I spent a lot of his book angry at Yizhi; at one point, I actually hated him. And I came out of it not sure exactly how I feel about him, or what I need him to do to be forgiven. But he also still remains one of my favorite characters, maybe even more so now.
- Zetian. Wu Zetian is definitely one of my favorite characters, not just in this series but in recent fiction. Her anger, her drive, her capacity for both love and sacrifice and also coldness and pragmatism - she’s excellent. This book, even more than the last one, put Zetian into situations she was completely unprepared for, whether that was taking on a public role as the empress, navigating political ideas and negotiations, or moral qualms like having a pilot partner she could kill, and all of them caused her character to grow in interesting ways that still felt true to the core of who she is. She remains always a sympathetic character to me, even when she’s doing things I don’t like or that seem designed to make a reader question her. And as in the first book, I really loved that for all that Zetian was forced to question herself and what she believed, for all that she was put in positions where she doubted her own judgement, whether that was in her relationship with Qin Zheng or her position as empress, she still stayed true to who she is: someone who fights for women, who refuses to compromise on the things that matter, and who is always determined not to be controlled or owned. The entire storyline
- The ending. The final section of this book once again saw Zetian and her allies zoom away from the main plot to take explosive action against an enemy, but I felt it was much better paced here than in Iron Widow. The whole last section of this book was exciting, shocking, and full of action, but it also hit the emotional beats better than the climax of Iron Widow did, especially
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Pregnancy
Minor: Child abuse, Sexual assault
Tagged this for pregnancy but it’s really a theme of reproductive abuse and a woman’s right to control her body being ignored. (The book is very much on the woman’s side.). Sexism and feminism are strong themes. Child abuse, including child sexual abuse, are discussed as part of multiple characters’ backstories.
Did not like the book at all.
The political commentary/education was as heavy handed as can be.While preaching rights for workers, innocent people get murdered for being against the new regime. Encouraging people to denounce their neighbours or be killed is horryfing and for me was treated as a background detail, as long as it didn't affect Zetian personally.
I hated the development in the relationship between Zheng and Zetian.the sex scenes and the pregnancy plotline (unconsented removal of Zetians eggs and impregnation of a surrogate) made me dnf
In the beginning while unconcious and not consenting Zetian gets surgery to repair her bound feet and to remove her bodyhair (because she is prettier without).
The political commentary/education was as heavy handed as can be.
I hated the development in the relationship between Zheng and Zetian.
In the beginning while unconcious and not consenting Zetian gets surgery to repair her bound feet and to remove her bodyhair (because she is prettier without).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship
Moderate: Sexual assault, Pregnancy
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Sexual violence, Torture, Pregnancy
adventurous
dark
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief
Moderate: Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Pregnancy
Minor: Miscarriage
There is questionable consent for some sexual scenes, and Zetian is not broken up with Shimin/he does not know about her relationship with Qin Zheng so it feels like infidelity to me.
Medical trauma related to pregnancy trigger warning in that Zetian was unaware she was being used to create a fetus via rivf
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Honestly a slay - the political world building and explicit communist theory was phenomenal and slightly unexpected. It was a come for the unhinged female rage and stay for the political theory for me lol. I did expect this to be a duology but about halfway through I realised there has to be at least another book. I despise cliffhangers like this, with Li Shimin possibly being alive (very unclear but I’m leaning towards yes - in at least some capacity). I would have preferred that be left resolved and hopefully a moment where Wu Zetian and Li Shimin are able to talk. The implications for what it means if he is alive (and how we understand spirit metal), the impending space war, and that there are other nations on their planet with different spirit types are compelling enough mysteries on their own. . Still, I adored Wu Zetian’s continual and blinding rage (so insanely compelling to me), and the view she and other women brought into political conversations (namely a feminist perspective and the ideas of bodily autonomy). The relationship between Wu Zetian and Qin Zheng highlighted the role of feminist communists in shaping theory, and also demonstrated their narrative roles as foils of each other (similar background, rage, desire for justice, strong spirit levels, etc). They are such similar characters that they could never truly work in close relationship because it requires trust and vulnerability neither is willing to give first, and that Qin Zheng especially is unwilling to meaningfully compromise with Zetian - he always has to ultimately be in power. In particular, it was apparent to me that Qin Zheng did not appreciate the misogyny and sexism and how it intertwines with capitalism, and seemed almost intentionally oblivious to how it impacts people including Zetian who he allegedly loves/d. It especially made me dislike his character when he continually removed Zetian’s bodily autonomy and then seemed shocked that she didn’t trust him intimately? As if they aren’t linked? Still, the epilogue with Qin Zheng irritated me because while he was seen to be possessive, he did not necessarily negatively perceive women (and valued them for their ability to provide labour like men) and it seemed too complete a change for him to ‘suddenly understand feet binding’ and other methods of controlling women - as if his feelings being hurt justifies his complete ideological change about the value of labour that women can provide. . Still an amazing read and I will be speeding through the next book when it comes it !
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, War
Moderate: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Grief, Pregnancy