Reviews with content warning for Body horror - Iron Widow

This is the only book ive reread in probably 3 or 4 years. I did it in preparation for Heavenly Tyrant. It was just as good the second time. I could write good things forever. I especially love the morally grey main character. Thats my favorite parts.

Main theme of the book:
I support women’s rights, but more importantly i support women’s wrongs!!!!

Content Warnings

theprinceofdenmark's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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masquerander's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-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

4.5

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aura_rurubele's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

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blacksphinx's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This is the book that got me back into reading as a hobby; I devoured it in less than 24 hours. It's also the first book I'm reread since diving back into reading, and I was nervous. I've read about 250 other books since then... would this still stand up to my memory of it?

The answer turned out to be mostly yes! It doesn't hurt that I recently bounced off of two other YA-ish-female-rage stories and I could compare and see how much better this one is (even on a sentence level). I love how Zeitan is a wrathful, manipulative thing who is fueled by spite. I also loved how singularly focused she was on women's position in the unjust pilot system. She never lost sight of the constant disregard and loss of female life, and even was able to pull her gaze back further to see that yelling at individual men was ineffective, it's the system that is rotten. And yeah, there's some cheesy bits (a character snaps his fingers and goes yeeeees at some point as the narration says the audience "gags" for a performance, which made me cringe). The blisteringly fast pace is an asset, allowing any humor that doesn't land to be quickly moved on from. The final cascade of revolutions was just as cool as it was the first time.

It's also the only book I've read, YA or otherwise, the solves a love triangle with a genuine polyamorous triad, and I can't overlook how much I love that.

And yet, there's things that stood out and bothered me that I didn't think about my first time through. There's some continuity errors. This is supposed to be

a "feminist" story, yet every female character attacks, abuses, manipulates, or tries to kill Zeitan. I understand the point Zhao is explicitly making, that the patriarchy is equally upheld by women and we are not all natural allies to each other, but not even a single female friend? She has to rely on men for the entire story?

This is also yet another book where

torture is portrayed as an effective means of getting information out of someone, when out here in the real world it doesn't work.

The extremely high entertainment value I got out of the book outweighed the parts that bothered me.

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enbyaddams's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective tense fast-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? No

5.0

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rjbedell's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

“A primal scream of a book” is a very apt tagline, for better and for worse. Zhao’s great achievement in Iron Widow is a raw, ferocious current of feminist rage, sustained by shocking plot twists and vivid action sequences. Genuinely tender moments thread a surprising love arc through otherwise dark scenes.

However, for me the book was weighed down by excessive brutality, surprisingly immature dialogue, and at-times clumsy plot advancements. The cruelty of the novel’s world makes it impossible not to root for the title character, yet the conclusion Zetian reaches as her revenge fantasy reaches its fever pitch — “the world does not deserve my respect… kindness or compassion” — abandons speculative fiction’s potential to inspire. From a serious standpoint, the story paints a grim portrait of a woman consumed by her own rage in a seemingly endless fight against injustice. For readers able to take the book less seriously, it may provide a cathartic release valve in the form of a sensational, unpredictable bloodbath.

Reminded me strongly of The Hunger Games and Ender’s Game.

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rizky's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Re-read before reading Heavenly Tyrant

I had forgotten SO MUCH, especially the final act, so this was another wild ride.

Not a lengthy review, but just the crux of my thoughts/feelings: this book has flaws - it is a debut, and noticably so. My main concern is a lack of subtely (Zhao spells the political implications out quite explicitly) and slightly convoluted worlbuilding. At same time, the story and characters are absolutely worth it (at least to me) (all the feelings I felt, damn).
I definitely recommend Iron Widow to anyone who enjoys female rage, morally dubious characters, and poly romance.

Excited to start reading Heavenly Tyrant!

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