A review by meagand
Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.5

Zetian is a very headstrong and cold hearted protag. I mostly liked her, though tbh good for her for not trying to be likable. For me there was a little too much drama, but it is YA so of course there’s drama. The mechs and how the characters interact with one another in them is very interesting. I liked how the author blended real history into this future sci fi, like foot binding practices and historical figures. I’ll probably read the next book in the series because I’m so curious about who the gods are!