A review by maiathemagical
She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

In Shelley Parker-Chan's debut novel an orphaned girl from an impoverished village decides to take on her dead brother's name and claim his fate. The book is an exploration of power, identity, and masculinity wrapped in some rather enjoyable layers of political intrigue and warfare. I found the characters to be interesting and reasonably well developed, and the book went by quickly in a few medium-length reading sessions. While She Who Became the Sun didn't lead me to any huge personal revelations, nor is it the best piece of historical fantasy I've ever read, it was enjoyable to read a well written (and queer!) re-imagining of an interesting period of post-classical Chinese history.

Oh, I almost forgot to mention there's a

lesbian fisting

scene, and it's kind of weird. I don't think I particularly like the way the author writes about sex, based on the couple of times it's come up.