A review by scriptrix
Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

5.0

I LOVED THIS BOOK. There was a lot of hype before I read it - lots of people screaming about it on Twitter - and I was a little afraid that it might not live up to the hype. But HOLY CRAP was I wrong. This book came out swinging and didn't let up until the bitter end. Some of the lines hit me so hard I had to pause and think about them for a second. Like when Zetian yells at a man for telling her she needs to sleep with her partner, saying that she's been told her whole life that sex is dirty and the worst thing she could do, and now he expects her to flip a switch and be fine with it? Damn. I FELT that. 

The addition of a character who has bound feet and is nevertheless an absolute badass warrior queen was inspired. It's rare to see bound feet depicted in Western media, and when they are, the characters are often shown as meek or subservient. In this book, it's shown as both an abuse tactic and as a disability, causing mobility issues and chronic pain, but Zetian's personality is so huge and gloriously angry that you can't help but see her as a force of nature.

And THE ROMANCE. Without getting too spoilery, can I just say I LOVED the direction in which the author ran with the characters' relationship(s)? It was refreshingly wholesome and non-toxic, which was especially poignant set in the backdrop of a dark, bloody book about anti-patriarchy rage, battle, and revenge.

In conclusion, this is the saltiest, tooth-baring feminist manifesto of a SFF book I've read in quite some time. It hit all the right notes for me. Will be recommending to everyone.
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