*disclaimer I finished reading this book back in December of 2021. Why I took so long to review this book? I don’t know. It is appalling how long I’ve waited to write this. However I’m here now and I’m going to write this the best I can. Thank you for your understanding*

With the consideration of the fact that I read this so long ago, the fact that I remember so much of this book speaks volumes to how good it is. I remember Zetian being such a strong character who rebelled fiercely against the ways of being that Huaxia puts into place. She is strong willed and defiant and I loved her for it.

I loved the way that mechs worked in such a unique fashion with a forced power dynamic between men and woman’s qi where one can overpower and sacrifice another in order to power the mechs. It’s brutal and Zetian is out for revenge after her sister was killed and sacrificed by a male pilot in a mech battle.

Zetian learns how far she can push and how she can stay true to herself even when she’s pushed into a corner. What I love most about this book is Zetian is a strong woman who continually is herself. In love, in a battle, in a situation where she was forced and taken advantage of, in her own home with her family, and in her relationships. I loved to see her and the boys all fall in love. To have a true love triangle where everyone fell for one another. It was awesome.

Even in a society that had very strict rules about how things should be, each of them defiantly chose to be themselves and that is a very powerful thing. They are all strong and irreverent to the rules put before them and they shined all the more for it. Differences should be celebrated not tamed. I loved how this book shows that.

All in All: If you haven’t read Iron Widow yet, what are you doing? I may have waited way too long to write this review, but the impact this book has had on me is forever.

Um, YES! This book was incredible. It sucked me in and left me wishing it never had to end! The storyline is incredibly unique and the worldbuilding is so well done. I never felt lost or confused, just excited to read more! I also adored the addition of polyamory instead of basic love triangles,

To finally have An actual love triangle is incredible! Also lets hear
It for badass women! Zetian is truly a morally grey character that
Has the ability to change the world. The fierce plot and imagery
Was incredible, however I did feel like because of that, the relationships
Lacked any type of dynamic. Most Of it, with the exceptions of a couple scenes,
Are moment the reader has to assume happened. We didn’t actually
Experience and see the trio get closer. Its definitely a plot and description heavy book.
Overall, I would definitely reccommend for anyone that truly wants a badass sci-if retelling.

I love angry women - they make me so happy. Fighting for their rights, against traditional misconceptions like girls are weaker than boys. I love Zetian utter resolve to die avenging Big Sister - killed months earlier by a popular Chrysalis pilot. Her drive to finally own her self - her body, her life, her existence. Do what she wants - releasing herself from the guilt and power of her family.
Easily could be read in one sitting. Just fantastic and well done.

One of the best books I've read. The worldbuilding was so well done and immaculate, This history was rich and I wanted to learn more. The characters were my favorite aspect about this. I love a good villain/anti-hero story and this definitely hit the spot. The main character is a powerful woman who takes nothing from anyone and paves her own way regardless of the cost.

The beginning was very slow for me. Once the battle scenes got started the story really kicked into gear for me.

Iron Widow emphasizes how the patriarchy rules society. This message is stated strongly many times - too many. I felt like I was being preached to when I am on the mountain top too. I understand that this is the source of Zetian’s anger and power, but it is plainly laid out in great detail at the beginning so I don’t think the overabundance of the message needed to be stated for each incident.

The action scenes are great and descriptive. I love the transformation sequences. The planning while battling is fun. The author does a great job with the tension.

The love stories between Zetian and Yizhi, Zetian and Li, and Li and Yizhi are good. They don’t drown out the action of the story or Zetian’s journey. Her focus is not on love, but on battle so I’m glad that the author doesn’t let her get distracted.

Xiran Jay Zhao deals with many difficult issues in Iron Widow. Zhao includes sexual assault, human trafficking, alcohol addiction, familial abuse, torture, and suicidal ideation. None of these are easy topics to discuss and Zhao does not hold back. Nor does the author drown us in details. I say this, but this story is long. I found my attention drifting many times and wishing the ending would just come already.

Iron Widow is a great action science fiction story. The message is great. The story is just a bit longer than I prefer.

I am always for all the girls, even their wrongs. Support all of their decisions no matter. Everyone always deserve what's coming. And I can't wait for the next book in the series. And I am more than ready for the messiness after the cliffhanger. You should be ready as well.

After ending this book, it was very difficult to start with a new one. Do you know the feeling when you are absolutely thrilled about a book and do not want it to end because everything else would feel boring? Yep. This is exactly how I felt. Sometimes I am a bit cautious when it comes to world building in fantasy novels because after long working hours, I can't focus on complex world buildings. In this case, it was easy for me to understand the rules and hierarchy of the new world. I loved the combination of Chinese mythology and a dystopia and how realistic the author described scenes, for example how Zetian got lotus feet against her will. I almost felt the pain myself.
The writing style is really fast, chapters are short- ideal for me! I also liked the love triangle- the triangle being the strongest form. The author uses traditional habits and clothing, but mixes it with very modern, progressive thoughts of Zetian. It's a masterpiece how the author told the steady rise of a poor country girl to the first female emperor. Can't wait to read the sequel!

I highly recommend this gem of a book, one of my personal book highlights of this year.

This mecha-filled, vicious book is an incredible debut and Xiran deserves every penny and ounce of recognition they get (and more) for this debut. I can't wait for the sequel!!

The gorgeous colors of this cover drew my attention immediately, and a description of a story of a Chinese emperor had me hooked.

Zu Wetian, living in a society where monsters roam and that believes women are inferior in every way, has only one goal in her life. To murder the mech pilot who killed her sister. But then she begins to learn more about the mechs, the pilots, and everything surrounding them, her goals begin to grow.

Everything about this was intriguing but I was left wanting so much more from this story. It just felt that the pace was breakneck, and nothing was given the chance to breathe. We didn't get the depth to the relationship. And the world building felt very shallow. The fight scenes were epic, and Wu Zetian's emotions were powerful enough to sweep me along, but I wanted to see more of everything.

And I wanted to give this story credit for a unique way of dealing with a love triangle, but what happens afterward sours me on the whole thing. And we are left with a blatant sequel hook.

There were enough bits and pieces to intrigue me, and I really vibed with Wu Zetian's rage, so that I'll be on the lookout for the sequel, but I'll wait for some reviews to come out first.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for this ARC!

One of my favourite reads of 2022, Iron Widow is a strong debut from an author I expect to hear a lot from in the future. This book was so refreshingly different that I devoured it in a few days.

This was wonderful and so fun. The feminist polyamorous sci-fi that I didn't know I needed in my life (and now thing that everyone needs in theirs)

I was blown away by this. I knew the general concept of it, a sci-mecha story inspired by Wu Zetian, the only female sovereign in the history of China, but I could not imagine how wild it would be. It pulls no punches. Not a subtle bone in its body but good for when you're angry at the world and need a good vent. I would die for Zetian, I love her, she is uncompromising and ruthless and, even though she's a violent asshole in a world of violent assholes, and somehow so easy to root for.

This book was so engaging I read it in all my free time over a couple of days. And it kinda blurred together a bit, so most I remember is the excellent angry vibes, the fast pacing, and over-the-top mecha battles.

I also loved the central relationship (hell yeah!) and some of the other characters, the worldbuilding, even though some stuff was maybe kinda predictable, it all worked so well together. The culture we meet is deeply misogynistic, and that's confronted and more interestingly, explained in all its power-grabbing roots.

Star Rating: —> 5 Stars

Ahh oh my god, someone get me more books like this one!! This had a positively EXQUISITE polyamorous relationship, stunning worldbuilding, fascinating robots Pacific Rim style (SQUEEE!), and some absolutely hilarious scenes that made it seem like the author wrote this while slightly high (I love it!!). This book somehow gave both serious sci-fi/fantasy and complete crack vibes at the same time.... it was absolutely amazing. The characters were realistic and all loveable in their own ways, and our main protagonist was such a strong heroine that she's my new inspiration in life, plus the setting of ancient China combined with robots somehow worked really well. Plus the poly relationship was so brilliantly written, I loved every moment of it and I can't wait to get more of these three with the second book (which better come soon, btw, because that ending positively KILLED ME!!). I love it I love it I love it!! Highly highly recommended!!

Thank you to the publisher via netgalley for the e-arc! All thoughts & opinions are my own!

Unfortunately I had to DNF this book at 20%. It is not a bad book, and I was definitely still interested in where it was going. However, I could not keep up with what was happening. I was unable to picture anything or keep up with the terms. I think it's because I have recently realized that I am not a fantasy reader.

This book is so satisfying. I want to read ten more of it, like when you find your new favourite food, and eat it every day for a week.

*I did add this to my Goodreads, but I cannot seem to gather the link to place it below.

This was AMAZING! Truly one of the best books I've read in a long time. The pace was nonstop; the main character, Zetian, was unforgiving and vicious; and the twist at the end was so unexpected that it left me wanting the sequel immediately.

The author created such a vivid world that was so immersive and detailed that it felt like a real place. The world-building was so well done, and the characters were all dynamic and interesting.

I have nothing but praise for this book, and Xiran Jay Zhao deserves all the accolades for their writing. I can't wait to see what else they do!

The first thing I'm going to say about this book is that I cannot believe it took me so long to pick it up. It's been on my shelf since 2021 (I received it in my second-ever Illumicrate box), and yet I didn't pick it up until the very end of 2022, at the urging of several good friends of mine. Once I started reading, I couldn't stop. Iron Widow has all sorts of great things: feminism, battle robots, characters with dubious morals, queer representation, revenge, sarcasm, Chinese historical references, and more. Often dark but never bleak, this is a page-turner that you don't want to miss.

This was everything I didn't realize I needed in a book: a fast-paced blend of sci-fi action, incisive commentary on the patriarchy and gender roles, an intricately crafted futuristic world inspired by historical China (specifically, the rise of China's only female emperor), and a wonderfully supportive polyamorous relationship. There was drama, there was humor, there was a ton of questionable morality, there were vivid-but-not-overdone battle sequences...really, this one had it all. The plot flowed smoothly, never dragging, but never skimming where detail was needed either. I should probably note, this book is classified as YA, but it is definitely on the older end of that age range; note the applicable trigger/content warnings and proceed accordingly. (As an aside, I wouldn't have minded if this one was aged up to adult to really go all-in on its more awful components, but that's just a personal preference thing, not a criticism!)

I can't even pick a favorite character. Zetian, the feisty pilot dead-set on revenge with an "I can make him worse" mentality? An absolute icon. Yizhi, the Soft Boy wealthy scholar who fiercely loves Zetian? This boy deserves all the hugs. And Shimin, the Broody Boy full of righteous anger and secret depths? Phenomenal. All of them have spectacular development throughout, with confrontation of their own respective weaknesses and strengths and traumas, some pointed introspection (aided by a very literal exploration of each other's mental landscapes while piloting their battle robots), and an undercurrent of reluctant-but-genuine love for each other even in the face of an awful world.

And within those characters, there's plenty of diverse rep in this book: Chinese main characters, three of whom are in a poly relationship (MMF). This is just the second time I've read a book with a poly MC, and I'm glad to see that sort of relationship being normalized in more fictional stories (including a lovely metaphor here about how a triangle is the most stable shape). There is disability rep, too: Zetian has chronic pain and walks with a cane as a result of having her feet bound as a child, and Shimin struggles with alcoholism. While I can't speak to the accuracy of it (my chronic pain is very different), it is still great to see.

The closest thing I have to a complaint about this book is what a wild ending it had, because waiting for the sequel is absolutely killing me. The sheer number of twists in the final pages (especially the epilogue) was borderline unhinged, and yet, in the context of the story--particularly the historical narrative the story is based on--it made quite a lot of sense.

Final side note: if you haven't seen Xiran Jay Zhao's author bio and photo from the jacket of this book, look it up (it's the one with the cow onesie). I aspire to be half as cool as they are someday.

Now, enough of my yammering. Just go gather your rage about gender roles and read this spectacular book!

This was a lot of fun for me! There are mecha shaped like creatures from Chinese mythology, aliens throwing themselves against a Great Wall that must be battled, and a very angry girl who wants to burn it all down. I liked Zetian although she isn't going to be for everyone. She is full of rage, just done with everything, and plans to make everyone rue the day. But she has reasons: the society she is in regularly sacrifices girls so that boys will be more powerful in battle, she limps every day on bound feet that can never heal, and her family finds her valueless and only good for the money she can bring them. She rejects love from a privileged and gentle boy to get revenge, only seeing love as another trap.

Naturally this fire allows Zetian to be more successful than anyone planned in helping to pilot the mecha that battle against the alien Hunduns. She is paired with the most frightening pilot of all. She's got to figure out where the true power lies in this world so that she can defeat it all while her life is in danger.

This did not feel like a YA book to me- there's no theme of self-discovery or independence because Zetian is already there. She knows and accepts herself and dares to trust no one. It's a dark and angry book. It moves quickly and doesn't spend a lot of time on reflection. There were a couple of twists that it was fairly easy to see coming, but they were in service of the conflict that has been set up for the next book. I'll definitely read it to see if the author can stick the landing.

Really enjoyed this book I could not put it down. I definitely would recommend this book to other people