<b>What I liked:</b> I am actually a descendant of someone Wu Zetian assassinated. As in, he tried to run away from her but she sent people after him, found him several hundred miles away from the capital, and had him offed anyway. I was curious how the writer would make her sympathetic without glossing over her machiavellianism. The result is that Zetian is an antihero and the book feels very much like The Hunger Games if Katniss was shrewd and had no problem getting her hands dirty. Mechas! Drama! Good times all around.

<b>What I was meh on:</b> I guess this is true to historical form, but Wu Zetian basically has no female friends in this story. It's a little disappointing.

Okay, so in all fairness this will probably not be a problem with people who are unfamiliar with Chinese history/myths/legends, but it was extremely jarring to have characters with the names of famous people. I shrieked when I saw that the chief strategists were named Zhugeliang and Sima Yi. It's just *weird.* Like having a mecha sci-fi story, but the engineer is named Leonardo Di Vinci, but it's not Leonardo Di Vinci.

<b>How's the romance?</b> It's a thruple! That in itself was a unique, subversive choice by the writer. Everyone is attractive and appealing in their own way. The sweet brainy one, the tortured emo one, very good.

<b>Okay, but are there PoC?</b> Yup. Everyone is fantasy Asian here. I also appreciated the disability representation for multiple characters in the story, including the main protag.

<b>Bottom Line:</b> Iron Widow is a fun, history inspired take on a Mecha + Dystopian Propaganda story. It's references to ancient Chinese culture messed with my sense of verisimilitude, but overall did not detract from a fun romp in a unique fantasy world that subverts many YA tropes.

Iron Widow combines elements of science fiction and fantasy in this gripping, relentless, unique and fast paced story. Xiran Jay Zhao takes the history of Empress Wu, the only female emperor in Chinese history and reimagines it in the tale of Wu Zetian, an 18 year old who is determined to avenge her sister's death. The world has been under attack from mechanized aliens, the Hundun, and in Huaxia, it is the goal of young men to become pilots of Chrysalises, huge transforming fighting machines. In order to help the male pilots, female concubine-pilots are used to help power the Chrysalises which usually leads to the death of the subservient female pilot. Wu Zetian has volunteered to become a concubine-pilot in order to kill the top male pilot who is responsible for her older sister's death. However, Zetian discovers during her mission that she is incredibly powerful and she realizes she has an opportunity to remake the world and save many girl's lives.

Zetian's story reels you in right from the start with many familiar elements from Chinese culture alongside the fantastical descriptions of the Chrysalises and the spirit metal armor used by the pilots. Zetian's constant struggle with the misogynistic culture that surrounds her, from her father's treatment of the women in her family to the use of the concubine-pilot, infuses the entire story. From feet-binding to the subservience that this culture requires truly makes you understand why Zetian makes the choices she does. She is ruthless and determined not to let this patriarchal society keep her from using her power and leverage in saving the lives of the other female pilots. Her relationships with Li Shimin and Yizhi humanize her and provide touching moments when she discovers all that Shimin has been through himself. This really is a marvelous story and after THAT ending, I cannot wait for book 2!!!!

Please don't let the three stars fool you. This is a really solid book.

However, there are some faults with it. Which are not quite terrible, depending for what you look for in a book. I'm a bit of a visual reader - I envision a book in my head as it plays out on paper. Like a movie, you know. So if there are any issues with the text then the movie in my mind becomes not so clear.

- I think the government / world building is lacking. The focus is in the dialogue and social commentary but in return to the world building suffers. While I get this is supposed to be like an anime, I couldn't seem to place a visual as to what this world looked like. I couldn't even picture the government info-structure. Who is the enemy? What does the enemy want? Why exactly are we fighting?

- Because the government / world building suffers, the social commentary seems too in your face. While it is good, it just becomes a lot of anger / aggression.

I dug the poly relationship. I dug the characters themselves, too.

I am looking forward to book two because I hope that the book becomes a lot more solid in terms of world building after that cliffhanger. If it doesn't I will be very sad. However, I do think readers will enjoy this and there will be a fanbase. It depends in the end what you look for in a book when you read and if that book delivers from text to visual interpretation.

Iron Widow is utter insanity. I couldn’t get enough of it. I haven’t seen Pacific Rim, but if it’s anything like monster Transformers beating the crap out of each other while tiny humans operate them from the inside, then yes. Yes, that’s exactly what this was.

Zetian has a plan. It’s not a particularly well thought-out plan, but it’s the one she’s sticking to. It’s all really pretty simple; she will volunteer as a concubine-pilot, get paired with the same pilot as her sister….and then murder him. Kill him as savagely and unflinchingly as he did to her older sister months before. The world Zetian and her sister have grown up into is not a kind place to be a woman or girl, and this final act by Zetian will be one small return on investment for a societal practice rooted in cruelty.

Though if everything went according to her plan, this would have been a much shorter story, wouldn’t it? Instead of getting the chance to intentionally slay her sister’s killer, Zetian inadvertently does while hooked up to his consciousness in the Crysalis, aka the device used to control the giant, fighting robots. The result is seemingly unprecedented, and as a punishment for her lack of subservience she is paired with the only Crysalis pilot not beloved by the citizens of Huaxia, convicted criminal Li Shimin. A transparent attempt to cow her or kill her all together, Zetian will have to gather all of her inner power to overcome a deck so monstrously stacked against her.

I think the biggest concern I had beginning this book is that it would be too sci-fi for me to follow. Thought it definitely qualifies as science fiction, fantasy readers don’t have reason to be afraid! It reads like a fantasy novel, albeit set in the future and with pseudo-technology instead of enchantments and curses. There is a good amount of magic present in the story as well, with pilots and concubines’ spirit pressure, aka the measurement of each person’s chi, being what powers the Chrysalises and lends each individual their abilities.

It was so fascinating to see the blending of new and old, technology and mythology, especially within a specific cultural setting. Huaxia is a society set centuries in the future, with pieces of historical and modern China pulled together into a hybrid dystopia. Things like the retired practice of foot-binding was present, and like most current and previous human societies, a deeply misogynistic, patriarchal structure dominated nearly every aspect of their lives. Still, it’s important to keep in mind that every society on this planet has done terrible things to its people, especially to the vulnerable members of it.

Reading this was such a trip, and I was constantly having to slow myself down so I didn’t completely tear through it. Especially since some of the action scenes moved pretty quickly and I would get a little lost. Between that and having a only middling understanding of the different kinds of qi and how they work, I think this book could have benefitted from a little more explanatory portions along the way. Still, I wouldn’t say any of that took away from my overall reading experience since I still was raving to people about it after I finished.

Iron Widow is an incredibly inventive fever dream of fantasy, science, history and polyamorous bisexuals, and a challenge to a genre that at times feels overrun by the exact same kind of story over end over again. I haven’t quite read anything like Xiran Jay Zhao’s debut before and I’m extremely excited to read more set in this universe after that *insane* twist at the very end. Please provide more of this soon Penguin Teen !!!! xoxoxo 💋

Iron Widow follows female and male pairing up to pilot Chrysalises which are huge robots used to fight aliens hanging out over the Great Wall. Usually, the male pilots are more resilient as the female ones often die in battle. This story follows Zetian who is paired up with the hotheaded , but Zetian has ulterior motives for joining the program...to avenge her sister's death. She also wants to uncover the flaw in the machinery which causes the death of the female pilots.

I liked this book a lot.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC.

I really enjoyed the characters and plot of this book. The morally grey characters and polyamorous representation was amazing to see. Additionally the world building was unique and discussed the differences between the cultures well. The discussions of gender norms, addiction, grief and misogyny among other topics throughout the novel are necessary to the plot and sadly related to issues currently faced by many. The author handles these plot points in a delicate manner and through her writing many different perspectives can be gleamed from the passages. The battle sequences were also very detailed and exciting to read.

However, on a different note I found the ending to be rushed and the epilogue partially confusing. Particularly because of how short it is, the information presented in it does not have enough explanation to really hit home. Additionally she discusses the importance of found family and family obligations in a strange way that works at some points but is muddled in other parts of the story. At times it seems like she excuses their behavior and diminishes her families toxicity as a whole but during other scenes it is explained well. This comes across as muddled and it is harder to fully understand her dilemmas later in the book because of it.

Other than that Iron Widow was a refreshing read with unique plot and although I found the last bit rushed overall it was a great read that I've already pre-ordered and plan on recommending! I can't wait for the next volume to see what happens next!

Disclaimer ~ I got an eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Wow. This is definitely one of the best books I’ve read in a while. This is an astounding story of a woman who’s been broken down so many times but doesn’t give up. Women are powerless in society except to bear children and keep a man’s bed warm or to sacrifice their lives to help power a Chrysalis among a man. The Chrysalis is a transformer type device powered by a man and woman with Qi power. The woman is typically killed in battle as their Qi power is drained and essentially they burn out and die while the man lives on to see another day.

This is an unsettling story. Women are abused and assaulted and can say nothing against the men. Zetian is there to burn down the patriarchy. I loved the polyamorous relationship in this book. The friendship and love between the three was powerful. Their losses and heartache only brought them closer. The power this trio has together…they could bring down the world.

If you want to read a book about a strong, woman who wants to bring the world to its knees. Who has two men in her life that support her 100% and help strengthen her then this is a great choice. Even if you don’t - this is a book everyone should check out. I’m looking forward to seeing what comes next even thought my heart has been shattered in the best way possible.

4.5 stars

Zetian, the main character of this fantastic YA novel, is the hero we all need now and always. If you can hear me, Zetian, there's some work for you in Texas! And everywhere else!

The world building is so interesting in this piece. Zhao makes some clear delineations between the nonsensical nature of gender constructs in this society and the more sinister realities of privilege...and what folks will do to keep it. There are some twists that make these points particularly impactful, and for me, Zetian's articulations of gender will make this novel especially memorable. This is a topic that gets handled in some tired ways, but not in this novel.

It's impossible not to root for Zetian. She doesn't kowtow to social expectations. Like any good hero, she has her own personal code, and she spends a great deal of time determining how to enact justice for herself but also the larger population. I died at the start when she considered the value of her extra weight around the middle and visible facial hair. Zetian is every well adjusted person in quarantine but in a fantastical society.

Another noteworthy feature is Zetian's relationship with Li Shimin. I appreciate Zhao's attention to providing Zetian with opportunities to enact her own agency. She is not going through a phase or waiting for some dude to show her the one true purpose of her life. Zetian is a whole character, and she's one I look forward to seeing featured much more throughout subsequent installments.

I'm also adding high marks for the treatment of alcoholism and addiction in general. For me, the approach is especially sensitive, and I think the language will be a great model for readers inside and outside of fiction.

YA fantasy can be hit or miss for me. I love the world building and character development here, and I whispered "Kumiho!" as soon as the nine-tailed fox talk started. MORE KUMIHO ACTION, please! There are sections that felt a little long, but overall, I really loved this, and I am very excited to read the next one NOW. I'll be recommending this to students for a variety of reasons for a long time to come.

Believe! The! Hype! Pick! This! Book! Up!

"I am exactly the kind of ice-blooded, rotten-hearted girl he fears I am. And I am fine with that."

This is the best book that I've read in 2021. Without a doubt.
The storyline.. The characters.. The romance.. The POWER this book holds is magnificent! I literally can't get this book out of my mind and the characters.. Wow. You really NEED this book in your life.

If you like action, fantasy, history, romance (a healthy, polyamorous relationship in a YA???!!!), science fiction then you need to read this. It's going to be a big hit in the book community and I'm looking forward to all readers being able to read it soon! Don't miss out on this one friends!! HIGHLY RECOMMEND.


*Quote taken from unedited version

Read the official synopsis of the book, it will give you a good heads up for what to expect. I will review the mechanics of the book, as to go into too much detail on characters/plot would require me to give away too many spoilers.

After finishing the first third, I was ready to give this 5 stars, for sure. We are introduced to Pilots and their Chrysalis fighting machines, keeping what remains of their world safe from the invading alien machines called Hunduns. Then we meet our heroine, Zetian, a teenager about to be sold off to the army as a concubine pilot, and her dear friend Yizhi, a rich teenage boy who may or may not have feelings for Zetian, and she may or may not have reciprocating feelings for him.

Off she goes to join the Pilots fighting the aliens. But her true goal is to find the Pilot responsible for her older sisters death. At this point, the book is fascinating; giant alien war machines, even bigger machines piloted by teens, sent to fight the aliens. A concubine system where each machine is piloted by one male, one female. Sadly, at the end of most battles, the female is used up and dies. Great plot, great detail, great world-building.

Then I started the middle third of the story. Not only does it become slightly repetitive (she is treated badly, her co-pilot is treated badly, they fight the aliens, repeat), but all the main characters become severely one note. Yizhi joins Zetian at the battlefront. But we don't learn any more details about him than we were told in the begining. Zetian never moves beyond revenge and hate, never showing any other emotions. Her co-pilot, Shimin, has mental issues of his own, and we are never sure if he has feelings for Zetian as he never shows emotion either. The constant battles, the injuries, the recovery, battle again, injured again, recover again, began to wear on me. Coupled with no advance in characterization of, well, any of the characters, I dropped my review at this point to a four star.review.

I started on the final third, hoping the author had an epiphany and made the plot and the people inhabiting it more well rounded than the monotonous things they had been up to this point. My hopes were dashed. More anger, more emotionless actions and reactions, more fighting without accomplishing anything. I began to suspect the war and the gods Zetian and company worshipped were not all they seemed. Zetian tells her friends Yizhi and Shimin that they will overcome because a triangle is the strongest shape. Sadly the author lied, as this turns out to not be true. Along with a lot of other things. Does Zetian love Yizhi? Does he love her? Does she love Shimin? Does he love her? Does anybody have any feelings at all for anybody?!. I was exhausted by the end, from the constant hate and fury from pretty much every character.

I had decided to keep the review at four stars as the writing was actually good, even if the story/characters were not. But then, the ending. Really? No, just,,, no. Three stars is all this deserved, after that.

Iron Widow is a fierce and powerful book that is set in an alternate sci-fi universe that is inspired by Chinese history. While it is a little difficult to understand in the beginning, it soon pulls you in and captivates you as it tells you the story of Wu Zetian, a compelling protagonist who refuses to back down and do as society tells her to do.

Huaxia has been fighting off mechanical aliens called Hunduns off from the walls for millennia in order to protect the people inside. The pilot system which is used to kill these enemies requires a boy and a girl to fire up a Chrysallis and often, the girl dies on this journey. However, Wu Zetian wants to take revenge for her sister’s death by a male pilot and promises to avenge her no matter what, even if it kills her in order to do so.

Things really pick up as she offers herself up as a concubine pilot, taking us on a whirlwind of a journey which makes Zetian question everything that has been told to her and the rest of the world.
The story is very intriguing and fast paced, getting you invested right from the beginning and leaving you gasping for air at the end as things take a surprising turn.

Wu Zetian is unapologetic and forceful, fighting the patriarchal system that puts down her and all other girls. As she earns more and more privilege and is embedded deeper into the piloting system, she fights from the inside and does her best to liberate the girls and show them a different path rather than give in and just accept the luxuries she has.

How do you take the fight out of half the population and render them willing slaves? You tell them they’re meant to do nothing but serve from the minute they’re born. You tell them they’re weak. You tell them they’re prey. You tell them over and over, until it’s the only truth they’re capable of living.

She is a hard character to understand at times, but one you can always root for. I loved seeing things from her perspective and seeing how it changed when new information was revealed. She never stops fighting and even if she is a little deranged at times, you can see how she is justified and right in her own regard. She is a vengeful and angry girl who is hell bent on overturning the patriarchy and fighting back with all she has and I am here for it.

Yizhi was probably my favourite character in the book – a son of a noble man who met Zetian in the mountains three years ago and they’ve been meeting once a month ever since. He is a very loveable character right from the beginning as he tries to protect Zetian in any way he can but also respects her and what she wishes to do. He believes in her and understands her and is and he stands by her side throughout the book.

I also loved Li Shimin, the Iron Demon that everyone is afraid of. He has his own tragic backstory which I loved getting to know more of and seeing who he truly is inside. My heart aches for everything he has been through and he is such a precious character that I will adore forever.

I loved the polyamorous relationship between the three characters – I have barely seen any polyamory rep and so seeing this relationship which is supportive and loving and happy was an amazing experience.

Love can be infinite, as much as your heart can open.

Overall, this is a fast-paced feminist retelling of the only female Chinese Emperor that had me sitting on the edge of my seat that I would highly recommend to fans of The Poppy War and She Who Became the Sun.

** I was provided an electronic ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for honest review.**

Xiran Jay Zhao presents her feminist science fiction debut with Iron Widow. Marketed as a blend of Pacific Rim and The Handmaid's Tale, Iron Widow takes inspiration from mecha scifi and Chinese history to produce a high-stakes novel in which a male pilot and female concubine-pilot are required to operate a Chrysalis. Frequently, the female pilot dies in the effort. Readers follow Wu Zetian (inspired by the Chinese Empress), a girl who volunteers to become a concubine-pilot to get vengeance for her sister. Problems emerge when Zetian survives and is labeled an Iron Widow.

I really enjoyed this book. Zhao's writing is such that there is constant forward momentum while still giving the reader time to grow invested in her characters. The obstacles Zhao introduces are reasonable and are overcome in ways that are logical and well-paced with a good build toward the climax. In addition, Zhao has left herself a lot of room to expand this world and this story in future novels.

My favorite aspect of this book, aside from the concept which drew me in from the start, was the fact that Zhao was bold enough to have a true love triangle and not a love "v". I was so invested in Zetian, Shimin, and Yizhi. I loved their dynamics and the balance of their interactions. It was so welcome and appreciated.

Overall, I am very grateful for the opportunity to have read this novel early, am happy to say I have purchased a copy for myself, and am so eager for the next book in this world.

I have very mixed feelings about this book. I absolutely loved the concept of this book and it’s been my most anticipated read of the year. I found the author on Twitter where they described it as Handmaid’s Tale X Pacific Rim, but partially based on Chinese history with a poly relationship and a badass female protagonist, yeah I was beyond excited for this.

The book started off so strong that it had me in a choke hold and I couldn’t put it down. However after the 20% mark I started to notice that the writing didn’t really match with the setting of the book and the world building felt really under done because I still don’t understand how this world works or even how qi works. Overall I would probably give this 3 stars but I’m giving it 4 stars because I love how murdery Wu Zetian is and I’m a huge fan of her scary and pastry baking boyfriends who are also each other’s boyfriends.

thank you to netgalley for this arc !!

A blood-pumping tale pulling together science-fiction and Chinese history and putting out something hard eyed and razor-clawed, ready to tear you to shreds or destroy your life, should you make the wrong move. Interesting explorations of various characters and a good balance of exploring magic and how it is a tool that can be used to shape societies. A very genuine pleasure to read.

A fun, vengeful story that weaves sci/fi, mythology and history together into a clever new story, Iron Widow is truly a delight to read. I loved the main characters and the way the book embraces their morally grey personalities and storylines, and how it gave power and agency to them amidst a surrounding cast of characters who want to deprive them of that. The worldbuilding is clever, the mecha/sci-fi elements are super cool, and the storyline is altogether a cool one to follow, full of twists and turns that kept me interested. I also loved the relationships at the core of this story and all the different ways love, romance, and trust bloomed between three of the main characters. I can't wait for the next book!

Taking a page from Darling in the Franxx, in this world, teenagers can control mechs together as a boy-girl pair. But instead of working together, the female pilot usually ends up dying in the mech's operation, while the male pilot remains unscathed. Zetian, whose sister was taken to be the female pilot, is taken from her village to be a concubine herself for a famous male mecha pilot after her sister dies. The said male pilot is the one who killed her sister, and she does get revenge on him--but her story goes far beyond that.
This book is a lot of fun. Zetian works to destroy the sexist institution recruiting female pilots and making them fight in mechs, and seeing how it plays out is very satisfying. There's plenty of angst and tragedy as well, though, so the victories feel hard-fought and deserved.
Zetian is the PoV character, and her main companion is Shimin, another male pilot whose life is similarly marred by tragedy stemming from the mecha institution. Later on they're also joined by Zetian's childhood friend, Yizhi, and getting forced into a love triangle, the three of them enter a polyamorous relationship. It is wonderful, and I am so, so happy there is a YA book featuring polyamory, even if it's mostly at the end/last 25%.
Zetian and Shimin are both forces of nature in personality and qi/power level, while Yizhi is gentler and kinder. I liked seeing Zetian's relationship with Shimin develop, and how Yizhi got to join both of them.
The writing hooked me in and did not let go; Zetian's mind is wild to be in. She's emotional, filled with anger at the institution that took her sister away, but also filled with grief and despair once she learns what Shimin has been through, and filled with joy when Yizhi comes into the story. She channels these emotions into action, though, and doesn't let herself be miffed into indecision by them. Shimin is mostly deadpan and angry, but he gets some melancholy as the reader learns alongside Zetian what he's been through. Yizhi is a ray of sunshine, but he still gets to do things, especially towards the end of the book.

This is one of the first new YA books I've found and really enjoyed in a while. I hope it does well, because it's great thematically.

This was an epic adventure. I loved everything about it. So badass and feminist. Wu was a huge stand out heroine. I loved her powerful voice and how the story developed! Highly recommend

“This world does not deserve my respect. It is not worthy of my kindness or compassion.”

I’ll be completely honest, when I read the author note at the start of this book I knew I was about to fall in love with a new story. Xiran Jay Zhao lets the reader know that you are about to get a love letter to Chinese culture, Chinese history, and the only female Chinese emperor! The author does not shy away from the ugly things, but always shines such a powerful light on all the beauty, and truly crafts such an inspiring tale of a girl who will rise up the ranks and become more powerful than anyone ever let her believe or dream, including her family, her country, and even herself.

This story is Asian, queer, and all about abolishing the patriarchy and gender roles that every society tries to make people fit with their judgement, expectations, and laws. “Pacific Rim meets The Handmaid’s Tale in a polyamorous reimagining of China’s only female emperor” is the perfect tagline for this book! And this story is truly so powerful, so beautiful, and so high on my recommendations lists for you all!

Okay, on to the giant transforming robots and what the story is actually about! In this world, Huaxia is trying to protect the Great Wall against Hunduns and their alien mechs (who have already developed and established their own society and way of life on the other side of the wall And Huazia has modified versions of these robots that they call Chrysalises, and constant waves of battle are happening and being broadcasted for the people to watch and be entertained by. The pilots of these mechs are able to transform them into East Asian mythical creatures, and sometimes they are able to gain more special abilities under very specific circumstances when two pilots are able to bond together, weave their qi together, fight stronger together, and have a big adventure in battles together. But there are so few bonded pilots in this world.

But in Huaxia, young boys are hailed as heroes for piloting these machines, but it always takes two pilots, no matter how much society wishes to forget about the evils of the other seat. Young girls are given up by their families to serve the army and have their qi tested to see if they would be able to help pilot alongside a powerful boy. The thing is, most times the boy completely invades, using a psychic link, and uses up every ounce of lifeforce the girl has, killing her during battle.

“I wouldn’t live and suffer for anyone else, but I would die to avenge my sister.”

➽ Wu Zetian – our main character, who is ready to enlist herself in to the army, to the same pilot who her big sister was enlisted to, but only her ashes were given back. On a mission of pure vengeance, and being sick of being held back because of the gender she was assigned at birth, she finally wants to reclaim some semblance of power for her sister, even if she has to pay for it with her life. But when she gets into her first mech as a concubine-pilot, the world is not ready for the power she truly has to offer, even if it could change the war for once and for all. She also uses a cane and sometimes a wheelchair because of the seriousness and pain of her footbinding.

➽ Li Shimin – the Iron Demon, pilot of the Vermillion Bird, and the scariest and most powerful pilots of them all. Not a single girl has made it out of his mech alive during battle. Was on actual death row for murder because his qi power was tested and noticed and now he is forced to endure another type of prison. He also is bisexual and half Rongdi. He is also struggling with alcoholism and immense trauma and grief. (unrelated, but I would give my life for him this very second.)

➽ Gao Yizhi – son of a powerful man who controls many of the social and public relations standards of Huaxia. Yizhi would sneak out and meet Zetian once a month in the forest of her village and help teach her things and just be a good friend to her. When I tell you I would die for this character. I also feel like the author really gave him some 11/10 one-liners. He is also bisexual and really does such a beautiful job teaching Zetian about polyamory. (yes, these three end up in a relationship together, even though it is not the central plot, it is perfect and I hope we are able to see more stories in the future normalize polyamorous relationships in the seamless way this one did!)

“love isn’t some scarce resource to battle over. Love can be infinite, as much as your heart can open.”

But we follow (and fall head over heels in love with) this trio, while they attempt to dismantle the patriarchy and different types of oppression these people have been facing since even before Zhou fell. I know I just gave you a lot of information, but I promise you the author does so much of a better job immersing you in this story and world. Their writing is actually the best writing I’ve read in the past few years and the amount of highlights my eARC has is actually sickening.

I also just deeply loved the themes of feminism and how sometimes things can feel exceptionally heavy when you have been raised your entire life to honor your elders and trust that they know best, when we still have so many systems (and corrupt governments) to dismantle in our world today. I’m typing this review in 2021 where you are still unable to get a divorce in the Philippines that isn’t an annulment, and how living in the US means constantly seeing powerful men make laws that take away women’s rights to their own bodies.

“I close my eyes, picturing myself taking command of a Chrysalis, towering over buildings and smashing the earth with my colossal limbs or luminous qi blasts. I could crush anyone who’s ever tried to crush me. I could free all the girls who’d love to run away.”

Overall this was just the Asian, queer, polyamorous, feminist sci-fi story of my dreams. The layers were so haunting and deep, the themes were so loud and important, the writing was pure perfection and genius levels of lyrical, and the characters were completely and wholeheartedly unforgettable. And I truly believe that book two, and the conclusion to this duology, will be even better come 2022.

Also, this author is just really cool and creates really amazing content on youtube and their blog. I truly think they are just so inspirational, and I believe one day they will have a few stories written about them and the hope and happiness they are giving to so many, including so many Asian kids all around the world who are feeling so seen and feeling even more pride in their cultures.

Also (lastly for real), this book being published on September 21st, the Mid-Autumn Festival in China, and celebrating another story about a woman, a rabbit, and their sacrifices brings actual tears to my eyes. Very galaxy brain of this author and pub house and just a really beautiful final touch.

Iron Window will for sure make my best books of 2021 list, and I am so truly proud and honored to have been on the blog tour for such a powerful story.

Content + Trigger Warnings: murder, death, torture, violence, gore, human sacrifices, thoughts of suicide, a lot of abuse (including domestic abuse and parental abuse), talk of sexual assault, extreme alcohol addiction, lots of consumption of alcohol, lots of depictions of blood, lots of depictions of trauma, depictions of depression, anxiety depictions and panic attacks, many mentions of needles, forced body modifications including footbinding and stolen organs, humiliation, misogyny and sexism, talk of disease, themes of colonization, and war themes

Thank you for granting me access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I went in to Iron Widow not really knowing what to expect, but very early on I realized I was definitely in for a treat. By the end of this book I was utterly blown away. This is described as “a Pacific Rim meets The Handmaid’s Tale reimagining of Wu Zetian, the only female emperor in Chinese History,” which may sound like a really strange mash-up of themes and ideas, but trust me, it works so well.

Normally, I don’t put much, if any, focus on the age designation of books other than to mention it if it’s a common discrepancy or if the content is darker than what I initially expected. I think it’s important to note right away that this book is marketed as YA, but it’s definitely on the very mature, darker side of the YA novel spectrum. There are many heavy topics that play a part in this novel, from sexual assault, abuse, mutilation, and death, and while nothing is graphically depicted, Zhao does not shy away from the ugly truths of these topics.

The first thing that really grabbed my attention about this book was Zhao’s writing style and how that played a big role in bringing the main character, Zetian, to life. The world of Iron Widow offers women virtually one of two paths: marriage and the life of a housewife/mother, or signing up to be a concubine-pilot with an almost-guarantee of death after very few (at most) runs in the Chrysalis. Zetian doesn’t want either of those options, and she turns out to be a character of almost pure rage and vengeance. Often times when angry characters are written, you can see and understand their anger, but there’s a bit of a disconnect between the character’s emotions and the reader’s. Not in this case. Zhao’s writing is infused with the feminine rage that keeps Zetian going, and you can’t help but actually feel that righteous anger alongside her instead of just reading it as more of a witness. I was continuously impressed by this aspect of Zhao’s writing, but also with how they were able to subtly remind us just how young Zetian still is. YA characters that are on a path to uproot societal structures often feel older than what they are (which makes sense, considering the struggles that lead them to their task to begin with). However, it was refreshing to see subtle moments where Zetian acted like an eighteen-year-old would, with sassy eye-rolls, scoffs, or quips that gave little exposures to her still-lingering immaturity.

Of course, we can’t forget about the world-building and the Chrysalises. Zhao took advanced technology and massive mechs, threw them into Imperial China and pulled it off flawlessly. Instead of the clothing, social behavior and beliefs being very clearly from ancient China creating a stark, jarring contrast with the futuristic battles that took place throughout the book pulling you out of the story, it actually increased the intrigue and sucked you in even further. Then there is how this all factors in to the plot of the story itself. Zhao would drop pieces of information that enriched the world-building, but with how focused the story was on Zetian’s revenge, these pieces of information were easily forgotten until a giant “plot bomb” at the end gets dropped that not only blows the whole story open to something even bigger than what I was expecting, but it also gives a more obvious sense of relevancy to the pieces of world-building information that Zhao was dropping for us earlier in the story. This “plot bomb” not only was an exciting twist, but it was such a smooth set-up for book two.

Iron Widow takes the popular story of the main character overthrowing an unjust system and puts so many new lenses and twists on it that it feels like something I’ve never read before. This was such an addicting story to read with a heroine that I would root for no matter how brutal and bloody her decisions became. If you want a book filled to the brim with mech fights and unbridled female rage, then you absolutely need to pick up Iron Widow when it releases September 21!

I’ve never read a Mecha-type book before. I’ve never even sat through a movie like it. I know virtually nothing about the genre, but I absolutely LOVED Iron Widow. This was the first book in a very long time where my restless self actually sat still for hours at a time reading this because I needed to know what happened next.

I would like to note before going into my review that this is a very loose retelling of Empress Wu from Chinese history. Zhou has a comment on Goodreads where she states that she pulls situations and characters from different points in Chinese history and she knows these characters and events did not coincide with one another. She says outright that she was not going for accuracy. The characters are also only meant to loosely resemble the characters their based off of. I’m sure there will be some high-horse people who don’t see or care about Zhou’s comment that will strongly critique her inaccuracies.

An example of two of her figures she recreates is Sima Yi and Zhuge Liang. While most people who recognize their names (like myself) will probably associate these two with the Dynasty Warriors franchise, these people did actually exist. I grew up on these video games and read parts of The Romance of the Three Kingdoms to learn more of the history behind the characters (this was in the days before researching on the internet was convenient for me). My nerdy little heart was so excited to see Zhou incorporate these two characters into her story. I thought Zhuge Liang was perfect, but I don’t remember enough of Sima Yi to make a judgement. I just think how Zhou took these different points and figures in history to create her story is very creative and works very well.

Zhou’s depictions on the way women are treated (and have been treated either today or in history) made me sick. I was so disgusted reading about this cruel patriarchy. Unless a woman has an unusually hi qi level - which is close to never - every time a woman gets into a Chrysalis, the woman will die and immediately be replaced by another for the next time. Women are expendable in this world along with being suppressed in every other aspect of their life. We even learn in the first couple of chapters that Zetian’s grandmother broke her feet in half as a child because women are supposed to have small feet. Zetian has to hobble around everywhere on feet that are forever mangled because it’s more pleasing to men to have small feet. This book… this book made me so angry. But it also made Zetian angry and it made me love her character even more. Zetian sets out with one goal in mind: kill the bastard that murdered her sister. After that, she doesn’t care what happens to her - which makes her fearless. Sometimes characters like this can really get on my nerves because they usually come across as a “I don’t care about anyone else, I’m going to do what I want” type of person, but for Zetian it made so much sense and I was right there rooting for her. Everything Zetian does is in response to this extremely suppressive system and the injustice it dealt to women.

There is a bit of a love triangle between Zetian and two male characters. Now, usually I can’t stand stand love triangles - they can stay in the 2000’s. But, this is actually a poly relationship and I’ve never seen a YA book (never seen one in any book, but I know they have to be out there). It is such a unique concept and done very well. Plus, I love all three of the characters in the relationship. I wish we had seen this developed a little more, but I’m not disappointed in the least.

I have to admit, I didn’t quite understand how qi and Chrysalis’ work and how they work together, but I think this is more of a me problem than the author’s writing. I feel like they were explained decently well, but my brain just can’t absorb and understand it. It didn’t hinder my enjoyment of story - it was more of a “I don’t know how this works, but it’s freaking cool” reaction. This was just so different than what I’m used to reading, so it probably has to do with unfamiliarity with the genre. It’s possible that I will come to understand it better in the second book. Iron Widow isn’t even out yet, but I need the second book right now because I loved this so much and I need to know what happens to these characters.