I’m not sure where to start with this review, the beginning is usually a good start though! Iron Widow is described as ‘Pacific Rim meets The Handmaiden’s Tale” and it marries these two pieces of art and ideas amazingly.

Wu Zhetian is a strong feminist figure, whose journey was riddled with patriarchal struggles that suppressed many, took many lives and created a deep historical line of submission within its women population.

As she navigates this world tormented not only by Hunduns but violent men , she uncovers hidden truths and breaks the norms created. She breaks boundaries both mentally and physically , helping those around her as well.

The romance with Zhetian, Shimin and Yizhi was crafted so well and equally. They balanced each other really well and each played a key component in the dynamic. I was rooting for all of them and I absolutely loved them. This is my first novel featuring a poly relationship and it was very refreshing to read.

At times I did feel Zhetian came across as abrasive but like with understanding the society and what she experiences , it makes sense why she behaves like this and says certain things. Overall, she was very relatable and I was rooting for her.

The ending was mind blowing and so interesting.

10/10 would recommend this book if you love characters that keep you on the edge on your seat ❤️

Absolutely amazing book! If you love strong female characters, beautiful world building and political intrigue, this is the book for you! One of my favorite books of 2021, and it was completely refreshing to read as it was very different from what I am used to reading. I would also suggest this book to anyone who wants a ~real~ love triangle, it’s the strongest shape! I am very excited for the sequel, and anything else from Xiran Jay Zhao!

Iron Widow genuinely took me by surprise with how much I enjoyed it. This thrilling futuristic sci-fi had fierce characters and a plot I found myself interested in, making a very good read. The main character was uncompromising in her beliefs and had the ability to really push the story forward. That epilogue has me hyped for the continuation of the series, and I certainly encourage you to check out the work of author Xiran Jay Zhao.

Positives:
- Although I am usually opposed to first person POV, there are some authors that can make it work. Zhao’s creation of the main character Zetian is one of those good cases. Being in her mind was truly the best perspective to view the world. Zetian has such spirit and drive, and seeing her motives/thought process behind her decision making was the right way to go.
- I am so happy the author forgoed the classic YA love triangle in favor of a polyamourous relationship. I’m honestly tired of the worn out “I can’t decide which person for me” and enjoyed this fresh take. The dynamic between the three simply worked, and I fully shipped. I admire the author for persevering against the pushback and including them.
- During its action packed and character driven scenes, the book had me hooked and I could not set it down. To be completely frank, in the beginning I thought the plot would be too far-fetched to keep me entertained, but I’m happy to have been proven wrong.

Negatives:
- The worldbuilding was unfortunately difficult for me to follow at times. After finishing the book I’m still a tad bit confused about the planes and magic system. This led to me getting lost in some scenes and not getting to enjoy what was occurring.
- I definitely liked the first half of the book more than the second, just because it captured more of my interest. Around the end, I grew somewhat bored at the tedious scenes that did not feel important to the plot.

Iron Widow should definitely be added to your TBRs!

Iron Will is my favorite breed of 2021

I don't know if I will ever find the words to describe the connection I had to Zetain and her upbringing. Or if I will ever be able to fully describe the visceral reactions I've had to this book.

If you have ever been disappointed with your station solely because of the way you were born, disappointed in the way people treated you because of that, If you ever had a glimpse of the thought of dismantling the patriarchy one man at a time, if being meek and appeasing makes your blood boil, this book is for you.

It is for those sick and tired of the world we live in and refuse to sit back without at least attempting to destroy everything that's been built.

“Told you the triangle is the strongest shape”

This book is everything. It has a strong female character who doesn’t represent feminism as hatred for other women, or for femininity. Zetian isn’t another, “not like other girls,” protagonist. She cares about furthering women’s progress, not, just her own. The romance for once isn’t a toxic jumble of love triangles and miscommunication. I would say it definitely subverts that trope and uses it to its advantage though. The queer rep is natural and though the book isn’t necessarily centered on romance, it was a good romance. The sci-fi and the world building is incredible. And I’m so happy that I got to read this. I think that the combination of Chinese historical elements with typical futurist ones was a fresh take on the tried narrative of mech fighting. I also think that the sinister cost of the mech usage was, albeit sad, a pretty great commentary on women’s experiences and treatments.

I had a great time reading this book! There were a few pluses and minuses, but overall this was an incredibly solid debut that I’m giving a 4 star rating to.

Strengths:
[*] Xiran Jay Zhao’s writing style. She has a simple style that flows well, which is exactly what I enoy.

[*] The world. It’s just straight up cool and immersive.

[*] The rep. Especially in a book meant for teens, I do applaud the author for going there with a different sort of relationship and portraying it in a fairly healthy light.

[*] The characters. Overall, I found myself enjoying and caring about the characters.

Weaknesses:

[*] Zeitan, honestly. I feel like there could have been a touch more fleshing out. It’s the beginning of a series, so I’m assuming we’re going to see some progression in the future but I did get some ‘Mary Sue, but a badass ’ vibes as other reviewers have noticed as well.

[*] Pacing was a big one for me. I found myself at times enjoying a scene and then all of a sudden a ton of action would happen and I would have to go back and make sure I didn’t miss anything.

Potential Triggers:

[*] Alcoholism

[* ] Death of a family member

[*] Sexual coercion. Nothing graphic, but there are a few moments/scenes that I think may be potentially triggering.

All in all, I do highly recommend picking this up when it comes out!

Iron Widow is an exhilarating page-turner that will keep you entertained with it's vengeful protagonist and it's many twists.

Wu Zetian, the protagonist, is easily my favorite part of the book in the sense she's ruthless, she has the motivation, and she's just really easy to root for. It's set in the world where a pair of male and female pilots pilot the Chryalises, which is a form-changing robot. The pilots protect the people from the mindless, dangerous alien-like creatures called the Hunduns. The horrifying part is that the female pilots usually die from the process. Our protagonist offers herself up as the concubine pilot so she could kill the ace pilot who is responsible for her sister's death. Zetian, based on China's only female emperor, is here to change everything.

The book also has a romance sub-plot in which there's a polyamorous relationship involving two boys and Zetian and it's entertaining and I loved it though it is a little underdeveloped, I still really liked it a lot.

The battle scenes were written well though sometimes I felt I wasn't getting everything but I still had the idea and the action was like watching a shounen anime, which I loved.

As I said, it's fast-paced and I was invested most of the time though there were some moments I felt were slow then it got back and it was fine. The themes and the dialogue sometimes felt very in-your-face and lacking some nuance but I feel like this can be improved in the sequel.

My favorite part is the ending which blew my mind and THAT epilogue?!? I can't wait for the next book and this book really gave me the rush, the adrenaline, and I'm so grateful for it.

—thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book blew me away!

When I first heard of it it caught my interest because mechas in YA is something I haven't seen before. I'm so glad I was able to read it early through NetGally.

Wu Zetian is the main character of my dreams. She has agency, confidence, and brains. Experiencing this journey with her was truly enjoyable. The way she sees the system that keeps her oppressed because she's a woman and poor is refreshing. She isn't fooled at all by the lies they feed her. This story is very much a feminist story with a main character that isn't afraid of power and claiming the respect that society has long denied her. Also I really related to the anger that fueled her forward.

The romance was absolutely refreshing. The author takes the love triangle and gives us something fresh.

The story was pretty fast paced but to me the middle dragged a little but then that ending hit hard. This book definitely left me wanting more.

I really wanted to love this book. The premise, which promised a “blend of Chinese history and mecha science fiction” sounded so intriguing and promising. The book has been hyped up for its strong feminist themes and diverse representation. While I love the sounds of these things, it’s the execution that killed the book for me.

The story takes place in Huxia, a region plagued by continuous war with mecha aliens called Hunduns. The husks of dead Hunduns can be harvested as materials to build Chrysalises, giant mecha piloted by young men and powered by a combination of the pilot’s Qi and the Qi he draws from female pilots, known in this world as “concubine-pilots.” This system is extremely exploitative and usually ends with the death of the female pilots, as battles require a huge amount of Qi and the female pilots are essentially drained of their life force.

The story follows 18-year-old Zetian, a young woman from a poor village determined to become a concubine-pilot in order to avenge her older sister, who was murdered by a famous pilot. She succeeds in doing so, because Zetian turns out to have an extremely high “spirit pressure” and ability to control her Qi, even to the extent of overpowering male pilots, earning her the notorious moniker, Iron Widow.

There were several concerns I had with this work.

First, the pacing is incredibly quick. In a handful of chapters, Zetian transforms from a seemingly powerless young woman into a Qi powerhouse that continually confounds the military. In addition, so many major plot points occur in succession—from battles to major interpersonal conflicts to political intrigue to the (very) quick progression of the romantic relationships—a lot was packed into the book and in the case, I don’t think quantity = quality.

There are strong Mary Sue vibes in this story—Zetian adapts to and is successful in pretty much every situation she is thrown into. I never got the sense that she was facing actual dire stakes, except maybe at the very end of the book. There wasn’t a real feeling of urgency throughout because it’s established pretty early on that Zetian can essentially do anything—even murdering one of the military’s best pilots!—and get away with it relatively unscathed. Not because she changes the hearts and minds of the terrible men around her, but because that’s just how the plot seemed to unfold time and time again.

I appreciate and enjoy feminist themes in novels, but in Iron Widow they are so strongly embodied by Zetian that it borders on unbelievable. I can understand feelings of rebellion, questioning the status quo, and feeling violent rage against your oppressors.

But Zetian goes beyond that, espousing a mindset that seems out of place in the context of the setting, which is almost purely comprised of overbearing, abusive men, and passive, downtrodden women. There are moments where she adopts empowering beliefs in the span of a single scene. She doesn’t seem to truly struggle with her beliefs. Perhaps this is to indicate that Zetian is incredibly strong-willed and secure in her sense of self-worth?

Knowing that she has grown up in an intensely patriarchal society with extremely rigid gender roles, such immense character “growth” in so little time is unrealistic. She has no strong female role models in her life—not even fictional ones in books. It’s hard to believe that she would have the intensity of mindset that she is portrayed to have without having any influence or example to even take inspiration from.

The relationships in the books are also poorly depicted and unrealistically paced. There is a lot of telling versus showing and one of the relationships leaps from begrudging respect to “we’re kissing now” in a single scene. Zetian’s love interests seem so enamored of her but it’s never really shown why that is—again, Mary Sue vibes.

I struggled to write this review because I wondered if perhaps I was reviewing a young adult novel the way I would review adult fiction. But I believe that craft is craft. Good writing—a strong narrative arc, believable characters, a vivid setting, pacing that supports the story—should be a priority in all kinds of books, no matter the intended audience.

For this reason, I’m giving Iron Widow 1.5 stars. It’s a book with an incredibly promising, imaginative premise, but that ultimately suffered due to unnuanced and unsophisticated execution.

Thank you so much Penguin Random House Canada and Xiran Jay Zhao for allowing me to read this book! I enjoyed reading it so much! This reimagining of China's only female empress, Wu Zetian, was so creative and hilarious!
This book is perfect for fans of the Handmaid's Tale and mecha anime, and I cannot wait for the second book!

I went into Iron Widow both excited about the concept and scared for the execution. Usually, when books are being promoted as feminist they end up being shallow attempts to show a strong female lead. Unfortunately, this book felt that way a bit. I did appreciate how it pointed out sexism in the world, especially in history, through every outlet. In our home lives, in politics, media, etc.

Zetian's actions didn't really feel like they were genuinely aiming for the goal of giving women freedom. They felt a bit more selfish than I was expecting from someone who supposedly wanted to help every other woman in her tiny shoes. She started off talking about making society equal, but by the time we reach the end she really only cared about basically being a dictator. She didn't even have a positive relationship with a single other woman throughout this book, which is honestly my biggest gripe.

There was a lack of other female characters in general. She talked to what, three? Not including her family. And she had a negative relationship with every single one. You would think that in a society like this there would be a network of girls supporting each other. Instead, they are not only submissive, but actively helping men be in control of everything. I find it hard to believe that Zetian was the ONLY woman who realized she was worth more than what she was being told. It gives her big "chosen one" energy.

Let's look at The Handmaids Tale (Hulu show version) as an example since that is what they reference in promotions. The show follows June who is actively fighting against the male-dominated society she was forced into, but she isn't alone. She is surrounded by other women who are fighting in their own ways, in any way they can, big or small. Something to show that Zetian had a web of support from other women would have been amazing, and I'm disappointed we didn't get anything even close to that.

I also thought it was kind of ridiculous she was labelled as an Iron Widow when she killed literally one single dude. You would think they would pass it off as a weird fluke and pretend it never happened but instead they instantly let her know that she has power and she starts to think of herself as an assassin. Her actions were also more reckless than methodical, which was just annoying.

Wow. I am absolutely stunned at how fantastic this book was. I’m so thankful that NetGalley allowed this book to be available. It gave everyone a chance to read and review such an amazing book that will no doubt break down barriers. The world is immersive, the characters are lovable, and the plot keeps you on the edge of your seat. I am beyond excited for the next book and this one hasn’t even released yet. The polyamory in this book is such a great example of a healthy, supportive, communicating relationship.

Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

In the author's notes at the start of the book, she talks about how even though the story is obviously fictional, the feelings she felt while writing the story were real and true. These emotions are presented in impactful ways all throughout the novel. I felt the anger she had for the mistreatment of women in this book, and how it represents real issues happening even in today's world. I understood the rage felt by the main protagonist as she recounts memories of her sister having been mistreated and cast aside as if she were an object. I felt the moments highlighting her fractured mentality and oppressed being. And boy was I in for one hell of a ride from page one.

I was pulled in by the tagline in the summary: "Pacific Rim meets the Handmaid's Tale" - if there ever was a most accurate blurb, this is it. It delivered everything I was hoping for and more. On top of the action and gritty drama in this dystopian universe, the author underscores to the reader important issues such as misogyny, inequality between class systems, and unethical values propagated by a broken government.

One of my favorite things from this novel is the character progression. I love the transformation of our main character from a rage-fueled, desperate individual crawling towards revenge into this powerful girl feared by many (while still fueled by righteous anger her whole journey). I felt most of the characters were pretty well fleshed out and multidimentional. There's no one description to define each character. For example, Character A isn't just The Smart One; he's clever, but also sweet, devoted to those he cares about, and is always eager for new knowledge. And Character B isn't just The Brawn; he is useful in a fight but his physicality doesn't define him. This character lends his strength when his friends need help but he's also a big teddy bear on the inside who, despite having suffered many injustices in his past, can still find it in himself to put his trust in others and discover a loyal support system in them.

Another pro for this book was the action scenes; they were written well that the reader can imagine every movement and hit by these mecha creatures. The world-building was super interesting, especially when it incorporated elements of nature, qi, and traditional Chinese history as part of its universe. I also enjoyed the juxtaposition between the complex and highly technological beings that are the Chrysalis creatures, and the descriptions of naturally rich landscapes where the lower class townspeople live in huts among rice paddies and dress in simple clothing. The ending very obviously hints at a sequel so I look forward to seeing a little bit more addition to the world-building aspects.

I felt the story had just the right amount of aggression and violence; each instance of rage or violence lends purpose to the story, and fight scenes never lasted too long to become boring. Since the author already makes the comparison to Pacific Rim, I'll continue the trend and note that the action in Iron Widow ramps up similarly to PacRim's arc. Slowly first with a little background on the mechas, their purpose and pilot function, and then later on by the end the reader gets to encounter a number of different types of Chrysales and their elemental strengths. This culminates in The Big Fight at the climax of the story. The similarities are not a bad thing; the final part is written very well and kept me at the edge of my seat.

One other positive thing I want to highlight is the relationships in this novel. You can't get a good 'individuals-sharing-a-neural-link-to-pilot-a-giant-robot' story without putting an emphasis on the neural link part. Our main characters are forced to share their memories and experiences with each other every time they ride, and their interactions outside of these links really help foster the relationships into healthy, loving ones. The romance comes with the nature of the story but does not feel forced. Also, no love triangles and ridiculous miscommunication to be found here-- who needs unrequited second lead love when our protagonist can have her cake and eat it too?! I feel like my review so far has made the whole book sound like drama and grittiness overload but there's actually a good amount of funny lines in there too, as well as feelgood and cute moments with certain characters (!!!).

My main con would be that I wish the female lead had more chances to interact with other female characters, and actually have good moments with them. Sadly, she does not get a chance to develop any positive relationships with other females; rather she seems to encounter only ones who wish her harm, and mostly relies on her male counterparts to get her out of sticky situations. I hope the author can amend this issue in any future sequels because I believe it would make the message of her story much much stronger.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and appreciated all the badass action scenes featuring the female protagonist. I love that she's driven so much by revenge and when she achieves her goal, she becomes even more unhinged as she uncovers more nefarious dealings happening in the underbelly of their government. The ending was one giant nail-biting session; I couldn't put the book down once the final third arc of the story started!! There's one well-known literary work that I really want to point out for Iron Widow's similarity to it, but it will definitely give away the ending so I will have to trust that other readers will know exactly which one I have in mind once they have finished reading too. I would say this falls towards the end of the Young Adult spectrum, closer to New Adult. While some aspects of the story could be predictable, it did not detract from my overall reading experience so I didn't feel that YA tropes was an issue with this novel. Some of the characterizations for minor characters could be improved but there is plenty of opportunities to work on these issues in future sequels, which I will definitely be looking forward to reading.

Thank you to Net Galley and Penguin Random Canada for the chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
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"If they don't respect me just because I'm from the 'wrong' half of the population, I'm not respecting them back."
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What I liked: The tagline was honestly what caught my attention first: "Pacific Rim meets Handmaid's Tale..." I was very skeptical about that combination because I couldn't wrap my head around it, but once I started the book, I couldn't put it down! Wu Zetian, our protagonist, is a young woman in a very patriarchal, misogynistic world. But she doesn't let that stop her at any point. Heck yeah ♀️
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What I didn't like: My only issue with the plot was that her initial motivation seemed to be resolved much too quickly, which led to a bigger picture kind of conflict. I get that, but there was barely any satisfaction with it.
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But literally, other than that, MORE PLEASE.

The concept drew me in but the cover had me sorta second thought it, (I know they say don’t judge a book by its cover but I can’t help myself) but I’m glad I went through with this book. A Pacific Rim x Handmaid’s Tale mixed with feminism, it didn’t disappoint.

This book has everything you could want. A morally grey main character, an wonderful and engaging plot sprinkled with hidden themes that really have you thinking, an amazing asian-inspired world building.

Iron Widow follows a girl, Wu Zetian. Wu is a female pilot embarking on a journey to avenge her sisters murder all while trying to deal with and overcome the gender struggles placed on women. I think this book wonderfully ties in how women struggle in a world that favors men. I think the whole plot of avenging her sister really help shows that in such a wonderful way.

While Wu teams up with Li Shimin, she works on figuring out why the pilot system is so misogynistic and trying to protect other women. It’s really a great story, I feel like it covers a lot of bases you don’t see typical YA books covering, and I really like that.

This book was great, but the pacing was off on some parts. the last like 25% of the book felt there were a lot of parts just crammed in my personal opinion. The writing style wasn’t necessarily my favorite, but it was still an enjoyable story. So excited for it to hit shelves.

If you’re looking for a great YA debut, own voices, interesting and delicately out together novel, Iron Widow is for you!

Thank you to NetGalley for this arc! I absolutely loved this book! I already knew I would just based off the description, but I enjoyed it even more than I thought I would. I loved the strong female protagonist in this book, and especially her role and views on the world she lived in. There was so many important messages in this book, and it was such a powerful read. I did find it to be a lot of stuff happening at once at certain points, so it was important that I was paying my full attention as to not miss anything. There was tons of action and rarely a dull moment in this book, which I really enjoy. I enjoy fast paced books with lots of action because it helps keep me interested and engaged, and this book does that really well! I can’t wait to purchase and read this again when it is published and I recommend it to all lovers of fantasy!

A society like Ancient China.
Tributes and Fanfare like Hunger Games.
Smart, Angry, and Strategic Female like Game of Thrones.
Warfare like a Sci-Fi Transformers.

Wow.

A lot of YA fantasy novels with battles and war often pull punches. Even more often it centers on a romance and more than likely a love triangle. Iron Widow does none of those things. No punches are pulled and you haven't seen a love triangle like this one.

In a society where a good woman should be seen, not heard, and her entire existence is in service of her husband, Zetian says No. She grew up in a house where the women walked on eggshells are were regularly beat by the men when they were displeased. Her elder sister had already gone to fight the Hunduns and her qi and life were sacrificed by her family. Now it is Zetian's turn, but if she is going down, she is taking the Prince Pilot who killed Big Sister with her.

Zetian is angry and she has every right to be. She is one badass female. There are several rockstar moments that are entirely too satisfying. What a queen Xiran Jay Zhao is and Bravo to her publishing company for being brave enough to publish this masterpiece that doesn't fit any mold!

Thank you @penguinteen and @netgalley for the eARC

I like using flowery words when writing reviews but today, my words fail me as I try to quantify my adoration for Iron Widow, as I try to trap it within the confines of language and as I try to show you how much of an impact it made in me.
Meet the debut so bold and blazing because it will be unlike anything you've ever read before.

Pitched as the Pacific Rim meets the Handmaid's tale, I'm here to tell you I haven't read/watched either but I still love Iron Widow because it is solid enough to stand on it's own.
Iron Widow is set in a world where boy pilots sacrifice the lives of girl pilots to power mechas in order to fight off Hunduns.
Zhetian, our MC, signs up as a concubine pilot to avenge her older sister and in a surprising turn of events, emerges as the feared iron widow, a female pilot who is able to sacrifice the male one to power the mecha. She is the paired the strongest pilot in the military. The rest is about how Zhetian would fight this deeply patriarchal and misogynistic system and will she survive it?

The characters are amazing and the author does such a great job in subverting common tropes. ( Triangle is definitely the strongest shape)
And this is what I talk about when I say diversity. The book is simply steeped in Chinese Culture that you can't help but love it.

Almost feverdreamlike in it's wuxia ish world, you can feel Zhetian's fearless fury bleeding off each word as she fights an entire world geared against her gender.

Epic in every sense of the word, portraying the very real problems faced by women in a fantastical context, Iron Widow is a must read.
#letsreadownvoices

Iron Widow is being compared to Pacific Rim and The Handmaid's Tale. When comparing a book such as this to two very popular pieces of media, it almost always sets itself up for failure. I think that's where my problems with this book stem from. I was coming into this book, expecting something and having high expectations and the book just didn't deliver. If this book had stood on its own merit, instead of leaning on these comparisons, I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more.

The storyline changed way too many times in my opinion and I was left feeling confused as to what could realistically happen next. I wasn't rooting for our main character by the end and I felt very let down by her actions. I find it super unrealistic that in a society as oppressive as this, that there is no one standing up against these injustices. I cannot believe that our main character is the only one who is trying to fight this war on misogyny and patriarchy in this society.

I do think that the colloquial and casual language in the book made it very easy to read and I loved the inclusion of a polyamorous relationship between the three main characters. I'm intrigued to see what happens next so I'll probably be picking up the second book when it comes out.

When I heard that this book was being compared to Pacific Rim and the Handmaid’s Tale, I was immediately intrigued and knew I had to get my hands on this book. I do feel like those big comparisons did give me high expectations of the book and the book did not meet them.

I thought I had a good idea what I was letting myself into when starting the book but this book isn’t at all what I thought it would be and I don’t think the book itself knew either. It tried to be way too many things at once and couldn’t stick to a single trajectory. Instead it flip flopped from one plot line to the next, resolving them way too quickly and leaving the reader with whiplash.

There was the revenge for her sister plot line, which I thought would take up a considerable chunk of the book. It was resolved within the first few chapters. Then there’s the training plot line, the media stardom plot line, the Golden Dragon plot line and the becoming Empress plot line? They were all thrown at the reader, hoping something would stick. I thought that the Golden Dragon plot line, traipsing through the jungle, communicating with nomads, would have been a fantastic story but we only got a couple of pages of that unfortunately and it wasn’t explained or given enough time on the page to really have an impact.

This book also suffers from the ‘I’m not like other girls’ trope. I highly doubt that Zeitan is the only woman to have tried to rebel against the system. It feels a little impossible to me that she is the only one capable of thinking beyond the misogynistic system they are all stuck in. Adding an underground rebel force amongst all the subservient women would have given this book an extra layer of intrigue. Unfortunately, all the other women in this story are put down, left behind and insulted by our main character in the name of feminism and I hate it, thanks.

I do think that coming into this book expecting a Pacific Rim retelling really made it difficult to read because I kept comparing the book to Guillermo Del Toro’s optimistic mecha robot movie (with epic quotes like ‘Today we’re cancelling the apocalypse!’). The author is also very tell not show and so I felt the book lacked descriptions. I struggled picturing scenes in my head and the world building needed a lot more work in my opinion.

The relationships also developed way too quickly. I love that the author wanted to include a poly relationship in their book. It’s so underrepresented in YA literature and is definitely a fresh take on the love triangle. I just wish that the author had taken more time to build tension between the characters. The ‘will they, won’t they’ aspect is what I love most about relationships in books such as this but I just feel like it didn’t work for me at all.

I was thoroughly entertained though and read this book very quickly. I feel like the colloquial language could have been left out (words such as ugh, yeah, etc.) but other than that, I felt like the writing flowed well enough.

Overall, this was a great debut novel by an influencer I really enjoy watching online. I love the concepts and the historical inspirations for this book come through strongly and do make an impact. I am grateful that the author included a poly relationship and I’m excited to see where the second book takes us. I do wish that this book would decide what it wanted to be from the beginning because it just doesn’t feel like it had a central plot line and it left me with whiplash every time the story decided to change course.