A big big thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this book!

Strike the Zither by Joan He was a book that I was extremely excited for. This book is a retelling of the Chinese classic The Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong. Any retelling of something like that is very ambitious and I think that Joan He pulled it off beautifully.

The story follows a strategist with the nickname Zephyr. Zephyr is known to be one of the best strategists, having studied under multiple masters and being chosen to advise a warlordess who is trying to bring back stability to the country under the current empress. All of this while being hunted by another warlordess called Miasma.

The author managed to make the story easier to follow as most characters go by 'sobriquets' which matches their personalities. The plot is also adapted to be genderbent with the majority of the main characters being women instead of men. In the authors note at the end they also mention a few other things adjusted to accommodate the story a bit more. But I do have to say that this was a rollercoaster of a book. Things happen fast and circumstances change quite drastically a few times. But this book is important as it makes a text that is usually difficult to digest a lot more beginner friendly.

Overall, I loved this book. I loved the characters and I can't wait for the sequel to come out. I would advise some caution as this doesn't shy away from violence of war, but I do think it would be a good starting point to people who want to read books like Poppy War but who want a slightly softer starting point.

Things to know:

-Retelling of Chinese tale of the Three Kingdoms
-Romance
-Action
-First in series (Kingdom of Three)
-RELEASE DATE OCTOBER 25, 2022

Synopsis:

The year is 414 of the Xin Dynasty, and chaos abounds. A puppet empress is on the throne. The realm has fractured into three factions and three warlordesses hoping to claim the continent for themselves. But Zephyr knows it’s no contest. Orphaned at a young age, Zephyr took control of her fate by becoming the best strategist of the land and serving under Xin Ren, a warlordess whose loyalty to the empress is double-edged—while Ren’s honor draws Zephyr to her cause, it also jeopardizes their survival in a war where one must betray or be betrayed. When Zephyr is forced to infiltrate an enemy camp to keep Ren’s followers from being slaughtered, she encounters the enigmatic Crow, an opposing strategist who is finally her match. But there are more enemies than one—and not all of them are human.


Rating: 4.5/5 Stars (rounded to 5 stars on Goodreads)

Review:

If you know me then you know I am a HUGE fan of retellings, especially those of Chinese/Japanese/Korean tales/folklore. Strike the Zither is no different. I loved every second of it, and I already need book 2! 😅

The main character Zephyr is a strong female lead who takes no crap and speaks her mind/makes people think what she wants them to think. In other words, an incredible strategist.

There were a few twists I totally didn’t see coming and I get SO EXCITED when a book is actually able to surprise me!

I recommend this book for those who are fans of Spin the Dawn/Unravel the Dusk, Six Crimson Cranes, Daughter of the Moon Goddess, and Iron Widow.

Other books by Joan He: Descendant of the Crane & The Ones We’re Meant to Find.

If you are interested in the original Tale of The Three Kingdoms this series on YouTube is FANTASTIC! ANIMATED Romance of the Three Kingdoms - Complete 120 Novel Chapters Simplified Be warned.. There are seven long episodes, but it is one of the shortest tellings of the tale!

Thank you @netgalley and @macmillanusa for early access to this title in exchange for an honest review!

I was unsure what to expect from this book, being unfamiliar with Romance of the Three Kingdoms, but I am always up for genderbending international classic literature.

Joan He's take on RoTK was filled with twisty strategies and plot zigzags, as well as immensely fascinating characters. I was a little unsure about the fantastical element that appears partway through, but He handled it well and incorporated it smoothly into the rest of the militaristic strategy plot.

I didn't realize this was the first in a series (although I should have guessed), but after that twist in the final chapter, I am very excited to read the next book.

I cannot emphasize how excited I was for this book. A YA genderbent adaption of the incredibly famous historical Chinese novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms? Hell yes, give me all of it. And of course, there’s also Kuri Huang’s gorgeous cover, which only stoked my excitement even more. So you can absolutely believe that the moment I got approved for this book on Netgalley, I put everything down to read it. Sadly, while I can’t say this was a perfect five-star read, there was a lot to love.

In Strike this Zither, we follow the story from the perspective of ___, more frequently referred to by her sobriquet Zephyr (as do most characters in this book). Zephyr takes the role of Zhuge Liang from the original RoTK, a real-life military strategist whose legacy lies in the public consciousness in China. He does an excellent job of ensuring that while Zephyr embodies Zhuge Liang in both appearance (rocking the classic white crane-feathered fan and white robes) and exploits, she embraces her own character and struggles.

The story opens with Zephyr ‘betraying’ her lord Xin Ren (who takes the role of Liu Bei, kind of) to one of the enemy warlords Miasma in a desperate last-ditch attempt to give Ren and her people time to recuperate their losses. I love how maturely He handles the military aspect of this story. After, Romance of the Three Kingdoms is set partially during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history, one of China’s bloodiest periods of infighting and conquest. And Strike the Zither is no different. He is unafraid to shy away from the bloodshed and some of the more gore-y warcrimes various people commit in the name of their rulers.

And with any good military fantasy, there are many moving parts and characters, all of which He juggles with ease. While our story remains a single POVs (Zephyr’s), Zephyr’s position as Ren’s war strategist requires her to be familiar with all necessary parties (read: threats). Despite the large secondary cast, at no point did I feel confused or overwhelmed. I definitely think that the single-word sobriquets that most characters go by (ie. Miasma, Crow, November) went a long way to retaining character names. While I don’t want to spoil the story, I can definitely say the plot keeps you on your toes, especially after the halfway mark.

As a side note, while I don’t think it’s necessary for readers to have any familiarity with the original Romance of the Three Kingdoms, this is an adaption and certain references and how story elements get modified to fit within Strike the Zither may be missed. I’d highly recommend skimming the Wikipedia summary of RoTK and Zhuge Liang’s page, especially his legacy section. He also includes a really nice writeup at the end of the book discussing some of the changes she made and the reason for certain decisions.

There were two main things that bothered me as I read. Firstly, He treats the profession of ‘strategist’ like of a term in early 2010s dystopian YA novels where characters are sorted into groups based on a singular personality trait. There would be phrases like, ‘oh because X is a strategist, they must believe in Y’, or ‘they did this because they’re a strategist’, which felt extremely reductive of a personality. To justify decisions or actions because ‘they’re a strategist’ ignores the underlying motivations and past experiences that make a character interesting!

Additionally, there’s a hinted enemies-to-lovers romance between Zephyr and one of Miasma’s (broody sarcastic all black wearing sickly) war strategist Crow. Part of it might just be that I didn’t find his character all that interesting, but I found the budding romance between the two forced and lacking chemistry.

Overall, I rate this book a 4/5. He writes an ambitious genderbent YA retelling of Strike the Zither that doesn’t shy away from the military and war aspects while introducing a wide cast of memorable characters. Theres’ a lot to love in this first book and I can’t wait for all the political intrigue of book two that the ending teases.

Let me just start by saying this: I loved it.

Ok, so Strike the Zither is a retelling of the Three Kingdoms, which is considered one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature, so your well-meaning but sometimes silly white lady reviewer had never heard of it. It's known as a romance, and sure, there is romance, but for me, the real draw was the court intrigue/schemes and character development. The main character is a strategist for a down-and-out warlord/semi-royal and immediately goes under cover for the enemy. When I tell you that I live for these sorts of plot-lines...and it's well done and the story is super fast paced all the way through. There was one aspect of the plot that I didn't love, but you know, I suspect it'll pay off if I get around to reading the sequel.

Anyway, strongly recommend to those folks who like their fantasy with some historical nature but also, like, lots of scheming and backstabbing. Game of Thrones fans will like it for sure. I will be strongly promoting this one across our platforms. 4.5 stars - I loved it.

tl;dr
A beautifully written book with powerful characters and a rollercoaster ride of plot twists that's nearly impossible to put down.

About
In a land torn by war, three warlordesses fight for control. Zephyr is a brilliant strategist, and she'll do whatever it takes to keep her lordess Xin Ren safe. With armies at their heels and resources thin, Zephyr's only choice is to infiltrate the enemy's ranks and destroy them from within. But when the enemy's strategist Crow appears, has she finally met her match?

Thoughts
I'm already counting down the days to the sequel. The author's notes in the back state that this is her favorite book, and with good reason. It's an excellent book. War stratagems and human complexity clash beautifully and painfully in this retelling of The Three Kingdoms (although no familiarity with the original is necessary to enjoy this). The plot drives the story, but there's plenty of space for human interaction, including very thoughtful portrayals of the many different forms of sisterhood. Zephyr is an absolutely stunning main character. Bold, capable, confident, and utterly unshakeable. As much as I love a story where the MC learns to believe in themselves, getting to read one where they already do is truly exhilarating. Crow is a fantastic foil (and potential love interest?) - clever, moody, and full of secrets. I loved seeing him and Zephyr match wits. Writing is fast-paced, and evocative, with plot twists furling out with increasing urgency. And that ending! Ahhhh!

I'd also like to take the time to appreciate that notes in the back offer insight into the original Three Kingdoms story for curious readers, and there are a handful of gorgeous character illustrations in the front. (I, uh, wouldn't mind one for Crow in the second volume.)

After reading Joan He’s debut Descendant of the Crane in one sitting, He quickly became an author to watch for me then becoming a must buy author when I enjoyed her next novel The Ones We’re Meant to Find in one night. When I found out her third book Strike the Zither was set to release in October I made my first ever ARC request. So I’d definitely say I was excited for this book despite the risk that maybe this time He didn’t write a banger (as is the risk for any author as they write more books).

I’m glad to say I was not disappointed.

Strike the Zither is based on the Three Kingdoms period and tales in Chinese history. Going into this book I didn’t really have much knowledge on the Three Kingdoms besides what was divulged in Chinese or Korean dramas set in that time period (so not a lot). That being said, STZ is more of a tale inspired by the Three Kingdoms than a strict retelling as it purposely does away with a lot of factors that defined the time like patriarchy. So if you’re about to go into this book expecting a historically accurate portrayal of the Three Kingdoms, that is not what you’ll be getting but that is not a bad thing. If the fact that this is not a strict retelling deters you from picking up this book, I’d urge you to reconsider because you’d be missing out on an amazing tale.

Strike the Zither was full of mind reeling plot twists, a distinct narrator, and unforgettable characters with complex relationships.

One aspect of Joan He’s writing that made her a must read author for me is her masterful execution of plot twists. There are a lot of them, they happen when you least expect, and most importantly when they happen your jaw is on the ground but it never feels like it was thrown in just for shock value. There were multiple times while reading STZ where I gasped out loud at something that was revealed not only because it was shocking but because I realized that what I had been reading previously had actually been foreshadowing. Joan He does a magical thing where exposition, character building, and setting can all double as foreshadowing but you won’t know it until the plot twist happens. Joan He further mastered this execution in STZ so that the story never felt like there was a lull and I always had a reason to keep turning the pages, trying (but never succeeding) in figuring out how everything fit together. The entire time I was reading STZ I had no idea how it would end, and that only made me want to read further.

The narrative voice of the main character, Zephyr, was clear and added to the overall experience of the story. Zephyr’s personality was distinct and the decision to use first person to capture it also aided in making me, the reader, aware of different relationship dynamics and gave insight into how other characters impacted and were perceived by Zephyr while making me question if everything is what it seemed. In short, Zephyr’s narration did a great job at engaging my mind throughout the story and making me more and more invested as I read.

Another compelling aspect of STZ were the dynamic relationships between a full cast of unforgettable and complex characters. There are depictions of both found family and blood family and the similarity and differences between the two are a major driving force for both the characters and the plot. In conjunction with the major plot twists, characters’ struggles with family and connections gives an added layer of complexity to the plot and gives major actions of war, violence, and betrayal a believable and compelling motivation.

I went into Strike the Zither not knowing what to expect, and I ended it excited to see what comes next.

This is my first Joan He book but I was so entranced by her writing that I picked up Descendant of the Crane at the same time to study her writing. I'm not familiar with the Three Kingdoms that this is a retelling of, so I went in blind not knowing what to expect.

The writing: incredibly detailed and thought out, and yet still witty at the same time. I had a lot of laugh out loud moments because of how interesting Joan made the scene, even though much of the book was heavily political and full of fight scenes.

The characters: I actually had difficulty keeping up with which side each character was on just because I felt that there were too many to focus on, plus we only really know them by their sobriquet (a word I learned from this book!) and the fast-paced action didn't allow us to linger for too long on any of them. However, the journey that our main character goes on shows her growth and unyielding loyalty and I was absolutely rooting for good things to happen to Zephyr. Her romance with Crow was also a delight to read as she is the best, but he is even better. Too often do we have aggressive male love interests so I adored having him in this book.

There's a certain plot point that I don't think I've seen before in a book, so I'm very interested in seeing where the book goes in the sequel.

Strike the Zither is the story of Zephyr, a young strategist for the lordess Xin Ren. Taken in as an orphan by Xin Ren, Zephyr follows her out of honor and thinks she has all of the pieces set perfectly in line to help Xin Ren gain back what is rightfully hers. But even Zephyr doesn't know all of the pieces in play.

I flew through this book and will probably read it again and again as I await its sequel.

Having all of these women in powerful positions and using the title of "lordess" instead of lady was so much fun and a detail I highly enjoyed. Having a sworn sisterhood made me so excited and immediately added so much to their relationships and to the way that Zephyr was there, as Xin Ren's strategist and right hand, but still an outsider to the ones closest to Xin Ren.

When I read the table of contents and saw it ended on an Intermezzo I was so excited to find out why and the closer I got to the end, the more I wanted to know how it would go. I absolutely loved this book and I am already eagerly awaiting the next in the series. Zephyr is such an interesting character, the way she is willing to do anything to further her cause, and the changes she goes through as she learns more of the truth of who she was and is.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and Roaring Brook Press for making this book available in exchange for an honest review.

A big thanks to Kelsey Marrujo at Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for providing an eARC via NetGalley for Joan He's Strike the Zither. This book did not disappoint and merits a 5-star rating. I read this book in two sittings: I read three chapters one evening and finished the book during my following session. As a lover of board games, I thoroughly enjoyed that the protagonist was a strategist. Following Zephyr's thought process while she planned her tactics was a joy. The pacing felt perfect and, no matter how much I tried, I was unable to predict the many plot twists.

I will keep this spoiler-free, but I was stunned by the time I finished chapter 12 and had no idea what to expect for the rest of the novel. The novel flew by after Stanza Two, and at around 80% read I had the horrifying realization that there was no way things would be wrapped up at the end. The Intermezzo provided a great final reveal that leaves me excited for the second book.