I would like to preface this review by saying only this: I should have waited to read this book until the sequel, “Heavenly Tyrant” was out. I finished it and immediately longed for more.
Xiran Jay Zhao’s (they/them) debut novel exceeded all of my expectations. The world building was fantastic, the characters were flawed but still likeable, and I loved the story more than I thought I would. I tore through the book in three days, and I desperately wish I’d managed to read it in one sitting. “Iron Widow” is a book that I didn’t want to put down, and I stayed up late to finish it. The mix of fantasy, sci-fi and Chinese mythology made the book one that I couldn’t bring myself to put down.
Set against the backdrop of a medieval China, humanity must battle the bug-like alien Hunduns who threaten the humans way of life and safety. Using husks of dead Hunduns, the humans create Chrysalises, giant, formidable beings made of spirit metal. The Chrysalises must have two pilots – a boy and a girl. The pair join their qi (the vital life force of any living being) to battle the invaders. The male pilots are turned into celebrities by the dystopian public, while the girls are mere sacrifices for the boys, rarely surviving the battles they face unless them and their male counterpart are a Balanced Match.
That is, until Wu Zetian, a young girl who wants nothing more than to avenge the death of her sister at the hands at one of the government’s star pilots, Yang Guang. When inside the Chrysalis in her first battle with him, she unintentionally kills him, becoming the titular Iron Widow.
As punishment for the murder of their star pilot, Wu Zetian is forced to work with Li Shimin, a fellow murderer and the man who holds the highest spirit pressure in over 200 years. The two must learn to work together to pilot their Chrysalis, the Vermilion Bird, to secure victory for humanity. They face many challenges – pilots who hate them both for their murders, a corrupt government, and the appearance of Gao Yizhi, Wu Zetian’s ‘friend’.
In so many YA novels, the main romance turns out to be a love triangle in which the female main character must choose between two boys, each with their own flaws and merits. Xiran Jay Zhao ignores this completely, choosing to incorporate polyamory into the novel in an expert way. Wu Zetian finds herself in love with both Li Shimin and Gao Yizhi, but doesn’t choose between them, instead choosing both of them. The men’s bisexuality helps with this, and I loved the line where they first kiss and Wu Zetian is wondering if “this is finally happening”. If I had one complaint, it would be that the romance between the three needs to be developed a tiny bit more (but I guess I’ll have to wait until “Heavenly Tyrant” for this).
“Iron Widow” is the epitome of ‘female rage’. Wu Zetian’s hatred of the patriarchal society she is forced to live in makes the story seem to come alive, and the feminism in the novel was immaculate. I found myself relating to Wu Zetian, and found myself almost cheering when she finally broke, letting all of her rage out freely.
The plot twist at the end of the book had me staring at the ceiling long after I’d finished reading. After the final battle, Gao Yizhi finds documents which tell him that the Hunduns aren’t the invaders. Humanity is. As this is revealed, Wu Zetian is faced with a choice from the Heavenly Court: keep the truth to herself and do the bidding of the gods, or die.
I cannot wait for “Heavenly Tyrant” to be published. I truly loved this book. Everything about it spoke to me in a way I wasn’t expecting, and I highly, highly recommend picking up a copy if you have a chance.
Buy it here!
The Tay Smith Effect 