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A review by paperbrownies
Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
-about: lgbtqiap+, ya, sci-fi, romance, based off of the only female emperor of china with polyamory rep, unhinged girlboss (affectionate, honorary), badass mc, mechas, smash the patriarchy, eat the rich, gods and aliens, TURN THIS INTO AN ARCANE-LEVEL ANIMATED SERIES NOW!!!!, amphibia fans are gonna love the ending *evil laughter*
- f|m|m
-rep: chinese coded disabled fat mc, chinese coded queer love interests, polyamory rep, disabled rep
i am properly shocked at people's audacity to rate this book anything below a solid 5☆!! /lh
HOLY SHIT!!! I AM BLOWN AWAY!!
this is one of the best scfi books ive read this year and I AM OBSESSED!!
let's talk setting first: this book does an incredible job at building the premise of the novel! and did that incredible premise hold out till the end? HECK YEAH IT DID!! it has going in it huge ass mechas, powered by an elemental power system, set at the heart of an alien-infested world and with wu xetian our one true badass mc this book is truly a piece of art!! the pace was fantastic, there was absolutely zero beating around the bush without ever feeling rushed; there was so much going on but not once did i feel out of sync with the story!! zhao's words are rich and descriptive making it both a visual and literal delight of a novel!! i love their writing!! i love it!! it's incredible!! chef's kiss!!
the characters: the characters of this story....wow!! nothing tops a book about an unhinged mc out on a mission to seek vengeance and smash the patriarchy, and iron widow is that book. i- ash describes it so well in their review that my words would never be able to do justice to how incredible these characters really are!! so GO READ ASH’S REVIEW!!
as you can tell, iron widow ticks all my boxes of stunning premise, incredible characters and character development, communication 🤌, action-packed, and addicting, filled with queer rage and one big wth in a holy-shit-i-need-the-sequel-now kinda way. i loved how so much of this book is also dedicated to looking past/overthrowing the gender binary and looking generational trauma in the eye and flipping it off!! PLEASE GO READ THIS BOOK!!! ðŸ˜ðŸ¤Œ
-cw: death, violence, child abuse, gaslighting, misogyny, murder, torture, drinking, alcoholism, injury/injury detail, war, domestic abuse, blood, rape, deaths of a loved one, mass murder, war and destruction, suicide ideation, emotional abuse, medical content, body horror, ableism, drug abuse and more on here
- f|m|m
-rep: chinese coded disabled fat mc, chinese coded queer love interests, polyamory rep, disabled rep
i am properly shocked at people's audacity to rate this book anything below a solid 5☆!! /lh
HOLY SHIT!!! I AM BLOWN AWAY!!
this is one of the best scfi books ive read this year and I AM OBSESSED!!
let's talk setting first: this book does an incredible job at building the premise of the novel! and did that incredible premise hold out till the end? HECK YEAH IT DID!! it has going in it huge ass mechas, powered by an elemental power system, set at the heart of an alien-infested world and with wu xetian our one true badass mc this book is truly a piece of art!! the pace was fantastic, there was absolutely zero beating around the bush without ever feeling rushed; there was so much going on but not once did i feel out of sync with the story!! zhao's words are rich and descriptive making it both a visual and literal delight of a novel!! i love their writing!! i love it!! it's incredible!! chef's kiss!!
the characters: the characters of this story....wow!! nothing tops a book about an unhinged mc out on a mission to seek vengeance and smash the patriarchy, and iron widow is that book. i- ash describes it so well in their review that my words would never be able to do justice to how incredible these characters really are!! so GO READ ASH’S REVIEW!!
as you can tell, iron widow ticks all my boxes of stunning premise, incredible characters and character development, communication 🤌, action-packed, and addicting, filled with queer rage and one big wth in a holy-shit-i-need-the-sequel-now kinda way. i loved how so much of this book is also dedicated to looking past/overthrowing the gender binary and looking generational trauma in the eye and flipping it off!! PLEASE GO READ THIS BOOK!!! ðŸ˜ðŸ¤Œ
-cw: death, violence, child abuse, gaslighting, misogyny, murder, torture, drinking, alcoholism, injury/injury detail, war, domestic abuse, blood, rape, deaths of a loved one, mass murder, war and destruction, suicide ideation, emotional abuse, medical content, body horror, ableism, drug abuse and more on here