Queer Fantasy
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Start giftingIron Widow
Iron Widow: Book #1
Bookseller recommendation
“A young woman still reeling from the loss of her sister in a horribly unequal society based around defending themselves from an alien threat sets readers up for a whirlwind of an adventure as Zetian seeks both revenge and a way to keep other women from falling to the same fate her sister did. Power and privilege afforded to gender are both explored and taken advantage of in a world where women magic-users are named and judged based only on what they can add to their male partners, but the story is never as simple as it seems at first. The conclusions we reach are as dazzling and wondrous as the settings we visit!”
Eric,
CoffeeTree Books
Bookseller recommendation
“This book was amazing, brutal, unique, and horrific. The audio book was absolutely fantastic. There was so much representation and so many difficult topics and situations handled really well. The characters are extremely morally grey but it made it so intriguing to never know what they were going to do next. I will definitely be recommending this book!”
Lauren,
Schuler Books
Bookseller recommendation
“Iron Widow is addictive, non-stop, and insane! I LOVE this book so much! Take control of your life. Take control of your body. Make the patriarchy pay through blood and vengeance! This alt-reality world mixes Chinese culture and Pacific Rim, with addictive action, complex characters, and an unstoppable fury. Zetian wants revenge and will bring everything down to achieve it. No one, not men nor monsters, can stand against her will and determination. I can't stop thinking about this book! When are we getting book two?? “But I have no faith in love. Love cannot save me. I choose vengeance.””
Anna,
The Well-Read Moose
Bookseller recommendation
“Iron Widow is the feminist bloodthirsty rage antihero fantasy saga of my DREAMS! Pacific Rim meets The Hunger Games. Much like in the movie Pacific Rim, as our protagonist, Zetian is mentally co-piloting gigantic transforming mechas that humanity is relying on to battle massive aliens come to dominate the planet. And much like in The Hunger Games, Zetian is drawn into the fight because of a sister - instead of volunteering as tribute, she enlists to avenge her sister's death. Zetian, also finds herself in a sticky love triangle much like Katniss but the outcome is refreshingly unexpected. Where Katniss was a reluctant hero, Zeitian is mad as hell and not going to take it anymore. Everyone beware! Fast paced and engrossing! One of my top five books of 2023. ”
Zinna,
A Great Good Place for Books
Bookseller recommendation
“Bloodthirsty and tender, full of power, powerlessness, and determination, I could hear Wu Zetian roaring her vengeance call long after I finished this thrilling sci-fi masterpiece.”
Miriasha,
Phoenix Books
An instant #1 New York Times bestseller!
Pacific Rim meets The Handmaid's Tale in this blend of Chinese history and mecha science fiction for YA readers.
The boys of Huaxia dream of pairing up with girls to pilot Chrysalises, giant transforming robots that can battle the mecha aliens that lurk beyond the Great Wall. It doesn't matter that the girls often die from the mental strain.
When 18-year-old Zetian offers herself up as a concubine-pilot, it's to assassinate the ace male pilot responsible for her sister's death. But she gets her vengeance in a way nobody expected—she kills him through the psychic link between pilots and emerges from the cockpit unscathed. She is labeled an Iron Widow, a much-feared and much-silenced kind of female pilot who can sacrifice boys to power up Chrysalises instead.
To tame her unnerving yet invaluable mental strength, she is paired up with Li Shimin, the strongest and most controversial male pilot in Huaxia. But now that Zetian has had a taste of power, she will not cower so easily. She will miss no opportunity to leverage their combined might and infamy to survive attempt after attempt on her life, until she can figure out exactly why the pilot system works in its misogynist way—and stop more girls from being sacrificed.
XIRAN JAY ZHAO is a first-gen immigrant from small-town China who was raised by the Internet. A recent graduate of Vancouver’s Simon Fraser University, they wrote science fiction and fantasy while they probably should have been studying more about biochemical pathways. You can find them on Twitter for memes, Instagram for cosplays and fancy outfits, and YouTube for long videos about Chinese history and culture. Iron Widow is their first novel.