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asianamlitfansWritten by Stephen Hong Sohn
Edited by Lina Jiang
Xiran Jay Zhao’s Iron Widow (Penguin Teen, 2021) is a title I picked up at the behest of a friend. I’ve been noticing that I’m less liable to read things on my own, and I’ve been seeking out more opportunities just to be able to talk about the things I read. Thus, I’ve been gravitating toward titles that other people send me to, and such was the case with Zhao’s debut, which is certainly promising. It is part of the Asian-inspired fantasy trend that has really taken YA and adult arenas by storm. Zhao’s work definitely stands alongside the publications of Neon Yang, R.F. Kuang, Cindy Pon, Fonda Lee, Ken Liu, and the many others who have explored variants of Chinese fantasy landscapes within fictional worlds. In almost all cases, the Chinese elements are loosely configured, as place names and historical events have changed in some form or another. Such is also the case with Zhao’s Iron Widow.
Let’s let the official marketing description do some work for us: “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.”
So, the general world building of this novel is definitely first rate. You have a fictional world defined by patriarchal paradigms, which ultimately leave women as sacrifices on the battlefield. Zetian is sick of this stuff and really refuses to be part of this kind of narrative, instead finding ways to push back. This resistance is really part and parcel of Zhao’s feminist rendering of a battle system that purposefully puts women at a disadvantage. Perhaps, the most unique element of this book is Zhao’s characterization of Zetian. She’s spunky, and her attitude almost seems a little bit out of the realm of this book, meaning that I feel like I’d find someone like her on the street, finding her way through a crowd and demanding justice in some contemporary, real-life arena. The other really original aspect of this text is Zhao’s willingness to explore a possible polyamorous love triangle, in a way that is complex. Typically, I’ve seen variations on love triangles in many YAs, but the tendency is to focus on monogamy as the ideal outcome. Zhao definitely destabilizes this expectation, especially as Zetian finds herself simultaneously attracted to two different men, inasmuch as these men also seem to be attracted to each other. Zhao also leaves some considerable surprises up her sleeve, especially concerning the male-dominated society and how that power model has been constructed. But, I’ll leave it all here, and remind everyone that there is a second installment waiting for us! =)
Buy the Book Here
Edited by Lina Jiang
Xiran Jay Zhao’s Iron Widow (Penguin Teen, 2021) is a title I picked up at the behest of a friend. I’ve been noticing that I’m less liable to read things on my own, and I’ve been seeking out more opportunities just to be able to talk about the things I read. Thus, I’ve been gravitating toward titles that other people send me to, and such was the case with Zhao’s debut, which is certainly promising. It is part of the Asian-inspired fantasy trend that has really taken YA and adult arenas by storm. Zhao’s work definitely stands alongside the publications of Neon Yang, R.F. Kuang, Cindy Pon, Fonda Lee, Ken Liu, and the many others who have explored variants of Chinese fantasy landscapes within fictional worlds. In almost all cases, the Chinese elements are loosely configured, as place names and historical events have changed in some form or another. Such is also the case with Zhao’s Iron Widow.
Let’s let the official marketing description do some work for us: “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.”
So, the general world building of this novel is definitely first rate. You have a fictional world defined by patriarchal paradigms, which ultimately leave women as sacrifices on the battlefield. Zetian is sick of this stuff and really refuses to be part of this kind of narrative, instead finding ways to push back. This resistance is really part and parcel of Zhao’s feminist rendering of a battle system that purposefully puts women at a disadvantage. Perhaps, the most unique element of this book is Zhao’s characterization of Zetian. She’s spunky, and her attitude almost seems a little bit out of the realm of this book, meaning that I feel like I’d find someone like her on the street, finding her way through a crowd and demanding justice in some contemporary, real-life arena. The other really original aspect of this text is Zhao’s willingness to explore a possible polyamorous love triangle, in a way that is complex. Typically, I’ve seen variations on love triangles in many YAs, but the tendency is to focus on monogamy as the ideal outcome. Zhao definitely destabilizes this expectation, especially as Zetian finds herself simultaneously attracted to two different men, inasmuch as these men also seem to be attracted to each other. Zhao also leaves some considerable surprises up her sleeve, especially concerning the male-dominated society and how that power model has been constructed. But, I’ll leave it all here, and remind everyone that there is a second installment waiting for us! =)
Buy the Book Here
