She Who Became the Sun
Books | Fiction / Fantasy / Historical
4.1
(1.4K)
Shelley Parker-Chan
Two-time British Fantasy Award WinnerAstounding Award WinnerLambda Literary Award FinalistHugo Award FinalistLocus Award FinalistA Dragon Award FinalistOtherwise Award Finalist“I loved it.”—The New York Times"Magnificent in every way."—Samantha Shannon, author of The Priory of the Orange Tree"A dazzling new world of fate, war, love and betrayal."—Zen Cho, author of Black Water SisterShe Who Became the Sun reimagines the rise to power of the Ming Dynasty’s founding emperor.To possess the Mandate of Heaven, the female monk Zhu will do anything“I refuse to be nothing...”In a famine-stricken village on a dusty yellow plain, two children are given two fates. A boy, greatness. A girl, nothingness...In 1345, China lies under harsh Mongol rule. For the starving peasants of the Central Plains, greatness is something found only in stories. When the Zhu family’s eighth-born son, Zhu Chongba, is given a fate of greatness, everyone is mystified as to how it will come to pass. The fate of nothingness received by the family’s clever and capable second daughter, on the other hand, is only as expected.When a bandit attack orphans the two children, though, it is Zhu Chongba who succumbs to despair and dies. Desperate to escape her own fated death, the girl uses her brother's identity to enter a monastery as a young male novice. There, propelled by her burning desire to survive, Zhu learns she is capable of doing whatever it takes, no matter how callous, to stay hidden from her fate.After her sanctuary is destroyed for supporting the rebellion against Mongol rule, Zhu takes the chance to claim another future altogether: her brother's abandoned greatness.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Lgbtq+
High Fantasy
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Author
Shelley Parker-Chan
Pages
416
Publisher
Tor Publishing Group
Published Date
2021-07-20
ISBN
1250621798 9781250621795
Community ReviewsSee all
"I wish i had known this was going to be a series before I read it. Very unsatisfied with the ending. But overall, I liked the book and it did make me cry. The gender bending stretched believability too much, as she should have been found out. I found her a more enjoyable character near the beginning of the book, as towards the end she embraced some of her worst values. My favourite characters were the eunuch general and Yansen. So many feels."
"This book was a breath of fresh air. The writing was poetic but easy to understand, the characters vivid and complex. The battles were easy enough to understand that I didn’t get lost in them, but I still found myself surprised by some of the plot twists. Reminiscent of my favorite series, The Poppy War, I am glad I finally took this book off my TBR and gave it a real shot. Though similar to the series this novel retains its own individuality, and I really enjoyed Zhu’s character arc. You can’t quite tell whether she’s the good or bad guy, until you realize that there are no sides to this story, just people. "
"I love books that are packed with action. Never once did I think a scene was unnecessary or too slow. A bit of a confusing start but worth the rest."
T
Tori
"I started this as an audiobook and really recommend it ! I finish it through reading and it was much more difficult to follow and I had more issue with the rhythm. I really like the gender identity worked the heroine get through . I am less convinced by the dilemma between desire and morality but I suppose I will see how it goes in second tome. Normally epic is not my cup of tea but there is so much women empowerment and discovering of an other time and country that I found it very good."
"It was a very well written and interesting. It took me a little while to really get into it, and I didn’t love the ending, but otherwise it was great!"
V P
Vega Peace