In 1345 central China, a peasant girl sees only a future of harsh nothingness until her brother dies, and in desperation and desire takes on his identity to enter a monastery and attempt to claim her brother's foretold fate of greatness. The strength and character she finds along the way brings her friendships and followers and emotions she didn't know she had, as well as very great adventures.
This is absolutely just as much about Ouyang, Chinese eunuch general for the Mongol Yuan dynasty. Just as many pages are devoted to his character transformation from powerful, victorious general to ... well, that would be telling, but it is complicated and as intense as Zhu's transformation.
All in all, outstanding, complex characters and character development, very believable and sympathetic. Great adventure and action, though a few slow areas, but nothing to get bogged down in. It started out a little bit like Across the Nightingale Floor, but then reverted to straight historical, and very little fantasy elements (thought there are some). The big moments are suitably BIG. Highly recommended.

"She Who Became the Sun" is the book I've been waiting for since I devoured "The Priory of the Orange Tree." However, until "Priory," this one is engaging right from the very first page. "Sun" combines history, magic, queerness, and story into a marvel of a book. I cannot believe this is a debut! Parker-Chan is a skilled storyteller who deftly balances subtlety with historical precision and great pacing. Read. This. Book!

I enjoyed She Who Became the Sun immensely in a lot of ways: it fits nicely into my fairly niche interest of queer historical sort-of-fantasy (magical realism??), and it was especially nice to read a book that dealt with the complexities of being genderqueer centuries ago. I also enjoyed that the main character was so ethically neutral; I find it really fun to navigate my feelings about protagonists like that.

The main reason it got 3 instead of 5 stars from me is because I was a little unsatisfied with the ending. It felt abrupt, and while I didn't necessarily dislike HOW it ended, I definitely wanted more. Still overall an enjoyable read, though, and probably will check it out in its final published form someday.

Believe the hype, because this one deserves it. This book is a well-written, well-paced, and intensely engaging story. It's everything you might hope for if the blurb grabs you. And as for the more magical elements (which the blurb does not really describe) I'll admit that I had my doubts about how well they would mesh with the story at first, but those doubts were safely put to rest by the end: they harmonize with the book so perfectly it's difficult to imagine them without it.

Now, I do have one quibble, namely that after finishing I couldn't help but feel like there should have been a touch more here. Maybe more set dressing, or more lingering on certain significant scenes or characters (or...maybe just less discussion of fate, which, while significant did get a little tiring particularly in the middle). It just felt like this story deserved a bit more space dedicated to it. But as it is it's still a magnificent read, and I definitely recommend it. And I will definitely, definitely be back for the sequel.

She Who Became the Sun is a stunning debut. It is a beautifully written high fantasy filled with political intrigue and amazing character development. I just finished reading and I already know this is one of the best books I've read this year.

SHE WHO BECAME THE SUN is a phenomenal book. Shelley Parker-Chan has written a book with beautiful prose and a world encapsulating. Although I don't like comparing, SHE WHO BECAME THE SUN is definitely perfect for fans of Song of Achilles and The Poppy War.

The book begins to pick up 10% in which is very surprising for a fantasy book. The world-building was written into the story so seamlessly and was riveting till the end. We follow the female monk Zhu Chongba who takes on the identity of her brother for the sake of her survival. Shelley tells her story with meaning and raw emotions. Zhu goes through so much to live. Her perseverance and determination were what made her character arc compelling.

SHE WHO BECAME THE SUN was a great debut, retelling the life of first Ming Emperor by reimagining Zhu as someone born a girl who decides to take another destiny for herself. It is a brilliant exploration of identity and taking on a world that would erase you if it had its way.

I know some marketing has called this a historical fantasy, but there's so little of the fantastical in this book - a few ghosts and the odd flame flickering in the hand. That it doesn't feel fantasy enough for me to call it historical fantasy, because these elements are frequent enough or integral to the story/driving the plot along. For me, it's historical fiction with a scattered few fantastical elements.

It's a gorgeously written book, using such inventive and lyrical ways of describing surroundings that really bring it to life. The pacing in slower, but that often is used to mimic the slow continuation of the monastery or the trudge of an army, and it is such beautiful writing that I just didn't care. If anything, a slower pace left for more time to admire it.

There are many POVs in this book, though the first section is only from Zhu's, charting how she came to be in the monastery and then growing there until its destruction. Then, as Zhu is forced back into the world, the story flies open and the other POVs come flooding in the fill the scope of the book.

I'd already guessed from the author's promotional pieces that Ouyang, the eunuch general, would be a fascinating character, but I wasn't prepared for how well he stole scenes. The twisted mess of hatred for the family that caused his family's deaths and this humiliation was tangled up with his mangled love for one of the sons, a desire that he hated and feared, was fascinating and made for such compelling character dynamics.

The next book in the series (I think it's a duology?) cannot come soon enough.

She Who Became The Sun, set in China in the 1345’s, is a reimagining of the rise of the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty which follows Zhu, a peasant girl who was destined to nothingness. When her brother Zhu Chongba is killed by the bandits, she decides to mask herself as him and snatch his fate of greatness.

She soon manages to become a monk and rise up the ranks in the rebel army against the Mongols, as she struggles in a world of betrayals and high-stakes politics while refusing to believe her doom.

“Becoming nothing was the most terrifying thing she could think of—worse even than the fear of hunger, or pain, or any other suffering that could possibly arise from life.”

The best part of the book apart from the beautiful prose were the characters. Zhu was brilliant and messed up at the same time. She had this deep rooted desire for power, she was cunning and she strived to live. Even though Zhu was a morally-grey character (which again, made me love her even more), Shelley Parker-Chan made her such a pragmatic character who refuses to be nothing, that it was impossible to not cheer for her.

Ouyang, who is another main character we follow is an eunuch general of the Mongol army is driven by his need for avenge from the family who stole his family from him. He was a brutally tragic figure who hated his body and himself for his longing for Esen.

“So I always knew you had a strong will. But what’s unusual about you is that most strong-willed people never understand that will alone isn’t enough to guarantee their survival. They don’t realize that even more so than will, survival depends upon an understanding of people and power.”

Something that I found extremely interesting about this book was that the first part followed Zhu’s coming of age story and then part two had multi-pov where we get to read the story from other characters— Ma, Ouyang and Esen’s point of view.

As I previously mentioned, She Who Became The Sun is a reimagining of the rise of the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, it was to no surprise that it has many inspirations from real historical events.

If you are any familiar with The Red Turban Rebellion and Zhu Yuanzhang, you may recognise few characters in the book. I personally learnt a lot about Chinese history which I was already quite interested in, after I looked into the events which inspired this novel.

If you are interested to see the character inspirations in this book, check out this page from the author’s website!

Nobody will ever end me. I’ll be so great that no one will be able to touch me, or come near me, for fear of becoming nothing.

Shelley Parker-Chan’s writing is something I would describe as poetic and extremely gripping. From the first chapter itself, it was clear to me that I was going to find many lyric quotes, which I did. I look up to their writing style very much because everything— the dialogue, the battle scenes, emotions, everything was conveyed flawlessly to me as a reader.

Overall, She Who Became The Sun was a unputdownable page-turner, full of twists and turns and resilient and brilliant morally-grey characters. This was a solid Historical fantasy debut and I cannot for everyone to read this and claim the greatness this book puts forward!

Representation: Chinese & Mongolian cast, genderqueer lesbian mc, genderqueer gay mc, lesbian and gay li

Trigger warnings: Dysphoria, Pre-existing non-consensual castration, Misgendering, Internalised homophobia, Life-altering injury (amputation), Ableist language, Non-graphic depictions of death by torture, Major character death, Offscreen murder of a child, Scenes depicting extreme hunger/starvation, Graphic depiction of a person burning to death

This book is an accomplishment simply based on the scope and breadth of what it explores — fate, destiny, the roles we’re assigned and the roles we take for ourselves. But mostly, to me, it felt like a study of how desire can shape a person — the desire for power, belonging and the need to prove oneself. I was also so impressed by the exploration of identity, and how well the author wrote Zhu’s gender fluidity. The book has been compared to Mulan (yes, absolutely) and Song of Achilles (eh, a little), but I kept getting flashes to Tau from Evan Winter's The Burning series — both Zhu and Tau are driven, some would say to the point of madness. I was intimidated by this book at first because it is dense, but I also found it incredibly readable, and could not wait to pick it up each day.

I gave up on this book at around 30%. While I enjoyed the first chapter quite a bit, I found the way it jumped around in time to feel quite disorienting and haphazard. Without the specific chapter headings telling us where we were in the timeline, I would have had very little idea that time had passed at all. The characterization wasn't complex or deep enough to convey the growth of the characters.

I felt like giving up as soon as we changed character perspectives. The tone did not shift enough to distinguish one perspective from the next, and I felt almost no investment in any of the new perspectives because they were introduced rather late in the story.

I also find that this writer relies too heavily on simile. I don't mind it as a literary device, but sometimes she would use two or three similes back to back to explain the same point where one would suffice. To me, it feels like a lack of confidence from the writer, either in their own craft or their readership's ability to understand her meaning. Either way, it is a device I do not enjoy, and found was distracting and removed me from the story each time it happened.

To say that this was one of my most anticipated books of this year is an understatement. Since an year ago when I first got to know about and added it to my TBR, this book comped as Mulan meets The Song of Achilles has been making me excited, which only increased as my fascination with Chinese costume dramas grew during the pandemic. So, when it was ultimately time for me to start reading (or listening in this case), I had such high expectations that it took even me by surprise, but I was also confident that it would live up to everything. And wow how it did.

I have no words to describe how I feel after finishing this book. The author’s prose is exquisite and lyrical and how they managed to tell such a ruthless and expansive story in such a poetic manner will always keep me wondering. The pace is also relentless, not just because we are covering more than a decade’s worth of story, but also because the circumstances are always dangerous and every chapter feels like the characters are on a precipice and any decision they make will alter their path in significant ways. The audiobook by Natalie Naudus is also perfectly narrated, evoking the right feelings in me at the apt moments.

The major strength of this book though, comes from the characters. Zhu Chongba starts off as a starving peasant who loses her family to bandits and famine, but if there’s one thing she isn’t lacking, it’s the will to survive and defy the fate that’s written for her. Her determination to want and desire and then act to get what she wants, unfolds beautifully across these pages, but at no point does this tale of ambition and power put us off from rooting for her success.

Ouyang on the other hand is the eunuch general for the empire which decimated his entire family and mutilated his body, and his conflict between wanting to get revenge for his ancestors while trying to stay loyal to the man who has been his master and best friend and commander is utterly heartbreaking. He is no less ruthless in achieving his goals but the yearning and angst the author infuses in his internal monologues makes him someone we feel very sympathetic towards.

There are also a whole host of side characters, some whose POVs we do get to read, and we see how the powerplays of Zhu and Ouyang are affecting the lives of the ones closest to them. Xu Da starts off as an irreverent playboy monk but his undying loyalty to Zhu is endearing, while at the same time, seeing the empathetic and compassionate Ma Xiuying navigate the grief of losing one person after another whom she cares about to the incessant betrayals of her own people, makes us want to cry alongwith her and give her a hug. There are many others who leave an indelible impression on us while reading but getting attached to anyone is such a scary prospect because we never know who will die at the sword point of whose schemes.

While the characters are the flesh and blood of this book, it’s the themes the author explores that form it’s backbone. As this is a reimagining of the founding of the Ming dynasty, it is interesting to retell this story from the perspective of a character who is not born a man and eschews any female characteristics in her lived experience, deciding to topple the very patriarchal empire of her time. I loved how the author shows us Zhu’s relationship with her gender - she takes up the life and fate of her brother but slowly comes to realize that she can’t be him completely but nor can she ever be a woman. The fear that she feels about the exposure of her truth felt so real that I was petrified during some of the scenes, and I can only wait with bated breath to see how any revelations will affect her plans in the future books.

Ouyang on the other hand is full of self hatred because while born a man, he is treated as less than because of what was done to his body, and he hates himself for having made that impossible choice. He also hates women with a passion because he is frequently treated like them. This contempt that he feels for his body as well as those men who he considers whole, while also envying them for their ability to have desires and families, is a duality that the author perfectly captures. And it’s the idea of these characters who are outside of the gender binary existing and fighting and winning in a sexist patriarchal empire is what makes this book special.

I also loved how the author depicts ambition in the story. When characters become hungry for power and grow ruthless in their ambitions, it’s easy to hate them but I admire how the author deftly navigated these themes without ever making us feel like the characters were wholly wrong in their choices. Yes, they are ambitious and they are relentless and heartless in the pursuit of their goals, but they are also doing it for honor and family and survival, and how can we judge that. And the whole idea of a person’s fate being defined and the possibility of humans either defying their fate or succumbing to it forms the core of this story and I can only wait and see what fate awaits these characters.

In conclusion, this book was everything that I thought it would be and more. An unrelenting tale of survival and aspiration of characters who otherwise would have no power in this world, this book is evocative and bold and ambitious and will leave you breathless with anticipation at the end of most chapters, and especially towards the end. It’s also beautifully Asian and queer and if you enjoy genderbent and queer retellings of historical events, you cannot miss this book. It is totally shooting towards the top of my favorite books of 2021 list and joining the other two of the sapphic trifecta. While everything is going horribly in the real world, I feel I’ve gotten to read some of the best books ever this year and I’m glad for authors like Shelley who are keeping me and many readers like me sane during bad times. All I can do now is wait for the next book in The Radiant Emperor series and maybe listen to the spectacular audiobook again and again in the meantime.

I received an advanced copy of She Who Became the Sun from the publisher so I could share my review with you! Be sure to come back tomorrow for an exciting publication date surprise!

Content Warnings from Author’s Post: She Who Became the Sun contains scenes of dysphoria, pre-existing non-consensual castration, misgendering, internalized homophobia, life-altering injury (amputation), ableist language, non-graphic depictions of death by torture, offscreen murder of a child, scenes depicting extreme hunger/starvation, graphic depiction of a person burning to death, and major character death.

Fated for nothingness as a child, Zhu Yuanzhang knew that she would have to fight for her survival every step of the way. Her brother, Zhu Chongba, was contrastingly fated for greatness, in a shocking turn of events for their small village. But, when famine and bandits strike their village, Zhu Yuanzhang is the last member of her family left standing. Given the choice between accepting her fate and dying with her brother and father, she must push back against the nothingness she was always destined for. Zhu Yuanzhang is given no choice but to become Zhu Chongba in the eyes of the world- and hopefully in the eyes of heaven as well. She assumes her brother’s identity in order to earn a place at a monastery, setting her new future into motion. For, though the original Zhu Chongba might have died, Zhu Yuanzhang is more than willing to fight to claim his destined greatness.

You can get your copy of She Who Became the Sun now from Tor Books!

She Who Became the Sun was my single most anticipated release of 2021, and it was every bit as amazing as I was hoping! I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the cast of side characters and perspectives, as it gave the novel an extremely well-developed sense of world-building. Typically, when it comes to multi-perspective books, I spend most of the story wishing that the focus would return to my favorite characters, but that was not the case with She Who Became the Sun. I was equally engaged and excited by each of the key characters, which made it difficult to know who I wanted to hear from most. Zhu, Ma Xiuying, Ouyang, and Esen each possessed their own complicated motivations, and watching their paths tangle was beyond exciting. All in all, I would give this book a rousing six-star rating (out of five) and Shelley Parker-Chan a place on my instant-buy author list! I cannot wait to see what comes next in the Radiant Emperor Duology! Though, I honestly have no idea how I’m going to be able to wait to see what comes next for my favorite characters!

My Recommendation-
This rich and complex fantasy story is sure to delight fans of The Bone Shard Daughter and of Priory of the Orange Tree! I would especially recommend She Who Became the Sun to people looking for a queer fantasy novel with tons of depth.

She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan is beautifully written high fantasy, full of political intrigue and incredible character development. A reimagining of the rise of the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Shelley Parker-Chan shows incredible writing and research and often the story made me feel that I was reading a fascinating history book. A complex story focused on 1345 China under Mongol rule, a child uses her brother's identity to enter a monastery as a young male novice. Taking his name, Zhu Chongba, Zhu makes their mark in the world in so many ways, aiming for nothing less than greatness.

The characters were written so beautifully and really propelled this book; the exploration and writing of gender and gender dysphoria, the focus of women and non-gender identified folks in a world shaped for strong, warrior men -- I was blown away. I recommend this book for those who enjoy politically heavy books, as this element came out much more than the elements of fantasy/magic. Truly an epic read -- I can't wait to see more from Shelley Parker-Chan!

Okay, this is the best book I've read so far this year. It's currently at the top of my list right now *cries*

Y'all, this book was incredible and everything about it just completes it into an irresistible, engrossing masterpiece.

The writing style and prose is incredible and makes you hold your breathe every chapter. The characters are complex and have multiple layers, especially our two main characters Zhu and Ouyang. The plot and the politics of it all is so good as well! It's a little complicated and yet so engrossing.

Also, I am so amazed how this book tackled gender identity. There's something so raw and real about it and I can't help but feel for the characters. (I think this is my first time seeing genderqueer rep on a fantasy novel, I love it!)

I have a lot more on my mind right now, but that's all for now 😆 I'll write a full review soon and ramble there! For now, I'm giving this a million stars (oh if only)

CW (provided by the author): Dysphoria, Pre-existing non-consensual castration, Misgendering, Internalised homophobia, Life-altering injury (amputation), Ableist language, Non-graphic depictions of death by torture, Major character death, Offscreen murder of a child, Scenes depicting extreme hunger/starvation, Graphic depiction of a person burning to death
Also, sex scenes (not too graphic)

She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan has written a much lauded dark, queer fantasy that's a bit Mulan and a bit The Song of Achilles. Who wouldn't be interested in reading this?

The synopsis definitely intrigued me, and I was pulled in by Zhu's story of ascending to greatness. It surprised me that this was a multiple POV story, but it was interesting to hear from various characters.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me. All thoughts are my own.

My Review:⭐️⭐⭐.5/ 5 stars

Mulan meets Arya Stark + a retelling of the Ming Dynasty = you get this book. The story starts with two poor orphans, a boy named Zhu Chongba and his sister. Bandits had just killed their father and the boy took his own life instead of continuing on the hard journey of life and achieving greatness. His sister takes his identity, shaves her head, and joins the monastery living her life identifying as a man. Other than ghosts and a bit of magic here and there in regards to the Mandate, there isn’t too much in terms of the fantasy element. It doesn’t overpower the story. The world building that Parker-Chan creates is captivating, but it is definitely a slow build. There were times I felt I couldn’t finish, but the ending was great and heartbreaking to see the transitions in both Ouyang and Zhu as they get closer to their goals.

Thank you to Tor Books and Netgalley for the advanced e-copy in exchange for my honest review! US Pub Date: July 20, 2021

Thank you Macmillan-Tor/Forge and NetGalley for an Arc of this book.

She Who Became the Sun is an epic, and I mean that in its truest sense, book!

A Mulan and Song of Achilles inspired story all about taking your fate into your own hands and making heaven take notice.

Zhu is a complex and morally grey character that you can't help but support. Her POV and chapters were my favourite.

And while the military tactics weren't my favourite, I loved this book! Read this, buy this, force a friend to read it. You won't regret it.

4.75 almost perfect stars.

This book has been on my radar for months….. Yes. I realize that it was just published a few days ago but the hype for this book was intense! It seemed that as soon as it was announced, the bookish world went wild and claimed their desire to have it in their life as soon as possible. As a long time fantasy AND historical fiction lover, this book hit its mark!

If you’re going into this book expecting sunshine and rainbows, don’t. Just don’t. There isn’t even a tiny sliver of sunshine because this book is dark as hell! The first chapter kind of solidifies that atmosphere as we meet our main character as her brother and father are struggling to survive during a famine. There’s almost no food or usable water and people are dropping like flies. One night, their house is raided by bandits and her father offers her up as a prize as if she’s nothing. That same day her father and brother die. I told you – it’s dark. And really, it doesn’t end there. There’s a lot of war, women being thought of as nothing, and so on. So prepare yourselves.

One of the things that I loved most about this book was the way it handles gender. Or main character visited a fortune teller that foretold her bother was designed for greatness – he was basically told he was going to become a thing of legend. But when she asked of her own future, she was told she would be nothing. So, when her brother dies, she assumes his identity as a way to survive but, as she spends time in a mans skin, she decides she’s going to claim his greatness as well. There’s also a eunuch, a woman who was nothing but a “wife on the action block”, and even a widow who was about to be sent away but realized that she could claim her husbands role in politics. There were quite a few times where, when the book reminded me of the gender of a character, I was actually taken aback by it. If there’s ever a book that was so gender fluid, it’s this one. I began to see characters as the opposite sex because they themselves strived to be more like the opposite sex. Or I forgot all together that gender was even a thing and just thought of them as a person. It was REALLY well done because, this was such a time where genders had their assigned roles in society and were assumed their roles as such without question.

I will admit though – when I picked up this book I was nervous I wouldn’t like it. Me and war focused novels have a rocky relationship. I haven’t figured out the type of war/battle based novels I like. Typically, I feel myself zoning out in the battle scenes. They’re usually so detailed, so boring, and leave me hanging confused amid the chaos and I don’t understand what’s happening until the dust settles. In the end, I love war novels, once it’s all said and done….. but most of the time I feel like I could skip all those pages and not miss much. When the battle scenes started – I thought it was over for me for this book and almost considered DNF’ing it. Luckily, the battle scenes were short and we weren’t left too much in the dark on the political plans going into those scenes. I felt like it was all really well balanced between characters, action, plotting, secrets, emotions, etc. So if you’re like me, and war scenes aren’t your jam, stick with it. If you make it through, the story as a whole is too good to miss!

The thing I struggled with most? The characters. Don’t get me wrong, they were amazing! I loved them! I just wasn’t “in love with them”, know what I mean? They were all smart, determined, conniving, bad asses! They loved hard and fought harder. They did whatever was necessary to get to their end games. They were morally grey as all hell and I loved every minute of it. But I didn’t feel them in my soul. I understood them and knew what they were feeling and why they made the choices they did, but my emotional attachment wasn’t there.

First of all, I didn’t expect this to be a multiple POV story. It seemed to me that this was just going to be the story of Zhu as she assumed the identity of her brother. Just as I was starting to really get attached and fall for her, the perspective changed, the plot changed, and so did the setting. It was so very jarring. I fell out of the character and the story itself when we left the monastery. Every time I would feel myself getting close to the character in the current POV, it would switch and i’d be left picking up emotional pieces again. Maybe it’s because there was sometimes so long in-between the POV’s? Maybe it’s because it was in time of war and they had to remain cold and emotionally detached? I don’t know. What I do know is that the character development was missing something.

All in all, this was a very well balanced book that kept me on my toes, wondering how this whole thing would all play out. There’s gender fluidity, assuming identities, a school setting, politics, battles, magic, and a whole lot more! It was a damn good book and I can’t wait for more! I think that this will be perfect for fans of The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang… just saying lol

I LOVE books dealing in political intrigue, and She Who Became the Sun certainly did not disappoint. Zhu was an amazing character to get into, and it was honestly so easy for me to get into their head, and Shelley Parker-Chan just had an amazing handle over Zhu's portrayal and building this fantasyscape within which they fit. All the character arcs and relationships were extremely satisfying, I also really loved the way Parker-Chan explore gender identity and presentation and how that informed Zhu's motivations and actions. I am so here for all the queer fantasy stories coming out now, and this is definitely one I want to come back to soon!

I struggled with this review because I wanted to do the book justice. There is so much you can say about this book, its treatment of LGBTQIA representation and gender identity, the incredible willpower and human spirit of the protagonist, the rich complexity of the characters.

Zhu is born during a famine and is the only girl left in her village. Why? Because food is scarce and values tell her village that boys are worth more than girls. When bandits raid her village and kill her father and her brother subsequently dies, she assumes his identity and hopefully his fate of greatness.

What are you willing to do to challenge fate? Are you willing to manifest your own destiny when the Heavens have another path for you? What are you willing to sacrifice to become who you were meant to be?

The best part about this book is the delightfully complex characters. The only truly good character in the book is probably Ma and her shining purity is a beautiful juxtaposition to a protagonist who was never allowed the luxury of tenderness. This book is a must read. It will inspire you and break your heart in so many beautiful ways.