Thanks to Penguin Random House Canada and Penguin Teen Canada for gifted access via Netgalley. All opinions below are my own.

Oh man, why did I let this sit on my shelf and Netgalley shelf so long? One, I was waiting for the sequel but then it got lost a bit in the shuffle of so many shiny new fantasies. This is definitely one of those down with patriarchy, empowering women fantasy stories that everyone should read. It's labelled as futuristic but based on history but damn if women are still being treated like this in the future... I guess that makes me glad I didn't have kids!

I loved the blending of folklore and myth with fantastical futurism. The decriptions of the battles were vivid and immersive. My only criticism was that I wished Zetian was slightly more nuanced, it was a lot of angry, angry, angry. Also the ending was an ending but also kind of cliffhanger-y. So I am glad I waited til the sequel is out.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Teen for the ARC!
This one really had me with the synopsis and concept.
What I liked:
-The queer rep, with both bi rep and a poly relationship. This is the kind of thing I would have loved to have seen when I was more of the YA reading age, and I’m excited to see it more and more.
-The gender discussions here. Again, we love to see it. This book is filled with discussions that again, I’m so happy to be seeing in YA.
-The concept. I was so so thrilled at the idea of this, and I do think the broad strokes of this story are really cool in concept.

All that being said, this book overall just didn’t work for me. This might partially be an age thing - this book reads quite young. Not in content so much as writing style. While it handles really complex themes in a way I respect, the writing itself felt so surface level that I didn’t feel like we dug into those themes emotionally. It might have also been the first-person style that made this feel awkward, but there was a ton of telling the reader things rather than showing them. It felt like every emotion the MC had we were just told they were having, rather than being walked through their mind’s processes, and as a result the writing felt awkward and simplified to me, like we were being told only the most simplified end result of a thought a character had, and not shown the process and emotional journey they took to get there. This was the same for the dialogue, which left me with the feeling that everything was being rushed.

So, all told, the writing kept this one from really working for me personally, but again, I cannot stress enough how much I appreciated the concept, themes, and representation of this one, even if the execution wasn’t for me. If the concept is compelling to you, I highly recommend picking it up and giving it a go - I've outlined here my struggles with the prose and directness, but as prose preferences are so subjective, I could see this really working for someone else!!

I have... No words. The sequel coming out next month is a godsend because I think I'd die without knowing how this goes. The ending definitely has the buildup I want, and despite ther being some moments where I was mildly concerned for Zetian's sanity I'm so into this one. I was sold on the concept and then it just kept getting better and better.

I can't remember the last time I read a book that felt so brimming with life. I loved how much emotion shone through the writing - and not just love of the characters, but anger at the world, a sense of justice. I can't wait for the sequel.

I have literally never read a story like this. The plot was amazing, the setting was imaginative and beautiful. I could feel the rage of all the characters and was rooting from the beginning. I also LOVED THE ROMANCE!

Just finished an ARC of this book and it was EVERYTHING and more.

Strong female lead with 2 excellent supporting male characters/love interests.

Strong ending. I can’t wait for the next book in the series! I’ll definitely be reading more!

Gorgeous prose, fantastic mythology and magic, engaging characters, and a great storyline! I definitely recommend!

I liked all the power and revenge Zetian gets. She is a powerful female showing her skills and the lengths she’ll go. While I loved those part, the Sy fi pacific ring parts were not to my tastes. There was a lot of that! Not a bad thing but just not for me.
Thank you to Penguin Teen and Netgalley for my #gofted copy

This was such a great book with an amazing, empowering leading character. This feels like the beginning of a villain origin story with touches of feminist ideals. I am excited to read what happens next!

I'm conflicted.

I'll start with what I liked.
My main issue with a lot of fantasy/sci-fi is that it can be veeeeeery long and slow, with lots of exposition. That's why I haven't read that many lately, I don't have much free time to read and when the novel is nearly 500 pages,I can get a bit put off. It wasn't the case with Iron Widow. It was super fast paced, lots of action and conflict. It definitely gets you hooked front start to finish!

I haven't watched Pacific Rim but I'm guessing the Chrysalis and the wasteland description of what is beyond the wall are inspired by it. I really enjoyed the Chrysalis and how they were a vessel for the pilots to fight. The different shapes and classes, the different elements and how they affect the appearance of the mechas.

The highlight of Iron Widow for me is Li Shimin. His character is so complex and interesting. The guilt he carries is so immense, it shows in his actions. He is a broken boy, fighting for survival in a world that would sacrifice him in any way they can.

What I wasn't a fan of.
The severe lack of world-building and the convoluted way we get exposed to tidbits of it, was terrible. I get that since Zetian is in the dark about a lot of stuff and since we follow her pov, we're also left in the dark, but I feel that so much more could have been done to make the worldbuilding richer. The Chrysalis test, what does it consist of, what is the criteria. Everything feels very random, and things are the way they are just because we're told they are, it's frustrating.

The Hunduns are never described in detail, we're told they're rotound and their size but no further description is given, which is disappointing. I would have also liked to have more vivid descriptions of Chrysalis that aren't the Vermillion.

This book would have benefited from flashbacks of some sort. We get told how much Big Sister means to Zetian but we get nothing about why? How close were they? Big Sister is the catalyst and as the reader, I still don't know why. The same happens with Zetian's relationship with Yizhi. It felt like it came out of nowhere. I know we're told it doesn't but I need more because I honestly can't understand why Yizhi loves Zetian, unless he got to meet a very different Zetian than we do.

We know very little about Zetian's family other than "they're horrible people". Again, I think some flashbacks and more details about their life would have made me care more about them and Zetian.
I'm also confused how a family that is supposedly scum of the earth poor (because no one seems to work in that family) decides it's a good idea to break their daughters feet when keeping the feet from infecting would have been expensive. How it is realistic that Zetian got lotus feet and survived even tho she is dirt poor, yet Xiuying, who comes from a farmers family doesn't. They're both poor. One could argue Zetian's family was hoping to sell their daughters but the odds of them surviving the healing process was so low, they would have had to have a bunch of daughters and hope a couple survived to make a buck out of them.

The poly relationship felt unbalanced. It felt like Yizhi and Shimin were there to pander to Zetian's desires and demands. She used them as she wished, gaslit them and bullied them, especially Shimin. In theory it could have worked, if Zetian saw them as equals, which she never did. Also, Zetian's treatment of Shimin when he was clearly suffering because of his addiction was beyond disgusting.

I love morally grey characters but I didn't feel that Zetian accomplished that. She was truly a horrible to other women while supposedly fighting for feminism and against the patriarchal government. She was horrible to the two boys she supposedly loved. I honestly couldn't find one redeeming quality in her yet we're supposed to root for her. If she was meant to be a villain maybe I would have felt different, but it was clearly not the case.

I won't even say anything about the feminism, or lack there of.

Overall, this read was very disappointing. I loved the premise and was so excited to start because of how well loved this book is, but it fell short of my expectations. I do plan on reading the sequel as I want to know what happens to my boy.

Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao is an imaginative reimagining of Chinese history that blends sci-fi with feminist themes. The story follows Zetian, a fiercely determined girl who, fueled by vengeance, becomes a pilot in a brutal system that sacrifices young women to empower men in battle. Her rise as the feared "Iron Widow" disrupts a profoundly patriarchal society, and the novel critiques gender roles and societal oppression.

The book tackles gender dynamics head-on. The way women are treated as disposable resources for the war effort is a powerful metaphor for real-world gender inequalities. Zhao doesn't shy away from violence and hard truths, making the stakes real and urgent.

At times, certain elements of the book seemed rushed to me, such as Zetian’s transformation from a rural girl to an almost invincible force. Similarly, I found her polyamorous relationship refreshing for its diversity; however, I felt it lacked development and emotional backing to make it feel completely realistic.

Iron Widow is a fierce and unapologetic debut that will resonate with readers hungry for strong female leads and fresh, daring narratives. It shines in its ambition, though it must fully deliver on the depth and nuance its premise promises. Fans of fast-paced action, social commentary, and rebellious heroines will find a lot to enjoy here, even if some elements leave room for improvement.

Music to enjoy while reading:
Everybody Wants to Rule the World - Lorde
Soft Power - Ladytron
you should see me in a crown - Billie Eilish
A New Society - Meg Myers
Power is Power - SZA & The Weeknd
Femininomenon - Chappell Roan

This book was exactly what you hope it to be. The romance was a compliment to the story and did not outshine the overall message. The insight to female treatment, drawn from history and weaved into the fictional story was done beautifully. Highly recommend this book.

This was such an amazing read. I love stories that weave history and fantasy together. A strong female character that I loved cheering for, and politics that make me want to rage along with her. Definitely going to be a book I recommend and also keep on my reread shelf.

Xiran Jay Zhao is a force. Their work is absolutely stellar and I am in awe of their work. The pacing of this book and the characterization here are phenomenal. A real page-turner that leaves audiences wanting more. I appreciate the ferocity and vulnerability of the characters. I definitely recommend this work to anyone.

A must-read, brilliant story of feminine rage, robotic symbiotic chrysalises, epic battles, social commentary, incredible world building and questions about humanity and its role in evolution, destruction and survival (nature vs science vs humans). I loved every second of this book. If you love a good, thought provoking, message driven, character based novel then you have to read this one immediately.

Thrilling action sequences and intricate world building and the way themes such as gender inequality was handled - all three of them made me love this book.

My favorite part of this book was probably the battles and the Chrysalis themselves. World building felt like it took a backseat sometimes when it came to having the reader connect to the characters. Zetian is definitely a fierce lady. She might come across as brash to some and a total badass to others. I do admit that the "love triangle" came across as a bit insta-crush and a bit too convenient for the overall plot but the romance wasn't a big deal for me anyway. The ending plot twist will definitely give you whiplash though 🤣. On one hand, I feel like we were lead to believe that the Hunduns (basically the bad alien force the main characters/everyone is fighting against) were attacking a tech advanced earth but it turns out *Spoiler* we're not EVEN ON EARTH! But ummm...yeah that's all for my review 🙈

I really wanted to love this one. I tried SO hard, because I’ve seen nothing but enthusiastic reviews of Iron Widow on all platforms praising its feminist outlook, openly poly relationship, imaginative worldbuilding, and badass female main character. Unfortunately, I just didn’t think there was any real depth behind any of this.

One thing that bugged me is the lack of explanation for how Zetian came by her feminist worldview. She was raised in the same society as all of the other women, and yet she is so strong-willed and forward-thinking. All of the other women are either pawns of the system, or weak and inferior to her. This is never explained in the plot, seeing as how any woman in this society could theoretically open their eyes to their poor treatment the same way Zetian did, and yet… they don’t?

I’d be fine with this if the writing at any point indicated that she would learn to sympathize with other people or find some friends who think similarly (they must exist somewhere), but the whole book is very earnestly trying to convince the reader that Zetian’s actions are always justified. She is always right, always the strongest and most powerful, and no matter how many actually innocent people she kills, we are not supposed to care about her lack of morality. We are supposed to think that this representation of insane vengefulness is “morally grey” and progressive. I reject this on the basis that these characters, when well-executed, are supposed to have visible flaws to the reader that they meaningfully engage with within the novel.

The inciting incident of the book is that Zetian is avenging her sister, who was killed by a male pilot. The relationship they had is never described. We learn next to nothing about the sister. The circumstances of her death are similarly avoided. Her quest to discover the cause of the misogyny in her world is really a surface-level descriptor of the plot, because the answer every time is simply “because women are worse.” There is no historical, religious, or political reason for any of this. Despite that, Zetian maintains her quest and her proto-feminist mission lives on, unexplained to the reader.

The worldbuilding is thus a mile wide and an inch deep. The only thing I thought was cool was the mechanisms of the machine suits that the pilots use to fight in the war. There is a mental relationship between them and the material of the Chrysalises which allows them to shape-shift and fight. This was linked with a theoretical perspective on yin and yang, and the elements that form a person’s own energy. I liked learning about the different properties these elements reflected when paired with the special metal that the suits are made of.

I am told, though I have not seen this movie, that these aspects are heavily inspired by Pacific Rim. Fair enough, but I do think they would have brought a cool aspect to the novel had the war been explained in a fuller, more dynamic way. We are told that the planet is at war constantly throughout the book, and yet very little about the rationale behind this is explained until the very end. This lack of explanations and general fleshing out of any plot or character point is a common theme in this book.

It genuinely frustrates me, having finally read it, that this book is given out as the new best thing in feminist literature, especially in YA where better examples abound. This is no Handmaid’s Tale, despite what the blurb says.

While I enjoyed this book for the most part, I wish certain aspects were explained a bit more. With all that said, I will definitely continue with the series and am excited to see where it goes.

Epic. Iron Widow is the historical-inspired, futuristic sci-fi mash-up of my wildest dreams. Iron Widow charges headfirst into a world of giant mechas and uncompromising characters. The brutal beauty of Xiran Jay Zhao's writing kept me glued to the page from start to finish. I was not expecting the story I got at all. I have started not to read blurbs in books and to go into them blind. Sometimes, that works in my favor; other times, it does not. This time, it did, as I was blown away and intrigued by the story I got. There is a sequel coming out, but from what I heard from other book lovers, there is a lot of discourse between author and publisher, and the sequel keeps getting pushed back. I loved the concept of yin and yang pilot seats in a mech, how each one works, and the combination of the qi to make a stronger mech. I was not too thrilled with the love triangle as I am not much of a fan of those, but I can see the necessity of it in this story. The central plot twists toward the novel's end make for a robust and compelling lead to the sequel if we ever get it.