This book follows Zetian's revolutionary governance after awakening the dragon emperor at the end of Iron Widow and her mission to rescue Shimin from his imprisonment by the gods. I hurried to reread Iron Widow before reading this (which is why my review is coming out after the book, sorry :/ ), but I'm not sure that's strictly necessary, since Heavenly Tyrant follows an almost completely different set of characters, setting, and conflict than the first book. That said, you would be very lost coming in without having read the first book at all, as knowledge of the worldbuilding and Zetian's character are definitely necessary. You just don't need to be intimately familiar with every detail of the first book. 

It's hard to give a good review of the book without spoilers, since the book is extremely eventful. Essentially, the situation is that, having overthrown the government of Huaxia with the help of the ancient emperor Qin Zheng in the first book, the two of them must now begin to rule the country, despite Zetian not having any political education and Qin Zheng being a brutal warlord. Also Shimin was taken hostage by the beings calling themselves "gods" who live in a spaceship orbiting the planet so Zetian wants to get him back and take down the gods. There is a great deal of revolutionary socialist politics, feminist coalition-building, bloodthirsty scheming, and mech piloting to learn and execute in very little time. 

I would be deeply surprised if this book did not end up on some banned books, if not for its communist revolution and propaganda, then for its violence, sexuality (several very steamy scenes, but all the explicit stuff is fade-to-black), or toxic relationships. To me, all these aspects are to the good and handled in a very self-aware manner, but this book won't be for everyone. As with the first book, I loved the characters, world-building, and fast-pace of the book (especially considering its length). The central themes of the book surround the questions of when violence and coercion are justified and what their consequences are, which is a great topic for the YA and New Adult age range to grapple with. I cannot wait for the third (and final?) book of the series! 

Thank you to Tundra and Netgalley for providing a free Advanced Readers Copy of this book for review. 

I don’t think the sequel is as good as the first book. Maybe that’s just because there’s WAYYYY more going on and

there was no Shimin (for the most part)

. The plot twists had my jaw dropping, and I started having a hard time keeping track of who I am supposed to hate. 

I LOVE that Zeitian maintained So much of her feminine rage. Loved how hateable but reasonable Qin Zheng was. I’m a big fan of sneaking conversations about power wealth and consent into a YA novel but comes off a little dry and educational in some spots. I can’t decide if I like where the author seems to be directing the series, but I like that scope they’ve given the story. 

Devoured it same day it arrived. I'm not okay. Can't wait for the third book.

Of course, as if there was ever any doubt, Xiran Jay Zhao comes back with an absolutely AMAZING book and the perfect sequel to Iron Widow. There is such a clear growth in their skill and ability as an author and they clearly put the work in to make sure they really understood the topics this book would be tackling.

Zetain’s growth in this book I think is the best part. Looking back on the first book, she was clearly very isolated even with Yizhi and Shimin at her side. Watching her grow a support network not just for her, but other women was just such a treat. It really felt like she came into her own in this book. All the side characters in the novel were such a treat, especially the women Zetain befriended. I also think her ever-evolving relationships with the men in her life were fascinating. Watching her relationship with Yizhi shift, knowing it will never be the same was the perfect storm of emotions. I really do think it was a close race between her relationship with Yizhi and her relationship with Zheng. I won’t give away too much, but I would love to study those two and their toxic mess under a microscope.

The world felt just as vibrant and complex as the first book, if not more. I think this is especially where all the work put into research for this book really shines. There’s clearly so much thought put into how Zetain and Zheng’s government take over would work and what the hindrances would be. I also like that not everyone immediately falls in line and the variety to beliefs and opinions on what should be done. It remains a constant struggle for power and control, so many changes so quickly lead to those previously in power trying to spread chaos and regain control by forcing those beneath back to fighting each other. It was just so clear that a lot of work had been put into considering how this all would work.

I really think this skill with the expansion of the world and the people in it suits the themes. Which is clearly the intent. It really breaks down the movement Zheng and Zetain are trying to bring to light and put in charge, and exactly how it’s been oppressed for so long. The ideas behind it are explained so well and then going from that to the series’ feminist messaging was perfect. Seeing how it takes a community, building support networks, and that you can’t rely just on yourself was PERFECT. I think this is an extremely topical and relevant book to the current age we’re in and what to expect to see in the coming years.

Overall a seriously amazing book. I haven’t been able to shut up about it to my friends since I finished it and I’ve been begging all of them to read the series with me. I don’t have the words to really convey how amazing it was.

I’m not gonna lie; as I started seeing Zhao warn us that this book was intrigue-heavy and different from IW, I was really afraid this installment would lose me. There were definitely parts I felt like I had to push through, and I didn’t love some of the char dev (?), but overall this book really delivered on its promise of action and emotions and chaos following the events of Iron Widow. Enough plot points feel fulfilled that I’m not completely dreading the wait for the next (hopefully last! sorry) book, but there’s also plenty to cover in that book despite the huge events here. Yay for a middle book that doesn’t feel like a waiting room!

it was pretty heavy on the political intrigue in a way I usually hate, but Zhao’s writing style thankfully made it fly by. That was the thing that really made this book shine— Zhao knows how to hook you and ramp up tension in a narrative, even as dull exposition has to occur here and there. Some chapters felt a bit like “I have to explain how revolutions work for the next part to check out” but overall things flowed well 

My main complaints would be the exhausting hate/love romance and Zetian’s general lack of initiative this time around. 

Re: the former - one of my favorite things about the triangle in Iron Widow is that it was built on mutual trust and care by people who knew very intimately what pain looked like and didn’t look to bring that into their romance; it made the hot parts hotter and the sweet parts sweeter knowing that regardless of the outside forces, or the viciousness they had for other people, the triangle were saving what little peace they had for each other. None of that refreshing dynamic is really present in Heavenly Tyrant, and the “I hate him but my pussy go rawr” effect was very stale in a way I didn’t expect from this universe… personal preference I guess but by the end I was just wondering when she’d kill the freak & get her groove back. She wasn’t even dicked down until like 200 pages in so she was just dickmatized off vibes alone in a very boring romantasy way. Also Forced proximity / fake relationship isn’t my favorite and it shows lol 

my other qualm: Zetian spent nearly this entire book crushing herself into shapes she would’ve hated only months ago; the lack of time between events didn’t adequately explain what felt like a drastic plunge in her ability to scheme and push back. She lets everyone and their mother guilt or shame or change her in ways I swear were already addressed last book. I’d understand if years had passed and she was worn down by her lack of control over the country/ political machinations, but for her to pipe down on day two of the new order and really only step her pussy up again months later felt at odds with her arc towards being so indomitable in the last book. Some of her laying low to scheme was warranted, like the learning to read and the building her alliance, but it felt like she spun her wheels for a disproportionate amount of the story. The parts where she pillowtalked for basic human rights from Emperor Dickhead were especially gross when you consider her previous antics. Like omg girl wake up????? You’re on a dream date and he’s actively withholding your right to come & go 😭 Grief and being overwhelmed didn’t feel like the full reasoning for her personality shift considering how little time was spent on her sitting with those feelings- it kinda felt like she was outmaneuvered and just let it linger for months until randomly remembering who she was. Very unsatisfying but it was nice to see it finally turn around towards the end 

All in all, I cannot wait for the next one, and hope that it really is the last bc as much as I deeply respect this author I ain’t got no more waits left in me 😭