A review by leonoor
She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

What a beautifully written, epic story full of interesting and complex characters. I absolutely loved this book. I'm a sucker for historical novels and I felt so immersed in 14th century China, even though I didn't know anything about this time period before. Apparently it's based on real events, but I don't want to research them just yet because I don't want any spoilers for the second book. Some fantasy aspects were added to the book, but very sparingly, and the end result is a beautiful Chinese drama.

The book explores some very complex themes that aren't often discussed in books, such as the dark side of ambition, self-loathing, the relationship with one's body after a medical procedure, and figuring out gender issues. The queer relationships added extra suspense to the story.

Zhu is an intriguing protagonist, and a bit of an anti-hero. While it's clear that she won't let anything or anyone stop her on her quest for greatness, she still manages to be quite likeable. I enjoy the parallel with Ouyang, who is dealing with similar issues but lacks Zhu's optimism and charm. I'm glad the story switches from Zhu's point of view to that of others regularly, since it adds more depth to the story. 
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