Margaret's Reviews > Iron Widow

Wow! What a debut novel!

I enjoy reading books set in other cultures. I had not read that many set in Chinese culture.

Iron Widow is a young adult book. This book CLEARLY has an agenda. Our protagonist Zetian is a young woman who wants to know why boys are treated better than girls. There is a war on. The war is fought using these large, mechanized robots. It takes two to pilot each robot. A boy and a girl. Except the boys survive the battles and most girls don't.

And, at home, parents prize their sons. Daughters are no use except that if the daughter is a robot pilot and dies in battle, the parents are paid a hefty death benefit. Zetian's older sister joins the army but somehow dies BEFORE going into battle. So, the parents did not get paid.

Zetian vows vengeance for her sister's death and joins the army, too, determined to kill the boy robot pilot responsible for her sister's death. Surprisingly, Zetian survives her first battle as a robot girl pilot.

This book has action aplenty and Zetian is on a mission! Highly recommended for fans of urban fantasy, how a society treats girls versus boys, and people who enjoy a fast read that grabs you and doesn't let you go until the last page!