Iron Widow

Plot Summary

Wu Zetian lives in a world where there are hovercrafts, cures for any number of diseases, and giant metal mechas called Chrysalises that protect her country. None of this is important to her, though, as her sister just died inside of one of those mechas and she’s about to be sold by her family into the army to follow the same fate. What she doesn’t realize, though, is that the anger and rage that rests inside her at all times will not only save her, but it will rocket her into a position of power she never expected. This is a story of epic battles between giant metal monsters and human-powered mechas, a story of an eighteen-year-old woman using her voice, and in the end, it is a romance between three people. Iron Widow is ambitious but manages to capture it all, leaving the reader in awe of Wu Zetian. 

Creative Use for a Library Program

I’m a huge mythology buff, so my first instinct is to host a program where teens can learn about Chinese mythology, Wuxing, Taoism, or any other number of subjects, but then I remembered that this book was inspired by China’s only female emperor: Wu Zetian, who has the same name as the protagonist. I thought it would be fun to have a series of mini lectures or activities based either on Chinese historical figures or important groundbreaking women in world history. We hear a lot about women who changed America, England, and the Western world, but human history extends far beyond 1776. It would be great to have a series of mini-lessons about different historical women, each lecture paired with an activity and snacks to encourage learning-weary teens to join.

Potential Challenge Issues and Defense Preparation

Despite this book being solidly an upper-YA fiction book, there are a number of complaints about the book due to its covering of controversial topics. In the book there is a lot of violence– both between giant mechas and between humans– there is mentions of rape, suicidal ideation, torture, sex, and alcoholism. There are those that believe that teens should not be subjected to these topics, leading to the author being harassed because of it. In a video explaining why they were placed into the YA genre, Xiran explains how their book isn’t too explicit and that teens are exposed to much worse in other books (Zhao, 2025).

In the book, each of these topics is discussed either because it is a reality of living people (alcoholism, rape, suicidal ideation) or an integral part of the plot or character growth (alcoholism, violence, sex). The topics that have direct negative effects (torture, alcohol use, violence) have their consequences shown and are dealt with care. The mentions and discussions of topics that teens might be directly negatively affected by, such as rape or suicidal ideation, are also handled with care within the book, showing ways to move through them. Xiran also does not depict the actions of either of these topics. Iron Widow will not be for every teen, but most teens, particularly older teens, are able to handle reading difficult topics. The messages in this novel instead promote the power of solidarity, collective action, and love. 

Reason for Inclusion

I will admit that I’ve been a fan of Xiran’s YouTube videos since their first one covering the real Asian cultural influences in Avatar: The Last Airbender. They have a very upfront personality that I usually don’t mesh with, but their passion and authority on the topic won me over. I’ve not read any of their books, mostly because they described them as science fiction, and I tend to not enjoy that genre, but I’m ever so glad that I finally picked up Iron Widow. I’ve never read a book that was so dominated by the main character’s rage at every point. It reminded me of The Hunger Games if Katniss was more aware of her society as a whole and found her anger at the beginning. Wu Zetian is a character with so much agency in the story, too, to the point where she actively changes society around her. There’s also a love triangle that resolves by all three falling in love with each other, showing the revolutionary potential of this boundary-breaking novel. This will be taking a place of pride in my collection, and I cannot wait for this semester to be over so I can get my hands on the second volume in the series! 

For More Iron Widow Content, Visit Xiran Jay Zhao's Website! 

On their website, Xiran has put art of the major Chrysalises, and main characters. They also have pages for fan art and memes that fans can contribute to! There’s even playlists that they’ve curated and an album composed for Iron Widow.