Stronger Than a Bronze Dragon

April 15, 2019
Destiny. Vengeance. Glory. Anlei has spent much of her young life fighting the shadow spirits plaguing her village and imagining herself as the Warrioress of legend. When Viceroy Kang visits, he makes the villagers an offer: In exchange for the protection of his bronze dragon army, he will take one girl to be his latest wife--but he also wants their enchanted River Pearl. The bride he selects is Anlei. Though her thirst for vengeance and hunger for adventure and personal glory have not been sated, she resigns herself to this exchange for the sake of her people. Before the ceremony, however, the pearl is stolen by the Masked Giver, a young man on his own quest to save his people from the Courts of Hell and Mowang, the demon king. Of course, Anlei joins him. A Chinese-inspired fantasy, mixing magic and science, cyborgs and magical swords, this story tries to incorporate many topics (some more successfully than others), including a commentary on womanhood and sacrifice for the community, destiny vs. self-determination, Chinese legends, and politics. The main character, who is prone to histrionics and makes a distracting number of oaths to the Gods of Heaven and Earth for vengeance and violence, seems to have dyslexia. Though full of action sequences and dramatic reveals, unfortunately the journey of self-discovery is lacking. Ultimately, this is more flash and over-the-top drama than substance. (Fantasy. 14-17)

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May 1, 2019

Gr 8 Up-In this feminist epic by award-winning author Fan, a Qing-era village is rescued from peril by a powerful viceroy who then offers the village permanent protection. All he wants in return is the village's valuable river pearl-and the hand of a brave village girl named Anlei. Anlei finds the viceroy repulsive, but for the sake of her village agrees to marry him. Then a thief steals the river pearl. Anlei sets out after the thief, named Tai, whose intentions turn out to be honorable. The two become unlikely partners on a hero's quest across a mechanized landscape, made ever more inhuman by the viceroy's greed and his lust for power. During their adventures, Anlei and Tai learn what it means to support and love another. They defeat mechanized monsters and the monster the viceroy has become, thus allowing captured souls to return to their rightful places. Action filled and plot oriented, the novel holds enough adventure for three books. Its steampunk monsters are glorious and compelling. However, some violent passages are alienating and offensive in their bloodlust. VERDICT A solid purchase for insatiable fantasy readers, though not an inspiring one.-Sheri Reda, Wilmette Public Library, IL

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2019
Grades 7-10 Aspiring warrior Anlei's provincial village is under devastating attack from creatures of darkness known as ligui. When her father dies during one such attack, she vows to do anything she can to protect her village and get revenge, even if it means marrying the distasteful Viceroy Kang, whose magical abilities and secrets are more dreadful than anyone knows. In this Asian-inspired, steampunk-flavored fantasy, Fan creates a spitfire heroine who is memorable for her quick temper, determination, and difficulties reading printed characters. Anlei's love interest, Tai, is a half-breed (part human and part creature of light) who has had an unfortunate family life that only gets worse. There are moments of beautiful imagery and genuine emotion in Fan's prose, along with a distinctive stylistic choppiness that may bother some readers and is not apparent in her other books. The author drops enough hints that much of the plot unfolds as expected, though a bit of a twist awaits readers?one that differentiates this story from true steampunk.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)