Shelley Parker-Chan completes her Radiant Empire duology, a vibrant, queer historical fantasy epic set in 1356 CE China, with a dark, furious, and thrilling power struggle in He Who Drowned the World. Once a starving peasant girl who stole her dead brother's identity to reach for greatness, Zhu is now the Radiant King, one of a select few who possess the mystical Mandate of Heaven needed to rule over the Mongol Empire. Her rise to power cost her a hand and nearly her life on the sword of the misogynistic eunuch General Ouyang, who will stop at nothing to kill the current Great Khan, his father's murderer. Zhu and Ouyang have been adversaries, but Zhu feels a kinship with Ouyang: neither fits into their society's rigid gender binary. She convinces him to ally their armies against the Great Khan, with the hopes of giving Ouyang his revenge and Zhu the throne. Rivals threaten their ambitions, including a manipulative queen, one of the commanders Zhu deposed in the prequel, She Who Became the Sun, and the younger brother of the prince Ouyang loved but murdered for vengeance. However, the greatest threat to their ambitions may be Ouyang himself--if he ever learns the secret of Zhu's gender.
This action-packed, emotional finale surpasses its predecessor for sheer brutality and knife-twisting surprises. Tragedy and heartache abound, and characters' moral choices are dishwater gray, but ultimately the adventures of Zhu remain inspiring as she follows her philosophy of achieving the unthinkable: "Change the world, and make it possible." --Jaclyn Fulwood, blogger at Infinite Reads