She Who Became the Sun
- Downloads：2576
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-06-18 00:16:45
- Update Date：2025-09-23
- Status：finish
- Author：Shelley Parker-Chan
- ISBN：1529043409
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Mulan meets The Song of Achilles; an accomplished， poetic debut of war and destiny， sweeping across an epic alternate China。
“I refuse to be nothing…”
In a famine-stricken village on a dusty yellow plain， two children are given two fates。 A boy， greatness。 A girl， nothingness…
In 1345， China lies under harsh Mongol rule。 For the starving peasants of the Central Plains， greatness is something found only in stories。 When the Zhu family’s eighth-born son， Zhu Chongba， is given a fate of greatness， everyone is mystified as to how it will come to pass。 The fate of nothingness received by the family’s clever and capable second daughter， on the other hand， is only as expected。
When a bandit attack orphans the two children， though， it is Zhu Chongba who succumbs to despair and dies。 Desperate to escape her own fated death， the girl uses her brother's identity to enter a monastery as a young male novice。 There， propelled by her burning desire to survive， Zhu learns she is capable of doing whatever it takes， no matter how callous， to stay hidden from her fate。
After her sanctuary is destroyed for supporting the rebellion against Mongol rule， Zhu uses takes the chance to claim another future altogether: her brother's abandoned greatness。
“I refuse to be nothing…”
In a famine-stricken village on a dusty yellow plain， two children are given two fates。 A boy， greatness。 A girl， nothingness…
In 1345， China lies under harsh Mongol rule。 For the starving peasants of the Central Plains， greatness is something found only in stories。 When the Zhu family’s eighth-born son， Zhu Chongba， is given a fate of greatness， everyone is mystified as to how it will come to pass。 The fate of nothingness received by the family’s clever and capable second daughter， on the other hand， is only as expected。
When a bandit attack orphans the two children， though， it is Zhu Chongba who succumbs to despair and dies。 Desperate to escape her own fated death， the girl uses her brother's identity to enter a monastery as a young male novice。 There， propelled by her burning desire to survive， Zhu learns she is capable of doing whatever it takes， no matter how callous， to stay hidden from her fate。
After her sanctuary is destroyed for supporting the rebellion against Mongol rule， Zhu uses takes the chance to claim another future altogether: her brother's abandoned greatness。
Reviews
Elena
，
lo stile di scrittura risulta acerbo e poco fluido。 La storia procede a tentoni， con momenti di pathos e sbadigli profondi。 Sono eccessive le ripetizioni di alcune caratteristiche dei personaggi e il continuo rimando a un fantomatico "destino"。 Di base mi ha annoiata molto anche se ci ho visto le potenzialità del cercare di raccontare personaggi ai margini， cattivi e arrabbiati。 Peccato。 lo stile di scrittura risulta acerbo e poco fluido。 La storia procede a tentoni， con momenti di pathos e sbadigli profondi。 Sono eccessive le ripetizioni di alcune caratteristiche dei personaggi e il continuo rimando a un fantomatico "destino"。 Di base mi ha annoiata molto anche se ci ho visto le potenzialità del cercare di raccontare personaggi ai margini， cattivi e arrabbiati。 Peccato。 。。。more
Ally
，
4。5 stars。
Eva
，
13th century China: after a famine and her family dies， a girl-child dresses as a boy to be taken in （fed and educated by the monks。）The reviews on this are over-rated （or all written by un-woke men）。 This is not revelatory gender switching。 This is survival and what girl-child has not wished to be un-subjugated？Anyway - still an excellent book。
Gaby
，
3。5。 I really enjoyed this， but didn't connect with the characters （other than Ma！） as much as I hoped and the writing style wasn't my favourite。 I have a lot of hope for book 2 though！ 3。5。 I really enjoyed this， but didn't connect with the characters （other than Ma！） as much as I hoped and the writing style wasn't my favourite。 I have a lot of hope for book 2 though！ 。。。more
Danni （Vivid Reads）
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I love this story and all of the POVs we follow。 Really good character development and despite them doing some not so good acts it is justified in way and you feel and support their actions。This book also comes with great representation of queer characters and there is also a small snippet of very well written romance。 I listened to the audiobook and sometimes the character names blurred especially when they weren't mentioned very often。 The main characters and some more notable side ones were e I love this story and all of the POVs we follow。 Really good character development and despite them doing some not so good acts it is justified in way and you feel and support their actions。This book also comes with great representation of queer characters and there is also a small snippet of very well written romance。 I listened to the audiobook and sometimes the character names blurred especially when they weren't mentioned very often。 The main characters and some more notable side ones were easy to differentiate。 。。。more
Neet
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Read this on the recommendation of a friend， not really my cup of tea and I barely enjoyed it。 Kept reading just to finish it really。
Amélie Marquis
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Livre bien écrit mais fort ennuyant par moment hélas loin d’être un coup de cœur pour moi ！
Chris
，
Despite a slow start， I ended up really liking this one！ She Who Became the Sun is an exciting tale of a young woman who discovers her desire and right to obtain power in a male-dominated world。The queer and gender non-conforming representation in this book was awesome。 I loved how it really added depth to both our main perspective characters。 Ouyang is such a tragic and thorny character， but you can’t help but feel for the guy with all he’s been through。 Zhu herself ends up being quite the comp Despite a slow start， I ended up really liking this one！ She Who Became the Sun is an exciting tale of a young woman who discovers her desire and right to obtain power in a male-dominated world。The queer and gender non-conforming representation in this book was awesome。 I loved how it really added depth to both our main perspective characters。 Ouyang is such a tragic and thorny character， but you can’t help but feel for the guy with all he’s been through。 Zhu herself ends up being quite the complex character， and I especially love the darker ends her arc took her in this book。Parker-Chan’s prose too was a delight！ It’s definitely pretty dense， which alongside the aforementioned slow start made getting into this book a bit of an ordeal。 However， as things progressed and got more interesting， so too did the prose start to appeal to me more。 Shelley Parker-Chan can be very poetic， and that really helped paint this picture of her fantasy version of 14th century China。Overall， an incredibly solid start to the series， and I really look forward to reading more！ 。。。more
HaiL Beyond
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Working on my "He Who Became the Nun" spinoff as we speak Working on my "He Who Became the Nun" spinoff as we speak 。。。more
Helo
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So cool。 reminded me of the poppy war！ I loved the gay。 very nice quality。 Characters are deep and complex， can't wait to have a sequel！ So cool。 reminded me of the poppy war！ I loved the gay。 very nice quality。 Characters are deep and complex， can't wait to have a sequel！ 。。。more
Amber
，
3。5⭐️
Megan
，
This book is interesting and multifaceted。 Each character wrestles with their understanding of destiny and/or free will in a different and flawed way。 Each character changes and grows and is influenced by the culture and society that they found themselves in and come to realize how much of their personhood is defined by it。 There's so much to say and not enough space to say it here and I am not a master of prose so def read the book。 This book is interesting and multifaceted。 Each character wrestles with their understanding of destiny and/or free will in a different and flawed way。 Each character changes and grows and is influenced by the culture and society that they found themselves in and come to realize how much of their personhood is defined by it。 There's so much to say and not enough space to say it here and I am not a master of prose so def read the book。 。。。more
ANNESHA
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Honestly， I was expecting a lot from this book and in the end， I didn't get what I was hoping for。 But I don't think it is the book's fault per se。 I've come to realise that military fantasy is not something I generally gravitate towards。 I appreciate what this book intended to do。 I even enjoyed some of the characters。 It was really intriguing to see how the author wove the role of fate in both of our main character's actions。 But at the end of the day， I did not love this book。 And the longer Honestly， I was expecting a lot from this book and in the end， I didn't get what I was hoping for。 But I don't think it is the book's fault per se。 I've come to realise that military fantasy is not something I generally gravitate towards。 I appreciate what this book intended to do。 I even enjoyed some of the characters。 It was really intriguing to see how the author wove the role of fate in both of our main character's actions。 But at the end of the day， I did not love this book。 And the longer I am away from it， the more I think of not continuing with the series。 。。。more
Danielle
，
3。5
marta
，
ho trovato questo libro complesso e molto molto originale; difficile da seguire se si legge in parecchie sedute brevi， a causa della quantità di nomi da ricordare e di world-building。 ho trovato i personaggi molto interessanti e ho apprezzato la rappresentanza queer。 inoltre， il collocamento di eventi fantastici， quasi magici， all’interno di un contesto storico veritiero lo rendono un piacevolissimo romanzo。
Zoe
，
Very readable and compelling book， with the characters the real standout。 Each character is so interesting， and the big plot beats aligned really well with their development， all very well done。 I don't know that much about Chinese history， but it appears that Zhu's storyline does follow quite closely the real founder of the Ming dynasty （from the wikipedia page）， so super pleased to have learned a bit more about this wonderful period in history from a refreshing queer-ed perspective。 I would sa Very readable and compelling book， with the characters the real standout。 Each character is so interesting， and the big plot beats aligned really well with their development， all very well done。 I don't know that much about Chinese history， but it appears that Zhu's storyline does follow quite closely the real founder of the Ming dynasty （from the wikipedia page）， so super pleased to have learned a bit more about this wonderful period in history from a refreshing queer-ed perspective。 I would say that this book is more historical fiction than fantasy， so I am a bit confused by all the fantasy tags - really there are only two fantasy elements， ghosts and the mandate of heaven， which are both extensions of concepts held quite genuinely by folks in this period of Chinese history。 With that said， I loved this approach - the fantasy elements worked well to support the character development and world-building for this period， and it was nice to see magical stuff take a backseat take a backseat for once。 。。。more
Whisprose
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Can someone please come pick my shattered heart and destroyed body off the ground please？ I'd do it myself but after this book， my desire is nowhere near as strong as Zhu's。 Like， so many things twisted my heart while reading this but it was so。 Well。 Written。 One of the few books I've come across that deserve to be called epic。 I have a lot of yelling to do about this but I need a five week vacation to recuperate first， jeez Can someone please come pick my shattered heart and destroyed body off the ground please？ I'd do it myself but after this book， my desire is nowhere near as strong as Zhu's。 Like， so many things twisted my heart while reading this but it was so。 Well。 Written。 One of the few books I've come across that deserve to be called epic。 I have a lot of yelling to do about this but I need a five week vacation to recuperate first， jeez 。。。more
Freya Lishman
，
2。5 stars
No U
，
that was。。。 an experienceI've never read anything quite like that before， and the queer rep makes me unimaginably happy about having read this that was。。。 an experienceI've never read anything quite like that before， and the queer rep makes me unimaginably happy about having read this 。。。more
Rebecca
，
this truly had great potential but unfortunately the end product wasn’t nearly as captivating as i expected， so i’m returning this to the library before it puts me in a slump
Jesska
，
More like 4。5⭐️Adult 18+: violence， murder， explicit sexTragic yet beautifully written， at times it felt like the writing was poetic。There are multiple POV with Zhu being the MC + POV throughout the book。 All the characters were so complex and well written， I didn’t dislike a single one。 I preferred Zhu’s perspective， however Ouyang was my favorite overall。I’m generally not a huge fan of political/war books， but after reading this I’m questioning if that’s still true。Read Hardback & on Audible; More like 4。5⭐️Adult 18+: violence， murder， explicit sexTragic yet beautifully written， at times it felt like the writing was poetic。There are multiple POV with Zhu being the MC + POV throughout the book。 All the characters were so complex and well written， I didn’t dislike a single one。 I preferred Zhu’s perspective， however Ouyang was my favorite overall。I’m generally not a huge fan of political/war books， but after reading this I’m questioning if that’s still true。Read Hardback & on Audible; Narrated well by Natalie Naudus。 。。。more
Essenam Lamewona
，
This is a really solid book。 I think the politics and war aspects are less interesting however the author did an exquisite job writing confidently about a main character who really doesn't even know themself and allowing us to follow that journey through the phases of confidence and the attachments to fear that it involves。 It's also interesting that the protagonist literally wants to rule the world but it's not like steeped in malice as typical。 There are beautiful themes around creating your o This is a really solid book。 I think the politics and war aspects are less interesting however the author did an exquisite job writing confidently about a main character who really doesn't even know themself and allowing us to follow that journey through the phases of confidence and the attachments to fear that it involves。 It's also interesting that the protagonist literally wants to rule the world but it's not like steeped in malice as typical。 There are beautiful themes around creating your own fate， self confidence， gender exploration， duty， love， sacrifice and all of those came through really strong。 I think at points since it was so long and politic/war heavy I did get a little uninterested， but the characters were clear and strong throughout。 ⭐️3。5 。。。more
Juli Valderrama
，
This book from the first chapter had me hooked。 This book to me is comparable to Lolita in the poetic imagery that the author creates。 I really could not stop talking about this book or put it down by the 3rd chapter。 It is definitely a book I can reread and discover new things all at once。 I am awaiting the sequel patiently。
Wortkaefig
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It was intense。 I listened to the audiobook on spotify。 And it kind of broke me。 So sad。 I do not like the main character。 I feel like I understood her kind of in the beginning but the comparisons to Rin in poppy war seem right。 And Rin just felt like MORE somehow。 Lets see where this goes from here。
Saphana
，
Here we go again。 Unpopular opinion #1371。） This novel read like a series of vignettes due to the （rather abrupt） time- and PoV skips; which is the only acceptable reason to account for2。） the endless and brutal reiterations of （what the author considers to be） the main topics of the novel and the protagonist: nothing fate， ambition， hedonism。 These are hammered down until you can't be other than utterly insulted that the author regards you as a braindead zombie。3。） The deeply clunky prose in th Here we go again。 Unpopular opinion #1371。） This novel read like a series of vignettes due to the （rather abrupt） time- and PoV skips; which is the only acceptable reason to account for2。） the endless and brutal reiterations of （what the author considers to be） the main topics of the novel and the protagonist: nothing fate， ambition， hedonism。 These are hammered down until you can't be other than utterly insulted that the author regards you as a braindead zombie。3。） The deeply clunky prose in the first third of the book didn't help these matters either。4。） There's something extremely wrong with the interpunctuation: commas where there shouldn't be any - missing caesuras where there should be some。5。） As a historical fantasy， set in 14th century China， please do not include pressure-cookers with their lid shut。 These were invented in 1679。 In France。6。） What is it with clairvoyance in this book。 Eye contact transports thoughts or whole futures。 Characters deepest feelings can be read at first contact without them even moving a face muscle; whole personas read in an instant without any （fantasy） telepathy involved。7。） The author's marketing claims the MC and the antagonist are transgender and genderqueer， respectively。 I'm fairly certain， that dressing and acting like a man in 14th century China just to survive （as we are being told with bludgeoning force for several hundred times） doesn't represent transgenderism。 I'm also fairly sure， that a eunuch， who due to the lack of a scrotum and/or penis and hence testosteron does not represent gender-queerness。 In fact， I propose that linking gender-queerness to castration is a dangerous thought。 The story， certainly， doesn't deal with either topic: the MC is a lesbian and the antagonist might be a homosexual male。 EDIT: I just read the hardcopy of a tweet by the author from June， 2021 - now the MC is on the ace-spectrum。 Do ace characters sell better now？8。） The gratuitous murder of a child， just to "enhance" the toughness of the MC， only to subsequently gloss the whole affair over， is such a deeply troubling choice， that for me this series is over。 I have no interest in following the "glorious" rise of this MC any further。 。。。more
Peter Carlstrom
，
Exciting and fascinating Very interesting， engaging and cinematically told story of infallible desire for a better fate then was originally given。 There are mystical/magical occurrences， intricate betrayals and double crossings， innumerable obstacles and an iron will for a greatness。 Fascinating take on change from Juan to Ming dynasty。 The book is full of violence， brutality， gore and some sexiness。 What’s not to like？
Joules
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One of those few books where I didn't realize how much I enjoyed it until I had reached the end。 So so good。 One of those few books where I didn't realize how much I enjoyed it until I had reached the end。 So so good。 。。。more
Dani
，
Sapphic Romance for the month of June？ Yes please。 Did this book completely work for me？ Unfortunately no。 Things I liked: the idea of the Mandate of Heaven being a physical manifestation that multiple people can have at the same time - the sapphic romance-the prose wasn’t too bad Things I did not like- sometimes the plot reveals got lost in the sauce of the prose -lore was not my fav -characters were eh ok
Tami
，
A story of a young Chinese girl， in the 1300’s， who won’t accept the fate she feels， as a girl， she’s been given:that she will become nothing。 Because of the famine， her whole family dies and she takes up her brothers name as he was slated to become great。 She spends her life trying to hide from the heavens in who she really is and becomes her brother。 But not only that， does everything in her power to become great as well。 And her mind that means becoming an emperor。 While I thought the storyli A story of a young Chinese girl， in the 1300’s， who won’t accept the fate she feels， as a girl， she’s been given:that she will become nothing。 Because of the famine， her whole family dies and she takes up her brothers name as he was slated to become great。 She spends her life trying to hide from the heavens in who she really is and becomes her brother。 But not only that， does everything in her power to become great as well。 And her mind that means becoming an emperor。 While I thought the storyline was an interesting one， at times it was hard to read this book and be motivated to continue。 I kept thinking it was a long book， when it only was 400 pages。 Not sure if it was because I had to muddle through some of the Chinese culture I didn’t know a lot about， or if the author’s choice of words were a bit ambiguous。 The ending was extremely disappointing to me。 You root for this girl the whole time and think she will have kept her redeeming qualities but when it comes down to it， she is just like any other power driven ‘man’ who will do anything for his case。 There is also a descriptive love encounter towards the end I wasn’t too fond reading about。 。。。more
Abigail （abigailsbookself）
，
adding this one to my list of "the world would be better if it were on fire" heroines and "the world would be better if *I* were on fire" gray heroes adding this one to my list of "the world would be better if it were on fire" heroines and "the world would be better if *I* were on fire" gray heroes 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=She Who Became the Sun
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=She Who Became the Sun&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft