Strike the Zither: 1 (Kingdom of Three)

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Whilst romance is not a huge plot of the story, we do see Zephyr having potential romantic relations with a potential love interest. Hiding the stress of her home issues behind a brave face, Iris competes for valuable assignments that may one day earn her the coveted columnist position. Even though she sometimes has to think quick on her feet, she never really doubts her capabilities throughout the story and I think that’s part of why I enjoyed her character so much, I envy that kind of confidence!

Strike the Zither Book Review | Common Sense Media Strike the Zither Book Review | Common Sense Media

A dazzling new fantasy from New York Times and Indie bestselling author Joan He, Strike the Zither is a powerful, inventive, and sweeping fantasy that reimagines the Chinese classic tale of the Three Kingdoms. If you read them differently, who am I to force you to arrive at my destination, to make something canon when it isn’t even on the page? She impulsively challenges Sikou Dun to a fistfight and is horrified afterwards, knowing that she would never have done that as Qilin. He: Interestingly enough, Zephyr in some ways to me feels like a departure from the characters I’ve written before, largely because of her confidence.I was immediately captured by Strike the Zither when it is said to be inspired by The Three Kingdoms, but instead of emperors and warlords, there are empresses and warlordesses! It should be noted that this is, of course, a subjective experience; those who are familiar with and have a deeper understanding of the (oftentimes convoluted) intricacies of Chinese TV dramas will find Strike the Zither to be a wonderful homage to Chinese history and culture. Watching a Chinese drama — that’s what reading Joan He’s Strike the Zither, a reimagining of the Chinese classic Romance of the Three Kingdoms, feels a lot like.

Kingdom of Three Series by Joan He - Goodreads

Joan He: Three Kingdoms might not seem like an obvious choice to reimagine for a young adult audience at a glance, but it felt right to me. It's this 天命 relationship that's the beating heart of Three Kingdoms, and probably the most poignant illustration of the Confucianism that scaffolds the source. This soaring, masterful retelling becomes an epic all of its own as He’s heroine outsmarts and outmaneuvers a vibrant cast of military geniuses. A puppet empress is on the throne, and three warlordesses each hope to claim the continent for themselves.The realm has fractured into three factions and three warlordesses hoping to claim the continent for themselves. The rest, I wrote for me, and I can only hope that some of the joy and love I have for this story transfers over to you, the reader. Themes of fate and identity appear throughout, tightening around Zephyr, who must weigh duty against heart as the stakes continue to rise. Strike the Zither has a large cast of well-developed characters, lots of intrigue, and a plot that keeps the pages turning.

Strike the Zither by Joan He Book Review | Strike the Zither by Joan He

Even though readers hear that Zephyr is a strong strategist from others, her first-person point of view doesn’t really make a case for that. There’s a lot of things that Zephyr can predict to have to account for, but one thing she doesn’t know how to prepare for is meeting the enemy strategist, Crow. Blood Brothers: Xin Ren, Gao Yun, and Huang Lianzi are swornsisters, having made an oath to fight beside each other years before the story begins.The trunks will wash down in the coming storm, and the resulting dam should delay Miasma’s cavalry by a couple of hours. The most accurate thing in STZ with regards to the original source is probably Zephyr (my Zhuge Liang) and Xin Ren's (my Liu Bei) relationship of undying loyalty--for no romantic, personal, concrete or otherwise easily-understood-by-a-western-audience reason.

Strike the Zither, book by Joan He Text Publishing — Strike the Zither, book by Joan He

Older teens in a fantasy world drink alcohol at feasts with some excess and hangover symptoms shown. But when Conor becomes old enough to consider marriage, Kel learns that it will take more than hidden daggers to protect his charge.

Part of my struggle might have been that I had a difficult time connecting with the audiobook due to the narrator's style, which was completely personal preference and not in the least bit objective on my part. There’s a transmigration part that has a lot of potential, especially since that’s often the most exciting part of Chinese dramas, but that part seems to take itself too seriously when it could have emphasized Zephyr’s adaptation to the body more. Military stratagems, qi-infused zither duets, and divine interference come together in this tightly crafted reimagining of the Chinese classic Three Kingdoms. Crow is the strategist for the opposite army (the one Zephyr infiltrated yes indeed), and things are getting more complicated. Strike the Zither is no different, and because I’m lucky enough to be writing this as a duology, I saved one of my meanest reveals for last!