Description

A dazzling queer historical fantasy of war and destiny set in an epic alternate China – and sequel to the Sunday Times bestselling She Who Became the Sun. The Song of Achilles meets Mulan in He Who Drowned the World by Shelley Parker-Chan.

‘Magnificent in every way’ – Samantha Shannon, author of The Priory of the Orange Tree

What would you give to win the world?

Zhu Yuanzhang, the Radiant King, is riding high after a great victory. She’s torn southern China from its Mongol masters. Now she burns with a new desire: to crown herself emperor. However, she’s not the only one with imperial aspirations.

Courtesan Madam Zhang wants the throne for her husband. And scorned scholar Wang Baoxiang yearns to bring the empire to its knees. So Zhu must gamble everything on a risky alliance with her old enemy: Ouyang, the brilliant but unstable eunuch general. All contenders will do anything and everything to win. But when desire and ambition have no limits, could the price be too high for even the most ruthless heart to bear?

Praise for Shelley Parker-Chan:

‘Transcendent, heart-wrenching’ – Joanne Harris, author of Chocolat

‘As brilliant as Circe . . . a deft and dazzling triumph’ – Tasha Suri, author of The Jasmine Throne

‘Shelley Parker-Chan is a genius’ – Jen Williams, author of Talonsister

Readers love He Who Drowned the World:

‘I absolutely adored it’

‘A spectacular ending’

‘ I can’t even think of picking up a new book because I’m not ready to move on’

Publisher Review

He Who Drowned the World blew me out of the water. Deep, dark and peopled with deliciously complex characters, this book will draw you irresistibly into a world of tragedy and triumph. Shelley Parker-Chan is a genius — Jen Williams, author of Talonsister A powerful historical fantasy filled with complex people and high stakes. . . . Paying equal attention to fierce battle scenes and deep conversations and filled with desperate decisions and brutal actions, this book is immersive and intimate — Library Journal, starred review A heart-racing, emotional story that is also heartrending and shocking . . . The conclusion of the Radiant Emperor duology makes use of every last word and stamps this series onto the map as a new must-read of the fantasy canon — Booklist, starred review Even better than the first . . . These novels beautifully capture the feedback loop wherein queer-coded characters are reviled, which drives them to unbearable viciousness, which in turn fills them with self-loathing. Parker-Chan’s characters struggle to break this cycle, and the nuance with which they’re portrayed makes us root for them. In the end, Parker-Chan seems to suggest, power belongs not to the most ruthless but to those who are most successful at self-forgiveness — The Washington Post Parker-Chan unrolls the painted scroll of her epic tale with the control of a master storyteller, revealing a dazzling new world of fate, war, love and betrayal. Fantasy will never be the same — Zen Cho, author of Sorcerer to the Crown on She Who Became the Sun Epic, tragic and gorgeous. It will wreck you, and you will be grateful — Alix E. Harrow, author of Starling House on She Who Became the Sun Magnificent in every way — Samantha Shannon, author of The Bone Season on She Who Became the Sun