Heavenly Tyrant

Heavenly Tyrant is the second book in Xiran Jay Zhao's Iron Widow series, a young adult science fiction story drawn in part from Chinese history. Zetian now holds power in Huaxia, but her position is precarious and her world is anything but stable.

To take down a common enemy and get back the one she lost, she has to enter an uneasy alliance with a dangerous man whose beliefs conflict with hers. The two must navigate a dance of truth and lies, and Zetian is pushed to decide how far she will go, and what she will become, in her pursuit of vengeance and liberation.

Readers should start with Iron Widow, since this book continues directly from it.