Strike the Zither
The year is 414 of the Xin Dynasty, and the empire has fractured into three warring territories, each ruled by a warlordess claiming loyalty to a puppet empress. Zephyr, orphaned young and hardened by it, has built herself into one of the era's most formidable strategists, serving under Xin Ren-a warlordess whose honor Zephyr both admires and fears will get them both killed in a war that rewards betrayal over loyalty.
When Zephyr is sent to infiltrate a rival camp to keep Ren's people from being slaughtered, she runs into Crow, an opposing strategist whose mind works as fast as her own. Their battle of wits complicates a conflict already thick with court intrigue, shifting alliances, and impossible choices.
Strike the Zither is the first book in Joan He's Kingdom of Three duology, a story about the price of ambition and loyalty in a world that has no room for either.
Orphan turned brilliant strategist serving warlordess Xin Ren.
Honorable warlordess Zephyr serves, whose principles endanger her cause.
Rival strategist and Zephyr's intellectual match on an opposing side.
