Every action felt calculated, like the strategist that Zephyr is, and each choice elevated the plot to heights that I didn’t expect Strike the Zither to reach. The pacing of this novel also sealed the deal for me although it was a little difficult to get into right out of the gate with how the world and its characters were so rapidly introduced, once it got going, the pace never faltered. Given this novel’s roots in Chinese classics and folklore, it’s the perfect way to write it He mentions that the original epic of the Three Kingdoms had a tendency to put historical figures on a godlike pedestal, and this felt like a tongue-in-cheek response to that style.
She’s theatrical, but in a fun way that doesn’t mire itself in angst unnecessarily.
Again, Strike the Zither was a master class in balance Zephyr neither fell into the all-too-common self-seriousness of YA, nor did she constantly break out into the dreaded Marvel Funny personality.
He also has an awareness of her characters that not many YA authors do-she knows that Zephyr and all of the other supporting characters are over the top, and she absolutely rolls with it. With the stylized art on the cover, I could honestly imagine this novel being adapted into a darker Laika Studios stop-motion film, but no matter the medium, Strike the Zither feels like it was born for the screen. He seems to do political intrigue especially well-there’s a way to make it genuinely interesting without having the entire focus be on court drama, which happens so often in YA, and with both this novel and Descendant of the Crane, she teases each development just enough to continually keep my attention. It wasn’t frustratingly quippy or overtly self-serious He knew just when to hit the balance, juxtaposing war with well-placed zither solos and political intrigue. Her first two books were already works of art, and I’m glad to say that He is consistent in the quality of her writing, and consistent in her ability to put out so much unique media into the world of literature.Įach Joan He book is memorable in its own way, but what stood out to me about Strike the Zither was how wonderfully cinematic it was. Not with Descendant of the Crane, not with The Ones We’re Meant to Find, and certainly not with this novel. I’m not sure why I’m so hesitant to say that Joan He can do no wrong at this point. TW/CW: death, blood, war themes, violence, torture, animal death, vomiting, abuse, body-shaming, xenophobia (fictional)
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