He Who Drowned The World by Shelley Parker-Chan

He who drowned the world by Shelley Parker-Chan 

Thank you Tor and Netgalley for the ARC to review.

I recall at the end of my review from She who became the sun, I wrote: 'I just hope Zhu doesn't become completely lost to the darker side of their choices, nor do those around her.' 

Somehow, I had a foreboding that this wasn't going to end in such a way. 

Then the title was announced for this book, and my stomach dropped. I just knew then Shelley Parker-Chan was going to take us down a deep, dark path. 

Then trigger warnings popped up, and that's when I knew this was going to be a bumpy ride. 

But how an authors navigates that for me makes a book. Too gratuitous, and a book suffers. So, did they fall into that trap?

Some might think so, and yet, I didn't feel that was the case. This is a book of historical fantasy, with characters we know from the 1st book, and it expands from there. While complex, I loved how once again Shelley Parker-Chan navigates their way through it, allowing us to immerse ourselves into each segment, and while this book is undoubtedly darker in tone (understatement), I still felt the way it was navigated shone through.

This is a book not for the faint hearted, and as such will undoubtedly polarise readers. Yet, as brutal as it was, Parker-Chan writes in such a way, I couldn't stop reading. Battered and bruised by the end, there was one line *I won't include for spoilers* that had me drawing in a breath muttering 'damn,' because Zhu, despite it all, showed that one glimmer of humanity, and their love for Ma. You'd be forgiven to miss the impact of it all, amongst the clamour of all going before it. Yet, somehow once again we have an ending that left me breathless and satisfied all at once.

Is this an easy read? No. It is, honestly, brutal. I find myself using the term here often, but it is how the story unfolds. But also, this is a period of history where that was the norm. To have shied away from that, would in my opinion, done the book a huge disservice. But be aware of this before you begin reading. Because I had to stop, to claw myself back and in need of a stiff drink more than once as I read. 

The skill Shelley Parker-Chan has for me, is inflicting those emotions within you. For pulling a complex and intricate story together. For the pacing, that doesn't let up. Even if we get quieter moments, it is all relative to what is quieter! I was often sitting here, trying to take in what I had read, with my soul feeling broken, and yet, I needed to know! Does Zhu become completely lost to the darker side of their choices, or do those around her? 

The answer is there. But you need to read the book to find out. 

Battered, bruised, and utterly captivated, despite all the depths of depravity this book hits, it is sublime writing, and I'm giving it 5/5 stars 🌟 🌟🌟🌟🌟