The He Who Drowned the World A Novel

USA TODAY bestseller, #1 international bestseller, and Indie Next Pick

"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

"The most finely crafted fantasy novel of the year. . . . Sentence by sentence, Parker-Chan's prose is unrivaled in modern fantasy. It's so consistent in its richness, so precise in its sequencing that even the grimmest of moments become enthralling and vital. . . .The fearless Parker-Chan pulls no punches, repeatedly pushing characters to their limits and beyond."-BookPage, starred review

"Intricately plotted and devastatingly brutal historical fantasy. . . . Parker-Chan admirably continues the nuanced and compassionate examination of gender, sex, and desire that began in book one while simultaneously dialing up the intensity. . . . Parker-Chan successfully steers the complex political machinations to a satisfying conclusion."-Publishers Weekly

"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

"Gender, power, queerness, sex and empire are explored in complex and sometimes shocking ways. This duology will leave you breathless."-NPR, "Books We Love" feature

"An incredibly compelling novel, vividly written, with fascinating thematic arguments about gender and power - there are entire essays to be composed on that aspect of this novel alone - and with a startlingly fresh approach to combining the fantastical with the historical... I suspect I'll still be thinking about this duology in a decade's time. In either case, He Who Drowned the World is a worthy successor to She Who Became the Sun: a vivid and entertaining novel whose characters, for all their flaws, are never less than wholly fascinating."-Locus

"Just as exciting, epic and stunningly written as the first. It will leave you on the edge of your seat until the final page."-Ms. Magazine

"A dark, often brutal, and occasionally gory follow-up to (excellent) historical fantasy She Who Became the Sun. Shelley Parker-Chan sends their Radiant Emperor duology off in style."-Paste

Praise for SHE WHO BECAME THE SUN:
"Come for the clashing politics and richly realized scenes of 14th century life among Mongol warriors and Chinese monks, stay for the rise to power of a former village girl who assumes her brother's name and changes the fate of an entire people.... I loved it."-The New York Times

"She Who Became the Sun is epic, tragic, and gorgeous. It will wreck you, and you will be grateful." -Alix E. Harrow, Hugo Award-winning author of The Once and Future Witches

"Evocative and heartrending, Parker-Chan's debut is a poetic masterpiece about war, love, and identity."-S.A. Chakraborty, international bestselling author of THE DAEVABAD TRILOGY

"Instantly enthralling. Zhu is canny, charming, and ruthless as she claims her own fate in a richly detailed world, challenging dynasties and gender in the process." -Malinda Lo, author of Last Night at the Telegraph Club

"Gorgeous and sprawling masterpiece of historical fantasy."-Buzzfeed

"A gripping tale of rise to power, fate, betrayals and the bloody beginnings and endings of dynasties. Heartbreaking, stirring, haunting."-Aliette de Bodard, Nebula-award winning author of SEVEN OF INFINITIES

"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, award-winning author of The True Queen

"An exhilarating rise to power . . . in a world that is stunningly alive. Parker-Chan's exquisitely wrought prose brings light and nuance to the novel's immense themes of gender, power and fate. An instant classic."-C.S. Pacat, USA Today bestselling author of the CAPTIVE PRINCE TRILOGY

"An absolute stunner... The story, much like the characters, is ambitious and clever and the depth of emotion Parker-Chan is able to tap into without ever becoming maudlin is astounding." -Rebecca Roanhorse, Hugo and Nebula-award winning author of Black Sun

"Stunning, powerful and complex, there are no heroes in this tale, and people knowingly do terrible things. And you'll love them for it."-Anna Stephens, author of the GODBLIND TRILOGY

"Zhu is a hero unlike any other - her propulsive desire to survive at any cost powers a glorious novel that encompasses grand betrayal, love, loss and triumph . . . . Tender characterisation, assured pacing and dry wit makes this . . . unforgettable." -A. K. Larkwood, author of The Unspoken Name

"Shelley Parker-Chan's debut novel is a sweeping epic rendered in elegant prose. Arresting, beautiful, grand in scope and yet intimately poignant, readers will be drawn into this deftly written fantasy."- Rowenna Miller, author of Torn

"[An] important debut that expands our concept of who gets to be a hero and a villain, and introduces a pair of gender disruptors who are destined to change China - and the LGBTQ fantasy canon - forever."-USA Today

"Parker-Chan's debut is forceful, immersive, and unforgettable."-Library Journal, starred review