Review: Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor by Xiran Jay Zhao
Advanced copy was sent to me in exchange for an honest review: Pre-order for release on May 10!
I love Yu-Gi-Oh, I’ve watched all the shows and still play the card game to this day, so when I saw Chinese Percy Jackson meet Yu-Gi-Oh! I couldn’t wait to get my hands on a copy. Middle-grade age is when I got really obsessed with reading and plowed through just about anything I could get my hands on, until I ran out of things that were interesting or difficult enough. I was reading above my level but had no interest in teenage vampires or the cheating spouses over in adult fiction, but the books aimed at my age were all starting to seem childish after reading a couple hundred of them. Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor is exactly what 12 year old me would have wanted, because it is more advanced middle grade while still being clearly middle grade. I’d class this as action-adventure historical fiction with an emphasis on history, which I think is awesome since history courses in the United States scarcely touch on Chinese history. I have disliked some historical middle grade stories for just reading like textbooks but I believe the author’s intensive knowledge of Chinese history and experience growing up in China makes it just a fun historic adventure without feeling like a class. The characters are realistic and in their relationships with each other and their actions as 12 year olds. The battle scenes leap off the page with their excitement and seamless flows; I will be honest, I sometimes just skim fight scenes when they aren’t very interesting or don’t contribute much, the fights in Zachary Ying are a full immersion experience and actively contribute to the plot and move it right along. The plot left me guessing constantly, with many delightfully unpredictable twists and turns. I can’t wait for the next installment, even though it may be a little while considering how this isn’t even out yet. I think every age of reader would enjoy this book because I am raving and I don’t hardly read middle grade anymore.
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