Shen Tao

@dragons.bsky.social

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USA Today and Sunday Times bestselling author of The Poet Empress https://linktr.ee/ThePoetEmpress

The Poet Empress sales chart showing 10,001 units sold since release
The Poet Empress by Shen Tao
BookPage starred review of The Poet Empress
DEBUT Famine spreads across the land of Tensha, and young Yin Wei does the only thing she can think of to save her family—become a concubine to Prince Guan Terren. Heir to the Azalea Throne, Terren is a cold man, with poetry magic that he uses for cruelty and death. As Wei navigates the inner machinations of the court, she realizes that she may have to become just as self-serving as Terren to survive. Not only do the other concubines battle each other to secure the spot as future Empress, but Terren deals with attacks on his succession from his honorable older brother, and both Wei and Terren face treachery from other court members. To achieve her goals, Wei must kill Terren—and with one forbidden poem, she can accomplish it. However, the only way to write this poem of death is with love, and she hates everything Terren is. The novel’s unique magic system and character-driven plot create an immersive tale.VERDICT Tao’s debut is an intricate study of court politics and what a young woman will do to survive. Hand to fans of The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang or She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan.
Starred review for The Poet Empress from Publishers Weekly with quote "Tao’s prose gleams with poetic precision, and climactic revelations strike with devastating inevitability."
50 physical copy giveaway of The Poet Empress by Shen Tao on Goodreads, until November 3
Shen Tao with ARCs of The Poet Empress at the Macmillan booth
Graphic announcing The Poet Empress by Shen Tao is available for request on NetGalley
Cover for the Gollancz edition of The Poet Empress by Shen Tao
The cover of Bramble's edition of The Poet Empress by Shen Tao