Pan Macmillan The Radiant Emperor Book 1: She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan - Paperback - Sunday Times Bestselling Queer Historical Fantasy

In a famine-stricken village on the North China Plain, a nameless girl watches her brother Zhu Chongba receive a prophecy of greatness, while she is destined for nothing at all. When bandits slaughter their family, she refuses her fate: she takes her brother's identity and, as Zhu, sets out to claim his foretold destiny for herself. This is Shelley Parker-Chan's historical fantasy debut, reimagining the rise of Zhu Yuanzhang, founder of the Ming Dynasty. Set in 14th-century China under Mongol rule, it follows a peasant girl who steals her dead brother's identity and destiny to escape a life of nothingness. Blending queer romance, political intrigue, and sweeping battles, this is an epic for fans of ambitious, character-driven fantasy.