Content levels
Trigger warnings
Positive tags
Hero archetypes
Heroine archetypes
Protagonist archetypes
Tropes
Synopsis
In a Russia where the Decembrists' rebellion was successful and the Trans-Siberian railroad was completed before 1854, Sasha Trubetskaya wants nothing more than to have a decent debut ball in St. Petersburg. But her aunt's feud with the emperor lands Sasha at university, where she becomes one of its first female students - an experiment, she suspects, designed more to prove female unsuitability for such pursuits than offer them education. The pressure intensifies when Sasha's only friends - Chinese students - start disappearing, and she begins to realize that her new British companion, Jack, has bigger secrets than she can imagine! Sasha and Jack find themselves trying to stop a war brewing between the three empires. The only place they can turn to for help is the Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace, newly founded by the Taiping rebels. Pursued by the terrifying Dame Florence Nightingale of the British Secret Service, Sasha and Jack escape across Siberia via train to China. Sasha discovers that Jack is not quite the person she thought he was...but then again, neither is she.
Is Heart of Iron appropriate for my child?
Suitable for most readers 16 and up.
An alternate-history fantasy romance set in 19th-century Russia and China with political intrigue, espionage, and moderate action violence. Features identity revelations and a romantic subplot with kissing and tension.
What to know going in
This book has moderate violence, mild sexual content, and mild language. Content notes include kidnapping, war, and political violence.
Who'll love this
Teens will enjoy the adventure across alternate-history Siberia with mysterious identities, international intrigue, and a slow-burn romance.