Rise of the Empress

TV series coming soon on Amazon Prime Video

Julie C. Dao

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Paperback

Forthcoming
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English

Penguin Random House Australia
12 May 2026

General fiction (Children's&YA); Fantasy & magical realism (Children's&YA)

An East Asian fantasy reimagining of The Evil Queen legend about one peasant girl's quest to become Empress. Soon to be a major TV series, executive produced by Viola Davis, Gemma Chan and Forest Whitaker.

Eighteen-year-old Xifeng is beautiful. The stars say she is destined for greatness, that she is meant to be Empress of Feng Lu. But only if she embraces the darkness within her.

Growing up as a peasant in a forgotten village on the edge of the map, Xifeng longs to fulfill the destiny promised to her by her cruel aunt, the witch Guma, who has read the cards and seen glimmers of Xifeng's majestic future. But is the price of the throne too high? Because in order to achieve greatness, she must spurn the young man who loves her and

exploit the callous magic that runs through her veins-sorcery fueled by eating the hearts of the recently killed. For the god who has sent her on this journey will not be satisfied until his power is absolute.

Set in an East Asian-inspired fantasy world filled with both breathtaking pain and beauty, Forest of a Thousand Lanterns possesses all the hallmarks of masterful fantasy- dazzling magic, heartbreaking romance, and a world that hangs in the balance. Fans of Heartless, Stealing Snow, and Red Queen will devour this stunning debut.

'A stunning reimagining of the Evil Queen. Filled with treacherous courtesans, dark magic, terrible choices, and bloody hearts, Julie Dao's exquisite take on this classic villain rises far above the average retelling.' - Stephanie Garber, New York Times bestselling author of Caraval

'Magnetic, seductive, and alluring, Dao's Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is a lush, captivating read about desire and the lengths to which we will go to find our true destiny.' - S. Jae-Jones, New York Times bestselling author of Wintersong

By: Julie C. Dao
Imprint: Penguin Random House Australia
Country of Publication: Australia
Dimensions: Height: 1mm, Width: 1mm,
Weight: 1g
ISBN: 9781761359262
ISBN 10: 1761359266
Pages: 320
Publication Date: 12 May 2026
Audience: Children/juvenile , English as a second language
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Julie C. Dao is the critically acclaimed author of many books. Her novels have earned starred reviews from Booklist, School Library Journal, and Publishers Weekly, and won recognition from the Junior Library Guild, YALSA, and the American Library Association. A proud Vietnamese-American who was born in upstate New York, she now lives in New England.