Books › Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor
Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor
352 pages
A high-octane collision of ancient myth and modern technology where a boy must embrace his heritage to save his mother's soul.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like being strapped into a high-speed roller coaster where ancient mythology collides with modern gaming. The pace is relentlessly propulsive, driven by a ticking-clock mission and the urgent, heartfelt desire of a son trying to save his mother. It balances the epic, world-ending stakes of the Chinese underworld with the humorous, grounded reality of a legendary tyrant yapping through an AR headset. The atmosphere crackles with energetic magic and the thrill of a cross-country heist, while the emotional core remains deeply rooted in the exploration of cultural identity and heritage. It is a perfect fit for middle-grade readers who crave action-packed, mythic adventures that blend good-versus-evil showdowns with accessible, fast-moving prose.
- Mood
- energetic
- mythic
- adventurous
- high-stakes
- Tone
- urgent
- humorous
- action-packed
- earnest
- Pace
- propulsive
- Themes
- discovering cultural heritage · mother-son bond · good versus evil · embracing destiny · mythology meets technology
- The writing
- Fast-paced and accessible, blending modern gaming sensibilities with epic mythological scale.
- The arc
- A journey from feeling disconnected and unprepared to embracing cultural heritage and wielding newfound power to protect loved ones.
- Who it's for
- Middle-grade readers who love high-stakes magical quests, mythology, and fast-paced action with a modern technological twist.
Content notes
- parent in peril
- demonic encounters
- underworld themes
About the book
12-year-old Zack never had many opportunities to learn about his Chinese heritage. His single mom was busy enough making sure they got by, and his schools never taught anything except Western history and myths. So Zack is woefully unprepared when he discovers he was born to host the spirit of the First Emperor of China for a vital mission: sealing the leaking portal to the Chinese underworld before the upcoming Ghost Month blows it wide open.
The mission takes an immediate wrong turn when the First Emperor botches his attempt to possess Zack’s body and binds to Zack’s AR gaming headset instead, leading to a battle where Zack’s mom’s soul gets taken by demons. Now, with one of history’s most infamous tyrants yapping in his headset, Zack must journey across China to heist magical artifacts and defeat figures from history and myth, all while learning to wield the emperor’s incredible water dragon powers.
And if Zack can’t finish the mission in time, the spirits of the underworld will flood into the mortal realm, and he could lose his mom forever.
Description from Open Library.
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