by R.F. Kuang
Rin is a war orphan who tests into Sinegard, the most elite military academy in the Nikara Empire. There she discovers she has shamanic powers connected to the old gods — powers that her nation both needs and fears. When a neighboring federation invades, Rin must choose between human restraint and divine annihilation. Inspired by the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Rape of Nanking.