Author Justinian Huang hopes to usher in an “all-Asian male Renaissance” one thirst trap at a time
The Emperor and The Endless Palace was published earlier this year and immediately received widespread acclaim from readers and critics alike for its sweeping storyline and spicy gay sex scenes, the latter of which also inspired some pearl-clutching from those who weren’t quite ready to read about two hot queer Asian men going at it with one other over the course of 2000 years.Yes, you read that correctly.
The gay reincarnation romance spans multiple centuries, telling the epic story of two soulmates who first meet in Ancient China in the year 4 BCE, then again in China in the year 1740, and finally one last time in present day Los Angeles.
The novel, which Huang describes as an “erotic romantasy thriller,” is filled with all sorts of unexpected twists and turns and, of course, lots and lots of sex, making it the perfect addition to your Hot Gay Summer™ reading list this year.Subscribe to our newsletter for a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.A post shared by HarperCollins (@harpercollins)In a new interview with Nerds of Color, Huang says part of what he hoped to accomplish with The Emperor and The Endless Palace was to combat sexual stereotypes about Asian men.“Some people have this preconceived notion that Asian men are demure or desexualized beings,” he says. “I think there is a huge fear of Asian male sexuality.”“I’ve had the pleasure of talking to a lot of my friends who are OnlyFans performers who happen to be Asian and male, and they tell me there’s a scope of fear and lust for it.”He continues, “[I enjoyed] writing Asian men that were very sexually swaggering and very sexually confident because that’s actually [my] truth.
They say write what you know – and I know spicy Asian men, and that’s what I wrote about. It wasn’t me trying to prove a point, really.
