Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

232 reviews

fantasynarwhal's review

adventurous dark sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Murder, Rape, Violence, Sexism, Sexual assault, War, Gore, Suicide, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Infertility, Bullying, Colonisation, Cannibalism, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Death, Torture, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Xenophobia, Religious bigotry, Slavery, and Suicide attempt

hunterkat's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Wow. So tws for this book? All of them. Not even kidding. I read the most graphic and horrific chapter I have ever read in this book. 

I have a hard time rating this book. It gets 5 stars because it did what it wanted to do extremely well. But it’s not an *enjoyable* read. I don’t mean because the plot is boring, it’s badly written, anything like that. In fact it’s extremely hard to put down and written well. But what this book wants to do and what it does well is show the horrors of war. The danger of seeing your enemies as less than human. The futility of revenge and anger and how it makes everything worse in the end. You may hate the main character but you can track along with her mindset and why she makes the decisions she does. 

It’s a rough read. Every violent tw I can thing of happens in this book. It does not hold back. But if you can stomach the gruesomeness, it’s very successful at it’s points. Don’t read this expecting a light hearted military fantasy. Read this expecting to cover your face or mouth with one hand, turning the page with another, and reading with one eye between your fingers. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Trafficking, Self harm, Sexual assault, War, Violence, Gore, Body horror, Rape, Physical abuse, Addiction, Torture, and Animal death

Moderate: Body horror, Xenophobia, Emotional abuse, Bullying, and Sexism

booking_along's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

i don’t know yet how to feel about this. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Genocide, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Death, Blood, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Forced institutionalization, Toxic friendship, Sexual violence, Murder, Medical content, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, War, Sexism, Rape, Kidnapping, Hate crime, Drug use, Bullying, and Addiction

nike_winter's review against another edition

adventurous dark informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Infertility, Animal cruelty, Rape, Animal death, Blood, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Violence, War, Genocide, Gore, Self harm, and Torture

Moderate: Racism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Abandonment, Sexism, Addiction, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, and Vomit

filisia's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Torture, Fire/Fire injury, Drug abuse, War, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, and Classism

224ok's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Ableism, Domestic abuse, Body horror, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Drug abuse, Medical trauma, Blood, Colonisation, Fatphobia, Pregnancy, Genocide, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Gore, Addiction, Classism, Cursing, Death, Child death, Misogyny, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Fire/Fire injury, Racism, Torture, War, Rape, Sexual violence, Vomit, Bullying, Child abuse, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Self harm, Grief, Racial slurs, Suicide, Xenophobia, and Injury/Injury detail

nogoodingoodbye's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark informative reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

5.0

The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang follows Fang Runin, often referred to simply as Rin, a war orphan. When her adoptive "mother" secures her a match Rin is determined to escape her way out of the arranged marriage. She plans on doing this by passing the Keju and getting into Sinegard, an elite military academy, and the only school with free tuition. Once she gets in by nailing the Keju she discovers that the test does not secure her place at Sinegard. Rin has to fight for her place. Unfortunately, that is not the only thing she has to fight for; "the only permanent thing about the Nikara Empire was war." 

WOW. It's a bit a shame this was the first book I read in 2024, because it is going to be incredibly hard to top. If you are looking for a book influenced by history, mythology, and Avatar The Last Airbender you are at the right address. If you love female rage, vengeance, and morally grey characters this is the book for you.  I honestly wish I had read this book sooner. I have no words, I am just amazed. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Racism, Death, Classism, War, Genocide, and Violence

Moderate: Self harm, Rape, Sexism, Blood, and Child abuse

cmartin42's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Racism, Sexism, Rape, and War

cepbreed's review

dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I'm still processing. To think that this book is a debut is insane to me. R. F. Kuang can do no wrong. I love her storytelling but I am so glad I started the Poppy War series after reading her two standalone novels. I fear the others would have disappointed me if they followed a read of this. 

The first half of the novel felt slow. I wasn't able to get into the storyline because it was so glaringly unoriginal. There, I said it. Sure, a tried and true plot is only tried and true because it works, but I picked up this book expecting more. It took weeks to find that more thanks to my modules and plain disinterest. Smack dab in the center of the book lies that gritty tonal shift that I could really sink my teeth into. I appreciate so much that Kuang is a historian because she never shied away from the brutality of war. The inspiration drawn from the atrocities committed by the Japanese made me sick to my stomach.

Venka, and the real women who were forced to become "comfort women" bring out a deep hatred for men within me.

That quality saved a novel that plateaued in the first half. I understand a world like this needs exposition and I also get that for that shift to take effect the beginning would have to be more tame in comparison (I'm struggling to find the right words here because I don't think "tame" correctly describes a girl

removing her own uterus

but alas). I can forget all of my grips with this book because any ending that makes me feel like this one did is deserving of innumerable praise. I balked when I turned the page and "Acknowledgements" stared back at me. I'm simultaneously thirsty for more and unbelieving that a book such as this one should or could be followed up. In a way, even with the loose ends in the plot, I think I would be content if the story just ended here. I thank Kuang for never being afraid to

kill off main characters, but at the same time, nearly all of the original cast is gone. New characters won't endear themselves to me in the same way the academy kids did. In the Tiktoks I sometimes get about this book people seem to have endless praise for Nezha so maybe he isn't dead? But that's lowkey overkill because c'mon, no way one teenage boy can miraculously dodge paralysis and death consecutively. Then again it is mentioned he's hiding something, maybe he's got like healing powers thanks to his family god or something.

The power system of this universe is convoluted in the best way. However, I can't entirely wrap my head around it so the confusion is getting to me. 

In the wake of the new Avatar live-action series I hope this never gets greenlit for any sort of on-screen adaptation. Not to deprive Kuang of her bag, but there's just no way in hell any show or movie would do this book justice. If they do make one though trust I will be watching the second it comes out. 

Song:

• Lipstick on the Glass - Wolf Alice

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Death, Addiction, Blood, Child abuse, Classism, Physical abuse, Mental illness, War, Sexism, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Body horror, Bullying, and Infertility

Moderate: Animal death, Medical content, Animal cruelty, Confinement, and Abandonment

Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual violence

withlivjones's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become a villain

WOW. Mind-blowing. HOW was this Kuang’s debut novel?? Rin is such a fascinating protagonist, she’s so driven and has so many wants and makes so many bad decisions because of that, and she is just unbelievably human. You’d be mad to agree with everything she does but you can’t help but root for her anyway. And Kuang doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to depictions of the horrors of war - this book is awfully gruesome at times but it’s pretty realistic (since much of the book was inspired by events that actually happened in history), even when you add in the fantasy elements. 

Also, as a final note, it’s so refreshing to read a fantasy book where there’s absolutely no romantic subplot. I need more of those please! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Violence, Murder, Vomit, Xenophobia, Rape, Child death, Colonisation, Drug abuse, Racism, Sexism, Blood, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Physical abuse, War, and Classism