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ktfabien1028's review against another edition
3.0
As someone who fell in love with The Poppy Wars, I was so excited to go into the next part of this series. Unfortunately I have to say that I didn’t feel like this book met my expectations. As someone who fell in love with Rin in the first book, I couldn’t believe I was reading a book with the same character. Rin came across so whiney and brat for majority of this book that it made it unbearable to get through this. Her obsession with Altan and creating a false narrative of him was exhausting. I was glad that she learned to finally stand on her own but it took entirely too long to get to that point. Lastly, this book felt like nothing but military strategies and battles. I felt like I was sitting in a strategy class at Sinegard vs actual action again Daji which I was hoping would be similar to again the first book. I think I just fell so much in love with The Poppy Wars that I thought the momentum and the story would carry through and it didn’t. It wasn’t until the last two chapters that things started to turn around. As a completionist I’ll get around to the third book, but I’m not so much in a rush as I was before reading this one.
ldean1021's review against another edition
5.0
I liked this book even more than the first. It’s pacing was perfect. I do see now how The Fourth Wing has many similarities to the Poppy War series.
marissaneitzel's review against another edition
4.0
Bored with the fist half but zayummmm that second half
marinargsbooks's review against another edition
5.0
holy FUCK I CANT BELIEVE EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED
y yo pensando que igual no sería tan bueno como el primero….. dios mío
the angst, the anxiety, the fucking STORY
no puedo necesito darme un tiempo de leer otras cosas antes de acabar porque WOW INCREÍBLE i can’t wait
y yo pensando que igual no sería tan bueno como el primero….. dios mío
the angst, the anxiety, the fucking STORY
no puedo necesito darme un tiempo de leer otras cosas antes de acabar porque WOW INCREÍBLE i can’t wait
amnevitah's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
chloeuzzell's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
ithinktfiam's review against another edition
3.0
Didn't live up to the first book. It was too standard and the "infighting Chinese" and "evil white people" tropes were just too heavy. The basic adventure was ok, as Rin and the Cike's continue fighting the war for the Republic that seems fake enough that even half intelligent people would have figured it out much earlier.
notuwumi's review against another edition
3.0
this trilogy feels like A Series of Unfortunate Events in that you never get a breather! i get that it's warfare and all, but much of the politics and battle/post-battle/oops-there's-another-one-starting sequences felt rushed. also, the excess swearing took me wayyyyy out of my immersion in this and TBG, and caused much of the dialogue to lose its impact for me. but i'll give credit where it's due: the Hesperian conflict is MUCH more interesting than the Mugenese. supremely written as well!!
however, i have many other issues (that i expand on here, and in my TBG review)!
however, i have many other issues (that i expand on here, and in my TBG review)!
Spoiler
Rin never gets the chance to truly recover from Altan's death because of Vaisra (and the Phoenix in the back of her mind probably isn't any help either), and her character is worse for it. it feels as though she loses a ton of her agency in this book; she's always five steps behind everyone else which makes sense! she's young and new to politics/war!! but she never seems to catch up in a way that feels like a true victory for her.as170's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
kwanzzy7's review against another edition
5.0
Wow! Please check all of the trigger warnings if you're going to pick up this book.
I feel like someone should write a psychology textbook just about Rin. I can't tell if I love or hate her. She is grappling with so many demons and has suffered so much trauma. At the beginning of the book in particular, she was so infuriating and made such bad decisions, it made me very annoyed. She has no empathy. She is extremely selfish and has no regard for other people, which I think shapes a lot of the way other characters appear in the narrative. At the same time, she has this soft side of her that wants to be loved and valued and accepted, and it makes her so easily manipulated.
Just like the first book in this trilogy, The Dragon Republic does not hold anything back. It is so graphic and raw. The depiction of war and politics is brutal, and actually really makes me want to learn more about the Chinese history that these battles are based on.
The ending gave me absolute CHILLS, especially the last few lines filled with Rin's rage.
Her character is so full of passion and strong emotions but she spends so much time without knowing where to direct those feelings. I am truly afraid to see what will happen in book three when Rin comes with a vengeance.
I feel like someone should write a psychology textbook just about Rin. I can't tell if I love or hate her. She is grappling with so many demons and has suffered so much trauma. At the beginning of the book in particular, she was so infuriating and made such bad decisions, it made me very annoyed. She has no empathy. She is extremely selfish and has no regard for other people, which I think shapes a lot of the way other characters appear in the narrative. At the same time, she has this soft side of her that wants to be loved and valued and accepted, and it makes her so easily manipulated.
Just like the first book in this trilogy, The Dragon Republic does not hold anything back. It is so graphic and raw. The depiction of war and politics is brutal, and actually really makes me want to learn more about the Chinese history that these battles are based on.
The ending gave me absolute CHILLS, especially the last few lines filled with Rin's rage.
Her character is so full of passion and strong emotions but she spends so much time without knowing where to direct those feelings. I am truly afraid to see what will happen in book three when Rin comes with a vengeance.