Reviews tagging 'Ableism'

The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

56 reviews

trs01's review against another edition

adventurous dark sad tense fast-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Vomit, Slavery, Injury/Injury detail, Infertility, Grief, Drug use, Animal cruelty, Addiction, Rape, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Sexism, Self harm, Religious bigotry, Murder, Misogyny, Mental illness, Excrement, Drug abuse, Death, Colonisation, Bullying, Body horror, Xenophobia, War, Physical abuse, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Classism, Child death, Child abuse, Torture, Sexual violence, Medical trauma, Hate crime, Cursing, Blood, and Animal death

Moderate: Ableism

ingamaloy's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional 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

5.0

Sykt intens bok med mørk handling og intense tema. Den er ikke for sarte sjeler. Den er tøff å lese, men absolutt verdt det. Jeg liker at ingen egentlig er gode, men at man likevel har sympati for karakterene fordi de er så komplekse. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Torture, Violence, War, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Infertility, Medical trauma, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Ableism, Bullying, Cannibalism, and Vomit

inthemoonforcheese's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Miscarriage, Colonisation, War, Xenophobia, Torture, Sexism, Rape, Racism, Medical trauma, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Drug use, Drug abuse, Cursing, Confinement, Animal death, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Infertility, Gore, Genocide, Gaslighting, Fire/Fire injury, Excrement, Domestic abuse, Death, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Sexual harassment, Classism, Child death, Body horror, Blood, Abandonment, Ableism, Toxic friendship, Sexual assault, Self harm, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Addiction, Vomit, Trafficking, Mental illness, Gun violence, Child abuse, Slavery, Sexual violence, Hate crime, and Forced institutionalization

josefinemartensson's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

One of the best books I've read
The Poppy war is not your typical lighthearted fantasy book with magic and a bit of politics. This is the real shit. 

The Poppy War is an adult, military-fantasy novel that shows the effects of war. Our main girl, Rin, is not your stereotypical protagonist whom everyone loves. She is complex, flawed, and even sometimes unlikeable. This novel will put you through emotions you've never experienced from a book before. It will make you doubt the human race and also find hope in it. It will make you laugh. It will make you cry. 

Welcome to the dark side.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Violence, Abandonment, Ableism, Bullying, Cannibalism, Death, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Slavery, Animal death, Misogyny, Addiction, Genocide, Gore, Murder, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, War, Animal cruelty, and Blood

mel_sh's review

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.25

 where do i find the words to talk about this book? i was hooked from the first sentence where a teacher yelled at rin to take off her clothes until the very last sentence. between that time, things in this plot change so drastically its hard to process just how much changed. the characters grow so much, the stakes become so much higher, the events much darker.
i've had this series marketed to me as YA fantasy but it is 1000% an adult series with adult themes so please do not go into this book thinking it will just be yet another tiktok recommended fluffy ya fantasy with magic. chapter 21 will forever be ingrained in my head as one of the saddest and most gruesome things i’ve ever read and it is not something that should be gone into blind.
that being said, there is no denying that this book is a masterpiece and i’m so upset it’s taken me this long to read this but also so happy because i feel like i wouldn’t have enjoyed this as much as a 16yr old as i did as a 19yr old. this was wonderful and life changing and i cannot wait to read the rest 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexual assault, War, Addiction, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Blood, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Grief, Violence, Animal death, Classism, Death, Genocide, Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Bullying, and Child death

Moderate: Body shaming, Death of parent, Misogyny, Abandonment, Ableism, Infertility, Racism, and Emotional abuse

bookswithgigi's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

5.0

this book has truly and utterly wrecked me…and then some.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Rape, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Ableism, Grief, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Blood, Child death, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Violence, and War

rnbhargava's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense fast-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

This book, a fantasy, fictionalized variation on China in WWII with the aftermath of the Opium Wars also in the mix, is frankly amazing. The writing becomes more dark and elaborate as the protagonist Rin ages and becomes less innocent through fighting in war at much too young of an age. The mythological aspects are very inventive and refreshing. The Cike is like a sort of Thunderbolts from Marvel or Suicide Squad from DC, if you’re familiar with these comic book teams. All of the characters that Rin is mentored by and/or befriends brings different aspects of her developing personality to the fore. I can’t wait to see what choices Rin makes in “The Dragon Republic” for better or worse. All of the characters are so intriguing and many of them easily could have been protagonists in their own rights. I got quite attached to everyone. This book is an experience. My only slight gripe is that many characters that the protagonist knows have a sort of low key plot armor so that they can be used to illustrate certain aspects of war later in the novel despite it seeming that they shouldn’t have survived some earlier world building regarding how the war is playing out in different fronts. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Body shaming, Kidnapping, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Sexual assault, Trafficking, Animal cruelty, Chronic illness, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Grief, Hate crime, Medical content, Torture, Addiction, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Classism, Colonisation, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Gaslighting, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Racism, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Violence, War, and Xenophobia

All of these triggers are evident in this narrative whether they’re something that happens to the main character, someone she knows, or is just generally part of the world. It is a brutal world that is in the midst of war and the protagonist is part of a group that’s kind of feared. All of the brutality is mentioned quite specifically in increasingly dark detail as you progress in the novel. Be aware, it doesn’t hold back.

lindsloveslit's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

4.5

My mind was (& still is) muddled after reading this dark, gripping, complex, debut novel. If you haven't read it, yet, and are considering it, you NEED to check the content warnings first! 👏🏽

There was a lot of history and culture throughout. It was heavy and hard and parts of it were graphic. There was a strong portrayal of death, violence, and war throughout. There was so much loss of innocence, and you also see the evil capacity of humans written out.

I feel physically heavier as I sit here reflecting on all of the morally grey characters. Does the end justify the means? I don't have the answers to all the questions and thoughts swimming though my head. Maybe book two and three will help with that?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Ableism, War, Abandonment, Violence, Rape, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Gore, Genocide, Drug use, Murder, and Torture

sacredgayometry's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad medium-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

Beautifully written and culturally expansive- the world building and magic system are fascinating. There are some very dark and upsetting moments that feel difficult to read, but the overall result is a great read with incredibly complex characters. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Murder, Rape, Infertility, Gore, Violence, War, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Genocide, Xenophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Drug use, Pregnancy, and Miscarriage

Moderate: Abortion, Suicidal thoughts, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Adult/minor relationship, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Medical trauma, Ableism, Animal death, Classism, Colonisation, Confinement, Cursing, and Grief

Minor: Alcohol, Death of parent, Eating disorder, Trafficking, Slavery, Sexism, Bullying, and Forced institutionalization

If you have trauma related especially to heroin or opioids, they are often mentioned and abused and this may not be the book for you. There is also heavy allegory to the conflicts in China and Japan surrounding opium and colonization and the wars that have occurred especially during feudal periods. I found it reminiscent of the Vietnam war and World War II. War crimes are a heavy theme. Very well written but can be a very difficult read.

crispinophurs's review against another edition

There is an overwhelming amount of colorism in this book that goes completely unchallenged and is, instead, given “reason” by confirming that the dark-skinned islanders are a powerful and violent race. It’s handled horribly.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism and Racism