Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

81 reviews

heli1403's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Child death, War, Torture, Addiction, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Self harm, Murder, Gore, Genocide, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Blood, Body horror, Animal death, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Slavery, Sexual assault, and Sexual content

sara_malo's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Rape, War, Medical content, Gore, Drug use, Drug abuse, Death, Blood, Genocide, Fire/Fire injury, Kidnapping, Classism, Child death, Child abuse, and Body horror

cinderrunner's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Powerful concepts and moral questioning. Rin is highly unlikable (in a not fun way) and, at best, can be viewed as a good example of a morally gray protagonist. Story felt a little slow and bogged down. The characters mostly lacked an emotional power and  definitely could've been fleshed out more. Character relationships needed more work. I found it hard to believe any of them gave the vaguest fuck about each other except for Kitay and Rin. Rin's relationship with Altan specifically needed more and the intensity of how she viewed him felt very random and weird. So much of the plot feels like it just sort of happens and only exists to propel us the the main horrors that come toward the end of the book. My rating would have been a lot lower if the pace and power of the story hadn't picked up so much in the last 100ish pages. Actually, if the rest of the book had the punch of those last 100 pages this might have been a 5 star read for me. Worth checking the content warnings for this one. Some of this stuff is brutal. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Colonisation, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Child abuse, Child death, Drug use, Murder, Sexual violence, Drug abuse, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, War, Genocide, Grief, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Rape, Sexual harassment, and Torture

gumbi's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Vomit, Self harm, Racism, Cursing, Bullying, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Sexism, and Racial slurs

kazbrekkerfanpage's review against another edition

dark sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• 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: Drug use, Racism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Medical content, Murder, Torture, Vomit, Genocide, Police brutality, Rape, Self harm, Xenophobia, Body horror, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Sexual violence, Child death, Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Kidnapping, Colonisation, Death, Grief, Hate crime, Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, War, Sexual content, Violence, and Sexual harassment

leighann13's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-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: Classism, Kidnapping, Medical content, Sexual harassment, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Rape, Bullying, Colonisation, Cursing, Death, War, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Drug use, Gore, Trafficking, Injury/Injury detail, Abortion, Drug abuse, Child abuse, Slavery, Sexism, Murder, Blood, Addiction, Genocide, Ableism, Pedophilia, Mental illness, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Vomit, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Medical trauma

jmalto110's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Self harm, Genocide, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, War, and Addiction

magspaggs's review against another edition

adventurous 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? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

While I enjoyed this book, I think there is something incredibly flawed about Rin, which I know I the point. It’s just frustrating. There was also a few things that I felt weren’t conveyed as well as they could have been. Namely why Rin was so ready to be a soldier for a country that didn’t want her. She spends most of the book bemoaning anything that isn’t the war or goes against being a “good soldier” and I do not understand why. Where does her loyalty to her country or from? I hope that is explored a little bit more. 

Overall though this book made me literally cry, something that hasn’t happened in a while. Interested to see where the series goes.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Hate crime, Mental illness, Murder, Rape, Violence, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Torture, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Police brutality, Sexual content, Addiction, Bullying, Cursing, Kidnapping, Sexual harassment, Classism, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Medical content, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, War, Drug use, and Forced institutionalization

yorkshirepud's review against another edition

adventurous dark slow-paced

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

4.25

For me, this book was very much a "don't judge a book from the front cover" moment for me. I had put off picking it up at bookstores because the cover never appealed to me, but I so wish I had given this book a chance earlier. I love the concepts of the book, I love the world building and the depth of the characters, and I love how it goes deep into understanding the theological background of the world and psychology of the characters. Though I found some parts of the book predictable, I still found myself fully immersed in the story-telling from the strong female protagonist's viewpoint (even if she did frustrate me also at some points). 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Eating disorder, Genocide, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Blood, Classism, Racism, Gore, Kidnapping, War, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Self harm, Torture, Child abuse, Cursing, Sexual violence, Colonisation, Violence, Vomit, Physical abuse, Rape, Slavery, and Abandonment

kat1105's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Medical content, Addiction, Alcohol, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Racial slurs, Racism, Excrement, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Xenophobia, Domestic abuse, Ableism, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Vomit, War, Blood, Bullying, Slavery, Suicide, Child death, Classism, Colonisation, Confinement, Suicide attempt, Torture, Trafficking, Violence, Gaslighting, Hate crime, Pedophilia, Panic attacks/disorders, Police brutality, Sexism, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Ableism and Animal cruelty

Minor: Pregnancy