Reviews tagging 'Animal death'

The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kuang

166 reviews

adventurous challenging emotional reflective tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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dark emotional sad tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

very gritty. the descriptions of battles etc. are very straight to the point, like there’s no sugar coating to make things seem less horrific. we see how the characters become desensitised to atrocities. they’re not invincible. they’re scared and angry and desperate and tormented. nothing about war is romanticised, which is a refreshing change from a lot of the other books about war i’ve read. it makes you think, “if i were in that situation, i’d never do something like that,” at first. then it makes you question your own principles, just as the characters do. it’s war. it’s horrifying and traumatising, people are unsympathetic and selfish, which is understandable because they’re terrified for their own lives, so to have to worry about thousands of others in the same situation would destroy their minds completely. i could go on about this book aaaaaaaaa the characters are so complex and interesting also i cried a lot reading this.

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dark tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

My heart is broken. 

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adventurous challenging dark tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This book was soo good (although very painful)! I found it even better than the first book in the trilogy and I'm sooo looking forward to reading the third one! 
The characters are written so authentically, you really think that they are real people. They are flawed, make bad decisions (and are sometimes infuriatingly annoying) but are so inherently human that you can only feel with and root for them. I found Rin's character arc specifically satisfying/fascinating. 
The political intrigues were substantially brought onto the next level in this book and made it so much more engaging and addictive. I especially liked the extremely intricate relationships between the characters. Nothing is simple, nothing is what it seems which is quite realistic and makes you all the more interested. 
Kuang manages to give a perfect balance between emotional, character focused sections and action-packed, epic scenes. You get a deep insight into the protagonists and thus a profound character analysis, but without a lack of suspense and action. 
If you love (dark) high-fantasy, you will adore this trilogy! 

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adventurous dark emotional 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

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dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I love Rin's continued growth as a character. She struggles with addiction, how to be a leader, and with just being herself. It took forever but she finally realizes how much she idealized Altan and how she doesn't have to be him. I don't think the love triangle needed to last as long as it did and I don't like the fact that none of the relationships are good and healthy. There's a lot of twists especially as you get to the end of the book some of which land and others that you can see from a mile away. The first book feels more memorable to me but this is still a great read.

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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adventurous dark reflective tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Goddamnit.

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adventurous challenging dark emotional 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

I gave the Poppy War 4.5 stars purely to allow the rest of the series somewhere to go, and I would have done the same for this but I couldn't think of a single reason to knock off any stars. Despite the terrible things these characters have done this book brings you ever closer to Rin and her compatriots, falling deeply deeply love with each of them. It has been a long time since a book made me care so much about its characters, and even longer since a book has made have a visceral response to its plot twist. My new favourite book series and fantasy author by far.

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