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bisexualwentworth's review against another edition
- 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
R. F. Kuang's knowledge of colonial history is on full display here, as are her thoughts about colonialism, and those commentaries are a strong and often heartbreaking part of The Burning God.
I will say, however, that I wish that the world had felt larger. It's small in book one because Rin's knowledge of the world is small. It expands in book two. It fails to expand again here. I think there could have been more of a sense of the wider world (or just a sense that more than three countries had ever existed in it, honestly) without cheapening the ending. In fact, I think that the inevitable and heartbreaking ending would have felt even MORE inevitable and even MORE heartbreaking had there been other countries out there somewhere that simply would not or could not get involved in the Nikaran/Hesperian conflict.
Everything is so desperate here, and it somehow keeps getting more so. The problem is that after Golyn Niis and the end of The Poppy War, and after the utter, unending misery of so much of The Dragon Republic, neither the tone nor the content have the capacity to get much darker, and so they kind of don't.
Rin and Kitay's relationship continues to be my favorite thing, and the thing that fascinates me most. Kitay is a character who gives me so much hope, and Rin is a character who gives me so little, and I love how Kuang plays with that dynamic, especially given the nature of their relationship by this point.
Rin and Nezha are of course compelling as well, and in many ways their conflict and their complex feelings about each other form the centerpoint of the entire series. We certainly get the most of Nezha's perspective here, but I still find their dynamic in The Dragon Republic the most compelling out of the three installments.
I think that the character work and the writing are very strong here, and I'm rating it extremely highly because it did what it set out to do and affected me deeply, but there were just a few things that did not totally work for me, and the experience of reading it was more exhausting than anything else.
Graphic: Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Drug abuse, Xenophobia, Suicide, Death, War, Gore, Drug use, Torture, Rape, Addiction, Body horror, Violence, Murder, Genocide, Child death, Religious bigotry, Cannibalism, Self harm, Colonisation, and Racism
rnbhargava's review against another edition
- 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
The Dragon Republic was a minor misstep but overall I would give the series a 4-4.5. I actually believe I’ll revisit this book series in the future. R.F. Kuang has a space in my heart as an author to watch. Good thing I already got Babel and Yellowface already for whenever I choose to read them.
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Rape, Racial slurs, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Slavery, Confinement, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Death of parent, Hate crime, Murder, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, Torture, Toxic friendship, Trafficking, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Cannibalism, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Pandemic/Epidemic, Panic attacks/disorders, Police brutality, Racism, War, Ableism, Abandonment, Addiction, Child death, Classism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Stalking, Terminal illness, and Violence
Yes, there are all the triggers. In particular, there’s mob violence because the country is going through famine, illnesses, devastated towns and cities ruined by war and further problems that come about because of governmental instability. It’s all very graphic. This is late stage war. There’s even poisoning of water sources among other things. Basically every issue you can think of with war toward the end of it is here. Brace yourself or read something else.kayfab's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: War, Torture, Misogyny, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Colonisation, Body horror, and Classism
stephlikestoread's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child death, Colonisation, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Vomit, War, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Slavery, and Suicidal thoughts
ddnreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Me in 2023: oke let's see who knows the ending would be different. I'm reading the different language so yeah
Me finishing the book: 🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡why would I even bother to re-read for real
Graphic: Drug abuse, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Addiction, Child death, Drug use, Genocide, Medical content, Physical abuse, Cannibalism, Cursing, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Torture, War, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Blood, Body horror, Colonisation, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Toxic friendship, Violence, Vomit, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Rape
tinyjude's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
It was all there, laid out between them. All their shared fury, vindictiveness, bloodlust, and guilt. Her cruelty. His complicitly. Her desperation. His regret.
One of the most brutal fantasy trilogies I have ever read. I am rendered speechless, trying to absorb everything that happened, and feeling ultimately devoid of emotions and at the same time, overwhelmed because it has been such a haunting, horrifying and memorable journey. I knew that ending was coming for a long time, yet no amount of mental preparation saved my heart from sinking in those final pages at the complicated bond all these characters shared. So many bold decisions and unphantomable turns later, I have (been) finished (by) this trilogy, yet I regret none. The incredible historical and social commentary, the parallelism to real history mixed with such a complex and compelling fictional world-building and unforgettable characters, the writing style, the harshness and pain that flooded these pages as more and more lives were lost in so many different ways...
I wish I could forget about it just so I could experience it all over again.
Rin has become one of my favourite irredeemable main characters of all times and I know I will miss her dearly from now on.
Graphic: Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Blood, Colonisation, Murder, Racism, Violence, Child abuse, Classism, Death, Body horror, Medical trauma, Racial slurs, War, Xenophobia, Grief, Rape, Child death, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Drug abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Infertility, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Addiction, Alcohol, Medical content, Misogyny, Cannibalism, Gun violence, Hate crime, and Suicide
nkookie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Abandonment, Body horror, Colonisation, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Cannibalism, and Blood
heartsbyzak's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Gore, Grief, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, War, Animal cruelty, Child death, Drug use, Blood, Classism, Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Self harm, Torture, Animal death, Body horror, Cannibalism, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Racism
greatlibraryofalexandra's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
But man, were there times when I wanted to beat this book against a wall. Hoo BOY was it a mess to get to the ugly-beautiful ending that it gave us.
This series could have been five books - less rushed, more time for the tapestry to artfully unravel. This final book somehow crammed too much in, and obliterated storylines without ending them in any remotely satisfying way.
Almost all of the things I want to rail about are spoilers so -
Then there are about 50 pages when Rin is training a handful of shamans to be powerful and able to control themselves - a process that took an entire book and two years of a vague time jump in Book 1 to come to fruition.
I do also want to petulantly note that at the end, during a heavy, poignant moment that was written so well, Nezha looks down at Rin's lifeless body and thinks only "you bitch, you fucking bitch" and it ruins the scene entirely - crass, immature, and edge-lord unnecessary.
Venka was also done really dirty in this book -- after everything, for Kuang to have Rin turn on her, and then never confirm for the reader if she was a traitor or not (she wasn't, Rin was just a wildly paranoid train wreck at that point, you will not convince me otherwise) - its a disservice to a character who was already used and abused as a monolithic punching bag for male violence while Rin was able to remain "pure" from both sexual assault and sexual activity.
Things I fucking loved: that Rin's parentage, though strongly alluded to, is never confirmed or revisited as significant; it's frustrating, but also drives home that it's not the point - this book isn't about inheritance and destiny, it's about ruthlessly obliterating the legacy you've been handed regardless of what tradition would have you do. Also, the different kinds of love that threaded throughout the trilogy subtly without explicitly naming or confirmation were great - platonic, manipulative, romantic, familial, etc. Despite what I said above about Venka existing so Rin can remain "unsullied", I liked that Rin got to "come of age" without sex/sexual initiation being a part of it - it pushes back against the tired narrative that loss of virginity is a key step towards becoming an adult. This is a victory for all of us out there who were late bloomers, and who were bombarded with teen media that constantly informed us that having sex was the right of passage to the horizon of adulthood. Neither does Rin ever second guess or lament her decision to sterilize herself in her early teens - I'm so glad Kuang never subjected us to long musings on 'whether she'd done the right thing'.
A vast majority of this book was sluggish retread of what we've already been through - Rin shooting off at the mouth, acting grown up, and then being promptly spanked and sat right down in her place by literally anyone near her who takes half a second to think. While I am enamored Rin as a wildly flawed, prickly, and off-putting female lead, by the end of this book I was fascinated that she'd managed to have a coming of age story that routinely confirmed she was a dumber bitch than when we started (and I promise I am saying that affectionately).
The lore we delved into further in this book was GREAT, and I'd sink my teeth into more content detailing it. Though I do think the last 100 pages just devolved into Kuang's thesis on socio-political systems and the results of civil war, it raises good questions, refuses to give easy answers, and then culminates in a grotesque but realistic ending that nobody wants, but everyone has to accept is the reality. Don't read grimdark fiction if you don't want this.
I agree with all the critiques of this series and absolutely fucking love it anyway. This book, in particular, was like watching a hundred iterations of "Revenge of the Sith" unfold over and over again in a multiverse, none of them with a happy ending.
I'm glad I read this after Babel, and my thoughts on that are complicated...overall, I think Babel is a vastly more mature book in which Kuang tackles huge issues with the same (overly dense) academic surgical precision and articulates the gruesome realities better. The Poppy War series, though, has more hearty, more faith, and more flayed-open imperfection.
Adding it to my bookshelf among Red Rising, The Hunger Games, and The Stormlight Archives as a hallowed tome.
Graphic: Cannibalism, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Murder, Addiction, Body horror, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Animal cruelty, Blood, Classism, Colonisation, Confinement, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, and War
hailsatan's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Vomit, Alcohol, Medical content, Cannibalism, Cursing, Sexism, Ableism, Addiction, Antisemitism, Alcoholism, Body horror, Colonisation, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Violence, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Eating disorder, Fire/Fire injury, Racial slurs, Religious bigotry, War, Abandonment, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Classism, Sexual violence, Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Miscarriage, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Blood, Confinement, Death of parent, Dysphoria, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Bullying, Death, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Grief, Sexual content, and Torture