libbyhb 's review for:

The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

3.0

adventurous dark mysterious sad 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

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This book was a RIDE. I loved the first half in Sinegard, but struggled to stay engaged for the rest of it. That's not necessarily a fault of the book, I might just not be into reading about war! Some of the plot was just too confusing, or I didn't feel like the actions of the characters were justified by their characterization up to that point. I also didn't feel like I knew any of the characters besides Rin that well - but they all had foundations of characters that were really interesting. At the end of the day though, I am so impressed by how well R.F. Kuang translated/wove in real life Chinese history into this story, especially for someone who was literally still in college when she wrote this. Actually, this might be the first time I've read something by an author who is currently younger than me! In that sense, I'm excited to see what else she writes in what I imagine will be a long, successful career. The Poppy War was fascinating and dark, but maybe just not my cup of tea.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Infertility, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Excrement, Grief

Moderate: Blood, Vomit