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A review by bites_of_books
The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
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? It's complicated
5.0
R.F. Kuang wrote a book that ticked all the things I've always wanted in a fantasy story. This is not for the faint of heart, if you don't like violence and blood, don't read this.
We start in a small town with Rin, a young war orphan who is about to be married off to a rich merchant, a future of stability but compliance to the world around her. Instead she decides to study for a very difficult exam to try and get into the top military academy and form her own destiny. Again, this is not a "oh the wonders of academia" story, not at all! Rin's worldview is very limited, as an orphan she doesn't quite have family history to know about, she doesn't have the social status that the other students have, the money, or the influence. She's an outsider trying to fit in but she also has the drive and mindset that she will get ahead and survive.
So far it just seems like a classic hero story but this world has a history of war caused by complex political machinations and fueled by the push of opium on the population. Based on Chinese history and the Sino-Japanese war, everything gets complicated for Rin very quickly. She is faced with the realities of class disparities, she needs to choose where she wants to fit into this society, or, if she'll completely break out of it and choose something completely different. In comes the magic aspect.
The magic aspect in this book is based on shamanism, the use of drugs to reach the realm of the gods and use their power. It's not as easy as them granting magical abilities, their power comes at a very high cost and it's also very difficult to control. Society has been taught to not believe that magic exists but at the same time the leaders use this magic to their own advantage, and not always with the best intentions. So, where will Rin go with all of this? Will she choose the path of least resistance to fit into this society? Or, will she make her own path? What will be the consequences of all these choices? For herself, and those around her.
Yes, this is a very complex story and I loved it for that. It mirrored our own society, how the education system is flawed and skewed so that only people with access and privilege can thrive in it; how politicians can just make decisions based on pride and wanting power, not on seeking the good of those they represent; how drug use is demonized and those that fall or are driven into addiction are seen as less than and not helped; how trauma can drive history to repeat itself over and over.
If any of that sounded interesting and you can take the very very violent acts in this book then do pick this up. Even if you don't dive deeper into the meaning of the story, the story is one that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
We start in a small town with Rin, a young war orphan who is about to be married off to a rich merchant, a future of stability but compliance to the world around her. Instead she decides to study for a very difficult exam to try and get into the top military academy and form her own destiny. Again, this is not a "oh the wonders of academia" story, not at all! Rin's worldview is very limited, as an orphan she doesn't quite have family history to know about, she doesn't have the social status that the other students have, the money, or the influence. She's an outsider trying to fit in but she also has the drive and mindset that she will get ahead and survive.
So far it just seems like a classic hero story but this world has a history of war caused by complex political machinations and fueled by the push of opium on the population. Based on Chinese history and the Sino-Japanese war, everything gets complicated for Rin very quickly. She is faced with the realities of class disparities, she needs to choose where she wants to fit into this society, or, if she'll completely break out of it and choose something completely different. In comes the magic aspect.
The magic aspect in this book is based on shamanism, the use of drugs to reach the realm of the gods and use their power. It's not as easy as them granting magical abilities, their power comes at a very high cost and it's also very difficult to control. Society has been taught to not believe that magic exists but at the same time the leaders use this magic to their own advantage, and not always with the best intentions. So, where will Rin go with all of this? Will she choose the path of least resistance to fit into this society? Or, will she make her own path? What will be the consequences of all these choices? For herself, and those around her.
Yes, this is a very complex story and I loved it for that. It mirrored our own society, how the education system is flawed and skewed so that only people with access and privilege can thrive in it; how politicians can just make decisions based on pride and wanting power, not on seeking the good of those they represent; how drug use is demonized and those that fall or are driven into addiction are seen as less than and not helped; how trauma can drive history to repeat itself over and over.
If any of that sounded interesting and you can take the very very violent acts in this book then do pick this up. Even if you don't dive deeper into the meaning of the story, the story is one that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Infertility, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism