A review by empathephant
The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

This book was one of the darkest I've ever read, and probably the darkest one that could be classified as fantasy. The book is based on a lot of historical research about

WWII era atrocities in the Pacific theater

, which was a part of history that directly impacted my grandmother and all of her immediate family members growing up. It is difficult to process the violence described in this book. However, I do not think this book glorifies violence. It spells out plainly the horror of war. I will be thinking about this book for a long time yet.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Genocide, Hate crime, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and War

Moderate: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, Gore, Infertility, Rape, Self harm, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal death, Cursing, Miscarriage, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Excrement, Vomit, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

May be particularly difficult if you have family history related to the WWII era

brutality that was inflicted in Asia by Japanese forces

.