A review by wondereads13
The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

adventurous dark tense fast-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

5.0

This is absolutely one of my favorite books ever. The plot is so intense; the book is split into two parts, and the climax of the first part is good enough to be considered the end of the book in some other stories I've read. The characters are all amazing and three-dimensional. Everyone gets development, and everyone has their own motivations and values they follow. The writing style is amazing in describing the scenery, the characters, the action, and caused a visceral reaction in me when describing the effects of war. It's very obviously based on Chinese history; just enough connections are there for the reader to make assumptions while it still being its own world. There's content on racism, privilege, sexism, drug addiction, and rape that are all addressed very well and realistically. It's absolutely amazing, but please check the trigger warnings!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Addiction, Animal death, Blood, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Genocide, Gore, Medical trauma, Murder, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, and Colonisation

Moderate: Alcohol, Bullying, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Infertility, Misogyny, Sexism, and Toxic relationship

There is a scene that is explicitly based on the Rape of Nanking. I, who is luckily trauma-free, had a visceral reaction to it. As in I thought I was going to throw up. PLEASE heed the trigger warnings.