bellaw15 's review for:

The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

4.25

adventurous dark emotional 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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I really really enjoyed this book. The parallels between Nikan/Mugen and real life history of the Opium and Sino-Japanese wars were so interesting. Although the violence is pretty graphic, it was so well done and powerful, especially as the story is partially inspired by real-life events. I also loved the morally grey characters and Rin’s overall arc. 

Although this book didn’t quite make it to 5⭐️, I don’t have any criticisms or things I didn’t like about it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Genocide, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, War

Moderate: Addiction, Colonisation