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

adventurous dark emotional informative tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

my new favourite fantasy series. masterfully written and i am in awe that someone has written it. r.f. kuang writes rin as one of the most HUMAN characters i've read. she is brave and strong and intelligent and resilient and steadfast in her beliefs, but she's also vengeful, angry, disturbed by the atrocities she sees, scared, guilty and shameful. can't say i liked her at the end, but i also can't hate her. we are so entrenched in rin and her beliefs that not even slighlty understanding her rage and need for vengeance is impossible. this book was written by a deity among people. the shamanism is such an interesting process. there is no good governing body in the book and it just perfectly shows that everything isn't black and white. also, many parts of this book, if not all of it, reflect the current geopolitical climate. the utter frustration, guilt and helplessness is so familiar. i am so exicted to read the dragon republic
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