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

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

4.0

I have complicated feelings about this book.

As many others have written, the first half of the book does feel very Patrick Rothfuss/Tamora Pierce/Rebecca Yarros YA magic academy.

I knew there had been warnings about graphic violence but had tried not to dig too much to avoid spoilers. Holy fuck. I was wholly unprepared for
Golyn Niis
. Up until that point I'd suspected parallels between Kuang's world and our own (maybe a little ignorantly since it was blatantly obvious to others with a better grasp of Chinese history/culture), but with
Golyn Niis
the violence was so documented and detailed I realized that it must have been based on real events. I was horrified to learn that they weren't an amalgam of various atrocities through history à la Margaret Atwood but all based on one event. 

I feel really conflicted about the book because I kind of resent having unwittingly uploaded those images and horrors to my own brain (a definite case of check the trigger warnings, you absolute dummy), but am also impressed with the way the author used the shock and horror of it to effectively drive curiosity and education. Gotta say I know way more about how WW2 played out in China, and Japanese war crimes than I did before picking up this book. Touché.

I don't necessarily love the characters or the story, but I admire the way the author is taking history, packaging it up and shoving my face into it.
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