Review by angievansprang - The Poppy War

angievansprang 's review for:

The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

4.5

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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

I love love LOVED this read! Kuang illustrates a brutal, unforgiving world with powers at play not so far from our own reality. I really enjoyed the fantastical elements within this story and how it shaped our characters into who they are. While this is very much a fantasy book, there is so much attention to detail on the technical aspects of war and conflict that I really appreciated. The tact portions of this story reminded me a lot of The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson, though Poppy Wars leans much harder into magic and shamanism. I’m excited to continue with this series and see where Rin takes us next. Be warned though, you will be made to love characters just to lose them.

Content Warnings