Scan barcode
A review by syddey_syd
The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Absolutely brutal.
Fair warning: if graphic depictions of war and genocide are too much for you, then this might not be the best book to pick up.
This book starts innocuously enough. A poor orphan studies her way into the nation’s elite military academy, and prejudice and drama ensues. All fairly predictable.
But then the war starts and holy moly, it takes a wild turn.
We see Rin, our main character, face the realities and brutalities of war and what it does to relationships and ourselves. Kuang doesn’t hold back on her descriptions, which made this book quite difficult to read, at times. Rin’s choices throughout the book until the end become increasingly difficult to witness, but also understandable (to a certain degree—the ending is… dark, to put it lightly).
I’m interested to see where Kuang takes this series and where she takes Rin. I truly have no clue. She set the bar high in this first book.
Just please be careful while reading! I think the graphic descriptions serve a wider purpose of remembering and documenting the atrocities of genocide and war, but it’s not for the faint of heart.
Fair warning: if graphic depictions of war and genocide are too much for you, then this might not be the best book to pick up.
This book starts innocuously enough. A poor orphan studies her way into the nation’s elite military academy, and prejudice and drama ensues. All fairly predictable.
But then the war starts and holy moly, it takes a wild turn.
We see Rin, our main character, face the realities and brutalities of war and what it does to relationships and ourselves. Kuang doesn’t hold back on her descriptions, which made this book quite difficult to read, at times. Rin’s choices throughout the book until the end become increasingly difficult to witness, but also understandable (to a certain degree—the ending is… dark, to put it lightly).
I’m interested to see where Kuang takes this series and where she takes Rin. I truly have no clue. She set the bar high in this first book.
Just please be careful while reading! I think the graphic descriptions serve a wider purpose of remembering and documenting the atrocities of genocide and war, but it’s not for the faint of heart.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, War, Genocide, Violence, Sexual violence, Rape, Child death, and Animal death
Moderate: Drug use