The Poppy War

A Novel

by R.F. Kuang (duplicate)

Paperback, 544 pages

Published April 23, 2019 by Harper Voyager.

ISBN:: 978-0-06-266258-3

A brilliantly imaginative talent makes her exciting debut with this epic historical military fantasy, inspired by the bloody history of China’s twentieth century and filled with treachery and magic, in the tradition of Ken Liu’s Grace of Kings and N.K. Jemisin’s Inheritance Trilogy.

When Rin aced the Keju—the Empire-wide test to find the most talented youth to learn at the Academies—it was a shock to everyone: to the test officials, who couldn’t believe a war orphan from Rooster Province could pass without cheating; to Rin’s guardians, who believed they’d finally be able to marry her off and further their criminal enterprise; and to Rin herself, who realized she was finally free of the servitude and despair that had made up her daily existence. That she got into Sinegard—the most elite military school in Nikan—was even more surprising.

But surprises aren’t always good.

Because being a dark-skinned peasant …

But surprises aren’t always good.

Because being a dark-skinned peasant girl from the south is not an easy thing at Sinegard. Targeted from the outset by rival classmates for her color, poverty, and gender, Rin discovers she possesses a lethal, unearthly power—an aptitude for the nearly-mythical art of shamanism. Exploring the depths of her gift with the help of a seemingly insane teacher and psychoactive substances, Rin learns that gods long thought dead are very much alive—and that mastering control over those powers could mean more than just surviving school.

For while the Nikara Empire is at peace, the Federation of Mugen still lurks across a narrow sea. The militarily advanced Federation occupied Nikan for decades after the First Poppy War, and only barely lost the continent in the Second. And while most of the people are complacent to go about their lives, a few are aware that a Third Poppy War is just a spark away . . .

Rin’s shamanic powers may be the only way to save her people. But as she finds out more about the god that has chosen her, the vengeful Phoenix, she fears that winning the war may cost her humanity . . . and that it may already be too late.

8 editions

Taylor Drew reviewed The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang (duplicate) (The Poppy War, #1)

Frustrating and ever so nauseating

4 stars

This book is hard. Don't read it if you want some fun fantasy because it's very much so not that. I knew that going in because I read Wikipedia article (and I read Babel lol), but I still didn't expect it to be this heavy immediately.

The fact that the events in the book are based on things that actually happened is disheartening. Not because of the book, but because it's horrifying that people could commit such atrocities--n fact, they still do and it's never less horrifying.

Rin is a fool of a girl and the world is cruel. I'm frusrated and upset. I'm marveling at the nuance R.F. Kuang manages to convey. It's complicated.

Read up on Nanjing, read up on Unit 731. I don't think you can properly see this novel for what it is if you don't.

Rin is a fool of a girl and the world is cruel. I'm frusrated and upset. I'm marveling at the nuance R.F. Kuang manages to convey. It's complicated.

Read up on Nanjing, read up on Unit 731. I don't think you can properly see this novel for what it is if you don't.

Char reviewed The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang (duplicate) (The Poppy War, #1)

Review of 'The Poppy War' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

It was an excellent book, dark and riveting.

ctaymor reviewed The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang (duplicate) (The Poppy War, #1)

Review of 'The Poppy War' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Very powerful, and very dark. I did really like this book, and I think it’s an important book to read. However, I wasn’t quite prepared for how dark it got, and I’m not sure it was the right timing to read it in my life.
It’s a fantasy novel based on the Sino-Japanese War, including the Rape of Nanking. It’s history I didn’t really learn in school, and a fantasy novel is a powerful way to explore that history. But it also gave me nightmares and I don’t think, had I known, that I would have read it on vacation at 8 months pregnant.