The Poppy War By: R.F. Kuang

“I have become something wonderful, she thought. I have become something terrible. Was she now a goddess or a monster? Perhaps neither. Perhaps both.”

R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

*This book contains intense violence and sexual abuse

I don’t think I have ever read an historical military fantasy book before but hearing all of the praise for The Poppy War I was willing to give it a shot.

Also, I’m a sucker for stories that take place in an educational setting. I don’t know what it is, but if I read that book jacket and it says that it’s about a person honing their skills at an academy, I’m in.

Overview: Desperate for a better life, Rin is determined to take and excel at the Keju, a test to determine who is admitted into the prestigious academies in the empire. After surprising everyone, Rin ranks highest in the Rooster Province and is admitted into Sinegard—the most elite military school.

However, admittance to the school isn’t enough for a poor orphan training among the wealthiest families in the empire to be accepted. Facing adversity and discrimination, Rin trains harder and unleashes a power within her discovering herself to be a shaman.

When war breaks out in the empire, Rin and the rest of her classmates must become soldiers and deal with the very real aspects of war. Willing to do anything to save the empire, Rin must use her shaman powers to make a deal with the gods. However, the gods have their own agenda and utilizing their power might cost Rin more than she knows.

My thoughts: Knowing that this is the first in a series, I expected the book to be very heavy on Rin’s training and all of her experiences at the academy. The story transitions into war abruptly and pushes the change on the reader just as the characters have this intense change pushed upon them. The school setting, while scary and ultra-competitive for Rin, is very childish compared to the harsh realities of war.

Kuang raises the stakes so well once the war begins that I felt unprepared for the intense violence that is depicted in the second half of the book. This rapid change gives the reader a better understanding on how Rin is feeling throughout the book because she believed that Sinegard would be her way to a better life and that may still be so but she realizes that this idealistic life she imaged, isn’t something she will ever achieve.

This book covers so many sub categories of literature that I found myself thinking about the similarities between The Poppy War and many other titles that I had read. While, Rin attends the academy I thought of The Name of the Wind and when Rin and Nezha fought the chimei it reminded me of Blood of Elves. If a reader enjoys these titles, they will defiantly enjoy The Poppy Wars.

But, don’t get me wrong there is so much more to this book than war and monsters. I loved the interpersonal relationships that were created between Rin and her classmates. Even though, most of her classmates had little interaction with her or flat out hated her, with everything they have seen they realize that they are all just scared kids who need each other.

I did appreciate the character arc that was given to Nezha. He was a horrible person that tormented Rin but admitted his faults and completely turned around. Even though he had this turn around, I would be very disappointed if somehow he comes back and becomes a love interest of Rin. It is way too often that women fall for the guy who ruined them early in the story and I think this would take away a lot of Rin’s agency when it comes to who she is as a person.

Overall, I think this was a great book and it is so impressive that it is R.F. Kuang’s first novel. I look forward to reading the rest of the series and seeing more from the author in the future.

Rating: 5/5 stars