Reviews with content warning for Body horror - Wojna makowa

Reviews tagging 'Body horror'

Wojna makowa by R.F. Kuang

732 reviews

anxiousshorebird's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

This book was difficult. I found myself rolling my eyes and struggling to continue through the first half. At one point I resigned myself to readinf purely out of curiosity, rather than enjoyment. Normally I would DNF a book loke that, but I've seen trusted reviewers praise this book and I was curious about the mysteries slowly being uncovered. Then about half way through I couldn't stop reading.

This book suffered from mismatched tone and some bad pacing. It felt like a YA magic school novel (complete with a Draco Malfoy type character) for way too long. Then by the end it was a grim dark, violent, war torn character study. It felt like an abrupt shift. Looking back, I see some merit to experiencing the MC's journey from determined teenager to hardened soldier along with her. While reading it, however, I found myself wishing her origins were told through intermittent flashbacks.

I really enjoy the world that Juang created. I love that she hasn't shied away from a DEEPLY flawed main character. Frankly, I don't even like this MC. But o sure loved reading her story once I got passed the slog of her schooling.

All in all, it's far from a 5 star read for me, but it's a very commendable debut novel. I won't hesitate to read the rest of the trilogy. I plan to read a light romance before the next Poppy War book though, because this shit got DARK.

Speaking of, please check the content warnings. Since the beginning is so much more tame than the rest, it's worth the risk of spoiling yourself a bit to make sure you know what you're getting into. I recommend skipping chapter 21 if you're someone who can take a lot, but have a limit.

Content Warnings

mollyjoy__'s review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-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

4.5

Content Warnings

nestasbff's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark 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

2.75

2.75 ⭐️ |
i <u>really</u> wanted to love this like everyone else, and give it 5 stars, yet i’m just unable to.

it stared out extremely promising and i actually really liked the first 100-ish pages, but after she left the Academy it just completely lost me.
the last 150 pages were interesting <i>enough</i> that i didn’t feel like i was going to either fall asleep or DNF (also because of the way too long 30-50 page chapters), however, that’s when i really started to get irritated with Rin (the MC) and started not liking her.

my favorite character (or more like the only character i actually liked in the end) was Kitay.

on top of that, i also feel like i didn’t really fully understand the gods and the magic system. it was kind of confusing to me ngl.

the ending… well. iykyk.

overall, i don’t know how to feel, but i do want to continue with the series, as everyone seems to love it and cry by the end (and because i, as usual, bought all the books before reading the first one).

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samanthamohun's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

oh my god. wow. i support women’s rights and especially women’s wrongs. like yeah, obviously revenge is never the answer, but why not follow Rin down to the pits of hell. as a treat.

Content Warnings

thehannahclaire's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional 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

4.75

Please read about the Nanjing Massacre/ the Rape of Nanjing before reading this book. I’m so glad this book introduced me to a portion of history I was not taught, even though it is gruesome. Nevertheless, this book has one chapter that included the most horrific scenes I’ve ever read or heard of. It’s not just about checking trigger warnings because this book isn’t just triggering— it’s traumatic.

Content Warnings