Reviews with content warning for Drug abuse - The Poppy War

LOOK UP A TRIGGER WARNING LIST PRIOR TO READING. if you think youre fine and dont need one, do it anyways. this book goes heavily into graphic descriptions of genocide, SA, war, death, child death, and abuse. take care of yourself.

that being said, i found that this book was very well written and the character development was both realistic and well done. the mc has drastically changed, while shes obviously the same person in several ways, she is also not the same person in many other ways. that might not make sense without reading the book. if you dont have the reading comprehension to understand that decisions made are supposed to be poor decisions, and that characters will not be all good or all bad and its an incredibly complex situation just dont read this.

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gigglesigh's review against another edition

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dark sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Absolutely devasting in the best way possible.

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jays_secret_garden's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

“How could she compare the lives lost? One genocide against another—how did they balance on the scale of justice? And who was she, to imagine that she could make that comparison? ‘What have I done?’”
—————————
•6/5⭐️

Nothing could have prepared me for the third part of this book. I foolishly thought that the second part was absolutely crazy, but the third? Devastating. This book completely changed my perspective on life. It was so beautifully written that I feel like people don’t write books like this anymore. The FMC, Rin, is one of the best characters I have read in my entire life. From the first line she had in the book, I knew. Her absolute rage and hate actually means the world to me because how dare they make women and children hurt this much?

The topic of war, genocide, r*pe, etc., is HEAVY. I didn’t really read the trigger warnings because I like to go into books blind, but please read them :). Nothing could have prepared my heart for the heartbreak it would experience while reading the Golyn Noriis part, and even more so after reading the author’s note and finding out everything was inspired by real-life experiences of Chinese people. It broke my heart to read Venka’s story—I was sobbing!!!

I cannot wait to continue with the series because every two pages, something insane and unpredictable happens, and I AM SO EXCITED FOR THE NEXT BOOK!

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mj_dor7's review against another edition

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adventurous 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? It's complicated

4.5

overall a good read!! definitely a lot different than yellow face. It’s my first time reading a book from an author with such a wide range

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ashlyncherie's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This was not my first time reading this book. I listened to the audiobook 18 months ago and couldn’t really get into it and never finish the series. I decided to give it a second chance actually reading it and I’m glad I did. This book is so well written, but I expect nothing less of Kuang. Some of the chapters truly nauseated me, and it sickens me to know that atrocities like what is written in this book occurred in real life. This book makes you think and reflect life, history, war, and more. It was truly an excellent and yet difficult to stomach read. I will be continuing on with the series this time! But I do need an emotional break first.

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funguyreads's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad 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

4.5

I really loved the last 3rd during the war. The world building is amazing. This book really captured the horror of war on an individual and country wide scale. The characters, especially how they change from the military academy to actual war, are fascinating.

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pinkystar_bobsky's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Never before has a book moved me like this. Never has a book left me distraught and at a loss for words. Never has a book moved me to tears. The Poppy War reached into my chest and ripped it straight out, cut it to pieces, feigned putting it back together only to crush it yet again. It took me four days to complete this and yet I do not regret the length. I needed to let this book simmer in sections, to digest it in chunks at a time, or else it would completely overwhelm me.

R.F. Kuang's writing is gripping from beginning to end. Her words brought every scene to life right before my eyes.

I was there, in Golyn Niis, walking beside Rin, taking in the devastation inflicted by the Federation. I saw the bodies, I smelled them. I felt all the grief, the anguish, the rage.

If there was a happy moment in this book, I do not remember it.

To read that a lot of the events that took place in Golyn Niis were grounded in reality put a pit in my stomach. Even as I was reading that scene, I got a sinking feeling that it was too real. Real people did this to other people.

But even then, it is still incomprehensible; the level of inhumanity, that people might be capable of such heartless deeds, of such cruelty. That's why my feelings on this book are so conflicting; I start giggling and screaming at how good this book is, at how incredible the author is, but I am always reminded of the reality of it all. It almost feels wrong to say that I enjoyed this book...but I did.

It felt good to cry, when Chaghan revealed the details of the obscenities that young Altan was forced to see, to endure.

It feels good to read such great art, to have a writer be able to pull out such human emotions from me.

Due to depression and adhd, for months I have had a difficult time reading books. I could not read more than 8 pages at a time before getting distracted, or simply losing the will to read on, even if it was a book I really looked forward to reading. I am so, so happy that I am in a better place now, I'm on medication, I'm exercising, taking better care of myself, literally touching grass. I'm so incredibly grateful that I was in the right state of mind to fully enjoy this story. And I'm glad I took my time with it and didn't rush to binge it on one day, no matter how gripping it was. I'm so incredibly lucky to have read this.

I am also entirely unprepared to read the next three books. I cannot imagine what more pain R.F. Kuang is about to inflict on me. I don't know if I'm ready but I'm starting The Dragon Republic straight away. Holy fucking shit man, I'm kinda terrified to continue this lol

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