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fearlessreader 's review for:
The Poppy War
by R.F. Kuang
Premise: A girl named Rin - orphaned as a product of the Poppy Wars - living in a rural town is being forced to marry in order to increase the fortunes of the people who raised her. She takes matters into her own hands and after studying relentlessly she passes a historically difficult exam and earns a place in the most coveted, exclusive, and elite Sinegard Academy. She is immediately an outcast because of her poor upbringing and once again has to work harder than everyone else to prove herself. This novel - the first in a trilogy - follows Rin as an Academy student through her early life after the academy.
Overall Opinions: This book was up and down for me. I really enjoyed the beginning up through where she is proving herself at the academy. I love stories with a lead protagonist who has to battle diversity to beat the odds and rise victorious. Once she leaves the academy, however, I feel her character does a 180, and all the fight and determination I appreciated in the beginning gets lost. She then waffles between bold ferocity and exhausted misplacement. I can't solidify her and her motivations as a character. Also, there were times when the pacing was slow for my taste and it was harder to stay engaged.
Additional notes on Characters: I don't know whether it can be attributed to this being a debut novel, but I feel that what was an attempt at creating characters that are flawed and relatable actually came off as more confusing and off-putting. For me, the polarity of the characters being easily respectable one moment and glaringly disappointing the next was an elementary design to make them multi-dimensional, and it didn't really work for me.
While I was a bit disappointed that - for me - the book didn't live up to the hype, there were definitely parts that intrigued me and held my interest. As such, I'm not opposed to picking up the sequel when it comes out to see how the story moves forward.
Overall Opinions: This book was up and down for me. I really enjoyed the beginning up through where she is proving herself at the academy. I love stories with a lead protagonist who has to battle diversity to beat the odds and rise victorious. Once she leaves the academy, however, I feel her character does a 180, and all the fight and determination I appreciated in the beginning gets lost. She then waffles between bold ferocity and exhausted misplacement. I can't solidify her and her motivations as a character. Also, there were times when the pacing was slow for my taste and it was harder to stay engaged.
Additional notes on Characters: I don't know whether it can be attributed to this being a debut novel, but I feel that what was an attempt at creating characters that are flawed and relatable actually came off as more confusing and off-putting. For me, the polarity of the characters being easily respectable one moment and glaringly disappointing the next was an elementary design to make them multi-dimensional, and it didn't really work for me.
While I was a bit disappointed that - for me - the book didn't live up to the hype, there were definitely parts that intrigued me and held my interest. As such, I'm not opposed to picking up the sequel when it comes out to see how the story moves forward.