The Poppy War follows war orphan Fang Runin, who is known as Rin by her friends, as she studies for the most difficult exam in the Nikara Empire: The Keju, which qualifies students for the top academies in the nation. When she is accepted, there is widespread shock and disbelief as a person of her situation has never qualified before. As Rin prepares for Sinegard, the most elite military academy, the euphoria wears off quickly. Her new classmates target her for being from the poorest districts in the nation, and Rin’s sarcastic attitude doesn’t quite allow her teachers to view her with favor either. But when Nikara’s peace is disrupted, and the nation is at war, Rin’s shamanic powers reveal themselves, causing her to be claimed by The Phoenix, a vengeful and powerful god. As Rin spirals deeper and deeper into the Nikara politics and her deadly powers, she fears that she won’t be able to hold onto her humanity for longer.
INSANE. This is the only word that I can use to describe this book. The deep politics, descriptions, and relationships that The Poppy War demonstrates is INSANE. I don’t even think the real world is this detailed. I guess R.F. Kuang is slowly becoming one of my favorite authors, especially after her novel Yellowface. My favorite part of this book was definitely Kuang’s description of Rin slowly losing her humanity as the novel progresses. This was definitely one of the darker books I have read, but it was based off of the Nanking Massacre, so it obviously makes sense as to why. However, the whole book isn’t just tragedy and sadness, as Kuang enlists small bits of humor and admirable relationships between Rin and her other classmates. I am definitely going to be looking into reading the second book of the trilogy (The Dragon Republic, if I’m not mistaken) and I will most definitely be writing a review on that as well.