The Poppy War

A Novel

By: R. F. Kuang

Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller

Length: 19 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

A brilliantly imaginative talent makes her exciting debut with this epic historical military fantasy, inspired by the bloody history of China’s 20th century and filled with treachery and magic, in the tradition of Ken Liu’s Grace of Kings and N. K. Jemisin’s Inheritance Trilogy.

When Rin aced the Keju - the Empire-wide test to find the most talented youth to learn at the Academies - it was a shock to everyone: to the test officials, who couldn’t believe a war orphan from Rooster Province could pass without cheating; to Rin’s guardians, who believed they’d finally be able to marry her off and further their criminal enterprise; and to Rin herself, who realized she was finally free of the servitude and despair that had made up her daily existence. That she got into Sinegard - the most elite military school in Nikan - was even more surprising.

But surprises aren’t always good.

Because being a dark-skinned peasant girl from the South is not an easy thing at Sinegard. Targeted from the outset by rival classmates for her color, poverty, and gender, Rin discovers she possesses a lethal, unearthly power - an aptitude for the nearly-mythical art of shamanism. Exploring the depths of her gift with the help of a seemingly insane teacher and psychoactive substances, Rin learns that gods long thought dead are very much alive - and that mastering control over those powers could mean more than just surviving school.

For while the Nikara Empire is at peace, the Federation of Mugen still lurks across a narrow sea. The militarily advanced Federation occupied Nikan for decades after the First Poppy War, and only barely lost the continent in the Second. And while most of the people are complacent to go about their lives, a few are aware that a Third Poppy War is just a spark away....

Rin’s shamanic powers may be the only way to save her people. But as she finds out more about the god that has chosen her, the vengeful Phoenix, she fears that winning the war may cost her humanity...and that it may already be too late.

R.F. Kuang studies modern Chinese history. She has a BA from Georgetown University and is currently a graduate student in the United Kingdom on a Marshall Scholarship. The Poppy War is her debut novel.

©2018 Rebecca Kuang (P)2018 HarperCollins Publishers

Opium, War Crimes & Magic!

The Poppy War by R.F Kuang is a book with many faces.

We begin our journey with Rin, a war orphan fostered by a pair of illegal opium traders. The first third of the book deals with her journey to the capital city where she attempts to gain entrance into a military academy and trains there. This part, while never light, feels a lot like Ender's Game or Red Rising. Rin struggles to make friends, learn strategy, and outwit the bullies who are upset that a peasant has risen so high. It's brutal, but fun.

The fun stops around act two.

It happened gradually enough that I didn't realize how dark the book was until we reached the end of it. Dark revelation after dark revelation unfolds, not just about the world around the characters, but about their internal lives and vices. It doesn't surprise me that this book was written by someone who studies "collective trauma". By the time I'd reached the last page, I felt if I understood the emotional cost of war in a way I hadn't before.

This is an author with something to say about war, power, and addiction, and she says it so beautifully. As much as I love books like Red Rising or even Ender's Game, I feel since they aren't as strongly rooted in one countries history they lack the intimacy and raw rage I found in the Poppy War. Despite being a book about a whole country, every sentence, every plot moment felt personal. It helps that the prose is excellent. I can't wait to read the next book.

Side note: I also really enjoyed the magic system, which is based around the use of drugs. I found the role Opium played in the world fascinating. Some of the most heart-breaking moments of the book dealt with addiction.

Performance notes:

I really loved the performer of the audiobook. She did a great job, with the exception a the fighting masters voice which really did sound like someone strangling Kermit the frog. Otherwise, though she killed it!

Good but parts are rushed

The first part before a lot of things go down is kind of a hard listen/read. Parts are rushed and places/characters feel under developed. The best way to put it is that its 2 dimensional, but later we get to see a more expressive text from the writer, there's side yet to be seen by the characters and the conflicts they face. it was a total 180 from the first part. The writer was only 21 (same age I am) when she wrote this, so it's impressive none the lease that she was able to tell these characters stories in the way she did especially in part 2 of the book.

Oh boy!

I'm not sure where to begin but this book is all over the place. The protagonist oscillates between so many different point of views and moods that you counter if she has a mental / emotional handicap. On the one hand I want to applaude the originality of the Character but on the other hand I can't understand why a female protagonist should be defined by the men in her life.
There is a great epic story in this book but it is surrounded by alot of noise. Maybe a better editor would have been able to polish the story to a relative sheen.

Fantastic

Excellent and compelling story as read by a truly talented narrator. Highly recommended for those who like multiple genres.

Promising.....and disappointing

This book was so promising. The main character starts off strong, willful, smart and determined. And then....she regresses. I’m so disappointed with the latter parts of the story. The author built a pretty good character and then dismantled her all in one book.

Great, but...

Amazing narrator.

I think atleast the most graphic chapters set during the war should have triggerwarnings.

Powerful story

This is a powerful story with multiple messages. Coming of age, being a woman in a mans world, doing as society dictates and the price of winning. It questions the worth of our actions and the power of knowledge. This book is at times hard to listen to and yet you’ll find you are unable to stop listening. It pulls you in so quickly that you fall in love with its characters only to be heartbroken in the end. Regardless of that knowledge I know I will be listening to this book again. Amazing author and narrator combination, I hope to listen to more from these two soon!

Thrilling. Powerful message

I think what I liked the most about this book is that the main character is so different from those in other books I have read. She is so strong. She is absolutely terrified, yet she fights for what she wants (or rather against what she doesn’t want) she had been treated horribly her entire life by her foster parents. She was their slave, a tool for them to use. She wasn’t about to let them marry her off to an old merchant and live her life as an obedient wife and mother. She created her own destiny. She went against the system and refused the place in it she had been tossed. She is smart, stubborn and resilient. She destroys her womb to get rid of her period which is preventing her from her studies.
Rinn is such a strong character with a powerful message near the end of the book: that all that she had fought against, everything she had achieved, it wasn’t because of some divine intervention, it was never her “destiny” to fight and overcome. She made her choices, her own “destiny”.
Everyone of us make our own choices in life, we can choose to run away and hide, to just accept our situation in life and the place we’ve been given.
Or we can stay and fight for what we want, for what makes us happy. It is as simple as that.

Rage rage against the dying of the light...

WOW

This book properly destroyed my soul. Where is book two when you need it? Highly recommend!

Absolutely Incredible! A Must Read!

The performance only helped the story to rocket this book up into my top 10. I can't wait to read/listen to the rest of the series. a must read