The Dragon Republic (The Poppy War, 2)

Solid middle book. A lot of things happened and I feel like this is emphasized by the list of characters at the end of the book that the author included to keep things straight. This book didn't have as big of an impact relative to the first book just because a majority of the world building was already done and we are just fully immersed in plot. The plot was primarily just battle after battle which I didn't mind, it did feel repetitive after a while, but I guess real war is just like that. I feel like I was able to predict things more easily this book just cuz I'm more used to the world, but that doesn't make it a bad book, just sensible.

I will say seeing Westerners from an Eastern perspective and watching colonization happen in real time is so scary and makes me realize that this is probably how people felt in the past. The way they chose to poke and prod and sit on their high horse the entire book was so aggravating and realistic.

The character development for the side characters was so good in this book, you finally start to understand why people do the things they do. I appreciate that even though there are slight romantic undertones to certain relationships, the author never makes that the focus which is very realistic considering that they are in a literal war. On a similar note, I love how this author addresses the racial differences and the gender inequality in this universe. Even though women are allowed on the battlefield and are pivotal movers in this war, they are still held back by societal notions and it shows how strong the female characters are because of it.

Lastly, this book does a great job of showing how dehumanizing war can be and how the characters need to overcome that constantly, not just once, in order to make sure they're on the right side. I can't wait to see how the series ends, but I am so scared at the same time.

THE DUMPLINGS. THE BETRAYAL. THE RAGE.

4.5 stars

Many plot twists and the ending just leaves you hanging with so many lingering questions of what will happen next. Some events felt like they took a while to build but I feel if I reread the story the outcome at the end was set from the beginning. Rin definitely had a moment at the end where everything connected mentally for her. Definitely think my biggest question is what will Jiang do/ come to play because he is not mentioned much but he is still kept relevant in this book.

Y’all need to leave Rin alone, expeditiously! The way RF Kuang has been able to maneuver the story is astounding. The storylines move and intersect in just the right way, and the characters are so full of life and fire, passion, flaws, heartache. I love that we got more depth to Kitay, Chaghan and Nezha in this book as well. The humor that’s sprinkled throughout is perfect and a nice reprieve from the violence when it’s present. The conclusion was so well written - it’s impossible to explain how hype the last line had me