The Poppy War

  • Author: R.F. Kuang
  • Page count: 545
  • Started on: 2025/05/17
  • Finished on: 2025/06/11
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    • ★★★★☆

Book cover of The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang. The title is in large black and red letters over a background of swirling black and red smoke. At the bottom left, a monochrome illustration shows a young woman in motion, holding a drawn bow and arrow, with wind-blown hair and robes. The tagline reads: “They trained her for a war. She intends to end it.”

The Poppy War is the first book in R.F. Kuang’s historical fantasy trilogy inspired by 20th-century China, especially the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Opium Wars. The title references a series of devastating wars and the central role of opium in the plot - tied to power, addiction, and divine possession.

In this book, peasant girl Rin passes the Keju test to get into a prestigious academy, where she doesn’t fit in but wins the first year’s main trial against all odds.

Many of the plot elements reminded me of The Fourth Wing, but I guess there’s only so many ways to write a book about ‘coming of age at a school of magic’. No Potter wands, bonded dragons, or extended ‘romance’ scenes here though! 🪄🐉🙈

As with Kuang’s Yellowface, I found it difficult to connect with Rin. She comes across a bit too whiny, and self-pitying - and I found most characters lacked emotional depth. They’re interesting archetypes though and the plot itself sped along really nicely. I have the rest of the audiobook trilogy ready to go on my Libro.fm app, so expect reviews of the other two books in the coming months.

Also see my reviews of the second book The Burning God and third book The Dragon Republic in the trilogy.

Magic pixel View count: