I don’t even know where to begin. Thank you to Netgalley, HarperCollins and R.F. Kuang for giving me this book in exchange for an honest review. I applied thinking that it was a pipedream and that no one would actually let me review the finale in this amazing series, then the book came through and I had to immediately pre order the paperback of the second book in the trilogy which I had been waiting for. I’ve devoured both in a matter of days.
If you’ve read The Poppy War trilogy you’ll know that R.F. Kuang is a master when it comes to depicting the brutality and horrendous things that can occur in a war, she does not shy away from it. Rather, she invites it in and graphically depicts all the things that make war so unheroic, something that other fantasy writers often fail to do. She does it not in a way of glorifying war or being gratuitous, but does it to truly show how awful it is, making people realise the devastation that can occur. She does this by drawing directly from Chinese history, and as someone who did not know of the horrors included in Chinese history these books really opened my eyes to it and made me aware.
The Burning God comes right after Rin has escaped the city of Arlong at the end of The Dragon Republic, and in true fashion is jam packed full of Shamanism, gripping war scenes and absolutely heartbreaking moments. I will admit that I cried, as R.F. Kuang warned we would in the dedication. Her writing, as in the previous books is unparalleled, she really hooks you in and paints the picture of the scenery and the feelings that Rin is feeling. Along with shocking twists and betrayals, you’re never quite sure on who exactly you can trust.
As someone who is thoroughly interested in mythology I loved this trilogy, Kuang really builds her world up, and lends beautifully from Chinese mythology, which I will be exploring more now because of this trilogy. The Shamanism element is done so perfectly and really makes you invested in the characters and their mental states. I think that Rin’s character is done really well, we meet her as a very young girl and it really shows with her immaturity, and then throughout the series as her character experiences certain things you understand her mental state and her motivations better and better. However, she remains an anti hero, being incredibly flawed herself.
Kuang incorporates many topics into her writing and one that shines through in this book is racism. Rin experiences racism from the start of The Poppy War when she goes to Sinegard to find that she is looked down upon because of her darker skin, right through to the Hesperian attitudes towards the Nikara people. The Hesperians seem to be based upon Western colonisers, and are depicted with graphic accuracy, from the experiments to the ‘scientific’ explanations of why the Nikara are ‘less’ than them. This is done incredibly well, however, Kuang also balances this with Rin’s own struggle in which she sees everyone as her enemy. Throughout the series, you see Rin have moments of clarity that soldiers for the Mugnese and Hesperians are just like the Nikara, and that in cases the Nikara can be just as bad as the people that have overtaken them, and her struggle with that as it makes things less black and white.
Throughout the whole series I do not think I could pick out a favourite character, because they all shine in different ways and I love them for different reasons, and some of them I miss. As well as them being almost villains in a sense, for example I love Rin’s character but she has done terrible things throughout the series. I think the characters are incredibly well written, for their flaws and complexity, Kuang knows how to write characters that are impacted by great tragedy. And she knows how to make you root for them even if they are flawed.
The ending was incredible, and in all honesty I thought that it was the perfect end to the trilogy (although I do really want it to continue because I’m already imagining how it could). I don’t want to spoil it, but I thought it was written incredibly well and was truly heart wrenching. I am truly going to miss this series which has already become one of my favourites, and cannot wait to see what Kuang comes up with next. All I have to do now is wait patiently for my illumicrate editions to arrive!
Love,
Carey
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