SPILLING THE TEA || The Poppy War RANT REVIEW || ivymuse

Luckily no actual tea was spilled, those floors are new.
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[@sweetheart037]

Her terrible decision at the end didn't come out of no where it came from her learning she was a Speer and the injustice she had seen in Golyn Niis and Khurdalain. She wasn't being out of character by being ruthless, the author actually set it up early in the book when she showed that Rin was willing to sacrifice a village in a exercise they did in strategy class

[@TheFlowerbeast]

she's the type of a reader who needs to be spoon-fed

[@unabridgedbibliophile9335]

Pretty sure that the sudden change in the pacing and setting etc. in the second half of the book was very intentional by the author to address what war actually does to ordinary soldiers. It's supposed to be a sharp contrast to the hell that is happening around them and where they were before.

[@cosyreadingtimes8857]

Totally agree with this

[@jasperaugustus2665]

You prolly dont give a shit but if you are stoned like me atm you can watch pretty much all of the latest series on InstaFlixxer. Have been watching with my girlfriend for the last few days =)

[@maximreed9029]

@Jasper Augustus yup, I have been using InstaFlixxer for since december myself :D

[@ataridc]

There's almost always a reasoning WHY an author made a decision unless they are just writing random words. doesn't make it a good decision

[@raynmooney]

except the author doesn't write that into the story; about how sudden it is and where everything is heading, etc. Rin is just suddenly there, and basically does nothing (besides her early burst of flame). and Now we're supposed to believe she's from Speer, why?, because some of the commanders were like "you're just like Altan." Kuang kind-of force feeds us during the second half of the book and i don't feel like it was earned at all. BTW, i did actually enjoy chapter 21 with the massacre aftermath, so i do enjoy the brutality of the war depicted, it just felt like Rin was a vessle for us to see this, rather than her actually being a part of it.

[@KH-cl3hk]

Listened to the full video. I think you have great and valid points but I wanted to share my thoughts too. I think part of why a lot of people like it and some people don't is where you're coming from. I don't want to chalk this up to just, oh it's because you're not Asian, but a lot of the way the story works is very similar to how a lot of Asian stories play out, particular traditional storytelling. First of all, the magic system. In western storytelling it's very important to explain the magic system and the limitations of the main character because otherwise you risk a Mary-Sue. But in Asian stories, the constant overarching theme is you cannot fight fate. You are always an ant in the universe. Everything from the characters to the plot are merely wheels to push that narrative. When Rin suddenly seems helpless and small and is just reacting to things, that rings true for me. When she was previously genius in the school but not that great in real life, it makes sense to me, because theory is not the same as reality. Rin being a scared kid and making bad decisions and being ruthless during war does not make me like her either, but is interesting in the sense that this MC is someone who does do bad things during war, because we all have the capability to be evil during times of chaos. So much of the second half and now the Dragon Republic is about trauma. Playing out what happens to people during war, during famine, during suffering - those all ring true for me and are what I read this series for. I definitely don't expect a debut novel to be perfect, but the things that ruined the series for you didn't for me, and I think that's what it boils down to. I don't question anything or notice any plot consistencies because this series is about acknowledging that shared cultural trauma that a lot of people don't talk about. If you didn't like this book you won't like Dragon Republic, but I hope everyone who liked the book before listening to your review will continue to follow the series. Nothing is wrong with disliking the series but I'm sure you agree it's also fine when people don't agree with what you consider negative either.

[@jessip8654]

I dunno. I'm not Asian but I consume a lot of Eastern media. And while they're much more open to writing tragic stories than the West, they usually don't have near the tonal whiplash The Poppy War has. TPW is two very different books smooshed together: A generic but mildly enjoyable school drama, and tragedy porn with no interesting, likable, or developed characters. I don't want to wave away its massive plot and character issues as "It's just cultural differences, honey!"

[@KH-cl3hk]

@@jessip8654 I absolutely understand that, and I only intended to point out cultural differences as an explanation for some issues, and why I personally find it worth reading. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I will say the school parts always had a sense of dread and foreboding to me? Depends on everyone's reading and interpretation.

[@brookelawrence6740]

I really appreciate that point about cultural trauma. My grandfather was born in the Philippines, and he was terrorized and tortured by the imperial Japanese army. It wasn’t healing for me to read this book - if anything, my experience made it more painful - but it means a lot to me that this story was told. I have not seen my grandfather’s story acknowledged in popular history or media.

[@kb-ih7ni]

*MILD SPOILERS* and this is gonna be tldr lol I agree wholeheartedly about Rin being a very VERY dislikable MC (especially now that the last book is out). I have never hated an MC so much before (not because of her writing or bad characterization, actually her characterization was so intentionally flawed that it made me appreciate Kuang's writing a lot more. Rin was never intended to be a good hero a la Harry Potter. She was meant to be flawed and intelligent but also dumb and temperamental because she's a misguided kid who was given immense destructive power after lots of trauma and there are so many ways that could go. And again, she's a kid not a 20-something who's mature beyond her years the way most YA protagonists are. She doesn't have moral or intellectual ascendancy.) And I don't remember where she said it, but in an interview Kuang said the publishers originally wanted TPW to be split into two books, but she insisted on it just being one. I wouldn't have enjoyed it if it was an academia book first, then a wartime book second because that would be such a weird change in tone within a series. As for the pacing, I don't mind it. It's not an academia book (which the OP probably expected). It's a grimdark fantasy book. And besides I don't think one book should be fenced in to just one "trope". The changes served the story. I didn't want each book to be one year in Sinegard. I didn't care for the petty school squabbles between the characters, or the info dumping from teachers beyond what was done. The abrupt change from school life to war time in both the plot itself AND the book's pacing was intentionally jarring. The students were in their little bubble of an elite difficult school, where everything is theory and no lives are truly lost when they make bad strategies. Then to have the enemy marching towards the SCHOOL itself...it's jarring and Rin and Kitay actually had a little moment of terrified nervousness right before the Federation came. She's a kid who went to the academy because she was looking for an escape (that she can afford), she didn't go to Sinegard to consciously become a participant in a war she never thought about. So naturally she'd panic about the sudden war she's thrust into without having completed her education or going through training. She never really had goals anyway. She was going through each phase in her life without a big picture because she didn't have that luxury before. I'd advise reading through the rest of the series to understand how Rin's theories in school get realized through the rest of the story, to varying effects. Kuang did a decent job at tying the 2nd and 3rd books with the events from the 1st book. And I don't think the second half was tragedy porn. If you read history books specific to a particular event exactly like the Rape of Nanking, you might consider it tragedy porn but it's just really how things went. Even my history books went into very gorey detail about Japanese occupation in the Philippines. Kuang wanted to get that message across. That wartime isn't just about generals and commanders poring over maps in a war room. It's about soldiers dying and civilians being tortured in ways you didn't think humans could think of doing to other humans. I also don't mind some characters getting pushed aside because IDK, maybe it's just me but it's like how I loved a lot of my teachers back in grade school but once I graduated to high school they're not in my life anymore, same with my classmates. I don't mind being introduced to some characters then have them not mentioned again because that's what minor characters are for. Not all characters with names and lines have to stick around. Besides, a lot of the characters return across the series in some way or another. Kuang said she wrote to get messages across, not mainly to tell a fictional story. So characters represent SOMETHING to either the MC or the reader, may it be a key person in history, or an idea. I can't get into examples because spoiler lol like she doesn't write to Tutor Feyrik or even Kesegi because she wanted to forget everything before Sinegard (new school new me lol). IDK maybe it's the OP's preference the way you get "gangs" like in Six of Crows or something, but I get the changes in cast of characters. It works for this. OP could read the second book to get more into the "second" cast of characters WHILE returning to some of the old ones. Also that whole insubordination and kind of falling in love with Altan while being assholes to each other is representative of how people can get into toxic relationships. Rin craves approval (whether that makes sense to us or not it doesn't matter because that's how Rin's mind works, approval gives her purpose and I'm sure some of us can relate to that to some degree), and when she doesn't get it from people she admires, she works her damn hardest to get it, she's addicted to approval. Falling in love with Altan is also Rin's way of understanding love. She never understood what love was because she was never shown it, so she THINKS what she feels for Altan is love. But really it's dependency the way a drug addict loves drugs they've become dependent on. Altan's anger and opinions became Rin's opinions because she never had her own other than thoughts of self-preservation by being so powerful no one can hurt her. Altan and her own experience under Shiro then switched her goals to those of vengeance, for what they did to Altan and now her and by extension Speer, and also because of everything she saw throughout the war. Her anger towards the Mugenese was building throughout the story I don't understand how "it was out of character for her". Rin isn't smart, let's get that out of the way lol she doesn't understand half of what they were studying, she's just good at memorizing and repeating sht like a parrot. She's okay at thinking on her feet and ruthless enough to be a good soldier but not a commander. She's a "the end justifies the means" kind of person and most of her goals are emotionally driven (anger, revenge, self-preservation) than well-thought out, because again, girl doesn't think long-term. She THINKS she does, but really...she doesn't. She's an impulsive lil sht. Everyone is entitled to their opinions though, I recognize that too. This series is one of my favorites of all time (perhaps even my ultimate favorite), but I acknowledge its faults too or how people would dislike it. This was Kuang's first ever story (she never wrote anything before this one) and I think it's pretty heckin good for someone this young who never planned on being a writer and never really practiced it. It was a great exploration of things we don't really see in books these days: a highly flawed anti-hero with little to no redeeming factor as a protagonist, emotional abuse/dependency, the realities of war time, vaguely romantic but also toxic relationships, male-female best friendship without an unrequited love trope, shamanism or magic where rules are unclear because you're reading from the perspective of the protagonist whose teachers taught her only bits and pieces because of their own motives, a slow descent into madness, drug addiction, etc.

[@thecmancan]

I'm Asian, can't confirm this. The plot points were just convenient to push along the failed narrative where nothing really happens. But look. we need Rin to be bad at war now, ok she's bad. Look, we need Rin to pass a test, ok she's learns the best kung-fu in a few weeks and puts Rocky to shame. It's laziness.

[@Kiran-dh3ff]

9:50: This criticism doesn't really make sense to me because it's mentioned several times earlier how underprepared Nikan is for war, and how the strife between the warlords really hinders the country from devising a solid strategic defense. The conflict between Mugen and Nikan is hanging on a very very thin strand, and we're reminded of that from the very moment Rin arrives at Sinegard, so it makes complete sense that Mugen would overpower Nikan and come at them with everything they've got and destroy the capital. We also are told /many/ times by Jiang that the fighting techniques taught at Sinegard are for mass learning, quick, efficient, and way less advanced than what what he teaches Rin. They're just students, taught watered down military training. They're no match for Mugen and we are told that from the start. Also, your ideas for what you wanted out of the book are textbook plots for other YA fantasy/war books (most featuring white characters written by white authors). This is an asian-inspired fantasy story, the main themes being war, genocide, and intergenerational trauma. Its focus is on the massacres in Speer and how that affects Rin and Atlan. Kuang herself has said this story is about how a person goes from being an "irrelevant, backwater, peasant nobody to being a megalomaniac dictator capable of killing millions of people." Which you can definitely see through Atlan's character and how he influences Rin. (Though, I do think he was definitely treated like a protagonist even though he isn't explicitly one, and I do criticize the book for this because he's probably the only character that we learn more about and uncover--the closest thing to character development.) Also, I do agree with your criticism on Rin's character and how deeply inconsistent her motivations were throughout the course of the book. I agreed with your gripe about her not contributing anything while being a part of the Cike, but I felt that everything really shifted for her once she realized her place in the world. The Cike are deemed freaks, unnatural, and the trajectory of their life is pretty grim: you fight for the empress until you go mad from summoning a crazy, uncontrollable god and end up imprisoned in a mountain for the rest of your life. It makes sense that she'd be scared, confused, and unsure of herself. This kind of goes hand in hand with her being a Speerly and what that means to her and trauma she inherits from that. Everything she'd known about herself, everything she wanted for herself, before the war changes with this new information. I feel like you just really expected something extremely different and the hype was way too high. :/

[@maddihsonsteel2698]

I just had to say that I really liked the first part, it was great, it was compelling. But the reason I loved this book wasn’t because she was great at studying and was dedicated to improving her fighting skills. I loved the fact that she’s flawed, I love the fact that she wants to be told what to do, I love the fact at the end of the book I don’t like who Rin is as a person, and that she’s following Altan like a duckling. It was always there, in how she was always improving to receive praise from her teachers. Rin is not happy, Rin is not smart. Rin is a child looking for validation in a city where everything she is, is abhorred. This story is good because despite my hating Rin, I still root for her. I’m just as confused as her. I don’t know who’s wrong or right. I’m invested. And that’s what makes a good book. Though the saltpeter thing was out of nowhere 😂

[@nocturnus009]

The fact that the novel didn't connect with you is a confirmation of the benefits of having a diversity of opinion in on BookTube. Because your review is so encompassing, you're giving people that will fall on both sides of the like/loathe spectrum insight on the story. Keep doing what works for you. Your contributions are vital to BookTube! #squadgoals

[@4everSleds]

I really loved this book, but I lived in China for a few years and I doubt that I would have loved this book as much if I didn't have an understanding of the history that influenced this story. There are so many allusions to modern Chinese history in this book that it's like a treasure hunt. So that kept me going.

[@thecmancan]

The novel doesn't add anything to our understanding of that history. You kinda just note it mentally like, oh yeah Wudang Mountains are real. .......so what? Feels like another popular but awful novel Ready Player One, where we keep a checklist of allusions but forget the fact that we read for creativity and originality. Renaming things and people from real historical events is hardly creative writing.

[@murakamireads]

Girl PREACH. When I read this book back in the summer and was the only one giving it a mediocre 3 stars I was SO CONFUSED by the constant 5 stars I kept seeing from people. No clue how people could love this with its character problems and pacing problems. It felt like a first draft - honestly I thought it was a stand-alone fantasy novel because of how fast it was and how much it skipped over!

[@erburu]

I agree so much. This book had a lot of potential but I had to force myself to finish it. It's like the author forgot to give me any reason to like Rin or Altan. They feel like husks, as you mentioned. I don't mind morally dubious characters, but it got so frustrating seeing these characters regretting their own stupid decisions and then dealing with their consequences for pages and pages afterwards. It's a shame because I really like the worldbuilding, Jiang, and all the stuff about the gods, but I cannot make myself finish this trilogy. Guess it's not for me, but I also inevitably struggle to see how people loved this so much. P.S. I also cannot believe the saltpeter incident lmao. Also (slight spoilers if you haven't read the book) when they send Rin and Nezha ALONE to fight against a dangerous mythological creature that hasn't been seen in centuries, it doesn't make any sense.

[@guoshanhui]

Speer represents Taiwan, not Korea.

[@zohalarbabzada9654]

There were definitely flaws in the book, but I loved it so much that I overlooked the flaws.

[@keziarukmana1950]

I 100% agree with this. Halfway through part 1 i was so sure this book was gonna be my new fav series, and then part 2 came and i started to realise that rin actually didnt have that much personality, and by the end she was just becoming altan, taking altan's revenge and altan's ambition. To me, Altan and Rin made such an infuriating duo. Like you said she was so determined, selfish, and self-assured (despite the lack of personality) and then suddenly she became so easily influenced. The way she just decided to follow altan to free everybody in chuluu korikh eventhough the are no logic behind it, and the way altan denied the fact he was only doing it for revenge and not actually for nikara, it was so stupid i couldnt even. i hate rin so much at the end of the book i dont know if i'll continue.

[@MsKristinaRose]

I felt the same way about this book. The first part had a clear and defined vision and was executed so well, so I was confused when it got to part two and three and it was such a mess. So much was told in summary and it read like it was just so that she could those historical events that inspired the story. And the way they were written bordered on trauma porn to me. This book made me so sad, because I enjoyed the the first part so much.

[@nat6098]

The only reason I finished the book was because I was hoping for a better turn that never actually happened. The lat quarter was just a mess and I still can't figure out what was supposed to be going on. It's so sad when a good book ends up sucking.

[@schneischnei1]

I also loved the first half of the book and hated the second. It was just frustrating how Rin, the supposedly skilled strategist, stops thinking ahead, acts impulsively and then thinks "Oh sh***. Yea shouldn't have done that" and doesn't learn from that. I was so annoyed with her the entire second half of the book

[@mahakgadia5633]

Of course, Rin will make logical and rational decisions sitting in a classroom. She's in a safe environment, there are no real stakes and her decisions will not lead to the death of thousands. War is different. You don't have time to rethink your choices. If you're right then good. If you're wrong, then it's your fault. Rin had no experience in command before either. It's not like she spent a couple of years under a general gaining experience, no. She was just thrust into war like thousands of others and had to trust her instincts and she did the best she could. And guess what she broke down under the pressure. I'm sorry if she's not perfect and doesn't always do the right thing. Also, when does she even make major decisions in the second half of the first book. All she does is follow Altan. Now you can ask, "Why does she always follow Altan, why is she so obsessed with him?" Well, that question has a very very long answer that I'd rather not get into right now. And also, Rin goes on a corruption arc. She's never meant to make the right decisions. She's hot-headed, reckless, and impulsive, but she still makes an extremely compelling character which is one of the reasons why "The Poppy War" is loved by so many.

[@EpikStorm101]

The book never says she's a skilled strategist. She's good, but not amazing. Kitay is the true strategist of the series. The series actually explicitly says she's a good fighter, not a good commander.

[@thebookstop9305]

I loved this book so much however, I do understand every single point you made. I didn't like how the majority of the characters just disappeared from the story. The other issues just didn't take away from my enjoyment and they just didn't bother me. I guess the point of this comment is that usually I never understand why people do not like certain books that I love. I'll listen to their explanations and I just don't understand what the issue is. I understand all of your points and I get why people wouldn't like that. It just didn't bother me personally.

[@cosyreadingtimes8857]

Same with me. And for me personally I found the disappearing of the characters more realistic than if they stayed. They were never trained to stay together after graduating and it showed how war changes everything of the environment around you - from atmosphere to the people around you.

[@jonathancampbell5231]

I think you misunderstood what the author was going for. You seem think that Kuang started writing a coming-of-age Hero's journey type fantasy and halfway through decided to bleak, grimdark war novel. In reality, she set out to write a grimdark story from the outset. Her stated intent in interviews was that, from the beginning, she wanted to explore what it would take to turn someone into a genocidal dictator, based on her studying of Chinese history (which her degree is in). Basically, most people who liked it probably either knew what it was going in, or preferred that type of story to begin with.

[@ivymuse]

It doesn't matter what the author's "intent" was. If it doesn't come across in the book itself without her having to explicitly state it then it's not that well done imho. And if she'd written the whole book in the style of the second part... then I probably wouldn't haven even made it to the end.

[@ivymuse]

@you serious? Of course I didn't mean "it shouldn't have been set in an Asian setting", I meant that for me that setting didn't play a big enough role and didn't influence the story enough to differentiate it from the million other fantasy stories taking place in more European inspired fantasy worlds. The story as she had written it in my opinion could have been set anywhere. I'd love more fantasy stories in Asian inspired settings, but they also have to be well written ✌️

[@ivymuse]

@you serious? I'm very much aware that non-white authors often have to justify their existence in the space and I'd never ever want to contribute to that. In this case my criticism is not of the setting or the "Asianness" of the book, but rather that I felt the author didn't utilize her setting fully (which I would criticize in any book by any author). Additionally, this is a very minor concern I probably wouldn't even have mentioned in my review had the rest of it been well done. In that respect, I don't think it's fair to sum up an hour long critique of a book as simply coming to the conclusion "it isn't written well", when I made an effort to go into a lot of detail and provide concrete examples of why the book disappointed me. I would also strongly disagree that I only ask well written books from Asian or non-white authors. I am always very critical of the books I read regardless of the colour of the author's skin or their ethnicity. On my channel I have A LOT of rant reviews on books written by white authors that I thought were terrible. It's always obviously just my personal opinion but I can confidently state that I only judge books on their content and nothing else. In addition I am personally very invested in particular in Japanese culture, have lived there for a year and have been learning the language for years. Of course this doesn't automatically preclude me from potential prejudices but I would argue it shows that I am in fact very interested in the culture and history of Asian countries (specifically Japan) and that I have no underlying problem with something following "Asian conventions" (which I would argue aren't even a thing because Asian cultures are very diverse and dissimilar anyway).

[@ivymuse]

@you serious? Like I said, I never asked anything of this book I don't ask of other books as well. Unless you watched every single one of my reviews and can tell that there's a noticable difference in how I review the books, you can't really make that claim. Plus, I'm not really sure why you're now acting as if I was defending the atrocities committed by Japan in the second world war? And as if I don't know basic history? lol My critique was never with the setting itself, I didn't want this book to be set in Europe or anywhere you're implying, I just wanted a more fleshed out world that couldn't possibly be anywhere else because it was so distinctive (doesn't mean I wanted a stereotypical Chinese world, I just wanted a detailed one unqiue to this book). World building is very important to me, in any book, and I critique it when it's not as in depth as I would want it. As you said, you haven't read the book and so really there's no point to this discussion. You don't know me but come to all these conclusions about me and my motivations. You say you don't put me in the same category as the white dudes in Thailand but then act as if that's what I'm doing by mocking that I was "on vacation in Japan" when I said I lived there for a year. I included this because I thought you needed more context since you were making all these allegations about me having a problem with the book's "Asianness". I don't think that that's conducive to a productive and respectful conversation. Up to this point I've really enjoyed talking to you and hearing your opinion but this seems to have run its course, so have a good day.

[@ivymuse]

@you serious? I'm not backtracking, I'm clarifying because you still don't seem to understand me. If you think it's a vague critique, fine, but maybe consider that I read this book and filmed this review two years ago and can't remember every detail anymore. Read the book, then come back to discuss the merits of a review. And I don't know what your vacations are like but I don't typically stay a year and go to University during mine. So peace.

[@angiec7362]

I totally agree!!! I loved the first part of the book and then it blindsided me with the complete character change, I was completely confused by the second half because it didn't even seem to be the same author.

[@randomlife6]

I also didnt like this book and I thought it had such a great potential but It got lost somewhere.Similar to you I had high expectations because everyone says how this is their new favourite fantasy novel or new favourite book, but for me it was just not good enough. Yes, it is not a bad book in my opinion but I dont understand the praise that it got.

[@Ashley-my2vu]

THANK YOU SO MUCH!! I read this months ago when there were only 5 star glowing reviews and I read this and got genuinely confused about if I had read the same book. I saw all the same problems with Rin. I have been asking for a morally gray character for ages. However not like that. Her decisions were so erratic and inconsistent. You were absolutely correct. She gets turned into a husk of a character.

[@PhoenixBlade538]

I really loved the book, so it was interesting to hear your thoughts. It's crazy how we can read the same thing and take totally different things from it!

[@EpikStorm101]

8:23 Making the warlords unite takes place during the next two books which are based on the Chinese Civil Wars.

[@shahrobp]

OMG THANK YOU. I 100% agree with you. I had the same issues with this book. I fell in love with Ren in the first part but hated her steadily during the second. I But I enjoyed it non the less and will continue the series but not in the immediate future.

[@arlenelewis1908]

I am so grateful for your review. Picked up the book due to so many people LOVING it. I am on page 200 and I was so bored in the first part. So cliché -- the poor kid works hard and surprise she is the very best student. So at the half way point now and stalled. I keep looking to see how much more do I have to go. I want to DNF it so bad. Will do so having been validated by you and Daniel Green.

[@blith7021]

The book does a complete 180 and undergoes a major tonal shift. I recommend reading the entire book before calling it cliche, though I admit the first part does have quite a few tropes.

[@arlenelewis1908]

@@blith7021 you are right. I always feel guilty judging too soon. It is just there are so many good books waiting for me, calling to me... Mcguire, Abercrombie , Sanderson etc. So I choose to abandon a book paling on me. Maybe I am wrong but I can live with it. I appreciate your comment a lot.

[@blith7021]

@@arlenelewis1908 Yeah, no worries! The book isn't for everyone and props to you for prioritizing books you actually enjoy.

[@bookishtinaa]

This SO MUCH. I throughly enjoyed the first part but then it went downhill sooooo fast. By the third part, aside from being horribly triggered, I was so disinterested I just wanted it over.

[@FreggFaerie]

You've got me stressing. I'm working on my fantasy series, and there are lots of characters that are just there, and then their gone. But the book is a fantasy version of my life, and I've become a recluse over the years, no longer able to socialize much at all, and so there are people that were major players in my life, but now theyre not. I guess I'm worried about readers like you who don't like people appearing and then disappearing. Will it help if I do a good job explaining WHY they don't show up anymore? Is it the just the suddenness of things that put you off? Please give me opinions, I want my series to be a enjoyable as possible.

[@gavinIII]

Hello! I'm 3 months late to replying to you but just in case you're still stressing, I wanted to tell you that people being there, and then not, was something I really liked in the Poppy War. I did miss some of them and hoped that they would show up again later but to me it was very reflective of real life. People come and go and that's quite alright :) PS. I hope your writing is going well!

[@BeccaandTheBooks]

I just finished this and finally came to watch this! So I gave this 4 stars but would have probably given it a 3 if it were not a debut author (I'm a little more forgiving with debuts) I think the story and author have potential but I definitely had problems with it but they were different to the problems you had. I enjoyed the plot (although there are a couple of things that didn't make sense to me) and I didn't feel a lull in the pacing although i do agree that the random time skips were a little chaotic. I didn't pick up on the Saltpeter thing because I legit have no idea about what it even is so I just kind of rolled with it but now that you mention it..... wow 😂 My main problems were the worldbuilding and the writing which you touched upon briefly towards the end of this. In the first section of the book, I can't remember a single time there was a description of the setting aside from that Sinegard is built into a mountain and has Pagodas 😂 like what is the landscape like?!??! Agree with you that there was no point in it being East Asian, there was absolutely no Atmosphere which is typically what I read East Asian inspired/translated stories for. The character dialogue was so generic and americanised that they could have been transferred into any YA fantasy world and I wouldn't have even noticed. I found the writing style to be very basic and YA style which is not what I expect from an adult fantasy book (although this is probably just more personal preference) and I was disappointed by the lack of complexity and density in the writing. ***SPOILERS BELOW*** wtf happened with Nezha? Is he dead?! I actually liked him in the middle section and literally that is how he died and we're just gonna gloss over it?!?!?! And did you pick up on the fact it was thrown around a couple of times that she loved Altan? Why? You have no chemistry? You've never been nice to each other? Am I missing something?!

[@ivymuse]

glad you had a bit of a better time with it ;) on your spoilery questions: a) i think i remember thinking that it'll turn out he's not actually dead, but i can't recall the specifics :P i honestly believe he'll come back for a love triangle^^ b) that was so incredibly irritating, it made no sense whatsoever -.-

[@blith7021]

I completely emphasize with your opinion, despite actually really enjoying this book. Nezha's fate is actually elaborated on in the second book, from the sudden way he died it was set up to be resolved in the sequel. I agree that she didn't have a good reason to love Altan, but I think Kuang knew this and it was purposely built to be more of a twisted obsession and infatuation rather than have him become an actual love interest. Rin is obviously a deeply flawed character and I think that after everything that has happened to her, it's not surprising that she would latch onto someone like Altan.

[@michellej5616]

I just finished the first half of the book and got just a few pages further. I put the book down, confused. Clearly, it was not just me.

[@kitoushi66]

Interesting perspective. I still enjoyed the story and all the different characters but I do agree that Rin could have more depth to balance the shallowness of the supporting characters. Kitai was one of the best characters. The psyche was amazing but didn’t get enough time. Hoping for more depth from them.

[@3choblast3r4]

I always thought it was "suffice to say" and recently heard someone say "suffice it to say" and thought it was super weird. Now every time I hear someone say it, it sticks out like a sore thumb. Googled it and apparently "suffice it to say" is the original or something but "suffice to say" is also acceptable and more and more widespread.

[@romyhanel]

Weeeell, since Thomas from SFF180 and now you have not enjoyed the book (and explained why) I'll skip it. From what you explained about the story and stuff, I'd probably dnf it. So thanks! ;-) And better luck with the next book you read!

[@damiandossantos5077]

Im pretty sure the great island nation that was destroyed in the opium wars was hong kong which was captured by britian and followed the capture of Nanjing which the treaty was signed. But thanks i think im going to read this book myself. It seems very interesting, and i know it subverts expectations, but as is all in reality.. Things really are that fragile and go from bad to worse quickly and small fights that break out often lead to mass war (read of the 2 serbian men who started ww1 and ww2) and just how quik this leads to all out war and how quick complete and total destruction can and does come (historically) for these great nations

[@Kristy.Reads.2024]

I know you really aren't making videos, at least on this channel, currently but I just finished this book and OMG you are saying everything that I was thinking. I also thought the book started out great and was really enjoying it but then that book ended and suddenly another book was shoved in and it was just awful. I seriously cannot figure out how so many people loved this book. I thought I was being very generous in giving it 3 stars but really it probably was more of a 2/2.5 for me the longer I think about it. I also agree that this book made me so angry because it made no sense through so much of it. I was so confused about so much. By the end of it, I wanted some opium to forget it all too.

[@andrewpauley4418]

I finished the book. Rated it four stars. I think the story is excellent but the application isn't as desirable. The saltpeter incident isn't really a fair critique. Sugar and potassium nitrate react very violently when ignited because sugar is an excellent source of carbon. My only problem with that scene is wondering how the mixture was ignited, and how the right proportions were crushed into a powder. I think the implication is that they somehow tricked the townspeople into helping them, seeing as their form fitting clothes means they had no matches (presumably). But if several chests of sugar and saltpeter are put together with the correct proportions, and ignited, you will get an explosion like the one described in the book. For me, the quality of the book lessened in the last few chapters with the weird 1984-like scene. My main criticism is that the Second Sino-Japanese War inspired events gradually overtook the Song Dynasty setting. This demonstrates the challenge of mixing different historical settings together more than anything else.

[@zipperghost5989]

Great video :) I was apprehensive about reading this since it was grim dark war story and I have no interest in grim dark war stories. And yes, salt peter wouldn't explode unless mixed with other things since it's not even the fuel by the oxidant which allows the explosion to happen quickly. And if it did explode making bacon would be pretty dangerous.

[@soulexchangemusic]

currently reading made it through part 1, i don't find it to be that dark, (it its dark, do not get me wrong), but when i think of grimdark, i think of a..certain Japanese graphic novel.

[@kelsok.4126]

I am still coming down from finishing the book with reader anger in tow haha thank you for your honesty!

[@sagetucker5558]

I'm 139 pages in and I am BORED the only characters I am interested in is Jiang and Altan. I find the main character boring, the side characters boring, and finding out that Nezha is the ML makes me sick. I brought the first two books of the trilogy--The Poppy War and The Dragon Republic--because I heard so many great things about it. But I'm bored, extremely bored.

[@mayjawas9931]

Cannot said it better. I hate the ending! She really admonished an etnics. I tried to read the 2nd book, but halfway I decided that there's no hope for rin's character, so I can't continue reading the book.

[@eileen9898]

All the points you made are so good and sound completely obvious, I wonder why none of the big booktubers picked up on them?

[@irishdancer7116]

I didn't even finish the book, I found it waste of my time. I only started to read it because of so many positive reviews. Which, as I think of it, didn't say anything about the book, just that it's good and everybody should read it. This is what happens when 30s-1min reviews are getting more popular ;)

[@the.magic.faraway.tree.]

I think Rin snapped because of what happened with that sacked city. But I agree with the rest of what you said. This book got 3 stars from me. I will read the second because there are so many series where I was less than thrilled with the first book but then full on love the second 🤣 Like ACOTAR.

[@scottbollinger3980]

I agree overall, but I came to it from an opposite approach. The Hunger Games meets Mean Girls first part almost made me put it down several times. I would rather the book begin with the destruction of Sinegard and just give us in media res.

[@andrewpauley4418]

@ivymuse: I am so sorry about my last post. It was immature of me to react to a book review I hadn't read yet. Though I am not finished with the book yet (I'm very close however, almost 2/3s done), I now know that all of my theories were wrong. There was nothing in the passage to suggest there was anything in those chests but saltpeter (potassium nitrate) and sugar. At first I thought maybe there was an emphasis on the word "lids" after the Mugen took the "lids" of the chests off. I thought maybe charcoal or some form of carbon must have been hidden underneath the salt and sugar. But then later when Rin is seeing the effects of the explosion, the air is described as smelling or tasting like "caramelized sugar wafting through the air" (ch. 15). And even later the explosion is only referred to as "the downtown explosions" (ch. 16). This made me realize that this explosion caught the Nikara off guard. I was puzzled by this because there are about two instances where the term saltpeter is used in the books before this massive explosion. The first instance reads thus: "Weapons Master, Sonnen, [sic] taught them the correct proportions of saltpeter, sulfur, and charcoal necessary to mix the incendiary fire powder that powered war rockets" (ch 4). At first I thought this would provide ample evidence that the author knew what she was doing, but if this was the case then why didn't everyone react with realization once Ramsa shouted "it's saltpeter!" (ch. 15)? The next instance of saltpeter's mention is with Ramsa's explanation of munitions work to Rin: "Combine six parts sulfur, six parts saltpeter, and one part birthwort herb, and you've got fire powder" (ch 14). So though these passages mention saltpeter, it is clear that the author gives the exact ingredients for fire powder throughout the book. That means whatever exploded in the chests of sugar and saltpeter had to only be sugar and saltpeter. Saltpeter can only react with something as an oxidizer. Ramsa puts emphasis on the word saltpeter instead of sugar when he runs in. So I was wrong. this was not a distraction technique. Something else was up. Then, I looked up if saltpeter can react with sugar. And it can. Sugar is an excellent source of carbon. The right amount of saltpeter with the right amount of sugar leads to making pure rocket fuel. To be sure, there still needs to be boiling water or something hot to set it off, which I guess could have been easy to procure under the pretense of being helpful to the civilians, but there is no actual indicator of how this stuff was set off. And I think this may have been intentional... In the Mugen's negotiations of surrender with the Nikara, the delegate makes it quite clear that he does not think much about Nikara technology. He says, "Your provincial government is weak and fragile. Your technology is centuries behind that of the west. Your isolation has set you behind while the rest of the world develops. Your demise was only a matter of time. This landmass belongs to a country who can propel it into the next century" (ch 15). The speech of the delegate may seem like proud boasting, but it hints at real historical realities. Historically, the Japanese did industrialize before the Chinese. The Chinese were isolated from the rest of the world because they thought their ways so superior. The West did advance beyond China because of this isolation. These historical realities are not just hinted at to add more layers for history majors, but also to establish that the Mugen are technologically superior to the Nikara in this story. So back to my questions. Why didn't the generals suspect sugar? Why did Ramsa only shout saltpeter instead of shouting something else? Why did Ramsa run to the office where the negotiations were taking place instead of somewhere else? My best guess is he didn't think the saltpeter and sugar by itself would explode. He thought the warning would be in time to stop whatever the Mugen were planning. Though he was an "alchemist" and a munitions expert, Ramsa probably didn't know that saltpeter and sugar reacted violently when heated. The delegate also said "We have studied the western techniques of warfare while you have spent these twenty years indulging in your isolation" (ch. 15). And the words that seal it for me are when the delegate reacts to a death threat from The Ox Warlord: "Kill me if you like. On the longbow island we are taught that our lives are meaningless. I am only one in a horde of millions. I will die, and I will be reincarnated again in Emperor Ryohai's service" (ch. 15). On the surface this may seem to just refer to the Ox Warlord's threat, but I think it hints at something much deeper. During the Sino-Japanese Wars, and later during WWII, the Japanese used airplanes to suicide-bomb places, justifying these vile acts as fueling their belief in the Emperor by referencing an old 13th century victory against the Mongols. In the 1270s and 80s, Kublai Khan attacked the Japanese in a massive fleet, but the fleet was destroyed by a 'Kamikaze' (Divine Wind, i.e. Typhoon). Later, under the young Emperor Hirohito in the 1920-40s, this medieval victory was reimagined and appropriated for the purposes of industrialization, nationalism, and fascism. This particular scene hints at this historical reality. There is an explicit sense of religious superiority in the head delegate's speech before the bomb explodes. The lives of the Mugen mean nothing in the grand scheme of the Empire. So, some Mugen delegates asking for boiled water under the pretense of caring for the people in the city square would easily be able to set off the saltpeter and sugar, even at the cost of their own lives. Granted, this is mere speculation from what the author gives us in the book itself. We are not shown how the mix was set off, so we can probably assume that the Nikara don't know either. Was it by fire? Where did the delegates get the supplies for any sort of ignition before? They had form fitting clothes. Were they somehow hiding matches? Ultimately, we don't get answers. I would not call this lazy authorship. Nor would I call it poor-writing. We only know that Mugen got the best of the Nikara because of their superior understanding of chemistry. How is not important. The only thing that matters is the results of what happened. I have not finished the book yet, though I'm close, but I'm enjoying it so far. I'll talk about my thoughts later. I know my last comment used very charged, loaded, and accusatory language. I hope this analysis at least demonstrated some validity to a differing perspective.

[@alessiagrioli6024]

It's so weird cause I agree with everything you said in this review, the second part of the book especially was weak, and yet I still really enoyed it overall cause of the themes that are explored and the way it was written. Maybe I should be more disappointed like you are but I still really liked it in the end.

[@juderudd1711]

A lot of your complaints seemed to be intentional by the author.

[@ninjablack4347]

that doesn't make it better. If you read a book in English language and then the author changes it something like Spanish just because its intentional doesn't make it good

[@juderudd1711]

@@ninjablack4347 I was talking about like how as a compliment she said it felt like the book changed in the middle and I’m saying I think it’s supposed to because her life changed at that point

[@ninjablack4347]

@@juderudd1711 and probably her complaint was it didn't make sense because of the writing.

[@TheKris47]

I’ve seen a lot of bad reviews of this (from smaller booktubers, but at least you’re not alone!)

[@ruben2574]

2:28 it is not korea

[@SunriseFireberry]

>half an hour. This is NOT a vid, this is a show. Starring the one & only ... Theresa! Rants are in your blood. You just gotta do it. :-)

[@ivymuse]

hahaha true :P maybe I should start making my reviews into an 8 part series, it seems to be the latest hype ;)

[@SunriseFireberry]

Yeah. Pick a book series that isn't by C Clare or Sarah J Maas that you don't like & fine-tooth-comb every detail, at times quoting copiously from the text. Every negative comment is delivered like Harry using the basilisk fang to stab Tom Riddle's diary: with force & venom. OK it might be wiser to tone it down a bit. Flair & panache might be in order. You like rants. Paeans to your various fav series just don't give you the same adrenaline rush. Imagine how many vids you could make if you didn't like Robin Hobb's 16 volume series? You could talk your way thru 2019. :-)

[@Gamirca]

I just read this book, loved it, came here thinking "she's gonna be full of shit" but your points were actually very valid and pointed out flaws I hadn't even noticed.

[@ninjablack4347]

This is the problem i see with a lot of booktubers; they love the book but don't judge it by its flaws. Its ok to love something that has flaws but you can't ignore the problems with pacing, characterization and info dumps

[@WhiteRabbitMix]

I also didn’t like this book. I DNF'd at 300 pages. I was also one of those who didn't like the first half because I just find magical school stories rather boring. I'm also not a big fan of military fantasy so eh. There also weren't any fantasy elements till well over 100 pages in and it just wasn't enough for me. I figured it just wasn't the right type of book for me. Loved your review and your eloquent opinions on what you didn't like. Keep up the good work!

[@EpikStorm101]

Yeah, if you don't like military, you definitely won't like the rest of the series. It only doubles down on the military side of the story. I'm curious, tho. What fantasy elements were you expecting?

[@joseluisancira4255]

Totally agree with everything, I wanted to like it based on the excellent things I’d heard about it, but absolutely hated it.

[@anthonyisepic3]

God it's so satisfying when other people don't like the books I hate. The bigger booktubers I watched wouldn't shut up about how it's a strong female character but like.... Rin's character is so inconsistent and awful and the book has so many problems. It needed another 10 edits and massive changes imo

[@WayOverBooked]

I never thought about it before but hearing it now I agree. I think this would have been a great story for political tension. Ultimately this book confused the fuck out of me. I feel like there was a lot of things misplaced and I couldn't follow along properly. I feel like the author didn't think every point through properly :/

[@tifftargaryen490]

While I really enjoyed it, I just enjoyed it. It was fun as a filler book but it wasn't good enough for me to recommend spending money on it.

[@iamaloungechair]

It was obviously MAGICAL saltpeter, Theresa! lol

[@TheFlowerbeast]

so bold and yet so wrong with many details. Speer is not Korea, what were you on?

[@saraprado4351]

You should read And I Darken by Kiersten White if you like strong women as antiheroes.

[@WayOverBooked]

One of my very first videos was a poppy war review and it's honestly terrible. You've summed up my thoughts way better than I ever could!

[@kit888]

Video started off with soft audio, so I pushed up the volume. Then the loud intro music hurt my ears. Thanks for that.

[@chrisslade163]

Usually I don't comment, but you really upped the ante at the end of the video. It sounds like you allowed yourself to begin expecting a certain kind of book (maybe looking for Harry Potter?). It also seems like you either have little interest or familiarity with war, any military or addiction. I get that you didn't like the pacing, that's personal preference. But the pacing for me ramped up and reflected her growing addictions and internal struggles, as well as the nature of military life and war. A lot of the things you hated resonated with me, and I had to remind myself that not everyone has a real world understanding of how hectic and sporadic war is. If you don't like the book, that's your own thing, but to feel personally attacked and to feel you need to hold a grudge is ridiculous and childish. Also, historically, there was a lot more in this book than just the rape of nanking. In fact, this book was littered with culture and history if you're familiar with it, or willing to do the research. To actually get across the atrocity that was the rape of nanking, unit 731, and the like, you kind of have to go there. The pit in my stomach reading it was similar to the feeling I got when I first read about those atrocities years ago. Seemed to me like she hit the nail on the head. Last thing, bombs could've been hidden under the saltpeter, in which case, the saltpeter acting as an oxidizer may have increased explosive yield. I'll have to do more research on the subject myself. Hope you give it another chance for what it actually is.

[@chrisslade163]

FYI, did a little google search. You can make Saltpeter explosive by adding sugar to make a "poor man's gunpowder". Just so you know.

[@ivymuse]

Or maybe I just didn't enjoy a book you liked. Get over it 😉

[@chrisslade163]

@@ivymuse all entitled to our own opinions, just caught me off guard with what seemed like vitriol. To each their own, cheers.

[@gabeschatz7440]

There’s a great story in there somewhere, it just needed a few more rounds of developmental editing. Wasted potential smh

[@Tareltonlives]

That's a shame: I wanted to read this book. It sounds pretty interesting by the premise.

[@theuniverseofthebookworm6660]

I was so disappointed by this book too, the first half of this book I loved! And it looked like it was going to be a 5 star read. But the second half... was just so bad, it was like it was written by a different author or she took her time with the first half and the second half she rushed to publish it on time. I nearly dnf’ed this book a few times but wanted to know what happens, it was really annoying that some of the characters just disappeared especially as a couple of them were my favourite characters 😪 , after chapter 21 I just hated it, I knew that that chapter was where all the warnings were about but I thought that the description of some things were a little much where it could of been used more efficiently in other parts of the book. I ended up rating it 3 stars....but that’s just because of how much I liked the first half haha. I’m glad I’m not the only one that loved the first half but not the second, a few ppl on booktube seem to agree but there are a lot of ppl who love it 🤷🏻‍♀️

[@marychapadillaochoa7182]

well I am glad you put that blurb at the beginning so I didn't have to watch the whole video

[@BernardoRangel]

Just DNF, can't understand why people love this . SOOOO bad

[@aneweliseonlife]

You and SFF180 are like the only two people who reviewed this beyond "OMG I loooved thiis" most people don't even explain why they loved it. I will not buy this book thanks to you and Thomas haha~ And you guys have similar points! The only reason I am still curious is because this is based on an era of history that doesn't get attention (in fact there are still people who deny it happened) and I am curious about how the author portrays it. (However it might make me even more critical when/if I read it!) Also as a student that uses Potassium nitrate to enrich my medium in my research, IT FEELS DIFFERENT FROM SALT. And it tastes nasty. Yeah - totally get why that would bug you haha~

[@PlotsAndPoints]

Great review, I agree with a lot of things you said! Now allow me to do a long-winded response comment! You are absolutely right about the pacing. I hated how much of the early parts of the book were just brushed over, and then the entire war scenario was just torn through at a break neck pace. This left so much actual world building in the dirt. I don't know what mugen's issue is, why are they so evil? Why are they trying to massacre ikara? How can a country that has been prepping for war against mugen for 20 years be so laughably I'll-prepared to actually have a war?? The strategy classes just annoyed me because all the strategy parts were just lifted word for word from Sun Tzus The Art of War (even though they rename it to something else) and that just struck me as lazy. I hated the 'magical boy squad' that came in half way through,they were so cheesy it just clashed so hard against this brutal war landscape she was trying to write. Why have this long set-up of kids being thrust into a war they aren't ready for if the story you really want to tell is about a magical boy gang fighting other magical beings? The war was sidelined hard. A lot of the book is built around subversion I think. The keju is hyped as being so so difficult but then it turns out you can ace it with a couple of months of memorization... Ugh There were a lot of flaws with this book and I don't see how they've all been so overlooked by the people reviewing it. I did like the second half as a whole more than the first half but you're absolutely right it wastes a lot of potential.

[@ivymuse]

PREACH. I agree with everything you said haha it definitely seems like the author didn't know what it was that she actually wanted to write about!

[@WayOverBooked]

I really didn't like this either 🤣

[@Mary-fy8qi]

Agreed so much I don't understand the hype. At all.

[@rbkstrm]

Feels like you missed that Kuang wrote a fantasy drama not a political fantasy. To me it dose work. It pictures a world without internet going in to war, how would/could the word spread faster then the army paving their way to the capital though? Rib goes to war, ppl change after that. Can’t believe you didn’t bring up ptsd. Dislike granted

[@astroneatly9989]

Not my cup of tea, afterall.

[@jarret45]

What is your nationality, luv?

[@louiseliu407]

GURL LEARN GEOGRAPHY! SPEAR AINT KOREA ------ ITS MORE LIKE HONG KONG... AND JAPAN AND KOREA IS NOT IN SE ASIA.... please... do better research because Korea has nothing to do with the Opium Wars in fact you need to re-learn history

[@EpikStorm101]

Speer is closest to Taiwan but only barely. Ankhiluun is analogous to Hong Kong. Also Korea was under Japanese occupation during the Second Sino-Japanese War which is the War that the Third Poppy War is based on. And lastly Japan and Korea are considered southeast asian.

[@louiseliu407]

@@EpikStorm101 Damn this was a long time ago - I was quite cringe then. I see your point about WW2, but Japan and Korea are part of East Asia, not SE.

[@JambleBramble]

Nooo it's super dark and deep and stuff! You just don't like sad stuff!! /s

[@star-nc3pq]

arent u white 😟

[@louiseliu407]

GURL learn geography it aint SE Asia

[@brookelawrence6740]

It’s not, but the Japanese army did also terrorize parts of Southeast Asia. My family was very impacted by events similar to those described in this book. So I don’t think she was thinking of that when she said Southeast Asia, but I do think the book is also based on events that happened in Southeast Asia.

[@Alithia451]

You are too young for this, better stay with Throne of Glass.

[@morrigan7454]

2 words : FAKE reviews... That's what amazon is. Fake reviews from friends, followers and family. It's stupidly wrong.

[@blith7021]

Aw, I actually liked this book :( but to each their own ig