The Poppy War, R. F. Kuang (3.0)
I was a bit disappointed with this book, given how well this has been rated by many people. The premise was familiar: an orphan fights to get into a special school where they are ridiculed, unfamiliar with the basics but ultimately are the most special of students. The magic of the book is unique – with some having the ability access the power of ‘gods’. But the plot parallels the history of the Japanese invasions of China with the stereotypes intact. I found myself less interested after the students graduate and go to war. The fighting was continuous, brutal and hard to follow on the macro-scale. I was pleased that the author didn’t go the way of R. Yarros with copious amounts of sex thrown into the story, but I doubt I’ll read parts II and III.
