I’ll give thoughts on each book in the trilogy without spoiling anything for you.
The Poppy War
The Poppy War was a mixed bag. It started out reading like a YA novel, had I not been in a group read I would have DNF’d it about 40% in. Not that there’s anything wrong with YA, it’s just not my cup of tea. About halfway through the book takes a pretty dark turn. It goes from YA to grimdark in about 5 seconds. The second half was violent, disturbing and action packed. The fact that it’s based off of historical events makes it even more disturbing. By the end of the book I was feeling better about the series and the second half of this book will really stick with you.
The Dragon Republic
In the first few pages of the Dragon Republic I had a good feeling about the book. The tone appealed to me right away. This book is full of action, military tactics, double crosses and lore. I know a lot of people don’t enjoy characters they deem unlikable, but those are the types of characters I read for. If a character does everything right and doesn’t develop, what’s the point? I want a character who struggles, makes mistakes and evolves. I’ve read reviews that complain about Rin being awful and unlikable, but because of the things she’s gone through of course she’s going to react to certain situations or take actions that don’t always make sense.
I don’t know that I’d call myself a fan of military fantasy, but I loved every minute of it here. Maybe it was because some of these tactics were used in history, but I found all of it captivating. The action scenes are some of the best I’ve read, from start to finish this one had my attention and it was one of my favorite reads of 2021.
The Burning God
The Burning God is probably my least favorite entry in the series. I had a really great feeling about the second book, I had a really bad feeling pretty fast going into this one. The tone and feel just seemed off and disconnected. Everything felt drawn out and a good third of the book felt unnecessary and a slog to get through. While I still enjoyed learning about Rin, some of the choices that were made and things that happened didn’t make sense. Going off of the standards that were set with the first two books, it felt like a different world with different rules and expectations. I felt like the climax was fitting, but it was rough getting there especially after being so pleased with The Dragon Republic. Yeah, I said it.
Overall:
Looking back on the series and having some time to process it I’m glad I read it. Overall I think it’s worth reading if you have thought about reading it and enjoy characters that some readers deem unlikable. It’s not the best series, but if you’re looking for something different to read or if it’s been on your list for a while. There are better fantasy series out there and while there are highs and lows it was still a fun ride.
