by R. F. Kuang
The exciting end to The Poppy War trilogy, R. F. Kuang's acclaimed, award-winning epic fantasy that combines the history of twentieth-century China with a gripping world of gods and monsters, to devastating, enthralling effect.
After saving her nation of Nikan from foreign invaders and battling the evil Empress Su Daji in a brutal civil war, Fang Runin was betrayed by allies and left for dead.
Despite her losses, Rin hasn't given up on those for whom she has sacrificed so much—the people of the southern provinces and especially Tikany, the village that is her home. Returning to her roots, Rin meets difficult challenges—and unexpected opportunities. While her new allies in the Southern Coalition leadership are sly and untrustworthy, Rin quickly realizes that the real power in Nikan lies with the millions of common people who thirst for vengeance and revere her as a goddess of salvation.
Backed by the masses and her Southern Army, Rin will use every weapon to defeat the Dragon Republic, the colonizing Hesperians, and all who threaten the shamanic arts and their practitioners. As her power and influence grows, though, will she be strong enough to resist the Phoenix's intoxicating voice urging her to burn the world and everything in it?
The exciting end to The Poppy War trilogy, R. F. Kuang's acclaimed, award-winning epic fantasy that combines the history of twentieth-century China with a gripping world of gods and monsters, to devastating, enthralling effect.
After saving her nation of Nikan from foreign invaders and battling the evil Empress Su Daji in a brutal civil war, Fang Runin was betrayed by allies and left for dead.
Despite her losses, Rin hasn't given up on those for whom she has sacrificed so much—the people of the southern provinces and especially Tikany, the village that is her home. Returning to her roots, Rin meets difficult challenges—and unexpected opportunities. While her new allies in the Southern Coalition leadership are sly and untrustworthy, Rin quickly realizes that the real power in Nikan lies with the millions of common people who thirst for vengeance and revere her as a goddess of salvation.
Backed by the masses and her Southern Army, Rin will use every weapon to defeat the Dragon Republic, the colonizing Hesperians, and all who threaten the shamanic arts and their practitioners. As her power and influence grows, though, will she be strong enough to resist the Phoenix's intoxicating voice urging her to burn the world and everything in it?
Reviews-
-
June 1, 2020
Kuang wraps up her Compton Crook Award-winning, Nebula and Locus Award-nominated, multi-best-booked "The Poppy War" trilogy with heroine Rin, a war orphan-turned-military leader with shamanic powers, retreating to the southern provinces from whence she came. Amassing an army of common folks who see her as their savior during civil war, can she defeat the Dragon Republic, the colonizing Hesperians, and the voice of the Phoenix begging her to burn down the world?
Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
-
August 24, 2020
Kuang’s Poppy War series, the saga of a young shaman fighting to bring the old gods back to her homeland, comes to a striking close in this gritty finale (after The Dragon Republic). Nikaran shaman Fang “Rin” Runin, now a part of the rebel Southern Coalition, leads troops to clear out the remaining rogue Mugen invaders whose own homeland Rin destroyed earlier in the wars. But the bigger threat to Rin comes in the form of her former colleagues in the northern Republican Army. The Republicans plan to turn her over to their western allies, the Hesperians, who hope to use their advanced technology and devout monotheism to disprove the existence of Rin’s gods altogether. To win the war once and for all, Rin must ally herself with the monsters who once betrayed Nikara—and avoid becoming a monster herself. Kuang pointedly underlines the ambiguous moral choices and personal costs of the path toward victory and lasting peace, sparing neither characters nor readers from the horrors and consequences of war. The result is a satisfying if not happy end to the series. Agent: Hannah Bowman, Liza Dawson Assoc. -
Starred review from October 1, 2020
Having defeated the empress and escaped the dragon warlord at the end of The Dragon Republic (2019), Rin is attempting to gather an army to overthrow the remnants of the foreign forces occupying the Southern Provinces, freeing the people to rebel and march on the newly formed republic. The leaders of the Southern Coalition have no love for the eastern warlords, but they also have no respect for a young girl and plan to use her powers as many so-called allies have before. Rin needs others like herself?those who can draw on the power of a god to destroy indiscriminately. She could align herself with the three most powerful shamans who ever lived, but their motivations are suspicious. Her other recourse is to train fledglings in the shamanistic arts and convince them to work with her before they succumb to the same pain and eventual madness, as she did. Rin is so obsessed with battles and victory that she has no time to consider what comes in the aftermath of war. Bringing her complex Poppy War trilogy to a poignant conclusion, Kuang shines a searing light on the devastating price and valiant sacrifices that warfare requires of all involved.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.) -
November 15, 2020
In the final installment of the Poppy War trilogy, a warrior shaman resolves to seize control of her homeland from enemies far and near, no matter the cost. Having suffered severe losses and betrayals, Rin rallies the Southern Coalition in an effort to defeat the Mugenese troops still in Nikan, the president of the Nikara Republic, and the foreign menace of the Hesperians, with their almost unimaginably advanced technology. But a southern army is not enough, and Rin must also rely on the unpredictable powers of her wild god, the Phoenix, and form a risky alliance with the Trifecta that once ruled Nikan. Drawing heavily on 20th-century Chinese history, Kuang continues to explore familiar themes--including imperialism, racism, colorism, and the terrible and long-lasting effects of war--while deepening Rin's portrayal, as Rin experiences moments of heartfelt sympathy and connection with others while also continually seeking power and succumbing over and over to her own hubris and paranoia. This installment dwells heavily on the devastating realities of war and the costs of leading a nation in crisis but does not sink into overly grotesque meditations--or perhaps we, along with Rin, have become desensitized and hardened. Ultimately, despite the epic scope of the plot, the novel hinges on the relationships between Rin and those closest to her: A nation may rise or fall and thousands may lose their homes or starve in the process, but their fate depends not on magic from the divine plane but on simple, fallible people. A dark and devastating conclusion that transcends its roots in historical fact to examine brutal truths. (Map, Dramatis Personae)COPYRIGHT(2020) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
-
Booklist (starred review)
"Kuang has crafted a story that is truly epic in nature, making this trilogy one of the best epic fantasies of the past decade." — Tor.com
"Bringing her complex Poppy War trilogy to a poignant conclusion, Kuang shines a searing light on the devastating price and valiant sacrifices that warfare requires of all involved." — Booklist (starred review)
"An incredible end to this epic trilogy. Mixing historical parallels of Chinese history, the themes of war, politics, and colonialism are balanced with terrific, flawed characters and amazing worldbuilding." — Library Journal (starred review)
"The Burning God is an excellent book, and the trilogy as a whole is a masterpiece. Decades from now, I'm sure that R.F. Kuang's Poppy War trilogy will prove to be one of the most influential fantasy series of the modern era." — Grimdark Magazine
"A dark and devastating conclusion that transcends its roots in historical fact to examine brutal truths." — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"The Burning God is a triumph....It is a spectacular work—perhaps my favourite release of 2020." — Fantasy Hive
"Kuang's Poppy War series, the saga of a young shaman fighting to bring the old gods back to her homeland, comes to a striking close in this gritty finale." — Publishers Weekly
"A wholly unique experience." — Washington Post on The Poppy War
"It feels nostalgic, wistful even ... The Burning God is the best-written book of the trilogy ... This place and this protagonist are singular in fantasy literature." — Book Marks
