Brief Summary: Rin just didn’t want to be forced to marry a gross guy and finds herself in the midst of a war.
Review
Setting
The Poppy War takes place in a fantasy land that are, to a point, modeled after Asian countries’ history and cultures. It’s told in third person limited point of view. This book is not incredibly detailed as far as setting goes. The author gives enough information to have an idea of the place and setting. Personally, this is a preference of mine. There are times where a lot of detail is beneficial but with this book, it makes sense that it’s not describing every stone in a building.
Characters
The main character is Rin, a gal who is just trying to get a better life than the ones her adoptive parents have charted out for her. Her adoptive parents are awful, by the way, and do not have her best interest at heart. Rin is a tough gal and she acts it. She will punch people in the face and….often does. Rin is a great main character. I felt myself wanting to root for her even when her motivations weren’t the greatest (in my eyes).
There are a lot of characters but the author does a good job of focusing on a handful throughout the book. The majority of characters are fleshed out with multiple dimensions to them. For example, I despised Nezha at the beginning of the book but later on, he is more fleshed out and goes through a type of redemption.
Plot
This is a fast paced book. From Rin taking the test to get into Sinegard to all her school years to going to war – a lot of time passes by. This book, if the scenes were expanded or more detail present, could have been split up into three separate books. While the book certainly kept me interested, there were a few times I wished the pace was a little bit slower and we could get more scenes of Rin’s schooling and her interacting with specific characters (such as Kitay and later on, Nezha). Now, this isn’t to say I didn’t enjoy the book, I did! For me being in a reading slump not very long ago, I finished this book in a week. (That’s fast for me even getting out of a reading slump.)
Because of the pace, there are multiple plotlines which interweave through the book.
Overall
I do plan on continuing this series. I recommend this book for those who love fantasy and like fast paced action.
May you get lost in a book,
Chrissy