With the numerous themes wonderfully explored in the book, once I truly start talking about The Burning God, I risk writing a whole (very spoilery) thesis. It shattered my heart into a million tiny pieces, and it was, without a doubt, the most fitting end a series like The Poppy War could have. The Burning God was one of those really good books. But make sure you don’t have anything else on your calendar, because you won’t be able to put it down.You know you have read a really good book when all you can do when you sit down to write a review of it is stare at a blank document for hours, trying to remember how to make words and turn them into coherent sentences.
If you haven’t already finished the Poppy War trilogy, be sure to read The Burning God now. Kuang’s Poppy War trilogy will prove to be one of the most influential fantasy series of the modern era. Notwithstanding these minor quibbles, The Burning God is an excellent book, and the trilogy as a whole is a masterpiece. Also, when Rin trains new students in the magical arts, it seems way too easy for them to learn compared to how Rin had to learn in the first volume of the trilogy. Sometimes it helps characters access magical powers, and sometimes it prevents them from doing so. I tried to make sense of it, but ultimately gave up and decided to just go with the flow of the novel.Īlso, the role of opium in accessing the power of the gods is inconsistent. The geography as described in the book is inconsistent with the geography as depicted in the map. I know this is nitpicking, but I have just a few minor quibbles with The Burning God. Rin may be good at waging war, but like Mao she is completely inept as a post-war leader. The violence of the war is surpassed only by the misery and famine that the war leaves in its wake. Nezha and his father are stand-ins for Chiang Kai-Shek and the Nationalists. Rin is a stand-in for Communist leader Mao Zedong, coming from the peasant class and leading a revolution of the peasants against the aristocracy.
The plot parallels that of the Chinese Civil War. In The Burning God, the series reaches its emotional and violent climax. Rin is somehow a sympathetic character while simultaneously committing the most atrocious of war crimes. The characters are all deeply flawed, and the main protagonist, Rin, is an anti-hero of the highest caliber. She has reinvented grimdark fantasy with her magical world that parallels the real-world events in Chinese history, most notably the Opium Wars, World War II, and the Communist Revolution. Kuang has accomplished with the Poppy War trilogy. Kuang’s epic finale to her Chinese history-inspired Poppy War series, which began with The Poppy War and continued with The Dragon Republic.
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