Backlist Review: The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kuang
Synopsis:
The war is over.
The war has just begun.
Three times throughout its history, Nikan has fought for its survival in the bloody Poppy Wars. Though the third battle has just ended, shaman and warrior Rin cannot forget the atrocity she committed to save her people. Now she is on the run from her guilt, the opium addiction that holds her like a vise, and the murderous commands of the fiery Phoenix—the vengeful god who has blessed Rin with her fearsome power.
Though she does not want to live, she refuses to die until she avenges the traitorous Empress, who betrayed Rin’s homeland to its enemies. Rin’s only hope is to join forces with the powerful Dragon Warlord, who plots to conquer Nikan, unseat the Empress, and create a new republic. But the Empress and the Dragon Warlord are not what they seem. The more Rin witnesses, the more she fears her love for Nikan will force her to use the Phoenix’s deadly power once more.
Because there is nothing Rin won’t sacrifice to save her country…and exact her vengeance.
I tried not to reveal too many details of the plot, but proceed with caution if you don’t want any spoilers!
Gird your loins, this book is intense. And I loved it.
“People will seek to use you or destroy you. If you want to live, you must pick a side. So do not shirk from war, child. Do not flinch when from suffering. When you hear screaming, run toward it.”
Usually, with a trilogy, there’s the dreaded second book syndrome; where the next book in the series falls flat after an exciting beginning, and doesn’t quite do justice to the explosive denouement. That is definitely not the case here. The Dragon Republic has everything that I loved in the first book: magic, worldbuilding, and amazing characters; but it also ratchets things up several notches.
Rin is reeling from her actions at the end of The Poppy War. With Altan gone, she’s the new commander of the Cike—the special branch of the Nikaran military for shamans—and she’s woefully unprepared. For one thing, she’s still struggling to control the powers that have been granted to her by the Phoenix, a vengeful god of fire that lusts after absolute chaos. Not only that, she becomes addicted to opium in an effort to quell the overwhelming grief and guilt that threaten to engulf her.
“She was afraid that if she stopped feeling angry, she might crack apart.”
This is a completely different Rin than we see in the first book. She’s come out of this war broken, and angry, and scared. She makes one horrible decision after the other, to the point where you almost want to pick her up and shake her. But what makes Rin such a good character is because she is so deeply flawed. You have to remind yourself that she’s only twenty years old. She’s the last of her people. She’s seen terrible things, she’s done terrible things, and she’s had terrible things done to her. Her descent into opium addiction is realistic. I would warn readers to proceed with caution though, because like most things in this series, it’s hard to read.
Again, Kuang’s strength here are the characters, and the relationships that develop between them. Rin and Kitay’s friendship endures so much, but their loyalty to one another is so endearing.
“But eventually, you'll have to ask yourself precisely what you're fighting for. And you'll have to find a reason to live past vengeance.”
The plot of the book isn’t as fast-paced as it was in The Poppy War. Kuang takes her time getting all the pieces together. The focus here is on political strategy. While there are still amazing battle scenes, rife with action and magic, the highlight is definitely the dynamic between Rin and the Dragon Warlord, Yin Vaisra, who rescues her from her drug addiction, and uses her destructive powers to consolidate his power in Nikan.
The events of the book are taken directly from the Chinese Civil War, between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party. The arrival of the Hesperians, who hope to colonize—read “civilize”—the Nikarans is a direct reference to European imperialism in China. Kuang does an excellent job of balancing out the exposition with her haunting prose, although the pacing of the book tends to drag a bit in the beginning, The twists and turns the story takes definitely keep you on your toes. And that ending is one of the most amazing, infuriating cliffhangers I’ve ever read!
TW: Violence, murder, war, genocide, self-harm, drug abuse and addiction, torture, rape, human experimentation, racism, colorism, sexism, PTSD, depression, genital mutilation, colonization.