In the aftermath of the Third Poppy War, shaman and warrior Rin is on the run: haunted by the atrocity she committed to end the war, addicted to opium, and hiding from the murderous commands of her vengeful god, the fiery Phoenix. Her only reason for living is to get revenge on the traitorous Empress who sold out Nikan to their enemies.
With no other options, Rin joins forces with the powerful Dragon Warlord, who has a plan to conquer Nikan, unseat the Empress, and create a new Republic. Rin throws herself into his war. After all, making war is all she knows how to do.
But the Empress is a more powerful foe than she appears, and the Dragon Warlord’s motivations are not as democratic as they seem. The more Rin learns, the more she fears her love for Nikan will drive her away from every ally and lead her to rely more and more on the Phoenix’s deadly power. Because there is nothing she won’t sacrifice for her country and her vengeance.
The sequel to R.F. Kuang’s acclaimed debut THE POPPY WAR, THE DRAGON REPUBLIC combines the history of 20th-century China with a gripping world of gods and monsters, to devastating effect.
Omg!!!!! I have this pre-ordered and was going to read with my group and reread first one. I will just reread them ALL later! Netgalley came through!! I almost fell over!! So it’s on baby!
REVIEW:
DAMN! DAMN! DAMN! DAMN! That ending! DAMN! DAMN! DAMN!
This will be a short review. I'm not going to spoil anything but you can skim over some of the quotes as you might consider them as a spoiler.
The Dragon Republic starts out with a bang; right out of the gates as I like to say. Rin is messed the hell up! She's fighting Opium addiction and trying to control her power. I had so many moments that I felt for her, so many moments I wanted to strangle her for being so stupid and childish. But most of all, I loved watching her grow in this book. Rin went through some sh•t people. Not just Rin but her whole crew; whom I adored.
Trying to seek revenge on your enemies while fighting an opium addiction seemed damn near impossible and you could feel every moment with Rin. (at least I did) And trying to fight losing control of your powers.
This is what the balance of power looked like now. People like her waved a hand and millions were crushed within the confines of some elemental disaster, flung off the chessboard of the world like irrelevant pieces. People like her-shamans, all of them-were like children stomping around over entire cities as if they were mud castles, glass houses, fungible entities that could be targeted and demolished.
•••••
Once upon a time at Sinegard, back when Master Jiang had been trying to help her shut her mind to the Phoenix, he'd taught her techniques to clear her thoughts and disappear into a void that imitated nonexistence. He'd taught her how to think like she was dead.
•••••
Suni rubbed circles on her back while she spat blood-speckled phlem on the planks. When she was done, he smoothed her vomit-covered hair out of her eyes as she sucked in air in great, racking sobs.
"You're so strong," he said. "Whatever you're seeing, whatever you're feeling, it's not as strong as you are."
Rin has some wonderful friends but a world that is trying to tear her apart from the inside out.
Rin and her crew are trying to take down the evil Empress but they are getting swindled left and right. They end up with the Dragon Warlord trying to fight against others. People are killed, used, abused. Rin is lied to and watches innocent people die; watches people that she knows die. It seems like nothing is ever going to get better. BUT. There just might be a spark of hope in people she didn't even consider. There are things brewing. Will Rin and her people be able to bring the world down around the evilness. Wait and see.
Finally, spoke the Phoenix. The god's voice was dimmed by the Seal, but Rin could hear clearly every ring of its laughter. My darling little Speerly. At last we agree.
•••••
"They're are not the strongest force in the world," Rin said. She felt the god's presence in the back of her mind-eager, delighted, and at last perfectly aligned with her intentions.
Together, spoke the Phoenix, we will burn down this world.
She slammed down her fist against the table. "I am."
I think these books are wonderful and the author nailed it in both books so far. For me, there was no second book syndrome. No holds barred, an incredible tale of hate, war and friendship.
***This is an uncorrected proof of the book and any quotes will be changed if they are not correct in the finished copy. I would like to thank Netgalley and the Publisher for a digital copy of this wonderful book for review.***
Mel ♥
GOODREADS REVIEW
Oooooo this book sounds super interesting!
ReplyDeleteIt's super good! You have read the first book though =)
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