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Rating: ★★★★★ 4.75 stars
Genres: Grimdark, Historical Fantasy
Trigger warnings: war (violence and gore), drug use, rape
Synopsis:
“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.”
I started this book right after I finished TPW and I hadn’t yet sorted out my feelings about what happened in the first book, but I knew I was hooked on this series. The Dragon Republic is a major improvement in terms of the plot and characterization. The plot involves historical, mythological, geographical, and fantasy elements that Kuang blends together into a beautiful, riveting story. Kuang’s ability to weave tension into her plot and build it was done just as well as it was in TPW. I couldn’t stop turning the page and was left anticipating what was going to happen next after I finished every chapter.
I also think Kuang explored war, oppression, and revenge well in this book. She renders violence, as bloody and ruthless as it is, well and is able to demonstrate both the physical and psychological tolls of war on both those suffering from it and those fighting in it. I also really liked how she was able to mix in more Chinese history, specifically the Chinese civil war and the involvement of Western countries, into her plot without the historical aspects being too overbearing.
What really made this book so much better than TPW were the characters, who are full of passion, duty, and flaws. I loved how each of them, specifically Rin, Kitay, Nezha, and Venka, went from being naive and full of hope to the people they are now in the wake of war and tragedy. These characters became so much more fleshed out and it was really interesting to see how the relationships they had with each other. I can’t really talk more about the characters without going into spoiler territory, so their development will be discussed more deeply later on in this review!
However, I did feel like the relationship between Rin and the Cike was lacking in many ways. I was a little disappointed with how Kuang wrote the Cike in this book as they felt like a means to an end for the plot. They didn’t play that much of a big role, so it was hard for me to become attached to them. I would have really liked it if Rin developed a stronger relationship with them, but I understand how Kuang had to prioritize the relationships between Rin, Kitay, and Nezha. I also was not fond of how Kuang wrote off the rape scene. I understand it is an important element in demonstrating the Hesperians’ sense of entitlement and control, but the way the victim dismissed the rape did not sit well with me. The victim didn’t seem scared or concerned that it happened and I was like HUH?? But yeah :/
Overall, this book was such a wild ride of so many emotions that I was left speechless after it concluded. The plot, pacing, and characterization was a step higher than TPW and made this book so much more enjoyable. The Dragon Republic felt like a complete story from start to finish, and I am anticipating how Kuang will end this series with The Burning God [please don’t hurt my kids :( ]!
Character Rambling (with spoilers):
I LOVED Rin, Kitay, and Nezha’s complex, multidimensional narratives and their development was done so well and I have so many feelings about them!!
"She didn’t owe him her guilt. She didn’t owe him anything.”
Rin’s development!! Was!! So!! Great!! I really like how Kuang portrayed Rin’s opium addiction and her struggles with what she has done. I liked reading her journey of overcoming her addiction, her coming to terms with her actions, and discovering what revenge really means for her. I also loved seeing Rin becoming her own person and being able to control her god. One of the pivotal moments in her development was letting go of the guilt, shame, and rage over Altan’s death. She clung onto Altan and followed him because she admired and obsessed over him. They were one and the same: Speerlys who were the last of their people, who only had each other to rely on and share their history, pain, and suffering. But with Altan gone, Rin has to confront what she has done and who she wants to become. If she hadn’t let Altan go, he would have continued haunting her mind and preventing Rin from coming to terms with her actions and moving past her revenge. She needed to let go of him, to say “fuck Altan and his legacy and his expectations” and find closure with his death, her actions, and her revenge. It was so liberating to read how Rin finally let go of Altan and was able to find a reason to live beside revenge for Altan and Speer.
On another note, it’s really interesting how Rin knowingly puts herself in a submissive position with Vaisra, following and acting out his commands. I think it really important to consider how before Vaisra, Rin had two male figures in her life that left her in the end: Jiang and Altan. Rin was in an especially vulnerable position when Vaisra found her and offered her to fight for the Republic. It might have been naive of her to trust in him and not realize his interests might be elsewhere, but I think his ability to become a leading figure in her life was so important for her to regain her strength and develop some autonomy. At the end of the day, Rin is a soldier who is trained for war, and Rin didn’t want to confront (at the time) what she would be without the fighting, without the war. Vaisra offered her a purpose, but it was Rin who in the end found her reason to keep on fighting and living.
One other aspect I loved about Rin was how she dealt with losing the power to call the Phoenix. I think this was a really important wake up call to Rin to how she couldn’t depend on the Phoenix. Losing that ability showed her how much opium deteriorated her body, and that without the Phoenix, she was just as powerless as an ordinary citizen. It gave her the space to strengthen her mind and body and to learn to not be dependent on the power of her god.
“Now I can't figure out who’s right or wrong, and I’m the smart one, I’m always supposed to have the right answer, but I don’t.”
Chen Kitay. I honestly did not think much about him during TPW, but by the end of this book, I will protect him at all costs. I absolutely LOVE how complex his character is. Kitay went from being a lighthearted, naive kid who was enamored with learning more about the world to a war-hardened strategist. Kitay has gone through so much shit and it was hard to read how he kept his feelings and pain quiet and close. I especially loved how the friendship between Kitay and Rin further developed. Their devotion, their loyalty, and their love for one another was just *chef’s kiss*. Their support for one another, but also their ability to call each other out for their bullshit, demonstrated how they respect each other and how complex their relationship is. Also I am still crying about Kitay being Rin’s anchor! Rin was so against Kitay being involved with the gods because she felt like he was the only pure person left in this world, but Kitay realized himself he couldn’t be naive and trapped in his own bubble anymore. They’re best friends!! I love them so much!! We love best friends!! Please R.F. Kuang if you hurt him in The Burning God I’m gonna riot !!
“She wanted to kill him. All she wanted was to put him out of his pain. She couldn’t bear to look at him like this, screaming like it was never going to end. But she’d never forgive herself for that.”
Yin Nezha. My sweet, asshole son. I don’t know why but I have a thing for characters who are assholes but then learn from their mistakes and try to be better people. His characterization and development wasn’t the best, and I know for some it felt too abrupt or like he had a 180 degree character change. I don’t entirely agree with that, since we see the beginnings of his character change in TPW and TDR further showed his development into Rin’s friend and possible love interest. I really liked how Kuang shows the beginning of Nezha’s struggles with his own god and his morals. For his entire life, he has been raised for war; he is someone who is loyal to his blood and his family. However, we see him beginning to question whether what he has been taught and trained for his entire life is “right.” We see the beginnings of him finding his own thoughts and his own voice, and I really hope that we see more of his struggles and his development in the next book. His relationship with Rin is also so fucking complicated. They would do anything for each other and have saved each other from death multiple times in TDR. Yet they are at odds in terms of their viewpoints about the future of the country and the meaning of this war. Their hate and love for each other is further complicated by their own upbringing and their own trauma. But I think that without Rin, Nezha wouldn’t be the person he is today. I am really interested to see how Kuang will write about their relationship in the last book, and I am especially excited to see Rin kick Nezha’s ass.
Also shout out to my girl Venka! I already love how strong and daring she is. I can definitely see Kuang writing more about her in the next book so I am excited to see where her character goes!
- lian
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