A review by hailstorm3812
The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kuang

dark emotional tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

If the first book is about what you can do to fellow people by dehumanizing them, this is about the atrocities you can do even while you know their humanity personally. While this book didn't make me dry heave like the last, it arguably cuts deeper since it's all personal. I was extremely stressed while reading this book, which was purposeful but makes it harder to read. I did love what they did with Venka. I think she was kind of used as a prop in the last book but this book gave her something to do
and sets her up in an interesting place for the next. I do think killing off so many characters towards the end leaves us for a rough time in the beginning of the next but we'll see how that is handled.
I loved Rin's arc as well. Overall this book is a lot of horrid drudgery and darkness but used to good effect.
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