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

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

 Damn...I really, REALLY wanted to give this a full 10/10 score (5⭐), but I just can't. This whole trilogy, despite being one of the best I've read, is unfortunately locked away from a perfect rating because of its controversial historical basis (I'll briefly address it later.)

"You are a scared little girl reacting from anger and loss in the most short-sighted way possible. All you want is to get your revenge. But you could be so much more. Do so much more. Listen to me. You could change history."

Preview and/or Synopsis:
Fang Runin (Rin) is now on a constant struggle against the consequences of her atrocities, her current position as the Cike leader, and being the shaman of a vengeful god. Wanted with nowhere to hide, she stumbles upon Yin Vaisra (The Dragon Warlord.) He proposed to her about his plan on establishing a republic to thrust peace upon their war-razed country. Considering they have a common enemy, it was rational for her to aid in his military campaign and constitute the Dragon Republic.

The Good and The Bad:
Objectively, I couldn't asked for a better sequel. There's no denying that this was a perfect follow-up from the first book's narrative 🔝. It explored organically related themes like colonialism, geopolitics, war, prejudice, misogyny, religion, etc. It even portrayed the topic of drug use better than Six of Crows Duology. The characterizations, although on the weaker aspect, was an improvement. The members of the Cike had at least a single opportunity to shine themselves, Rin was the most compelling she'd ever been, the deuteragonists went through their respective character arcs, and there's now a direct presence of an antagonist. In short, it was an integral continuation and an overall upgrade.

HOLY HELL!!! Rin's character was portrayed excellently she does deserve this whole section of my review. I gonna say it — THIS BOOK FABRICATED ONE OF THE MOST NUANCED AND COMPLICATED FEMALE PROTAGONISTS IN FICTION. It's not perfect but she was close to it. We follow her struggling with raw insecurities, responsibilities, and expectations she's facing as ramifications. But knowing the costs of her actions doesn't mean it's easier. Her frustration and guilt were honest at such a young age...so of course she'll accept anything to at least unburden some liabilities (and unknowingly digging a deeper grave.) She's selfish and sometimes hypocritical, but that the point of her character. She learned to compose herself before achieving the satisfaction of self-amendment. The lessons and growth (especially about self-agency) was SO EMPOWERING. OMG IT'S SO GOOD!!! 😱😱😱 Rin was fine in the first book, but it's here where she shined best. It's a true testament of how a character was best at his/her weakest.

I think one underrated content of the series were R.F. Kuang's commentary about war or social subjects. These were often delivered as subtle philosophical debates of ideologies, or fleeting advices. I'll just give y'all a short list 📋:
1. About how weak men were easily controlled.
2. About the dynamic of political relationships.
3. About how killing the enemy brought victory but not peace.
4. About abortion and rape.
There's more for sure. Just read the book 'cause I ATE THEM UP!!!

The flaws were not much but they were still significant. First, the pacing was smooth and consistent...up until after half-way through where it slowed dramatically (as the plot actually changed focus. That justified, but still off.) It reverted back to its original pacing during the climax, but crawls down yet again during the aftermath. Second, there were too much characters only a handful barely avoid being superficial. I'm not talking about Rin and the deuteragonists, but rather the side characters/minor supporting characters. Many of deaths felt forced as if R.F. Kuang was attempting to surpass the sum shock value of The Poppy War. Also, there's more than enough female characters with motivations tied on rape. It appeared disrespectful and misogynistic from overuse. Lastly, UGH...the ending, AGAIN?!?!? Like the last book?!?!? Seriously WTF? 🤬🤬🤬 It literally butchered the whole growth of Rin's character (just like The Poppy War.) Like c'mon R.F. Kuang. However, taking consideration of the controversy I think I know why these books had closure issues.

The Poppy War Trilogy Controversy:
Yeah, I can't ignore this for too long if I wanted to finish the series and learn its basis/background. Basically, this Grimdark fantasy trilogy could be considered as a retelling of 20th century Chinese history 👲 with fresh renaming and a paint of mythos 🐲. For example: Japanese as The Federation of Mugen, Taiwan as the Island of Speerly, China as Nikan — you get the gist. It even extends to the characters and the overarching narrative. This must be the reason why the endings were odd/unsatisfactory because R.F. Kuang was orienting them to be somewhat historically accurate and sequential events. Honestly, this hurts the originality and authenticity of each plot 😞. This is fine for me (as of now) since I've limited knowledge regarding China's past and could still decently enjoy the fantastical novelty, but I do understand some people would be upset. Yup, it was confirmed that Rin was basically a reinterpretation of the infamous Mao Zhedong...so I'll see where this trilogy is heading on the finale.

Final Thoughts:
The Dragon Republic is book 2 in The Poppy War trilogy. Fundamentally speaking, this was a perfect sequel despite blemishes. I'll give R.F. Kuang some slacks since this was only her 2nd novel ever. My personal issue was that the controversy did vanquish some magic of the series...though it's my choice to enlightened over being ignorant of its inspirations.

Rating: Towards the middle of 9/10.