Originally published at I Should Read That

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This is a spoiler-free review for The Dragon Republic, but will contain major spoilers for The Poppy War.

I’m very vocal about the fact that The Poppy War was my favourite book of 2018, so I was naturally extremely excited to dive into The Dragon Republic as soon as I could, but I was a little nervous. The second book in a trilogy is a difficult one to pull off, as it deals with the exciting aftermath of the first book and must set up the conclusion of the series. In addition, an author’s second book, especially following a splashy debut like The Poppy War, is a notoriously difficult one to write. Despite all of this, I am so pleased to say that The Dragon Republic is a fantastic sequel to an amazing debut novel.

One of the most outstanding aspects of The Poppy War was the way that Kuang used real events and atrocities from history to influence her story — at times it felt like I wasn’t reading fiction, because in a way I really wasn’t. The Dragon Republic does something similar, however it draws deep inspiration from colonialism. Much of the book deals with war and the aftermath of the war, of course, however a new layer is added as interfering missionaries from a distant land begin meddling in the politics of Nikan. As horrifically uncomfortable as it was, especially with the racist language and values depicted, I found this aspect of the book incredibly effective in opening up the world and making The Dragon Republic feel different from its predecessor.

There are many characters in this book, both old and new, that I’m dying to talk about but don’t want to spoil the fun for you guys. I will, however, say that Rin remains one of my favourite characters ever. Despite the fact that she committed actual genocide at the end of The Poppy War, I still find myself rooting for her. Much of this book deals with her trying to live with the fact that she has done such a horrible thing and her attempts to escape the memories of Altan that continue to haunt her after his death. She shows so much incredible character growth over the course of this book and it’s just so well done.

The Dragon Republic is a sequel that effortlessly follows in the footsteps of its hugely successful predecessor. Similar enough that fans of The Poppy War will love it, yet different enough that The Dragon Republic is firmly its own book, I cannot recommend it more highly.

CW: many of the warnings for the first book apply, but there is an on-page rape scene in this book. Because the author is our queen, she has publicized that this happens in the last three pages of chapter 28.