I feel as though this whole book's length could have been cut down by half and it would be a better book. Towards the middle, it started to really drag, and I think the whole novel could have benefitted with some paring down. That being said, the story gets better, darker, and more troubling as it goes along. The Poppy War provides a completely different perspective than I'm used to in the fantasy genre. It begs the question of how seemingly good people who have been wronged become the wrongdoers themselves. Watching Rin's quest for power and revenge causes the reader to look within themselves and really ask what they would do.