The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang

This story seems to combine mythology with history.  The setting seems to be countries like Japan and China.   The Nikara being the Chinese and the Federation of Mugen being the Japanese.   The book depicts a war and its participants including gods.

The focus of the story is Rin who hopes to carve a new life by becoming a warrior.  To do so she must pass a test to get to the military academy.   She meets Altan who is the last of his race, the Speerlies.  

There is a wealth of action and introspection.   It seems like all of the characters want to self analyze, almost to distraction.   Rin’s experiences are colored by her impoverished background.   The military school is not what she expected and she is taught things she had never imagined.

Hatred is explored and with it the blindness that allows inhumane bigotry.

This was a thought provoking book while still being entertaining.

I recommend it.

Web: https://rfkuang.com/

This book may have been received free of charge from a publisher or a publicist. That will NEVER have a bearing on my recommendations.