Monday, November 9, 2020

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: The Burning God by R.F. Kuang

 



The Burning God is the third and final book in R.F. Kuang's "Poppy War" trilogy, which began with The Poppy War in 2018 (which I reviewed here) and continued in last year's The Dragon Republic (reviewed here).  The trilogy has been one of the most remarkable things I've read in the past few years - a brutal fantasy tale based heavily upon the events in China in the early 20th century, beginning with the Sino-Japanese Wars and continuing with events relating to China's colonization by forces of the West.  And I do mean brutal - this story is absolutely not afraid to go deep into fantasy versions of historical atrocities and then some, although it has never been gratuitous and always for creating a fascinating dark story of a girl from nothing (and others) driven to madness and destruction. 

Kuang has said in interviews that the trilogy's protagonist Fang Runin is a fantasy take on Mao, and as such, The Burning God takes the story in that direction....sort of.  It's an absolutely tremendous trilogy-ender, even if it didn't quite fully work in the middle third, with the story taking on serious themes of occupation and colonization, the brutal costs of war and the impossibility of rebuilding, and what is left for a person in the world after all the horrible acts they may have committed.  And of course, the story tackles the cycles of love and hate, with its two trios of characters finally getting their resolutions.  It's an incredible work, one in which people could probably write essays, but well, I'm just doing this review.  Let's give it a shot.

Note: This review is based upon an ARC that I won off a Goodreads giveaway, so it's possible that there were some minor alterations to the text in the final version.  Nothing I can do about that, and it's unlikely to affect my review, but fair warning.    

TRIGGER WARNING: Mass Death, Graves, Executions, and more atrocities are committed off and sometimes on page here, although any rape that is mentioned is off page and nowhere near as prevalent as in prior volumes.  But if you've gotten through the first two books with their far harsher content, you'll be okay here.

Spoilers for the first two books follow.

--------------------------------------------------Plot Summary-----------------------------------------------------
Betrayed by one of the only two people she loves,, Fang "Rin" Runin is once again starting from nothing.  Having returned with Kitay to the Southern Provinces, the lands where she grew up, Rin is forced once again to work with self-centered warlords, as she roots out the remaining Mugenese forces that have made camp in her nation of Nikan - forces who have nowhere to go since Rin destroyed their home.  But Rin knows that this is just a distraction from the real threat: The Dragon Warlord, his son and Rin's former friend Nezha, and the Hesperian forces who they have allied with - and who seek to colonize and change Nikan permanently.  It is only a matter of time before they come for the South...but the warlords in charge of the land are too afraid to do anything about it.  

But Rin and Kitay soon discover that it is no longer the warlords she needs to convince, but the people of the South themselves, people who have been beaten and oppressed in first the invasion and then the civil war...but who are far from broken.  The Hesperians may have the better technology and the bette provisioned army, but there is a great power in the masses, if Rin can find a way to wield them.  And that power could be enhanced if Rin takes advantage once more of the power of Shamans, both those long since thought lost to the past...and those who can newly tap into the power of the pantheon.

In the end, Rin will wield all the power she can gather, no matter how destructive, in her attempt to save Nikan.  But what if anything will be left among the ashes?
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The Burning God is the end of this trilogy, and where things really come around full circle to their conclusion.  So readers will expect to see the final conflict between Rin, Kitay and Nezha; between Rin and the Hesperians, etc.  What they may not have expected is that this book is just as much about the conclusion of the stories of the past as well: namely the Trifecta:  The Empress/Vipress, The Gatekeeper, and The Dragon Emperor.  Past books have given us glimpses of the first two (The Vipress was of course a major antagonist of Rin's and The Gatekeeper her mentor) and it always felt like The Dragon Emperor needed to return at some point, but I'll admit I kind of felt that point had passed: but no, it hasn't, and we will finally know the truth behind it all here.  After all the past, present and future are related, and as this series has made clear, these things have gone in cycles, despite the efforts of the many people involved to break them and forge a better future.

This is of course, the primary struggle for Rin, who has once again found herself betrayed by Nezha (last book), the only other person besides maybe Kitay she has ever loved (honestly Nezha had the closest thing to a romantic relationship with her that Rin has ever had).  Returning to the land of her birth only emphasizes to her what a fool she has been for trusting the Dragon Warlord while her own people suffered, and only makes it more frustrating when the remaining warlords leading the Southern Provinces refuse to give her forces to make a move.  Rin may have the Phoenix under control thanks to her bond with Kitay, but she still lies on the verge of madness thanks to the constant betrayals and horrors she has seen, and how she has so much power and yet so little ability to stop further horrors from occurring.  The Mugenese and their collaborator allies inside their conquered Nikan villages and the Hesperians with their advanced technology and their refusal to consider the Nikan people as potential equals (and their insistence upon bringing in their Christian-like religion) are clear forces of evil - who would attempt to change Rin's people into their own images (and still oppress them all the same), which makes Rin's desperation all the more palpable.

Rin, Kitay, and the other characters here all come together to form this book's major plot arc, which as usual for this series hits on some heavy themes - although the freshest new theme is well: how do you handle the aftermath of it all?  When so many people had decided to survive by working with and under their oppressors and openly collaborating?  When the oppressor's did indeed bring better technology and advancements to your people?  And when the results of war leave the countryside bare and plagued by famine and underpopulation, where the only ways to survive are to reach out to the enemies one has just defeated?  Rin has been at her best, a conquerer and destroyer - never a peacetime leader - but to save her people, she may have to get rid of all of those who could lead the land in peacetime...putting the burden on her own shoulders.  And the results are almost as horrifying sometimes as the wars she has fought themselves.  One could write some serious essays about the themes in this book (and some of the dialogue within it) and how it addresses issues in today's world....and how much of it corresponds to what actually happened with China.  

If the book has a weakness it's in the middle act, in which the story of the Trifecta is resolved, which just doesn't have the impact it seemingly should after two books and a greater story in the present - and leads to a shift in power that just feels abrupt and silly?  There's also one running plotline early on then recurs in the final few chapters that is never really explained* which is just awkward.  But the book comes around from these parts to end in devastatingly effective fashion.  

*Spoiler in ROT13: Rneyl ba Armun fbzrubj znantrf gb trg n zrffntr vagb ure pnzc, pynvzvat gb unir Eva'f byq oebgure naq nethvat gung ur jvyy znxr crnpr vs fur gheaf urefrys bire sbe uvz.  Gur oebgure vf urneq nobhg ntnva, naq nsgre Eva vf orgenlrq, guvf zlfgrel vf qebccrq hagvy gur irel raq, jura Armun ntnva fgnegf fbzrubj trggvat zrffntrf vagb ure pnzc qrfcvgr orvat ba na vfynaq sne njnl va rffragvnyyl rkvyr, pnhfvat penml cnenabvn (naq bar zber ryrzrag bs gentrql)...naq jr fgvyy qba'g trg na rkcynangvba sbe ubj Armun znantrq vg nyy.  

So yeah, The Burning God isn't perfect, but it is an absolutely tremendous conclusion to an absolutely tremendous series, one which will stay with me for a long time.  Highly recommended.
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