The Burning God

The Burning God is a grimdark fantasy novel by American writer R. F. Kuang and published by Harper Voyager on November 17, 2020, as the third and final installment in her Poppy War trilogy.

The Burning God

First edition
Author	R. F. Kuang
Audio read by	Emily Woo Zeller
Cover artist	Jung Shan Chang
Language	English
Series	Poppy War trilogy
Release number	3
Genre	Grimdark, High fantasy
Publisher	Harper Voyager
Publication date	November 17, 2020
Publication place	United States
Media type	Print, digital
Pages	640
ISBN	978-0062662620 (hardback)
OCLC	1141153867
Preceded by	The Dragon Republic

Background

The book was published on November 17, 2020, by Harper Voyager.^[1][2] R. F. Kuang states in an interview with Andrew Liptak that Rin is based on Mao Zedong.^[3] In the book, Rin is now the leader of the Southern Coalition, which is going to war with Vaisra.^[4]

Reception

According to Book Marks, the book received a "rave" consensus, based on eight critic reviews: five "rave" and three "positive".^[5]

Publishers Weekly called the book "a satisfying if not happy end to the series."^[6] Similarly, Kirkus Reviews called it "A dark and devastating conclusion."^[7] Booklist called the book "a poignant conclusion" and included the book on their list of the best science fiction, fantasy, and horror novels of 2021.^[8][9] Library Journal commented on the book, saying that it had "terrific, flawed characters, and amazing worldbuilding."^[10] Elsa Sjunneson reviewed the book and said that she was "frustrated by the depictions of disability in this book."^[11]

References

1. Charaipotra, Sona (September 11, 2020). "R.F. Kuang Wrangles Gods and Monsters". Publishers Weekly. PWxyz, LLC. Archived from the original on March 13, 2022. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
2. Liptak, Andrew (September 3, 2020). "The Major Science Fiction and Fantasy Books Arriving This Fall: New Star Wars, New Dune, a Ready Player One Sequel, and Tons of Originals". Polygon. Vox Media. Archived from the original on September 20, 2022. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
3. Liptak, Andrew (March 30, 2020). ""We Didn't Pull Any punches." R. F. Kuang on Her Next Novel, the Burning God". Tor.com. Macmillan Publishers. Archived from the original on March 13, 2022. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
4. Song, Krystal (December 17, 2020). "A Grimdark Fantasy: On R. F. Kuang's "The Burning God"". Los Angeles Review of Books. Archived from the original on March 13, 2022. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
5. "The Burning God". Book Marks. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
6. "The Burning God by R. F. Kuang". Publishers Weekly. PWxyz, LLC. August 4, 2020. Archived from the original on September 20, 2022. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
7. "The Burning God by R. F. Kuang". Kirkus Reviews. Kirkus Media. November 15, 2020. Archived from the original on September 20, 2022. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
8. Lockley, Lucy. Review: The Burning God by R. F. Kuang. American Library Association. Archived from the original on September 20, 2022. Retrieved September 18, 2022 – via Booklist.
9. Maguire, Susan (2021). Top 10 Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror. American Library Association. Archived from the original on September 20, 2022. Retrieved September 18, 2022 – via Booklist.
10. Chadwick, Kristi (November 1, 2020). "The Burning Godby R. F. Kuang". Library Journal. Media Source Inc. Archived from the original on September 20, 2022. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
11. Sjunneson, Elsa (February 18, 2021). "Elsa Sjunneson Reviews the Burning God by R. F. Kuang". Locus Online. Locus Magazine. Archived from the original on January 26, 2022. Retrieved March 13, 2022.

External links

• Excerpt on Tor.com