Here’s a short summary of The Poppy War:
Rin is a soldier, hardened by war and suffering, who is out in an army that cares nothing about her. Training all her life to become a scholar-soldier, Rin enters a new military school in ancient Asia, meanwhile dealing with the devils of the battlefield and the devils in her mind.
Here's a short review of the novel:
This book was possibly the highest rated book of all the ones in this list specifically because it is so realistic. Rin starts off, as many things do, innocent and naive with nothing in her head besides pretty, warfare-like books until she is faced with the actual horrors and pains of her war. In the instance of this book, I found everything about it so encompassing, like a snap of one’s fingers or a ding of a bell that begged for my attention. I would definitely reread this book again, hoping for more insight on this surprisingly historically accurate novel mixed with some fantasy.