R.F. Kuang Collection 5 Books Set (The Poppy War, The Dragon Republic, The Burning God, Babel and Yellowface)

This five-book collection brings together novels by R. F. Kuang: The Poppy War, The Dragon Republic, The Burning God, Babel and Yellowface. The set spans stories of ambition, power and consequence, from an Oxford centred on the Royal Institute of Translation to an empire shaped by war, betrayal and shifting alliances.

Across the included titles, the source text introduces characters facing pivotal turning points: an orphan brought from Canton to England and drawn into Babel’s world; a student whose unexpected success in the Keju changes her future; and a survivor driven by revenge, sacrifice and the aftermath of conflict. The collection also includes a contemporary premise in which a writer seizes an opportunity after witnessing a rival’s sudden death.

Included titles

• The Poppy War
• The Dragon Republic
• The Burning God
• Babel
• Yellowface

Key details

• Five-book set
• Titles by R. F. Kuang
• Includes Babel, Yellowface and The Poppy War trilogy

Synopses

Babel

Oxford, 1836 is presented as a centre of knowledge and progress, with Babel, the Royal Institute of Translation, at its heart. The tower is described as the source of the Empire’s power. Orphaned in Canton and taken to England by a mysterious guardian, Robin Swift sees Babel as a paradise.

The Poppy War

Rin’s success in the Keju, a test used to identify the Empire’s most talented students, shocks those around her. Officials doubt a war orphan from Rooster Province could pass without cheating, while her guardians had planned to marry her off for profit. For Rin, the result signals freedom from a life of servitude.

The Dragon Republic

Haunted by the choices she made to save her people, Rin lives for revenge against the Empress who sold her homeland to its enemies. She is forced into an alliance with the Dragon Warlord as part of a plan to unseat the Empress.

The Burning God

After saving Nikan from foreign invaders and fighting Empress Su Daji in a brutal civil war, Fang Runin is betrayed and left for dead. Despite her losses, Rin remains committed to those she has sacrificed for, including the people of the southern provinces and Tikany, the village she calls home.

Yellowface

When failed writer June Hayward sees her rival Athena Liu die in a freak accident, she takes the opportunity that follows. The source text describes her decision to steal Athena’s final manuscript and to ‘borrow’ her identity.