Uploaded December 2023 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

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Welcome to Discovery December! We're looking at fantasy books NOT set in the common European setting. This is the Poppy War, set in a fantasy China!

This is a brilliant, award winning trilogy with strong ties to real history. Though it can be pretty grimdark at times too

We look at the story outline, morally grey characters, and the big magic in these books. And we do a deep dive into the real history behind these events.

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0:00 Intro
0:53 The Elephant in the Room – It's Grimdark! Not Young Adult
1:55 The Concept
3:05 Worldbuilding A Fantasy China
6:04 Characters
8:18 Plotlines
11:35 Absolutely Incredible Writing
13:43 The Real History Behind the Fantasy
20:57 Why is Poppy War often misunderstood as YA?
24:02 Representation
24:54 Content Warning
25:35 Is the Ending Worth it?
25:56 How much should you try?
26:24 Outro