Naomi Novik
collection of the first three novels in Naomi Noviks stunning Temeraire series, following the global adventures of Captain William Laurence and his fighting dragon Temeraire as they are thrown together to fight for Britain during the Napoleonic Wars.
Whatever you do, don't allow the highly cliche beginning of this book to deter you i, e. basic white man harnesses dragon and fights battles for his country, The brilliance of Temeraire comes from how the plot breaks away from its simple beginnings, subverting normative expectations, and truly explores the speculative element of humanly intelligent dragons.
I adore the Temeraire books, reading allin two months, However they do have some flaws: aspects are formulaic, character change
is sometimes slow, the plot is slack in places, few characters outside of Temeraire and Laurance are flushed out, and the ultimate trajectory of the series was not predetermined making the overarching plot at times meandering.
All in all, an excellent read especially for those who dislike colonialism and value relationships, The Napoleonic Wars is my favorite time era in Britian sp after the Victorian Era, so imagine my surprise when I found a book series that basically just adds dragons to it! I was hooked from chapter one! It was amazing! This particular book incorporates the first three books in the series.
I love the writing and the main character, Temeraire, He's an amazing dragon and I love what Naomi Novik has done with him and all the other dragons she created, I also love that his captain, Will Laurence, used to be a Navy man so that when he goes into harness with Temeraire he's just as new to the whole experience as the reader.
I look forward to the second half of this series, as it looks to be just as good, I would recommend this series to anyone who likes dragons, the Napoleonic Wars, or just a great fantasy/adventure series with a slight twist.
I enjoyed this book SO much, Good going Naomi, smashing through those gender norms even though it's a historical urban fantasy, Great language, good laughs, enticing intrigue, I really loved this so so so much,
I was hooked on the dragons and their mature yet child like nature! Wish I could have one!!!
I picked this book up from a charity shop whilst I awaited a trilogy I had ordered and im so glad i did! I will be purchasing the next book for sure.
My sweethearts ltltltIf this collection had contained only the first book, it would be way up there in the five star range.
Instead its a collection of three books with an unfinished storyline, and Booksamparent especially satisfying in of themselves, As much as I love books set in this general timeframenot to mention Temeraire himself!for me those two books were simply too caught up in the exacting presentation of the larger story arc.
The first book, however, was more selfcontained, and a delight in every way, and is the reason I finally settled on four rather than three.
From the books voice to its thoughtful consideration of the dragon logistics to Laurence's unabashed adoration of his dragon companionnot to mention the wonderful Temeraire himselfit was a sorryitended page turner.
Go read it!
I borrowed this from my friend and I couldn't put it down! Loved it! The First three are the best.
But this author and the storyline is clever, so I've read all books of this series that are out! It's historical fiction, . . with dragons! I enjoyed the first vol and but am not a fan of war stories so had to force myself through volumes two and three.
I love Uprooted and Spinning Silver by the same author, She's a wonderful writer Once I got started I couldn't put it down! You can tell because I effectively read it indays.
I got sucked into the fantastical world where dragons talk! Laurence's affinity for Temeraire is so sweet and endearing, as is Berkley's camaraderie with his dragon and Captain Harcourt with Lily.
I want a talking dragon!! Watching Laurence and Temeraire's relationship evolve throughout the book, in a time of war no less, was fascinating.
U learn with Laurence about dragons and their peculiarities,
The one thing I thought this book didn't need was to be in a historical setting with Napoleon, It was quite jarring and didn't even really seem to matter to the plot,
Overall though, an enthralling beginning, Being a fan of Patrick O'Brian and the Aubrey/Maturin series as well as Bernard Cornwall's Sharpe books, I was intrigued with Naomi Novik's Temeraire series.
On the whole, I would give it a C/B,
First to the "good" stuff: Novik is a good writer, She manages to capture the "flavor" of the Napoleonic era more often than not though she can't hold a candle to O'Brian's evocation of earlyth century Britain.
She's also created likable characters in William Laurence and Temeraire,
Now the "bad" stuff and "bad" here is only relative: There were two areas that spoiled my complete enjoyment of the novel.
First, the physics of dragon flight: There are no fantasy elements in the novel beyond the existence of dragons but, even here, they are naturally occuring animals, not magical beasts and there's even a faux scientific report to the Royal Academy about dragons.
So, one expects that the accepted rules of physics, gravity, etc, are going to be obeyed, But I couldn't really accept the idea of whole crews of men climbing over flying dragons like seamen in a ship's rigging even allowing for air sacs that reduced the dragon's weight, the sheer tonnage should have kept them on the ground or at the very least extremely unwieldy in flight.
And that's another thing, these air sacs are mentioned several times but never explained: Are they full of hydrogen Helium Some other lighterthanair gas God knows, if they're full of hydrogen, then these dragons are flying Hindenburgs and no sane person would ever go into combat with them particularly combat where guns are present.
The second thing that bothered me about the series was that the implications of dragons and men interacting with each other are not really explored.
Essentially, Novik has lifted British seamen from shipsoftheline and put them on dragonsoftheline, If humans have been dealing with dragons and vice versa since at least Roman times there's no specific mention of Westerners dealing with them any earlier than that, though you would imagine they did it would have had to profoundly change society.
In religion alone do dragons have souls Did Christ or a draconic Christ minister to dragons In a Medieval society, these questions would have mattered.
Would a highly intelligent species which dragons, by and large, appear to be really have put up with humans manipulating their breeding, etc.
, until Temeraire comes along in theth century I just can't help but think that the dragons are simply window dressing a cute twist on the Napoleonic Wars theme.
Those two caveats aside, however, I would recommend the Temeraire series to interested readers but don't expect too much, .
TEMERAIRE:
After a skirmish with a French ship, Captain William Laurence finds himself in charge of a rare cargo: a dragon egg bound for the Emperor Napoleon himself.
Dragons are much prized: properly trained, they can mount a fearsome attack from the skies, Laurence must take the beast in hand and join the aviators' cause, thus relinquishing all hope of a normal life,
THRONE OF JADE:
The dragon, Temeraire, was meant to be the companion of the Emperor Napoleon and not captained by a mere officer in the British Air Corps.
The Chinese have demanded his return and the British government cannot afford to provoke the Asian superpower into allying with the French even if it costs them the most powerful weapon in their arsenal, and forces Laurence and Temeraire apart forever.
BLACK POWDER WAR:
British flyer Will Laurence and his extraordinary dragon, Temeraire, gratefully anticipate their voyage home from China.
But before they set sail, they are waylaid by urgent new orders: the British Government, having purchased three valuable dragon eggs from the Ottoman Empire, now require Laurence and Temeraire to make a more perilous overland journey instead, stopping off in Istanbul to collect and escort the precious cargo back to England.
Whatever you do, don't allow the highly cliche beginning of this book to deter you i, e. basic white man harnesses dragon and fights battles for his country, The brilliance of Temeraire comes from how the plot breaks away from its simple beginnings, subverting normative expectations, and truly explores the speculative element of humanly intelligent dragons.
I adore the Temeraire books, reading allin two months, However they do have some flaws: aspects are formulaic, character change
is sometimes slow, the plot is slack in places, few characters outside of Temeraire and Laurance are flushed out, and the ultimate trajectory of the series was not predetermined making the overarching plot at times meandering.
All in all, an excellent read especially for those who dislike colonialism and value relationships, The Napoleonic Wars is my favorite time era in Britian sp after the Victorian Era, so imagine my surprise when I found a book series that basically just adds dragons to it! I was hooked from chapter one! It was amazing! This particular book incorporates the first three books in the series.
I love the writing and the main character, Temeraire, He's an amazing dragon and I love what Naomi Novik has done with him and all the other dragons she created, I also love that his captain, Will Laurence, used to be a Navy man so that when he goes into harness with Temeraire he's just as new to the whole experience as the reader.
I look forward to the second half of this series, as it looks to be just as good, I would recommend this series to anyone who likes dragons, the Napoleonic Wars, or just a great fantasy/adventure series with a slight twist.
I enjoyed this book SO much, Good going Naomi, smashing through those gender norms even though it's a historical urban fantasy, Great language, good laughs, enticing intrigue, I really loved this so so so much,
I was hooked on the dragons and their mature yet child like nature! Wish I could have one!!!
I picked this book up from a charity shop whilst I awaited a trilogy I had ordered and im so glad i did! I will be purchasing the next book for sure.
My sweethearts ltltltIf this collection had contained only the first book, it would be way up there in the five star range.
Instead its a collection of three books with an unfinished storyline, and Booksamparent especially satisfying in of themselves, As much as I love books set in this general timeframenot to mention Temeraire himself!for me those two books were simply too caught up in the exacting presentation of the larger story arc.
The first book, however, was more selfcontained, and a delight in every way, and is the reason I finally settled on four rather than three.
From the books voice to its thoughtful consideration of the dragon logistics to Laurence's unabashed adoration of his dragon companionnot to mention the wonderful Temeraire himselfit was a sorryitended page turner.
Go read it!
I borrowed this from my friend and I couldn't put it down! Loved it! The First three are the best.
But this author and the storyline is clever, so I've read all books of this series that are out! It's historical fiction, . . with dragons! I enjoyed the first vol and but am not a fan of war stories so had to force myself through volumes two and three.
I love Uprooted and Spinning Silver by the same author, She's a wonderful writer Once I got started I couldn't put it down! You can tell because I effectively read it indays.
I got sucked into the fantastical world where dragons talk! Laurence's affinity for Temeraire is so sweet and endearing, as is Berkley's camaraderie with his dragon and Captain Harcourt with Lily.
I want a talking dragon!! Watching Laurence and Temeraire's relationship evolve throughout the book, in a time of war no less, was fascinating.
U learn with Laurence about dragons and their peculiarities,
The one thing I thought this book didn't need was to be in a historical setting with Napoleon, It was quite jarring and didn't even really seem to matter to the plot,
Overall though, an enthralling beginning, Being a fan of Patrick O'Brian and the Aubrey/Maturin series as well as Bernard Cornwall's Sharpe books, I was intrigued with Naomi Novik's Temeraire series.
On the whole, I would give it a C/B,
First to the "good" stuff: Novik is a good writer, She manages to capture the "flavor" of the Napoleonic era more often than not though she can't hold a candle to O'Brian's evocation of earlyth century Britain.
She's also created likable characters in William Laurence and Temeraire,
Now the "bad" stuff and "bad" here is only relative: There were two areas that spoiled my complete enjoyment of the novel.
First, the physics of dragon flight: There are no fantasy elements in the novel beyond the existence of dragons but, even here, they are naturally occuring animals, not magical beasts and there's even a faux scientific report to the Royal Academy about dragons.
So, one expects that the accepted rules of physics, gravity, etc, are going to be obeyed, But I couldn't really accept the idea of whole crews of men climbing over flying dragons like seamen in a ship's rigging even allowing for air sacs that reduced the dragon's weight, the sheer tonnage should have kept them on the ground or at the very least extremely unwieldy in flight.
And that's another thing, these air sacs are mentioned several times but never explained: Are they full of hydrogen Helium Some other lighterthanair gas God knows, if they're full of hydrogen, then these dragons are flying Hindenburgs and no sane person would ever go into combat with them particularly combat where guns are present.
The second thing that bothered me about the series was that the implications of dragons and men interacting with each other are not really explored.
Essentially, Novik has lifted British seamen from shipsoftheline and put them on dragonsoftheline, If humans have been dealing with dragons and vice versa since at least Roman times there's no specific mention of Westerners dealing with them any earlier than that, though you would imagine they did it would have had to profoundly change society.
In religion alone do dragons have souls Did Christ or a draconic Christ minister to dragons In a Medieval society, these questions would have mattered.
Would a highly intelligent species which dragons, by and large, appear to be really have put up with humans manipulating their breeding, etc.
, until Temeraire comes along in theth century I just can't help but think that the dragons are simply window dressing a cute twist on the Napoleonic Wars theme.
Those two caveats aside, however, I would recommend the Temeraire series to interested readers but don't expect too much, .