The Temeraire books by Naomi Novik - Tell me of them

[WayneLigon]

It sounds like a good premise, but I've never heard of them before. How are they?

Naomi Novik breathes new life into a formidable fantasy icon with the first three books in an exciting new series set during the Napoleonic Wars. In Temeraire, valiant warriors rise to Britain's defense by taking to the skies—not aboard aircraft, but atop the mighty backs of fighting dragons.

His Majesty's Dragon: Thanks to thousands of years of domestication, dragons have come to be used as fighting forces around the globe. England's own aviators can outfly any other nation, but Napoleon's dragons outnumber theirs two to one. So Capt. Will Laurence is pleased when his ship captures a French frigate and its precious cargo, a dragon egg…until the black hatchling unexpectedly chooses to bond with him. As master of the noble dragon he names Temeraire, Laurence must leave his beloved Navy and report for training in the remote coverts of the Aerial Corps. Together, the pair will undergo a crash course in the daring tactics of airborne battle until, as Bonaparte's own dragon forces rally to breach British lines, Laurence and Temeraire soar into their baptism of fire.

Throne of Jade: China has discovered that its gift, the rare dragon intended for Napoleon, has fallen into British hands—and vows to reclaim the remarkable beast. Now Laurence has no choice but to accompany Temeraire to the Far East—a long voyage fraught with peril, intrigue and the untold terrors of the deep. And once the pair reaches the court of the Emperor, even darker dangers await.

Black Powder War: Laurence and Temeraire must travel to Istanbul to escort three valuable dragon eggs back to England before they hatch. But disaster threatens the mission at every turn, for the Chinese dragon Lien blames Temeraire for her master's death and vows to join Napoleon in revenge. (832 pp.) 2006.

 

[GSHamster]

I read the first one. It's really good. Interesting premise, and executed well. I've always liked Age of Sail stuff. The prize system for the British Navy just blows my mind.

A warning though, it is written old-style. If you can't handle books from that time period, or in that style, you may not like this. Best example I can think of at the moment is Jonathan Strange & Dr. Norell (the writing style only, other than that the two books are quite dissimilar).

Throne of Jade is on my to-read list. Looking forward to it.

 

[Rotogar]

I just finished His Majesty's Dragon and liked it enough to order the second and third from Amazon. A really good execution of the concept. And it manages to do something new with the concept of dragons (at least new to me - maybe someone else did it first). I really did like the transposition of the 'bomber crew' concept to riding dragons.

I do think it is interesting the strategy the publishing company took of releasing all three *very* close to each other. The Dragon's Page podcast fellows had an interview with the author in their last podcast - you ought to check that out if you are interested.