"Captain Will Laurence has been at sea since he was just twelve years old; finding a warmer berth in Nelson's navy than any he enjoyed as the youngest, least important son of Lord Allendale. Rising on merit to captain his own vessel, Laurence has earned himself a beautiful fiancée, society's esteem and a golden future. But the war is not going well. It seems Britain can only wait as Napoleon plans to overrun her shores.
After a skirmish with a French ship, Laurence finds himself in charge of a rare cargo: a dragon egg bound for the Emperor himself. Dragons are much prized: properly trained, they can mount a fearsome attack from the skies. One of Laurence's men must take the beast in hand and join the aviators' cause, thus relinquishing all hope of a normal life.
But when the newly-hatched dragon ignores the young midshipman Laurence chose as its keeper and decides to imprint itself on the horrified captain instead, Laurence's world falls apart. Gone is his golden future: gone his social standing, and soon his beautiful fiancée, as he is consigned to be the constant companion and trainer of the fighting dragon Temeraire…"
This was a reread inspired by my friend Alex looking for a new book to read - knowing his love of historical fiction, and especially his fondness for Sharpe, I figured this would be an excellent next step. It's one of the best, and most unusual, works of speculative historical fiction, boiling down to 'Napoleonic War with Dragons' but stretching far wider than the European theatre that suggests.
Few writers have such a solid grasp of narrative than Novak, who builds a world that is enjoyable to read about and doesn't strecth credibility too far within her central premise. As the series builds her grasp of the politics and world wide picture comes into focus, and it's here that Temerarire excels. Bringing in Chinese politics, Australian rebellions, Portugese Empire building in South America, the invasion of Russia, whilst also sprinkling in divergences such as France invading England by air, or the rise of a Pan-African anti-slavery nation.
These twists keeps things fresh from a historical perspective, whilst the main characters, Captain Will Laurence and his Dragon, Temeraire, make for hilarious protagonists. Frequently faced with intemperate, uncomprehending adversaries within British society, as well as enemies abroad, they stand as a mixture of Sharpe, Hornblower and Mr Darcy, as confident delivering pithy put-downs to fellow fliers as in battling the French.
A novel and often head-scratchingly inventive novel, these first few books are the high point of the series, and well worth reading.
Also Try:
Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe
Susanna Clarke, Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrel
Neil Gaiman, Sandman
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