Black Powder War (Temeraire, Book 3)

After making a better success of their previous adventure Throne of Jade than they had any right to expect and having survived a mysterious shipboard fire that has crippled their transport (saved from total destruction only by Temeraire's clever invention of the dragon bucket brigade), he and Laurence are surprised by mysterious and urgent orders to proceed to Istanbul (arguably a mistake because the British should still be calling it Constantinople at this time) "without the loss of a Moment" to pick up 3 dragon eggs, purchased from the Ottoman Empire and return them to England. With months of repairs required to restore HMS Allegiance to action and an even longer potential sea voyage from having to sail all the way around India and Africa, Laurence decides to go overland, mostly along the old Silk Road. With a chip-on-the-shoulder guide of questionable trustworthiness and a tagalong band of feral dragons enticed by Temeraire's tales of food aplenty, Laurence, Temeraire, and crew fight starvation, thirst, avalanche, and other assorted foes on the high road to Istanbul, hurried on by the disturbing news that their mortal enemy from the previous adventure, the albino Celestial Lien, is preceding them on their way. Arrival in Instanbul provides no relief as their contact is dead, the payment is missing, the deal is off, and they gradually realize that they are being held prisoner. Desperate measures allow them to leap from this frying pan right into the fire of the Franco-Prussian Campaign of 1806. Ms. Novik has provided another exciting entry in this increasingly interesting series; compared to these cascading crises, the outward journey seems a cakewalk! Temeraire continues to display the genius that makes Celestials royal advisors back in China; he'll be Lien's equal yet, just wait and see. Two new dragon characters, Arkady the wily feral leader and Izkierka the ferocious hatchling, and the deliberately infuriating mixed-heritage Tharkay make for a lot of fun and no little trouble. I particularly enjoyed the draconic explanation for the success of the French offensive (I'm embarrassed to admit that it reads more plausibly than the historical truth!) and the high tragedy and low comedy of the interruption of their retreat by a dragon hatching! The only nit I care to pick is to ask just what the Hell is the title Black Powder War supposed to mean? Titles don't seem to be Ms. Novik's strong suit as she admits that the cliched but IMHO still the best His Majesty's Dragon was imposed upon her. I excitedly look forward to reading the rest: Empire of Ivory , Victory of Eagles , and Tongues of Serpents . Note: if you find yourself intrigued by the idea of Napoleonic warfare with dragons, how about American Revolutionary warfare with dragons? Dragon America Or American Civil War naval action... with magic? Land of Mist and Snow

Here, we pick up with Laurence and Temeraire, who are still in China. They have been granted permission to stay together as captain and dragon. Shortly, though, they receive word that they must go immediately to get 3 dragon eggs. This book follows their progress through the wilderness with a guide that seems to be coming and going and likely betraying them. They meet up with some feral dragons who Temeraire talks into coming with them. They lose some, gain the eggs, and leave quickly since they had to steal them because the others were going back on their word. Then, they meet up with Prussians and are forced to aid them in their war with the French. I like this series and the development of the story as well as Temeraire's character. He is a good, thoughtful, and funny dragon. The ease of his sense of things makes for some comical conversations and I can completely see Laurence's reactions with how well the descriptions are written. My only complaint is the pace of this book. They were going and then stopping and going and stopping. There was so much time spent waiting and after all the waiting in Empire of Jade, I got a little bored with it. Still I stuck through it and was rewarded with great writing and a good story. This is the third in the series. The other titles are: His Majesty's Dragon Throne of Jade Black Powder War Empire of Ivory Victory of Eagles Tongues of Serpents So, i can't wait to move onto Empire of Ivory and see where this story takes me to next!

The Black Powder War, Naomi Novik’s third book in His Majesty’s Dragon series, begins where Throne of Jade left off. Laurence, Temeraire and the crew are still in China when they receive a new urgent assignment to go to Istanbul to get three dragon eggs and take them to England. Since the war with Napoleon continues, they will have to avoid Napolean as they cross Europe with the eggs. As expected, almost nothing goes as planned. Political intrigue and deception abound. And that’s just the beginning of the book. Novik’s characters are fascinating and well developed. I love both humans and dragons. This story introduces new characters who bring more conflict, humor, and diversity to the story. Tharkay is a mixed-race man without a clear identity in either British or Chinese cultures. He agrees to guide them through the desert. He dislikes Europeans, is secretive, and a man of few words. In this story, I’m never sure if he can be trusted, or if he’s going to betray them at any moment. However, I like him. A pack of feral dragons and their leader Arkady play a crucial role in this book. Up until this point, feral dragons are stereotyped as inferior and unable to speak. This book dispelled these misconceptions. Iskierka, another new character, is introduced later in the story. This dragon has an in-your-face personality. Plus, she annoys Temeraire, which is often funny. We can expect to see her in the other books. After three books, I love these characters, and I’m willing to stay with them through thick and thin. The Napoleonic Wars lace these books together. As part of the air corps, Laurence and Temeraire receive orders that throw them into the heart of the conflict. As she did in the other two books, Novik creates distinct and vivid settings. In each place, I experienced a clear sense of place and time. So far, each book has a new setting. Events, twists, and turns of the story take me to another time and place. Although this is a fantasy world with dragons, a sense of reality runs through each book. If you like history, she gives a tour da force of what the Napoleonic Wars would be like with dragons. In the background of each story, war and the politics of the day affect our heroes. In the foreground, how Laurence and Temeraire respond to these events plays out in unexpected ways. More importantly, the conflicts and interpersonal relationships among the characters strengthen the plot. In the last book, Temeraire saw how well China treated their dragons, and now he wants to return to England to help the dragons have more freedoms and a better life. While Laurence is sympathetic to Temeraire’s desire to reform, he tries to caution Temeraire that things don’t change quickly. He doesn’t succeed because Temeraire is young enough to be overly optimistic and naive about how politics works. I love that Laurence begins as a very proper English gentleman and changes significantly in each book. The liberality of the air corps, its acceptance of women, and its casual disregard for English customs shocks him and slowly transforms him.

'Black Powder War' picks up shortly after 'Throne of Jade' finished - William Laurence and dragon Temeraire are waiting to leave China and return to their military life in the UK, fighting Napoleon. New orders send them on a fantastic flight across central Asia to Istanbul, and from there northwards across war torn Europe. Along the way they encounter all sorts of perils, thrills and adventures, new friends and old enemies. This novel is third in a series, and they should be read in order. I found it my favourite of the series so far - now the world and characters are well established you can get straight on with enjoying the story. The relationship between Temeraire and Laurence is the strong core of the book and is always touching. It's nice to read a book based on non-romantic relationships, showing the value of friendship and comradeship. Temeraire is a really loveable character, and often unintentionally very funny, and Laurence continues to grow and develop. They are joined by good supporting characters too, including an interesting new character who acts a guide in their cross-Asia trek but is of dubious motives. The scope of the story is quite impressive, taking in the steppes of central Asia, the politics of the Ottoman court, and the battlefields of Prussia. Personally I find the battle sequences less interesting, although Novik does write them well - that's just my taste, I've never been particularly interested in fight scenes. But her writing is always very readable, even in the parts that are less aligned to my interests, and I felt in this instalment she is most recognisable as the author of the brilliant 'Uprooted' and 'Spinning Silver'. I am looking forwards to the next instalments in the series (5 more to go) as if they continue to get better with every book then the last will be a true triumph. I'd recommend the series to anyone who enjoys fantasy adventure, and if you like a bit of historical battle writing (Bernard Cornwell type novels) as well then you won't find a better book.

En continuité directe du second tome, ce qui fait que l'action commence dès le début du livre. Qui plus est, l'équipage se rapproche de nouveau de l'Europe ce qui permet de se raccrocher aux références historiques, et nous fait partager les premières actions militaire de Témeraire en campagnes.

I have really enjoyed the collection so far, except for 1 or 2 chapter so far, it is very well written and thought out. The only way I think it could've been a little bit better, is this it would've stuck to the actual Napoleonic wars a little bit more, to get the historical background through literature

Novik delivers another masterpiece in her unique blend of naval historical fiction and dragonlore à la McCaffrey. The story is quick-paced and full of new adventures and unforeseen developments and kept me reading long into the night. Book three has lost nothing of its momentum and clever storytelling; nonetheless, I liked the first two better, which is simply a matter of taste. While before, there was always a note of juvenile playfulness and a positive outlook in spite of all obstacles in the development of Temeraire and his association with Will Laurence, now their prospects are growing grim and grimmer. After being treated like royality in China, Temeraire and his crew are now conscripted by the Prussians - in spite of their rather urgent mission of transporting three dragon eggs to Britain before their hatching - and have to endure doomed battles, hunger and deprivation, and the personal enmity and revengefulness of Lien, who has allied with Napoleon. Of course this is well in accordance with the historical precedents before Napoleon`s final defeat, and there is nothing wrong with the storytelling. I would look forward to book 4 rendering more hopeful prospects, but the preview gives little hope for that; still, I can hardly wait to get it in my hands and start reading. I hope also that it will not be the last in the series.

Gosh I love your fantasy novels so much. Your words are so engaging, your exploration of different cultures, places and historical events through a completely fantastical lense is so wonderful to immerse myself in.