Reviews tagging 'Blood'

Temeraire by Naomi Novik

25 reviews

jb4nay's review against another edition

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adventurous slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

I started in print and finished in audio. I  don’t think military strategy is my thing. Even with dragons, so much of the book is about strategy and formations. That didn’t grab me. Plus all the talk about status and English high-society decorum. Not my thing. I don’t think it was a bad book or poorly written, but this felt a bit too slow for me. I wished more happened for as many pages as it was.

The relationship between Laurence and Temeraire was wholesome. Probably my favorite part of the story was their moments reading together.

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caseythereader's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0


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nightvaler's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Due to the dragon theme I expected to enjoy this book before I started reading it. I did not, however, expect to become so utterly obsessed, and I DEVOURED it in two days. I haven't been this fascinated and charmed by a fantasy series since I was a little girl and read books such as Harry Potter, Eragon, and Artemis Fowl for the first time. This book is like neither of those examples, however. It seamlessly blends fantasy elements with historical fiction, and refreshingly, it is not a YA coming of age series, though there is character development. The main character very quickly entered my top three list of favorite protagonist through a combination of courteousness, wry humor, and dragon-like temper. This book has made me laugh, nearly cry, and "look very concerned" according to a roommate. If you enjoy historical fantasy, dragons, and the found family, I'd advise you to pick this up immediately!

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evanrobins's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Superficially, I doubt that anyone would expect a book with this premise to be so compelling. His Majesty's Dragon is a hard sell because it's not really all that much like anything else.
Trying to explain to people the idea that in this book the various continental empires of the Regency period co-exist with dragons and, moreover, use them as capital ships, can be a little trying on their willingness to suspend their disbelief.
Like, the best way to get into this franchise is to already be really autistic about the Age of Sail, and that in itself is a prohibitive barrier for most well-adjusted people.
All the same Novik's rigorous attention to the setting—to historical and military customs, and to crafting a believable and intricately realized vision of an alternative history—elevate this book in comparison to its generic contemporaries.
Then again, I am a woman who watches multi-hour YouTube videos about Pterosaur phylogeny, so you might not want to take my word for it. All I'm saying is that if Novik were to release a reference book explaining in painful detail the skeletal articulation of her various dragon species, I would be the first to buy it.
I suppose it also helps that all of Novik's characters are well-realized and compelling. There are a ton of them in this book, and it's remarkable the degree to which Novik is able to articulate each of their respective personalities and beliefs in a few sparse lines of dialogue.
Temeraire is easily one of the most likeable characters in any book I've read, and his relationship with Laurence is of course what underpins this whole thing.
It is really is a testament to this book that you'll have forgotten how refreshing it feels to actually like a book's characters until you've read it, and then you'll never want to go back.
Your mileage might vary most with the plot, however.
His Majesty's Dragon is identical in structure to Top Gun—the characters spend 90% of the book in flight school and then have a single fight at the end.
Now I, for one, love Top Gun, and Novik manages to preserve the essence of what makes that story work (the understanding that the Navy is, all told, kind of gay) to a  historical context 180 years prior and also with dragons. Dudes rock.
Also William Laurence is my little meow meow babygirl. If he were alive today I would make him play Armoured Core and try to forcefem him.
The Bottom Line is: The AO3 lady cooked hard.

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abby_can_read's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

📖
This book was great. I had a delightful time reading it. I loved the bond between Laurence and Temeraire. I'm excited to read more in this series. 

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s_everson's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0


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ladypalutena's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

It is truly remarkable that every one of Naomi Novik's series has a very different tone. Her two fairy tale retellings (Uprooted and Spinning Silver) are different from the Scholomance, and the first book in the  Temeraire series reads like Jane Austen wrote it. 

I have seen these books on the shelf at Barnes & Noble, and I've been interested because if you put the spines together, they make a dragon scene. I finally picked up this first book, since I finished the Scholomance earlier this year, and this is an excellent book. 

It's a retelling of the Napoleonic Wars, but with DRAGONS. What more can you want? I will admit that it was a little hard to get into at first, because I had to get reacquainted with a way of writing I haven't come across since I took a graduate class on Jane Austen (that's my fault; I've been reading things written in the last hundred years or so, not from the 1800s). Novik does an incredible job of mimicking the Austen style, and my husband, who's a huge Master and Commander fan, may end up picking these up at some point as well. 

I keep wavering on how to rate it, so I think I'll settle for the baseline of a four - it was an interesting story, there were some parts that felt rushed (it's a very short book!), and there were a few parts that were unclear (at one point, a character is hanged for treason. I had no idea he was killed until other characters were talking about it a few pages later. It's a poorly written scene. Gives me big "Wait, did Jet just die?" vibes). Overall, a very interesting retelling and enough for me to maybe want to buy the whole box set because they'd look great on my shelf. 

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miraclesnow's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional lighthearted tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Breathtakingly emotional and deeply moving characters in this one. A pity I don’t have the next book in my hands as I write this review, I need it like I need air to breathe.

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beanaroni's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5


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themoonshoes's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

how this book hasn’t gotten an adaptation yet is beyond me. i do not want that to happen though

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