Victory of Eagles
Jul. 16th, 2008 03:43 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jmc_bksRelease date: July 8, 2008
First hard back of the series
Fifth book of the series (His Majesty’s Dragon, Throne of Jade, Black Powder War, Empire of Ivory)
Warning: there will be spoilers because I couldn't figure out how to write about this book without them.
When we last saw Temeraire and Laurence, they had just committed treason – to prevent a dragon pandemic plotted by the English to weaken Napoleon’s forces, they took the cure to France – and then returned to face their punishment. I don’t think it is a spoiler to reveal that at the opening of Victory of Eagles, they are separated, Laurence permitted to live only to ensure Temeraire’s cooperation in the breeding grounds of Wales. But the quiet life there is immediately disrupted by Napoleon’s invasion of England. Given the disaster and need for all available dragons, especially one with Temeraire’s peculiar, devastating talent, even recalcitrant, rebellious ones, Laurence is commissioned to retrieve Temeraire and return for battle. But upon arrival at the breeding grounds, Laurence finds them abandoned. Persuaded by Temeraire, the feral dragons and retirees have organized and are headed for battle on their own, unharnessed. What follows is a fascinating account of Napoleon’s maneuvering in England, and Wellesley’s counter-maneuvering. Having read a very small amount of fiction based on the continental campaigns, the relocation of the skirmishes and battles to England was riveting. (I kept thinking of Winston Churchill’s speeches during WWII and their emphasis on England as an independent, uninvaded isle for centuries.)
The point of view alternates between that of Temeraire and Laurence, which is a deviation from the earlier narration done entirely from Laurence’s perspective. The switch is natural, given that the two spend a significant part of the book apart. I appreciate the opportunity to hear Temeraire unfiltered by Laurence. The contrast in their world views is distinct, although they overlap in certain areas. Temeraire would fall on the republican, revolutionary side of the political spectrum of the day. He’s been slowly edging Laurence, who’s a bit blindly loyal, dutiful and unquestioning, to the left.
The conflict between what is right and what is legal has been a growing theme within the series. In VoE, the theme recurs in Laurence’s struggle with his guilt over his actions in the last book – it was right but illegal and he’s willing to bear the consequences himself. Unfortunately, the unintended consequences, large and small, that ripple out from him to his crew, his family, the Corp, and the kingdom, leave him battered by his conscience. The chasm between right and legal reappears also with military strategy – is it acceptable to attack supply lines and to use dragon to do so? Conventional wisdom of the time says no, but what if that is the only way to weaken the enemy?
From the perspective of a modern reader, the inconsistent morality applied by the “gentlemen” fighting the war seems, well, odd. It is perfectly acceptable to conduct biological warfare that will kill thousands of innocent dragons world-wide in order to defeat Napoleon, but attacking his supply lines and raiding parties is “vicious” or “savage”? Something seems out of whack to me in those calculations.
Where does VoE stand, in comparison to the earlier volumes of the Temeraire series? Well, it’s not as good as the first book or the second, but I believe it is better than the third and fourth books. It’s balancing on the thin line between B+ and A- for me. What is holding it back from an A grade in my mind? A couple of things: the pacing, which seemed clunky at times; and Novik’s utter lack of restraint when it comes to punctuation and run on sentences. A heavier editorial hand might help, I think. I understand the intent it to write in the style of the time, but sometimes “authenticity” really is better sacrificed for clarity and brevity. Opening to a random page, I counted 8 colons and semi-colons, and multiple extraneous commas and clauses that might have been better suited to separate sentences rather than being wedged into the text as they were.
Other thoughts:
1. Iskierka. Her behavior – predicated on self-indulgence – is an interesting foil to that of Temeraire, whose behavior (desertion, treason) is similar or more egregious on the surface, but which is motivated by more conscious principle.
2. The treatment of treason. Death was ordered at trial in VoE, then to commuted to imprisonment for Temeraire’s good behavior, then commuted again to transportation. Compared to the exile to Italy and Greece that was the punishment for treason in Marjorie Farrell’s Red, Red Rose (a recent read), that seems harsh. I’m curious now about which author took more license with the common punishment for treason during the Napoleonic wars.
3. The absence of dragons in Australia. Curious, since they seem to be everywhere else in the world, and influence British colonization in the Americas and Africa so distinctly in Novik’s world building.
4. Other characters. I’m looking forward to seeing more of Tharkay. And I feel confident that Temeraire (and readers) haven’t seen the last of Lily, Maximus and Lien, despite their relocation.
Just a reminder -- if you want to win a FREE copy of Temeraire, leave a comment in yesterday's post before Friday COB.
First hard back of the series
Fifth book of the series (His Majesty’s Dragon, Throne of Jade, Black Powder War, Empire of Ivory)
Warning: there will be spoilers because I couldn't figure out how to write about this book without them.
It is a grim time for the dragon Temeraire. On the heels of his mission to Africa, seeking the cure for a deadly contagion, he has been removed from military service–and his captain, Will Laurence, has been condemned to death for treason.
For Britain, conditions are grimmer still: Napoleon’s resurgent forces have breached the Channel and successfully invaded English soil. Napoleon’s prime objective: the occupation of London.
Separated by their own government and threatened at every turn by Napoleon’s forces, Laurence and Temeraire must struggle to find each other amid the turmoil of war and to aid the resistance against the invasion before Napoleon’s foothold on England’s shores can become a stranglehold.
If only they can be reunited, master and dragon might rally Britain’s scattered forces and take the fight to the enemy as never before–for king and country, and for their own liberty. But can the French aggressors be well and truly routed, or will a treacherous alliance deliver Britain into the hands of her would-be conquerors?
When we last saw Temeraire and Laurence, they had just committed treason – to prevent a dragon pandemic plotted by the English to weaken Napoleon’s forces, they took the cure to France – and then returned to face their punishment. I don’t think it is a spoiler to reveal that at the opening of Victory of Eagles, they are separated, Laurence permitted to live only to ensure Temeraire’s cooperation in the breeding grounds of Wales. But the quiet life there is immediately disrupted by Napoleon’s invasion of England. Given the disaster and need for all available dragons, especially one with Temeraire’s peculiar, devastating talent, even recalcitrant, rebellious ones, Laurence is commissioned to retrieve Temeraire and return for battle. But upon arrival at the breeding grounds, Laurence finds them abandoned. Persuaded by Temeraire, the feral dragons and retirees have organized and are headed for battle on their own, unharnessed. What follows is a fascinating account of Napoleon’s maneuvering in England, and Wellesley’s counter-maneuvering. Having read a very small amount of fiction based on the continental campaigns, the relocation of the skirmishes and battles to England was riveting. (I kept thinking of Winston Churchill’s speeches during WWII and their emphasis on England as an independent, uninvaded isle for centuries.)
The point of view alternates between that of Temeraire and Laurence, which is a deviation from the earlier narration done entirely from Laurence’s perspective. The switch is natural, given that the two spend a significant part of the book apart. I appreciate the opportunity to hear Temeraire unfiltered by Laurence. The contrast in their world views is distinct, although they overlap in certain areas. Temeraire would fall on the republican, revolutionary side of the political spectrum of the day. He’s been slowly edging Laurence, who’s a bit blindly loyal, dutiful and unquestioning, to the left.
The conflict between what is right and what is legal has been a growing theme within the series. In VoE, the theme recurs in Laurence’s struggle with his guilt over his actions in the last book – it was right but illegal and he’s willing to bear the consequences himself. Unfortunately, the unintended consequences, large and small, that ripple out from him to his crew, his family, the Corp, and the kingdom, leave him battered by his conscience. The chasm between right and legal reappears also with military strategy – is it acceptable to attack supply lines and to use dragon to do so? Conventional wisdom of the time says no, but what if that is the only way to weaken the enemy?
From the perspective of a modern reader, the inconsistent morality applied by the “gentlemen” fighting the war seems, well, odd. It is perfectly acceptable to conduct biological warfare that will kill thousands of innocent dragons world-wide in order to defeat Napoleon, but attacking his supply lines and raiding parties is “vicious” or “savage”? Something seems out of whack to me in those calculations.
Where does VoE stand, in comparison to the earlier volumes of the Temeraire series? Well, it’s not as good as the first book or the second, but I believe it is better than the third and fourth books. It’s balancing on the thin line between B+ and A- for me. What is holding it back from an A grade in my mind? A couple of things: the pacing, which seemed clunky at times; and Novik’s utter lack of restraint when it comes to punctuation and run on sentences. A heavier editorial hand might help, I think. I understand the intent it to write in the style of the time, but sometimes “authenticity” really is better sacrificed for clarity and brevity. Opening to a random page, I counted 8 colons and semi-colons, and multiple extraneous commas and clauses that might have been better suited to separate sentences rather than being wedged into the text as they were.
Other thoughts:
1. Iskierka. Her behavior – predicated on self-indulgence – is an interesting foil to that of Temeraire, whose behavior (desertion, treason) is similar or more egregious on the surface, but which is motivated by more conscious principle.
2. The treatment of treason. Death was ordered at trial in VoE, then to commuted to imprisonment for Temeraire’s good behavior, then commuted again to transportation. Compared to the exile to Italy and Greece that was the punishment for treason in Marjorie Farrell’s Red, Red Rose (a recent read), that seems harsh. I’m curious now about which author took more license with the common punishment for treason during the Napoleonic wars.
3. The absence of dragons in Australia. Curious, since they seem to be everywhere else in the world, and influence British colonization in the Americas and Africa so distinctly in Novik’s world building.
4. Other characters. I’m looking forward to seeing more of Tharkay. And I feel confident that Temeraire (and readers) haven’t seen the last of Lily, Maximus and Lien, despite their relocation.
Just a reminder -- if you want to win a FREE copy of Temeraire, leave a comment in yesterday's post before Friday COB.
