The Chinese Emperor objects to having their precious dragon fighting in England's aerial corps, so Temeraire and Cpt. Laurence are ordered to China to resolve the issue. The various envoys keep trying to split them up, and the dangers of the open sea and of the coasts that they follow on their four month journey come close to ending the trip before anything's resolved. Temeraire is also getting notions into his head about dragon liberty, as he sees how dragons live in other countries. This one wasn't quite as good as the first, but I still really enjoyed it, especially for the descriptions of travel by sea. I really got a sense of how dangerous life was in the early 1800's and how it moved at a slower pace, even with dragons. ( )

Basic Reason for Beginning: Read the first book, really liked it. Took me ages to get to the second. It just about works as a stand-alone, but I really wouldn't advise it.
Basic Reason for Finishing: Actually, I'm not sure. I don't think I read this at the right time.
Texture: Grainy? Something not entirely comfortable, anyway.

Full review here.

Book Rereadability: Uhm, as part of a series, yes. On its own, I'm not convinced. (I really should just to see if it's a timing issue.)
Author Rereadability: I'll probably continue on with the third book, but if it reads more like the second than the first for me, I think I'll pass on the fourth and beyond. That said, I'd be more than happy to read other books by Novik.
Recommendation: If you loved the first book, it's probably a given you'll pick up more from the series, but be warned that Throne of Jade has a vastly different pacing. ( )

A fun read, but not quite as captivating as the first book. We got an interesting look at shipboard life as they travel for a long time, which made the book drag a bit, but not too much. The story had some twists & turns, some quite unexpected. From the long build up, it seemed to end quickly & completely, much to my surprise. A bit too abruptly & neatly, perhaps. I look forward to reading the next book, which I have, but I won't be reading it next. I don't feel I HAVE to read the next book. ( )

The second in the Temeraire series, this starts off with Captain Laurence stuck in London, dealing with bureaucrats and diplomats over his dragon, Temeraire who was discovered to be a Chinese Celestial dragon at the end of book one (His Majesty's Dragon). And the Chinese are rather peeved that Temeraire is being used as a weapon against the dastardly French.

Almost immediately, Laurence and Temeraire fly off to help battle the dastardly French in the air, and then almost immediately again, they're shipped off to China to deal with the political ramifications of having a Celestial on English soil.

While voyaging, they have many adventures. And all of a sudden I realised that was about all this book was: one thrilling dash from one adventure to another. And while the adventures were exciting and action-packed (I particularly liked the sea serpent), sometimes one does crave a bit more something to a book. Maybe plot?

It does all eventually resolve quite satisfactorily in the end, but the pacing could have been a lot more even.

I shall be buying (and reading) book three in the series, but I do hope she's discovered some plot for the next one. ( )

Laurence and Temeraire take a slow boat to China--quite literally--and we go with them. The trip at sea takes easily two-thirds of the book, denying fans of the first book so many of the things that made us fall in love with the series. Rarely do we get to see Laurence as captain of Temeraire's in-flight crew. Almost never do we get to see interaction with other English dragons and their captains and crews. And the core of the series, the powerful relationship between Laurence and Temeraire, is so diluted here as to almost be non-existent. While the novel begins with Temeraire making a dashing and heart-wrenching display of affection and protectiveness toward Laurence, Novik then plays with the question of their bond for the purposes of her plot: will the influence of the Chinese and their fantastic, dragon-loving culture make Temeraire abandon Laurence? Unless we are to throw out everything she's done to prove their relationship in the previous book, and again at the beginning of book two, the answer is never really in doubt--except in the minds of her characters. Thus, the agonizingly slow trip to China, which is supposed to be fraught with will-he-leave-Laurence tension, never compells. The best part of the novel by far is when Laurence and Temeraire reach China--but by then we have only a couple of hundred pages for the politics, social issues, and intrigues to play out. Far too short a time, unfortunately. While still an enjoyable read, I hope that book three returns to more of the formula that made His Majesty's Dragon so great: Laurence and Temeraire (and their crew!) against the world... ( )

Summary: When the British seized Temeraire's egg from a French frigate, they had no way of knowing that he was a Chinese Celestial - an exceptionally rare breed of dragon that are normally only treated as companions for members of the Emperor's family - intended as a gift to Napoleon. The Chinese embassy is outraged that one of their royal dragons is being treated like a common soldier in the British aviator corps, and they demand his immediate return to China... with or without Laurence. Rather than make enemies of the powerful nation, the British Admiralty agrees, and Temeraire and Laurence unwillingly board a transport bound for China. Neither of them wants to be parted from the other, but the Chinese embassy is none too keen on the idea of keeping Laurence around, or on letting Temeraire out of their control. Together, they must find a way to stay together without sabotaging British foreign relations... but first they must survive the perils of the long sea voyage.

Review: While His Majesty's Dragon charmed the socks off of me, this one actually made me think. Still charming, but also thought-provoking... sometimes uncomfortably so, in fact. In His Majesty's Dragon, Novik's introducing us not only to her characters, but also to her world, and so we take on faith that things are the way she says they are, and if none of the characters give a second thought to the way dragons are treated, and the relationship between dragons and humans, then why should we? In Throne of Jade, however, Temeraire's growing up, and has reached the dragon equivalent of teenagerhood - particularly the part where he starts questioning the status quo. The reader gets the chance to grow with him, and as we get to see the Chinese system of dragon-human interactions, we also start to question what we'd been taught in the first book was normal and right. I actually got uncomfortable when I stopped to look at my assumptions from the first book - Why did I ever think this or that was okay? What does that say about me? - and that's a neat trick for an author to pull off. Full round of applause for Novik for that one.

The rest of the book is good as well - Novik manages to capture the style and the tone of period literature while somehow keeping it captivating and easy to read. I feel like there was more high-seas adventure - Battles with the French! Intrigue and spying! Treachery and plots! Sea serpents and fierce storms! - than in the previous book, which is never a bad thing (plus boys on boats = always good), although it did come at the cost of some of the interpersonal (inter-dragonal?) interaction that so charmed me the first time around. Still, this book went in some interesting new directions without sacrificing the key elements that make the series great, and I'm excited to see what happens in the next book. 4 out of 5 stars.

Recommendation: Historical fiction and fantasy lovers alike should all be reading this series. This one isn't *quite* as strong as its predecessor, but it's still an absorbing, entertaining, and increasingly thought-provoking read. ( )

This is the second book of one of the better fantasy series that I’ve encountered recently. It’s set during the Napoleonic Wars, but in this world there are dragons, manned by aviators, and taken by them into battle.

Laurence is a former naval officer who’s now a Captain to one of these dragons. The dragon, however, was a gift from the Chinese to the French, captured by the British, and when the Chinese protest, Laurence is faced with the threat of separation from the dragon he’s come to love.

The story is reasonably well-paced, the characters draw me in, and I care about them and the dilemmas in which they find themselves.

I’m interested in the way in which Novik discusses the ethics of the way in which the dragons are treated, and the parallels she draws with slavery. Laurence's reaction to the way in which the Chinese handle their own dragons is an interesting depiction of culture shock, and it's good watching him process this.

I like the stern and stoic sense of duty and responsibility possessed by Laurence, and the way in which this is contrasted with the informality of the aviation corps. It's fun watching Laurence gradually becoming more tolerant of some of these unfamiliar attitudes and practices ... ( )

Having discovered that Temeraire is a Chinese dragon, the Chinese want him back. Temeraire and Laurence refuse to be separated, and so off to China they go.
This is mostly taken up with the voyage to China, which takes a long time, and isn't very fast paced. I did enjoy some of the events leading up to their arrival, and it's in China that we, and Temeraire discover that dragons are treated quite differently than in England.

Well, to start off with: I don't know how to judge anything Novik says about China here. If there are errors (beyond those that are naturally created by inserting, well, dragons into a story) I couldn't identify them. I spent the first chunk of this book made uncomfortable by the way that Temeraire (or - perhaps I should say Lung Tien Xiang) and Laurence are set opposite Yongxing. I was preparing myself for a plot that embraced the worst of East/West stereotyping.I wasn't prepared for the way that Novik turned those stereotypes around at the end, or for the revelation that in this story, the Chinese are the heroes (at least with respect to the dragons). Because the book is from the perspective of an Englishman, I was tricked into believing that the character's perspective is the same as Novik's - which, having completed the book, I don't think it is.That said, it wasn't an entirely comfortable read for me, simply because the tension I felt (will Novik actually follow through on stereotyping Chinese culture?) was not the same tension I was intended to feel (will Temeraire/Lung Tien Xiang choose to return to China, or stay with Laurence?). However, I find the series just as beguiling as I did before, and now that we're over the hump, I look forward to seeing Temeraire/Lung Tien Xiang return to Britain and try to fight for his own rights there! ( )

Well, to start off with: I don't know how to judge anything Novik says about China here. If there are errors (beyond those that are naturally created by inserting, well, dragons into a story) I couldn't identify them. I spent the first chunk of this book made uncomfortable by the way that Temeraire (or - perhaps I should say Lung Tien Xiang) and Laurence are set opposite Yongxing. I was preparing myself for a plot that embraced the worst of East/West stereotyping.I wasn't prepared for the way that Novik turned those stereotypes around at the end, or for the revelation that in this story, the Chinese are the heroes (at least with respect to the dragons). Because the book is from the perspective of an Englishman, I was tricked into believing that the character's perspective is the same as Novik's - which, having completed the book, I don't think it is.That said, it wasn't an entirely comfortable read for me, simply because the tension I felt (will Novik actually follow through on stereotyping Chinese culture?) was not the same tension I was intended to feel (will Temeraire/Lung Tien Xiang choose to return to China, or stay with Laurence?). However, I find the series just as beguiling as I did before, and now that we're over the hump, I look forward to seeing Temeraire/Lung Tien Xiang return to Britain and try to fight for his own rights there! ( )

This second book in Novik's Temeraire series is every bit as good as the first - the adventure, excitement, and suspense are all extremely well done, and the relationship between Captain William Laurence and his dragon, Temeraire, grows even deeper and more complex. In this installment, Laurence and Temeraire are bound for China, since the Chinese imperial family is outraged at a common British sailor's possession of a celestial dragon. Laurence must not only pacify hostile Chinese delegates and tolerate an officious British diplomat; he must also deal with the possibility of being parted from Temeraire. If you enjoyed His Majesty's Dragon, you definitely won't be disappointed. And even though I read the first book several months ago, I was still able to pick up the thread of the story and follow along.

http://allbookedup-elena.blogspot.com... ( )

Throne of Jade is the second in the Temeraire series by Naomi Novik. This series is an alternate take on the Napoleonic Wars era, when intelligent dragons were used in combat, both as transport and as fighters with unique abilities. Temeraire is an elite dragon whose egg was won in a battle against the French and has been raised to serve in the English king's air corps. Laurence, his rider, is a former sailor who has been pressed into service for the air force.

In this installment, the son of the Emperor of China, has come to retrieve Temeraire, since he was destined to be a gift for Napoleon. Temeraire and Laurence sail with a crew of sailors, their own air crew and the Chinese delegation half way around the world, fighting off enemies and sea monsters, to secure the right for Laurence and Temeraire to continue their special bond.

Through a cataloging mix-up, I read this one before the first, something I don't normally do. However, it's a testament to the strength of the story that it stands up well on its own, and that enough is explained to not require the first. (Though I was intrigued that she wasn't starting with Temeraire's "origin story" -- seems like she actually probably did -- I will check out the first next!) This is a fast-paced adventure story, with all the excitement of epic battles, with just a hint of the spice of political intrigue and a healthy dose of fantasy fiction to round it out. A rollicking good read, highly recommended. ( )

This book is a lot more readable than the previous one. It passed a lot quicker, even if still, it's not as enjoyable, as fun, as many other books of this type.The book is also nicely weighing more with the allusions to dragons' rights and slavedom, even before it is said so outright. ( )

This is a continuation of the story of Temeraire, the very rare Celestial Dragon, and Laurence, his rider. This is more along the lines of McCaffrey than Paolini, especially in this book. Temeraire is nearly mature now, but the Chinese want him returned to China. Not a lot of action in this book, mostly a long trip from England to China by ship, and all of the problems that go with it. There's also a bit of a dilemma for Laurence in this book. In China, dragons are treated like people, while in England, they are treated like animals. How to keep his dragon friend and what to do with him after is the topic of this book. ( )

http://olvasonaplo.freeblog.hu/archiv... ( )

This sequel to Novik's His Majesty's Dragon is a strong second book in her ongoing series. We're once again invited to join the world of Laurence and Temeraire. In this book, the Chinese want their dragon (Temeraire) back and will do just about anything to get him back. Eventually, Temeraire and Laurence must travel to China themselves (a story in and of itself!) to sort things out. Unlike the first book, Throne of Jade plays up the differences between humans and dragons a lot more and Novik takes great pains to introduce the idea that dragons and humans should be on equal terms. It's a good book, fun to read and, as with the first book, amusing in certain places. ( )

In this second in the Temeraire series, which is even better than the first., Laurence and Temeraire travel to China. During the sea journey there, Temeraire encounters the slave trade in Africa. That experience plus the freedom dragons in China enjoy cause Temeraire to question the lot of British dragons. Adding to this "human" rights issue attempts on Laurence's life, dragon romance and Novik's capable writing, Throne of Jade was a book I could not put down. ( )

Laurence and Temeraire travel to China to see Temeraire's homeland and meet his kin.

Temeraire is still a fantastic character in this book, but Laurence gets on my nerves some. I understand why he does and says many of the things he does and says, but it's very frustrating to me (and to Temeraire, although he is loyal to a fault). ( )

Just read the first one.

Just read the first one.

It's a testament to Novik's writing skills that this book has been imported from the States to save having to wait until the UK's August release date to read it, and has already been passed between three separate people, all of whom read it very quickly indeed.

The characters and the prose were as wonderful to read as ever, with a great sense of place and period to the book. Everything flows along very nicely and meshes very well together. I could maybe have liked slightly more of a thrust to the plot. It felt as if Novik were much more interested in the portion of the book which took place aboard ship than she was in the portion which took place in China. That's only a minor quibble, however, given how engaging the book was in spite of that, and how much affection she clearly has for all her characters, and how well she knows them. I really will have to buy a copy of my own once this finally, finally is released over here ( )

a couple christmases ago, i received the first three books in what appears to be the ever-expanding temeraire series (namely: his majesty's dragon, throne of jade and black powder war) by naomi novik . i was through the first two books a scant few days into january, which should go a ways toward telling you how much i enjoyed them. :) the series is a reworking of the napoleonic wars (from britain's perspective) with the addition of an air force of the draconic variety. the friend who gifted it described it as suffering somewhat from 'magical pony syndrome' (a la our favorite, mercedes lackey again!) - this is true, but not in a terrible 'oh my god knock it off already lessa we know you rock' sort of way. :) (in general, despite the obvious parallels, the series does not feel particularly derivative of mccaffrey; it's a clever and unique new take on dragons and novik deserves kudos for the idea alone). the historical setting is very well limned (and yes, it's a fave period of mine and thus i'm biased), and the characters traipse all over the place, so you see more than england. novik also handles the military tactics with a very sure hand from my perspective of 'someone who does not know a danged thing about military tactics' - which means she might not either, but she makes it sound like she does. the characters are generally a little flat, but the setting is excellent (my main draw here). plot is better in the first book than in the latter two, but the series is ever expanding so who knows how it could develop? very well written; my main complaint is that she tends to transition rather abruptly - sometimes i'd like to have a few more details between point A and point B. quite possible this is more her editor's design than her own; also something i am particular bad at in my own attempts at fiction writing, so i admire it regardless. overall verdict - pretty fluffy, but tons of fun; a very good quick read for a grey yucky sort of day. i recommend reading in a fancy armchair by the fire with port and chocolate at your disposal; it's appropriate to the setting (and really, when is port and chocolate NOT a good idea?). ( )

#2 in the Temeraire fantasy series, which is sort of alternative history, too—set during the Napoleonic wars with the added feature of having dragons exist—as weapons of war! I have to say I didn’t like this book as well as the first in series—I suspect because I am not real big on naval battles/naval war history, and this book took place almost exclusively on a dragon transport ship as Laurence and Temeraire are being escorted back to China. Since Temeraire is a Chinese Celestial dragon, the Chinese Emperor has demanded his return to the native country and Laurence accompanies her, certain that he will be forcibly parted from his partner at voyage’s end. I still enjoyed the book—it’s rare that a book with dragons doesn’t enthrall me—and will definitely read the next in series…it’s just that the descriptions of the ship and all that sailor/naval stuff left me a bit cold. ( )

Throne of Jade continues the story that began in Temeraire. The first book revealed that the dragon Temeraire is a rare Chinese Celestial and, as it happens, the Chinese want him back. The British government doesn't put up much resistance and thus Will and Temeraire find them on Allegiance, a large transport, on their way to China.

The sea journey takes them months, so there's lots of room for all kinds of action during the journey - battles, intrigue and conversations. The characters of Temeraire and Will are explored further, and the supporting cast is interesting as well, there are some rather cryptic Chinese fellows aboard the ship.

Towards the end of the novel, the ship takes them to China, where the events finally reach their peak. Of course, the reader probably knows they're going to make it just fine (there are, after all, three more books in the series), but how it turns out is a bit of a mystery until it happens. The way things are resolved smells perhaps a tad too deus ex machina to me, but I can forgive that: the book is otherwise very good. Besides, I think I prefer to have a fast-paced adventure instead of slower, several hundred pages long epic, so some short cuts are probably mandatory.

So, I'm rather satisfied with this second part of the series and I'm definitely looking forward to continuing to the third installment.

(Review of Throne of Jade (and others) at Mikko reads) ( )