League of Dragons

This is the last book in the Temeraire series, which is set in the Napoleonic era and imagines that the nations of the world have an airforce... of dragons. The whole series is a delight, a perfect mash-up of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey and Maturin novels with a touch of Jane Austen and a whole lot of dragons and their affiliated fantasy trope. Though the series as a whole is a little uneven, it holds up to rereading very well, which I can attest to since I keep rereading it every year. Yeah, it's a favorite.

I've read this last installment twice now and I find it to be a satisfying end to the series, though of course I wish we could spend more time and more books with these delightful characters. Those who were perhaps put off with the show more priggishness of our main character, William Laurence, in the first book or so would hardly recognize him by this last volume; one of the joys of the series has been to see our POV characters evolve. Novik does a wonderful job showing how the forces of the fantasy elements she has added would shape not just the world but the people (and dragons) within it, and here we see the culmination of that character development as the partnership between Laurence and Temeraire has reached its maturity, following the logic of the world but also the individual loyalty and intelligence that Novik brought forward consistently since book one. It's nice to see such steady, well-rounded character development in books that are situated in the context of war.

Speaking of war, this book still features its fair share of aerial combat and dragon-back warfare, action sequences which fire the imagination and propel the reader through sometimes-dense prose (though I enjoy Novik's writing style, not everyone does). It also showcases, more than ever, the social implications surrounding dragons as a part of global society. I love seeing the dragons put themselves forward and Temeraire and his friends are, as always, both charming and compelling. Overall, a worthy close to a series that no fan ever wanted to end. show less

No doubt about it—this was a solid 5. I'm sad it was the last book of the series, but I'm glad she had such a strong ending. The battles were well-plotted, and the characterization of both major and minor players (both human and dragon) was as thorough as it was entertaining. How I will miss these relationships—Laurence and Temeraire; Granby and Izkierka;Laurence and Tharkay;Laurence and Granby, etc.
The continual reminder of the act which happened so many books ago, and which has made life so difficult for our Laurence and Temeraire, is always wrenching but drawn very realistically. This is how it would be for them.
After the wonderful characters, that's what I've loved most about this series—how realistic she made a story about show more dragons. Her thoroughness with the different breeds and cultures has never been over-explanatory or dull. It's just worked into the plot so seamlessly the whole history seems perfectly plausible—an aerial corps of dragons with their captains and crews in every country's militaries during the Napoleonic wars—here's how it would be. It's a fantasy that feels like a history—Novik pulled it off beautifully.
I don't re-read much anymore, but this series is on the to-be-re-read pile for sure. I will miss these characters, this world, too much to stay away. show less

Originally posted on Tales to Tide You Over

Every time I’ve read one of the books in this series, I’ve been delighted, and League of Dragons is no exception. The hard part will be explaining why without spoiling any of the tension filled moments.

Which brings me to the aspect of this book I loved the most. There’s an ongoing tension between those who refuse to recognize the dragons as people and those who are happy to manipulate that shortsightedness, but what draws the most attention to this fact is the dragons themselves. It is wonderful how Novik brings the dragon mentality to play here. It’s not how most humans think, but neither is it so distant that I couldn’t understand it. A purely alien perspective that nevertheless show more offers clarity and humor to many moments in the story. The descriptions here were often flowery and focused on appearances, which would often lead me to skim. Instead, they offer a fascinating insight into the dragon perspective.

Another part I appreciated was the portrayal of Napoleon himself. From what I know of the history, this portrayal is rather accurate to the man’s true nature despite the introduction of dragons and the many ways that changes each encounter. He’s an interesting person with many likeable characteristics that do not in any way excuse his warmongering and expansionist mentality.

However, while he’s cast the villain, League of Dragons does not paint the “heroes” with a saintly brush either, giving a glimpse into the complexities of any war where even the side I would agree with commits acts that are heinous and without reason. Laurence (the main character along with his dragon Temeraire) is at the heart of this complexity. He is the one person everyone needs and everyone loves to hate…well, not everyone.

He is both a strong tactician and strategist, but where this could have won him every accolade, he adds to it a firm moral sense that gets him in trouble. Many of the troubles he faces in League of Dragons are a direct consequence of his actions in previous books along with his somewhat unique position as the adopted son of the Chinese emperor.

So, yes, this is right in my sweet spot with culture clash, diplomacy, and even well written battle scenes that were interesting enough to keep me from skimming, all wrapped up in an alternate history of an era that interests me. Sociology plays a big part in this novel, as much as politics, and it offers many nuggets for those wanting to gain a better understanding of the twists of government and self-interest.

In case it wasn’t clear, I loved the way the dragon perspectives are well thought out, as well as how they learn and adapt, but the same can be said for the human circumstances. Laurence is not the only one to be put in an awkward position because of the choices he’s made, and there are several points where actions, even well meaning ones, have unintended consequences, again speaking to the complexity of the narrative.

League of Dragons offers characters you will grow to love and hate; cultural and loyalty conflicts that put both people and dragons in awkward positions; and an intricate narrative that never lets you settle into a comfort zone for long before adding some new twist. Definitely worth the read and ample demonstration of why my sister and my sons have been after me to read the whole series for years.

P.S. I received this novel from the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest review. show less

***This book was reviewed for San Francisco Book Review (hardcopy), and for NetGalley (ebook)***

League of Dragons heralds the end of Novik’s stunning Temeraire series. Laurence and Temeraire, along with their crew, and a host of Russian dragons, pursue Napoleon as he retreats to France after a decisive route on the part of the allied nations. Brutal weather chases defenders and invaders alike as a Russian winter begins to sink its claws into the land. Dragons and humans begin to succumb to the below freezing temperatures. Novik described these conditions, wrought, no doubt, by the global 'Little Ice Age', in such a manner that I felt I was there.

Like the previous books, large swathes of time and space are crossed. Laurence survives show more the Russian campaign, only to end up captured by the French, along with Granby and Iskeirka. Yet, Napoleon still respects Laurence and treats him as an honoured prisoner, more a guest really. Nice though it be, a gilded cage is still a cage, and the prisoners manage to escape. Temeraire and Laurence have more adventures and battles. The book’s end sees the conclusion of the Napoleonic Wars, with Bonaparte’s exile. Napoleon is a favourite historical personage of mine, and this book, and the series as a whole, gives a new perspective. He is ambitious, certainly, yet a sympathetic character nonetheless.

I devoured this book. I love this series and was so bummed this was the last book. When I finished, I sat in a kind of stupefied state that I get when a really grand series comes to its inevitable denouement. I've enjoyed this most marvelous journey with Temeraire and crew over the years.

I would so love to see these turned to movies. Indeed, from the first, I've always pictured Laurence as Russell Crowe a lá the Master and Commander movie, and Granby to me has always been Christian Bale, as he was in the movie Equilibrium. I will miss the sweet anticipation of new Temeraire adventures, yet there is a certain satisfaction that the series is ended, and I can revisit as often as I desire. The long waits are over (now if only GRR Martin would wrap up the Song of Ice and Fire series before I die of old age….)

Though set on an alternate world, one with dragons, the tone and voice of the story remind me of Patrick O’Brian’s 'Master and Commander series. I felt fully immersed in the language and customs of Temeraire’s time. Novik does a brilliant job of bringing this era to life.

One thing I really love about the entire series is the dragon politics that develop because of Temeraire’s different personality, and his egg upbringing. This intensifies after his visit to China, where dragons and people interact in a very different manner. Dragons in China are regarded as people, as sentient beings with intelligence, which just seems logical to me. I also love all the varied dragon types encountered over the years, and making appearances in this spectacular finale.

🎻🎻🎻🎻🎻 Highly recommended if you enjoy dragons! And alternate world fiction. And dragons!! Or historical fiction/fantasy, especially of the Napoleonic War. Did I mention DRAGONS!? show less

I can't help but be disappointed. The first 3/4 is just terrific and reminded me of the earlier books in the series where anything seemed possible with the creativity surrounding the dragons, the Napoleonic Wars and changes to society based around that idea.

But since about book 5 or 6 the series just sort of lost me. I rarely outright disagree with an author's story/plot choices, but this is going to be one of those times. Laurence and Temeraire's relationship is one of the driving forces of the plot, but somewhere along the way Laurence becomes a complete wet blanket (the amnesia in book 8 is tiresome) and many of the threads I wanted to see the story follow just get shut off.

As a series, I think it's wasted potential and nowhere show more near the quality of the first book or something like Uprooted. I felt the same way about Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell - another alternate history fantasy novel around this time period/setting. Great idea, but I didn't love the direction and it went on for too long.

Still, I did enjoy the series overall (3500 pages, I better have!). The banter between dragons is hilarious, some of the action scenes are absolutely incredible, Novik is a wizard when it comes to dialogue and Temeraire is an unforgettable character. show less

A big finale needs to wrap up core plots; loose ends are acceptable (even encouraged; I like ambiguity), but I do look for a big series finale to pay off narratives set up in previous instalments. There was no way League of Dragons could make amends for the last 3 books, and I didn't expect it to - it could at best address the core questions those last 3 books have often done their best to ignore (dealing with Napoleon; giving dragons citizenship) - which, thankfully, it does.

Consequently, this ends up being the best of the latter half of the series, and if that's faint praise then I'm afraid it's still as far as I'm prepared to go.

Full review

After the brutal losses of the Russian winter, Napoleon evades capture and retreats to France where he is soon cooking up a whole new dragon army that will be ready to cast its dark shadow upon Europe in only a year or so. Worse than that, he has held a gathering of all dragons in order to induce them to make war against their own country for him. He has divided the world neatly into parcels and promised certain areas to certain dragon if they will only rise up and take it for themselves.

The war quickly becomes a war of hearts and minds and Lawrence and Temeraire must convince harnessed and feral dragons alike to join the cause. All the countries of Europe are seeing the writing on the wall and are quickly making concessions to their show more beasts to avoid conflict. But will the world unite in time to finally defeat Napoleon once and for all?

Some of the later books in the series have been a bit tedious, but despite my better judgement, I like them. The characters are all so charming, quirky, and lovable. I cannot help rooting for them and this conclusive volume left me quite satisfied that all my friends are properly settled. A pleasant conclusion to one of my favorite premises. show less