Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.

Start by marking “Tongues of Serpents (Temeraire, #6)” as Want to Read:

Other editions

Enlarge cover

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Open Preview

Tongues of Serpents

(Temeraire #6)

Naomi Novik (Goodreads Author)

3.73 · Rating details · 16,450 ratings · 1,118 reviews

A dazzling blend of military history, high-flying fantasy, and edge-of-your-seat adventure, Naomi Novik’s Temeraire novels, set in an alternate Napoleonic era in which intelligent dragons have been harnessed as weapons of war, are more than just perennial bestsellers—they are a worldwide phenomenon. Now, in Tongues of Serpents, Naomi Novik is back, along with the dragon Te A dazzling blend of military history, high-flying fantasy, and edge-of-your-seat adventure, Naomi Novik’s Temeraire novels, set in an alternate Napoleonic era in which intelligent dragons have been harnessed as weapons of war, are more than just perennial bestsellers—they are a worldwide phenomenon. Now, in Tongues of Serpents, Naomi Novik is back, along with the dragon Temeraire and his rider and friend, Capt. Will Laurence.

Convicted of treason despite their heroic defense against Napoleon’s invasion of England, Temeraire and Laurence—stripped of rank and standing—have been transported to the prison colony at New South Wales in distant Australia, where, it is hoped, they cannot further corrupt the British Aerial Corps with their dangerous notions of liberty for dragons. Temeraire and Laurence carry with them three dragon eggs intended to help establish a covert in the colony and destined to be handed over to such second-rate, undesirable officers as have been willing to accept so remote an assignment—including one former acquaintance, Captain Rankin, whose cruelty once cost a dragon its life.

Nor is this the greatest difficulty that confronts the exiled dragon and rider: Instead of leaving behind all the political entanglements and corruptions of the war, Laurence and Temeraire have instead sailed into a hornet’s nest of fresh complications. For the colony at New South Wales has been thrown into turmoil after the overthrow of the military governor, one William Bligh—better known as Captain Bligh, late of HMS Bounty. Bligh wastes no time in attempting to enlist Temeraire and Laurence to restore him to office, while the upstart masters of the colony are equally determined that the new arrivals should not upset a balance of power precariously tipped in their favor.

Eager to escape this political quagmire, Laurence and Temeraire take on a mission to find a way through the forbidding Blue Mountains and into the interior of Australia. But when one of the dragon eggs is stolen from Temeraire, the surveying expedition becomes a desperate race to recover it in time—a race that leads to a shocking discovery and a dangerous new obstacle in the global war between Britain and Napoleon. ...more

Get A Copy

Hardcover, 274 pages

Published July 13th 2010 by Del Rey

More Details... Edit Details

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Reader Q&A

To ask other readers questions about Tongues of Serpents, please sign up.

Be the first to ask a question about Tongues of Serpents

Lists with This Book

Can't Wait Books of 2010

1,216 books — 10,554 voters

The Hobbit, or There and Back Again by J.R.R. Tolkien

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling

Dragons

1,404 books — 2,395 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

Showing 1-30

Average rating 3.73 ·

Rating details

· 16,450 ratings · 1,118 reviews

More filters

Sort order

Start your review of Tongues of Serpents (Temeraire, #6)

Nov 01, 2020 Melissa ♥ Dog/Wolf Lover ♥ Martin rated it liked it

Shelves: library-book, machalo-tbr-cleaning-2020, fantasy-all

I don’t have much to say any more. It’s become a pissing contest on GR. I’ll add reviews if I feel like it for myself. Don’t much care any more.

I love Temeraire and Laurence but I’m not feeling it like I did the first books. I do want to finish the series though. Also, Simon Vance is everything!

Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾

flag 53 likes · Like · see review

Jan 30, 2019 Niki Hawkes - The Obsessive Bookseller rated it liked it

[3.5/5 stars] I’m not sure yet how I feel about the series as a whole, but I’ve found myself picking up these novels for a very specific Temeraire “fix,” if that makes sense. The books are all fairly similar but the highlight continues to be the dragons. This novel had them exploring the Australian Outback… basically on the periphery of the Napoleonic War (again), and even though not much happened, per se, I still enjoyed the interplay between the dragons and humans. I’m not getting a lot of sub ...more

flag 46 likes · Like · see review

May 21, 2018 Bradley rated it it was ok

Shelves: 2018-shelf, fantasy

I have been a pretty good fan of this series, but unfortunately, I've grown tired of it by now.

This isn't dragons against Napoleon anymore. This isn't an intrigue in China. This is exile to Australia.

Long treks, dragon eggs, and filler await us. Maybe it's because I took almost a decade to return to the series or I burned out, but this didn't capture my imagination. Almost at all. No hope for glory, just establishing a colony? For dragons?

This is how the world ends. With a whimper, not a bang. ...more

flag 33 likes · Like · see review

Jan 09, 2010 Jacob rated it it was ok

Shelves: sci-fi-fantasy-etc, 2005-2010, 2016

October 2010

Tongues of Serpents brings William Laurence, his dragon Temeraire, their friends Granby and Iskierka, and three dragon eggs, to the colony of Sydney in New South Wales--but not for long. The governor of New South Wales has been overthrown, but Laurence is in no mood for politics. Instead, Laurence and Granby agree to take their dragons, along with the first egg hatched to one of Laurence's old rivals, Captain Rankin, on a simple mission into Australia's interior. There, the second eg October 2010

Tongues of Serpents brings William Laurence, his dragon Temeraire, their friends Granby and Iskierka, and three dragon eggs, to the colony of Sydney in New South Wales--but not for long. The governor of New South Wales has been overthrown, but Laurence is in no mood for politics. Instead, Laurence and Granby agree to take their dragons, along with the first egg hatched to one of Laurence's old rivals, Captain Rankin, on a simple mission into Australia's interior. There, the second egg is stolen--and everything falls to pieces.

Seriously. The book just trips over its own feet and breaks its nose. It's not a pretty sight.

I was dismayed, at the end of Victory of Eagles, to see Laurence and Temeraire exiled to Australia. Although they had committed treason against the Crown (well-intentioned treason, but treason nonetheless), I expected that their actions defending England from Napoleon's invasion would have earned them a pardon. That didn't happen, and they were shipped away to Australia--and away from England, the Aerial Corps, and most importantly, the War. Surely this was the end of the series, and a bleak end at that. Seriously, what would happen in Australia?

Nothing much. Minor political squabbles, which Laurence thankfully avoided; minor smuggling issues, which Laurence and Temeraire followed for most of the book until the lackluster conclusion; and a really long, really drawn-out, really boring and pointless chase sequence, which took up more than a third of the book, after the theft of the egg, and was resolved in a swift and unsatisfactory way towards the end. A few new dragons appear, a few minor characters are allowed some amount of development while a few others get some conclusion and a chance to disappear, and there's a bit of a battle at the end, but nothing much seems to come of it.

I hate to criticize Tongues of Serpents so much; Naomi Novik's dragons-in-18th-Century-England mash-up is pretty damn fantastic, and I've been a fan of the books and the world she constructed since I picked up His Majesty's Dragon in 2006. This book is the first time I've been disappointed. Hopefully it's a minor hiccup in the series, and the next books (supposedly three more) pick up, continue, and conclude the adventures of Laurence and Temeraire with the same levels of energy and adventure that made the first five books so great. ...more

flag 23 likes · Like · see review

Jan 28, 2013 Kyle rated it it was ok

I have said previously that Naomi Novik hasn't hit a sour note, nor made a wrong step throughout her Temeraire series. I guess this is what I get for speaking too soon. Naomi Novik is still an extremely consistent writer, and whenever I've picked up a Temeraire book I've had a remarkably accurate idea of what to expect from the novel.

Simply put, however, this one was the exception and it proved to be a bit of a disappointment. It's the smallest Temeraire book, yet it felt like it was the longes I have said previously that Naomi Novik hasn't hit a sour note, nor made a wrong step throughout her Temeraire series. I guess this is what I get for speaking too soon. Naomi Novik is still an extremely consistent writer, and whenever I've picked up a Temeraire book I've had a remarkably accurate idea of what to expect from the novel.

Simply put, however, this one was the exception and it proved to be a bit of a disappointment. It's the smallest Temeraire book, yet it felt like it was the longest because I started waiting for it to get over. It is, by far, the weakest of the series.

Now... I'll make a confession. I have a sorta kinda [not so]secret crush on Naomi Novik. Is it the cute glass-wearing nerdy look she has going on, combined with her devotion to nerdy things like D&D? Sure, sure. Of course. Is it also those previous traits combined with an adorable interest in the Napoleonic era (which happens to be a favorite of mine too)? Yep! Absolutely! All are contributors to my fan-crush on her. BUT still the biggest draw to her is that she is a woman who isn't afraid to use my favorite punctuation mark: The Semicolon! I love semicolons. When an English professor tells you not to use a semicolon, they are wrong; they are dead wrong. You should tell them they are are wrong by using many semicolons; you can even write them a letter telling them how wrong they are. You could paint a mural on their office wall; of course, a mural should be covered with semicolons. A mural on an English professor's wall should always be covered with semicolons, for a very important reason; semicolons are sexy.

Which is why Naomi Novik painfully broke my heart with Tongues of Serpents; she abused my beloved semicolon. Gone was the fine-tuned sentence structure of The Black Powder War; gone was the easy flowing words of Victory of Eagles. Gone was sanity!

Instead: with Tongues of Serpents, we were subjected to crazy sentence structure; and willy-nilly punctuation. And my poor; poor semicolons were simply, abused; wasted; defiled I say! Their magic was juiced out: wrung out; and my tears wet the pages in sadness; forevermore.

Oh, I forgot to mention. It was also kinda boring. Does stuff happen? Kinda. There's an egg chase, which seems to not work out for anybody in the end. That's about it. Oh, and there's mealtime. Sometimes. :( ...more

flag 19 likes · Like · see review

Jul 22, 2010 Jamie Collins rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy, time-travel-alt-history, regency-napoleonic

This is as well-written as the earlier books, with great dialogue, and I very much enjoyed the characters. But the story is a little dull, particularly in comparison with the previous book. Our heroes spend most of the time traipsing around in Australia in the middle of nowhere.

I didn't see much point to the plot, and the Aviators seemed disorganized and unprofessional; an impression I don't remember getting from the earlier books. It's also beginning to seem odd that Europe is the only place in ...more

flag 14 likes · Like · see review

Mar 24, 2010 Silvana rated it it was ok

Shelves: fyeahfantasy, mine-mine-mine, female-nonbinary-authors

Dear Naomi Novik,

First of all, Java is located in Indonesia. Most importantly, there was no Indonesia yet during the Napoleonic Era. Using the name Dutch Indies would be more appropriate.

Secondly, is this just a filler between Victory of Eagles and the next book? It surely feels like it. *sigh*

Thirdly, could you please stop writing about long tedious journeys? Going through the Silk Road in book 3 and Africa road trip in book 4 were exhausting enough.

Fourthly, thank you for bringing fresh new ...more

flag 12 likes · Like · see review

Aug 04, 2017 Hailee rated it really liked it · review of another edition

3.5 stars.

This will be quite a short review as I am honestly running out of things to say about this series. And at 6 books in I feel like people are either committed to reading the series till the end so my opinion will probably make little difference or they’ve already abandoned the series already and so are probably not even looking at reviews anyway.

Although I still enjoyed this book it felt a lot like a ‘filler’ in the series. I think the author decided that Temeraire and Laurence had to sp ...more

flag 10 likes · Like · see review

Jun 05, 2013 Mogsy (MMOGC) rated it liked it

Shelves: action-adventure, historical-fiction, dragons, whispersync, audiobook, war, fantasy, alternate-history

These books are still a joy to read, though I've pretty much accepted that none of the sequels in this series are ever going to come close to being as good as the first book again. At least this one was better than the last, which sees Laurence and Temeraire back on an adventure again in a faraway exotic place.

This time, the crew finds themselves in Australia, with Laurence having been banished to the prison colony of New South Wales after being convicted of treason. The British Aerial Corps has ...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

Jul 10, 2019 Ashley Marie rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy-misc, audiobook-would-recommend, histfic-alt-history

Rankin and Caesar were predictably insufferable, and it seems like Laurence and Temeraire are stuck in Australia for the foreseeable future. I very much liked seeing Demane take charge of Kulingile. And gosh but I missed Simon Vance's voice. ...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

Feb 07, 2019 laurel [the suspected bibliophile] rated it it was ok

Shelves: 2019-read, alternate-history, fantasy, historical-fic, audiobooks

This was 90% filler, 8% talking and 2% action.

Laurence and Temeraire are exiled to Australia, along with three dragon eggs and I'm guessing the weird assumption that Temeraire won't somehow corrupt the eggs on the way with potential members of the aviation corps? I don't know. The reasoning behind it seemed really loose and more of an excuse to get them on another adventure to Australia.

As for Australia itself, I was looking forward to viewing something that was a whole lot different than the pl ...more

flag 8 likes · Like · see review

Feb 09, 2018 Siobhan rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: books-we-own-read

Reread Oct 19 - I enjoyed this a lot more second time round! Maybe it was because I listened to the audiobook.

I'd say 3.5 stars. It definitely picked up from about half way through. For the first 100 pages or so though nothing happened... ...more

flag 8 likes · Like · see review

Feb 10, 2017 Emily rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

Wow... boring. Pretty sure I could have skipped this one and not missed much at all. I still love Temeraire though.

flag 8 likes · Like · see review

May 11, 2016 Marina rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 3-star

How can you possibly make a story about the first days of Australian colonization boring? Well, ToS is how... The beginning of Tongues of Serpents was dreadful: slow paced, political in the most uninteresting ways, and action that falls short of it's rich setting.

I mean, come on! This is the wild and untamed Australia!! And all the characters spend doing for half the book is chasing people across the vast landscape. Sure there are some killer earthworms, but even then, it was just so hard to car How can you possibly make a story about the first days of Australian colonization boring? Well, ToS is how... The beginning of Tongues of Serpents was dreadful: slow paced, political in the most uninteresting ways, and action that falls short of it's rich setting.

I mean, come on! This is the wild and untamed Australia!! And all the characters spend doing for half the book is chasing people across the vast landscape. Sure there are some killer earthworms, but even then, it was just so hard to care! Novik makes poor use of her magnificent setting, too, which was the greatest shame.

The latter part of the book does get better. It is still political, but in a good way. The most fascinating part of this series is how the existence of dragons effects colonialism and slave trade. Considering that while continent of Africa, and countries Brazil, Australia - and I guess the US colonies- may not be as technologically advanced, their dragons are superior. Mostly thanks to the fact that all of them actually respect their dragons and treat them with care and reverence, rather than convenient deadly animals, to be used and then discarded. Meaning, the African tribes band together to destroy the slave trade and even go as far as going after the Colonists to return their people.

But this got me curious about how the battle between the Colonies and Britain played out - since the series takes place post-Revolution. Especially considering that the dragons would make all the difference... what about Native Americans vs. Colonists... were there dragons in the US, I bet not since they wouldn't have let the Colonists spread that far. And by a few things and characters Novik said... it seems like Native Americans are more or less part of the US society and they're breeding dragons... so yeah.

But overall however, this book was such a step-down from the previous two. We go from major, epic battles, to... traveling. Once again, there's only one female character, and even then she's barely ever present. And there are so many other characters, it's hard to track any new ones, and some old favorites just kind of wink in and out. Like Tharkey, I kept forgetting he was with them because there'd be stretches of time where he'd just have no lines and seemed to disappear and then reappear again to say a few words and then disappear again. Also, considering that Laurance and he have been traveling for a couple of years now (nearly as long as with Granby), you'd think they'd be better friends now? But they all still have very professional relationships.

The last part of the book was definitely better than the first, but still, slightly disappointed, and I hope the next is better. ...more

flag 7 likes · Like · see review

Jun 16, 2017 Katy rated it liked it · review of another edition

A fun easy read and a continuation of the story of Temeriare without too much happening. But getting us ready for the decisions to be made in the next book.

flag 7 likes · Like · see review

Aug 18, 2016 Mark rated it it was ok

Shelves: fantasy

Earlier books in this series have left me feeling like I would follow the adventures of Laurence and Temeraire just about anywhere on the planet. Here comes the sixth book in the series to prove that there are limits to that belief. An exile to Australia did not have to be boring - indeed, it could have been inherently the opposite of boring. That's not how it works out, though.

The problem here is that this book is the series trying to go again to the same well it has gone before, only in not as Earlier books in this series have left me feeling like I would follow the adventures of Laurence and Temeraire just about anywhere on the planet. Here comes the sixth book in the series to prove that there are limits to that belief. An exile to Australia did not have to be boring - indeed, it could have been inherently the opposite of boring. That's not how it works out, though.

The problem here is that this book is the series trying to go again to the same well it has gone before, only in not as interesting of a manner. Lots of the book being spent on a long journey just to get somewhere was done in books two and three. A journey over land for some vague expedition was done in the third book, and it was done better in that book because there was more interesting scenery. A journey into an ill-explored interior of a not civilized (as Western nations would deem it) land was done in the fourth book when they went into the heart of Africa - much more interesting than what happens in Australia, too.

Scattered hints in scraps of letters read here and there give the idea that there is a more interesting plot happening, oh, anywhere else in the world. Back in England, the independent dragons are creating new jobs for themselves by transporting things and people. Imagine how that's going to radically transform the society! We see none of that, nor do we see any of what has happened with Boney (Napoleon) having befriended the newly-liberated nation emerging from the African continent... then setting them on an invasion of Brazil to try to free captured slaves. Of course Napoleon is a bad guy but it is interesting, in this world, that it is he who is liberating slaves and meanwhile Laurence, who is exiled for stopping a genocide and bankrupt because his own dragon freed some slaves, is left with nothing. The war against Napoleon really seems to be what is at the heart of this series and any volume that barely touches upon it, beyond some vague geopolitical ramifications introduced towards the end of the slog that lasts like 75% of the book, ends up feeling more like filler.

Some entertaining moments and interesting world-building (finally, an American! and he hints that he doesn't want his sailors to be pressed into British service, so will I get Temeraire in the War of 1812, showing up at Fort McHenry and changing the line "the bombs bursting in air" to "dragons circling in air"?) do their best to try to pop through the tedium. The hatching of eggs continues to be an entertaining process. Temeraire seems to want every new hatchling to be just like him and he is continually puzzled when they are their own people, or, er, dragons. There always seems to be some new little aspect of how the Aerial Corps has settled things over the centuries, as well, and it makes for an interesting conflict to see how the various people (some of whom seem like decent folks otherwise) react to a hatchling that is deformed and, significantly, not able to fly from birth.

I hope that the next book does not linger long in Australia and does not have half the book taken up by the journey to wherever Temeraire and Laurence are headed next. ...more

flag 6 likes · Like · see review

Nov 08, 2019 Elana rated it liked it

Honestly this was more like a 2-star book for me, and admitting that hurts my soul deeply. I love this series and I adore Temeraire. The problem was, in this book he was given nothing to do except fly across Australia on comparatively low-stakes missions, and he had no growth. The book was a filler episode, and I can remember only one or two chapters where I was truly interested in the events.

Nothing really happened until page 176, and I thought to myself, "Aha, here we go!" But after that chapt ...more

flag 6 likes · Like · see review

May 06, 2010 Rachel rated it it was ok

Shelves: 2010, fantasy

This was just so boring. I just don't understand where this series went wrong--the first one is so funny, and it's about DRAGONS fighting NAPOLEON. But they've gradually stopped being funny and have turned into dragons visiting all the continents. For some reason. This one is just the dragons flying across Australia and accomplishing nothing. Seriously, just chapters and chapters of them flying around for a purpose too flimsy to support a months-long journey across uncharted territory; a purpose ...more

flag 6 likes · Like · see review

Feb 20, 2018 Manisha rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: 2-star-reads, genre-historical-fiction, series-nonet, series-completed, sff-adult, genre-fantasy, pages-101-500

Actual review: 2.5

I can feel myself gradually losing interest and I’m not happy about it.

♦ THE PACING:

This… was… so… painfully… slow. I found this to be the weakest of her books so far and it is based solely on the pacing of this book. There were pages where it dragged on and on and on… and nothing happened. Usually, I’m not picky about these things. Historical fiction is rarely as fast-moving as other genres, but this was clearly a stretch. This was so clearly a filler in the series that it co ...more

flag 5 likes · Like · see review

Aug 20, 2018 Timothy Boyd rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: shelfari-favorites

Seems there are dragons everywhere. Now the story goes to Australia and of course we get to see all new dragons and monsters for the characters to encounter. Great story with action and humor throughout. Very recommended

flag 5 likes · Like · see review

Jun 15, 2017 Margret rated it liked it

Waffling between a 2 and 3 star. It was just meh.

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Feb 26, 2018 Timelord Iain rated it liked it

Shelves: buddy-read, genre-historical, 2018-reads, audiobook-listen-2018

The plot of this one seemed lacking... it's always nice to spend time with Temeraire and Iskierka... and Kulingile was a great addition... but I expected more from a locale like Australia... hopefully Brazil is better, next time... ...more

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

May 06, 2015 Rachel (Kalanadi) rated it it was ok

Let's get this out of the way: I was disappointed in this book.

It's the sixth in a series that's been losing steam and going adrift since book three or four. And I hate to say that, but Tongues of Serpents was downright boring and this was more crushing than I expected because it could have been great.

The Temeraire series follows Laurence and his dragon Temeraire as they fight for England in the Napoleonic Wars. Previous adventures have taken them from England to China and Africa, and in Tongues ...more

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Jul 28, 2012 Otherwyrld rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: historical, fantasy

There has been a fair amount of negative reviews for this book on this site, but to be honest I didn't think it was that bad a book. Not great, and not up to the standard of previous volumes, but not bad either.

Laurence and Temeraire have arrived in Australia as convicts, but they find themselves in a difficult position when they come across William Bligh (of HMS Bounty fame), who has been deposed as Governor of the new colony. Bligh wants the dragons to help reinstate him, and he is non too sub There has been a fair amount of negative reviews for this book on this site, but to be honest I didn't think it was that bad a book. Not great, and not up to the standard of previous volumes, but not bad either.

Laurence and Temeraire have arrived in Australia as convicts, but they find themselves in a difficult position when they come across William Bligh (of HMS Bounty fame), who has been deposed as Governor of the new colony. Bligh wants the dragons to help reinstate him, and he is non too subtle about offering Laurence a pardon if he helps. On the other side are the usurpers, who also wouldn't mind a bit of help. Luckily, they manage to avoid the intrigue by taking on a commission to look for a passage through the Blue Mountains that block further expansion in to the interior.

Whilst looking for this, they also have 3 dragon eggs to look after, and Laurence is dismayed to find that one of them is intended for the detestable Captain Rankin, whom we last saw in book 1. When one of the dragon eggs is stolen by unknown forces, they are forced to trek across the breadth of this vast continent to rescue it. I actually found this to be interestingly written, as the author successfully conveys just how huge and unforgiving the Australian outback can be. Along the way, two of the dragon eggs hatch and there is some drama as one of the dragons seems so deformed as to need euthanasia, but luckily common sense prevails. Baby dragons are always amusing in these books, and these two are no exception. Even Rankin may have met his match with his new dragon, who seems unlikely to allow himself to be as badly treated as poor Levitas was. There is also something ridiculous about a dragon that becomes so negatively buoyant as to literally float in the air like a balloon, which the other new dragon does for a while.

The story takes a different turn when they catch up with the final egg at Uluru/Ayers Rock, only to see it being taken away by a strange dragon. Struggling along in it's wake, hampered by 2 ravenous dragonets and little food, they finally make it to the northern coast, only to find that (view spoiler). This ties in a few earlier sub-plots and suddenly makes things much more serious for the struggling British colony.

Laurence also catches up on news of the far away war against Napoleon and is dismayed to hear that the African empire he encountered in a previous story has now joined the war on the French side. Worse, they are attacking in both Europe and Brazil. War with China is only just averted here as well, but things look bad all round. The small group finally makes it back to Sydney, but finds little of cheer here either. Laurence has not received his pardon and the dragon ship is being sent home without him, so they look to be stuck in Australia for a while longer.

Laurence finally makes the decision that Temeraire has been urging for a while - to break off ties with his old life completely and make a new independent life in Australia. Of course, it is not going to be that easy to let go, otherwise this would be the end of the series, but is a downbeat ending and it seems that the author is going to have to jump her characters through hoops to get them back into the action.

...more

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Nov 25, 2009 Wealhtheow rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy, historical, pocmaincharacters, mannerpunk

The Temeraire series answers the age-old question, "How would the Napoleonic Wars change if dragons existed?"

In the first book, His Majesty's Dragon, the answer is that not much would change--all the European nations have dragons, and they treat them like a cross between pets and battleships. The only real change is that communication is slightly faster and some additional battles are fought in the air. The main character, Laurence, is a British naval captain who befriends the dragon Temeraire; The Temeraire series answers the age-old question, "How would the Napoleonic Wars change if dragons existed?"

In the first book, His Majesty's Dragon, the answer is that not much would change--all the European nations have dragons, and they treat them like a cross between pets and battleships. The only real change is that communication is slightly faster and some additional battles are fought in the air. The main character, Laurence, is a British naval captain who befriends the dragon Temeraire; the first book is their introduction to aerial warfare. It's a wonderful story. But Novik complicates the narrative in a very satisfying way with the next book, Throne of Jade, which widens the world to include China. Further books take Laurence and Temeraire through Africa and finally, to Australia, all the while fighting Napoleon's forces and allies every inch of the way. The series slowly reveals itself to be a colonialist narrative told from a very post-colonialist pov. We are presented with classic European views and politics--the slave trade, use of opium for trade purposes, Manifest Destiny, etc--but the existence of dragons changes the result. When European traders take people as slaves from Africa, the African dragons and their warriors fight back, exceedingly effectively. The spread of European settlers in the Americas is very different, because the native Americans have plenty of defenses of their own. It's fascinating!

But the series is not just a game of "what if"--it's a deeply satisfying character study of the uncomfortably honorable Laurence, the brilliant-but-jejune Temeraire, and the diverse cast of side characters. Although there are a few battles in Tongues of Serpents, the majority of the plot is simply Temeraire and Laurence treking across Australia.

Laurence has always been a character driven by honor and duty--his sense of responsibility toward England weighed heavily and constantly upon his shoulders. But after Victory of Eagles, he has lost his taste for war, even against England's enemies. Although many called him a traitor for his mercy, he maintained his patriotism. But in this book, he must question his own loyalty to his embattled nation.

Although I think this series is easily the most mature look at the Napoleonic wars OR dragons that I've ever read, there's a great deal of humor and adventure in it, as well. The dragons each have fabulous personalities that clash horribly (they read a lot like scaly, half-ton cats). And there's nothing to get the blood up like fighting sea-serpents! ...more

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Aug 27, 2010 Meg rated it it was ok

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Nothing happens in this book.

Okay, I'll take that back. Stuff happens, or promises to happen, but in almost every case, Lawrence basically says "I think we'd better keep out of that" and then...they do. There is complex political intrigue--completely avoided. There is an offer of privateering--turned down. There is a chase all across the Outback during which several Redshirt lives are lost...and when they reach their goal finally, the point of the goal is gone. One might think that the lives bei ...more

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Jan 29, 2017 imyril rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Will Laurence and Temeraire have been banished to Australia to establish new breeding grounds, convicts in all but name. But the colony is mutinous, its Governor in exile, and the continent hazardous, with no obvious opportunities for redemption.

Unfortunately, Tongues of Serpents passes up almost all of the exciting opportunities intrinsic to its setting in favour of a slow-burn plot that never really catches fire. I'm used to Temeraire books being episodic travelogues that build character, but ...more

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

May 18, 2011 Thomas Wilson rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: war, historical

I always enjoy these books. I am a fan of Patrick O'Brien and Naomi books are very similiar, Good History, period correct in the technology and specifics of the book , yet she added in this collection of rich characters which are dragons, utterly amazing!

I also enjoy the fact the main characters don't live in a fairy tale world where their lot in life just gets better as you go along. It goes up and down, and for the most part their situation has gotten progressively worse overall. You read hopi ...more

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Mar 13, 2017 Kelly rated it really liked it

Shelves: adult, paranormal-low-fantasy, historical-fiction, audiobook

When I zone out for a minute and suddenly a dragon is ripping a serpent's head off with its teeth...

Also, I find it pretty funny that I was reading 2 historical fiction (emphasis on the fiction) books at the same time that both had characters named Caesar, except one was the actual Julius Caesar and the other was an ambitious dragon. ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Jul 01, 2010 Catherine rated it liked it

Shelves: australia, 2010, england

There is much to love about book six in the Temeraire series - the dragons, in particular, are at their finest, with some new voices that continue to expand what we think we know about the dragon world. I was so glad to spend time with Temeraire again, in particular, with all his wonderful dragon logic that cuts right through the artifice and silliness of human society. I am also thrilled beyond the telling of it to learn that the Iroquois and Ojibwe have their own dragons and I cannot wait unti ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Fantasy Buddy Reads: Tongue of Serpents [Aug 22, 2021]	1	3	Feb 07, 2021 05:43AM
Fantasy Buddy Reads: Tongues of Serpents [Aug 25, 2019]	16	39	Oct 11, 2019 11:19AM
Fantasy Buddy Reads: Tongues of Serpents [Feb 1, 2018]	32	41	Feb 19, 2018 01:31PM
Fantasy Book Club...: #6 TONGUES OF SERPENTS--Finished SPOILERS	7	10	Jun 28, 2017 07:33AM
Fantasy Book Club...: * Temeraire #6- Tongues of Serpents First Impressions (no spoilers)	10	17	Jun 27, 2017 11:41AM
Play Book Tag: Tongues Of Serpents (Temeraire #6), by Naomi Novik--4 stars	3	8	Jun 27, 2017 11:29AM

Readers also enjoyed

See similar books…

Genres

Fantasy

1,625 users

Fantasy > Dragons

372 users

Historical > Historical Fiction

315 users

Fiction

244 users

Science Fiction > Alternate History

210 users

Historical

160 users

Historical Fiction > Historical Fantasy

102 users

Science Fiction Fantasy

63 users

Adventure

60 users

Audiobook

46 users

See top shelves…

About Naomi Novik

Naomi Novik

20,253 followers

An avid reader of fantasy literature since age six, when she first made her way through The Lord of the Rings, Naomi Novik is also a history buff with a particular interest in the Napoleonic era and a fondness for the work of Patrick O’Brian and Jane Austen. She studied English literature at Brown University, and did graduate work in computer science at Columbia University before leaving to partic ...more

Other books in the series

Temeraire (9 books)

Books by Naomi Novik

More…

Meet the Epic and Awesome Authors of Fall's Big Fantasy Novels

If you love the fantasy genre, this is the season for you! Some of the biggest books out this fall promise to be epics full of magic, adventure,...

Trivia About Tongues of Serpen...

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

Quotes from Tongues of Serpents

“It seems to me after a fellow has been mutinied against three or four times, there is something to it besides bad luck.” — 29 likes

“If you will pardon my saying so," Tharkay said, "you will never satisfy them on that point: the last thing you or Temeraire will ever give anyone is quiet obedience. Have you considered it might be better not to try?” — 10 likes

More quotes…