From the Bookshelf of Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge…
Find A Copy At
Group Discussions About This Book
No group discussions for this book yet.
What Members Thought
Things I didn't enjoy:
~ The pacing. Aside from the ridiculously long sea voyage (ARE WE THERE YET?), the pacing often jumped around oddly with sometimes quite significant or exciting events told rather than shown. For example towards the end of the book, the party is moved to the Emperor's palace in quite the bustle but we don't see it, instead the reader is plonked just after it happens and then immediately told that it had happened. That sort of thing occurred regularly and it grated on me.
~ L ...more
~ The pacing. Aside from the ridiculously long sea voyage (ARE WE THERE YET?), the pacing often jumped around oddly with sometimes quite significant or exciting events told rather than shown. For example towards the end of the book, the party is moved to the Emperor's palace in quite the bustle but we don't see it, instead the reader is plonked just after it happens and then immediately told that it had happened. That sort of thing occurred regularly and it grated on me.
~ L ...more
One of the things I enjoy most about reading is getting the sense that time is just pausing and that everything around you - the noise and chaos just falls away. Then, when you are deepest into the story and your imagination is filled with the incredible things being described and you can hear the voices of the characters and the sounds of the cities or oceans or landscapes they are in... the author drops a simple little comical thing that tips everything over the edge and you end up laughing hy
...more
Really enjoyed this second book about Temeraire and Captain Lawrence. This book was more about Chinese politics than about the European front, but I found it fascinating. There was definitely less action in this sequel than in the first book. Here, a lot of time was spent on the boat meandering its way to China, then standing around in China trying to figure out whether they were going to separate Temeraire from Captain Lawrence.
The history and setting appeal to my husband, who rarely reads cont ...more
The history and setting appeal to my husband, who rarely reads cont ...more
Certainly not as charming as the first installment. A large portion of this story takes place on a dragon-carrying barge and consists of factions of men and the dragon being cranky with each other. Once they arrive at their destination, more misunderstandings and hurt feelings abound, until a neat twist of fate brings everything neatly to a conclusion.
This one didn't hit quite as hard as the first book. The journey to China felt both too long and not long enough, with some parts feeling very slow. Once they get to China the pace picks up, but it seemed like the problem was solved a bit too easily. I will be continuing the series, but I'm hoping we get less about the philosophy of raising dragons in the next one.
...more
I find this series fascinting, it's an alternate history in which dragons are incorporated into the world, and the military force that the British are using to fight off Napoleon. In this particular book takes place in China where dragons are integrated into every aspect of society. It's a fun, what if.
...more
Apr 10, 2011
Amanda
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
my-sisyphean-challenge,
3-stars
Jun 13, 2024
Maryam
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
historical-fiction,
fantasy
