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| Victory of Eagles (Temeraire, Book 5) | 
 enlarge | Author: Naomi Novik
Publisher: Del Rey
Category: Book
List Price: $25.00
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Avg. Customer Rating:  33 reviews
Sales Rank: 5702
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 342
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.2
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 6.7 x 1.3
ISBN: 0345496884
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9780345496881
ASIN: 0345496884
Publication Date: July 8, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: NEW AND UNREAD. HARDCOVER WITH DUSTJACKET, AS SHOWN. BC EDITION. NO MARKINGS. FAST SHIPPING
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| Customer Reviews:
Not the best, but still wonderfully Temeraire. ('Ware spoilers!) July 11, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Caution: Spoilers hidden within.
Reading Naomi Novik's Temeraire series is like eating a big Thanksgiving feast: no matter how slowly you try to take it, you can't help but gulp it all down in one go, and then all you want to do is lay very still and absorb.
I've been a fan of the series since a customer recommended them to me a couple summers ago. I think the ideas are wonderfully fresh, the writing captivating, and the story rich. I enjoyed this book more than I've enjoyed almost any other in a long time.
That being said, I did not like this one as much as the others.
But! Complements first!
I really enjoyed getting into Temeraire's head and also starting to understand how the dragons think. We get to see so much more of their thoughts in this one; it's fascinating. What's also interesting is how different a dragon's idea of the world is from a human's.
Making the emotions of the characters tangible to the reader is one of Novik's strongest skills. Laurence's depression comes through so clearly that I had to put the book down at the end of the second part and walk away for an hour. The feeling that there is no resolution, no way to repair what's been done, is almost too much much to take; I don't know how Laurence managed it. And when Temeraire thought Laurence was dead, I wanted to cry, his pain came through so clearly (see especially page 76).
As always, the battle scenes were so intense I held my breath for most of them (a mistake, since holding one's breath for twenty some pages makes it difficult to continue reading after a while). The sheer brutality of this war - death, destruction, loss, dishonorable tactics - comes through more clearly in this book than in the others.
I enjoyed seeing some of Temeraire's original crew, too. I quite miss having Granby around and Hollin was a great character. Tharkay plays a surprisingly significant role, which was exciting in its own way - not that this fast-paced book needs any more excitement!
Now, for a little, tiny bit of criticism...
Some of the things I so enjoy about this book are also among the reasons I don't like it as well as the others.
For one, the tone of the story is so grim at parts that it becomes painful to read. It seems Temeraire and Laurence might never be completely happy again; and that's a hard feeling to transfer to the reader.
As enjoyable as it is to gain insight on Temeraire's way of thinking, it also makes the story hard to follow in places. I understand why she wrote it that way, since he and Laurence are separated for the beginning of the book, but I prefer the story more focused around Laurence.
I feel she added too many new dragon characters. While some are interesting and give some life to the dragons beyond those we already know, it also becomes hard to keep track of who is who. And we get to see less of our old favorites, Maximus, Lily, Volly, and Celeritas, to name a few.
I also disliked the ending. There really seems to be no resolution for Laurence. He's not going to forgive himself for his treason, and his country isn't either. His relationship with Jane appears to be over, many of his crew won't even look at him, and he's dishonored his family. Now he's headed for Australia. How is he going to make it right? (And, more importantly, how is Novik going to make it right?)
But I really did enjoy the book, despite it's faults. I have high hopes for the next. I don't know what's in Australia, but Novik does. And I'd like to know a few things: why hasn't Temeraire sired an egg? What's happening in Australia? Will Temeraire and Lien EVER have a final showdown?
And how is Britain getting rid of Napoleon?
Victory of Eagles (Temeraire, Book 5)
A rip-roaring adventure story with substance July 11, 2008
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
While I enjoyed the first volume of the Temeraire series, "His Majesty's Dragon", I thought the subsequent novels really dropped in quality. It got to the point that after the last novel, "Empire of Ivory", I considered dropping the series since I was discouraged about how events were progressing. After the first novel, I wanted to further read about Napoleon's attempts to invade Great Britain, as that was the most gripping conflict in the novel. Instead in "Throne of Jade", "Black Powder War" and "Empire of Ivory", Temeraire and Laurence are traveling the world, engaging more in events I would consider to be subplots than furthering the main conflict: the Napoleonic War between Britain and France. That's not to say, there hasn't been plot points essential to the story in the travelogue trilogy that renders these books unnecessary. There just isn't enough movement in the main conflict in these books.
Now in "Victory of Eagles", Naomi Novik has shifted the setting back wholly to Britain and Scotland. And to make this even better: Napoleon finally invades. This immensely helps the storyline, making "Victory of Eagles" the best Temeraire novel since "His Majesty's Dragon". Unfortunately, the ending of "Victory of Eagles" suggests to me that the series may go on indefinitely. An immediate resolution of the Napoleonic War does not appear to be at hand. I'd like to see Novik wrap the series up, but I'm not holding out much hope. Still, she has captured the best elements in the series here, while expanding the emotional depth displayed by Laurence and Temeraire.
At the end of "Empire of Ivory", Laurence and Temeraire had committed a treasonous act when they supplied Napoleon with a cure for the sickness plaguing his dragons. Now, Laurence finds himself locked away in a British naval vessel's brig, so his location will remain a secret from Temeraire. Not surprisingly, he's been convicted of treason and sentenced to hang, though not imminently as the British are keeping him alive in order to keep Temeraire in check. Meanwhile, Temeraire is at the breeding grounds, suffering from depression and loneliness about his situation.
Soon Napoleon invades and gains a foothold in Britain, shattering Temeraire's bout of self-pity. But bad news follows as Temeraire mistakenly believes that Laurence has been tragically killed during the course of the invasion. With a burning desire to now fight the French, Temeraire organizes the unharnessed dragons of the breeding ground into an army, and strikes out after the invaders. Much to both their delights, Laurence and Temeraire are soon reunited and quickly enlisted to help defend against Napoleon's march on London. But after a crushing defeat by the French, Temeraire and Laurence must flee to Scotland with the remainder of the English army. There they hatch a plan to win the country back from the French and capture Napoleon in the process.
Novik has delivered a peach of a novel, returning to the form that made "His Majesty's Dragon" so enjoyable. The intense battles are great and immersive, while the guerrilla warfare with dragons is a very interesting idea. Interestingly, the characters have become much more introspective in "Victory of Eagles"; Laurence in particular must learn to live under the huge stigma of being a traitor. He finds himself essentially dispossessed of his career, reputation and wealth, leaving him alone with only his conscience. Eventually, he even battles for that before realizing that it is his last and most valuable possession and should not be so easily given away. "Victory of Eagles" explores the sometimes bitter consequences of making a hard moral decision, and this elevates the novel in my estimation. Novik doesn't let her characters get off easy, and that makes the consequences even more realistic and intriguing.
Last Word:
"Victory of Eagles" is a successful return to the charm and magic of the first book. But it is also a more mature work in which the characters confront deeper and darker emotional and moral issues. Coupled with the overall awesomeness of Napoleon fighting a pitched campaign on British soil, "Victory of Eagles" really pulls out all the stops in providing a rip-roaring adventure that has substance.
Solid continuation of the series -- the main characters are as intriguing as ever August 17, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Even though the preceding volume in this ongoing series ended on a cliffhanger, with Napoleon about to invade Britain, the real story here has to do with the developing relationship between Laurence and Temeraire. That's what's holding me to the story, and will keep me anticipating each new volume. The Temeraire series is light reading, but is more than merely a guilty pleasure.
Novik does a marvelous job describing the ongoing battles and intrigues -- and obviously has done a great deal of research. Little details stand out in the midst of elaborate descriptions -- I was struck by her description of a cannon ball that had been fired on the ship where Laurence was imprisoned. It was moving at a pace where the guard thought he might stop it with his foot -- but it had built up enough momentum that it ripped cleanly through his foot and a wall before ceasing to roll.
Where the book really shines, though, is in its attention to the evolution in Laurence's attitudes and response to situations -- his commitment to a sense of honor and dignity in the face of the indignities he suffers -- and in its tracing of an evolution in Temeraire's understanding of himself and of the world. Temeraire was born intelligent and able to speak -- a situation quite different from that of human beings who have to grow into reason, and for whom habituation and norms come prior to elaborate self reflection. He can't understand Laurence's peculiar sense of pride and dignity in the service of duty -- and why he would be willing to be executed for treason when he did what was obviously the just thing. What I found most intriguing in this book were the ways he tried to make sense of Laurence's values -- even as his experiences began to call for some of the same skills as Laurence.
Apart from its alternative history, the series is clearly moving in a direction where Temeraire will begin to develop an independence and autonomy from Laurence -- that is essential to his development. One of the primary reasons offered in the series why the dragons -- while sentient and intelligent -- are not free is the fact that humans have exploited the fact that they imprint so strongly to a master. If Temeraire is to live up to his promise to be a leader among dragons, he will have to find a degree of autonomy and independence in spite of this.
The series looks as though it could go on for a while -- and that's not a bad thing. I look forward to the future exploits and adventures and growth of both Laurence and Temeraire.
 Nice, but not great September 5, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I've enjoyed all of Novik's Temeraire novels, but I think she's fallen int a trap of her own making. By creating a period piece set in a fantasy universe version of the Penninsular War, she's inviting comparison to books like Cornwell's Sharpe series, Forester's Hornblower, and O'Brian's Aubrey, among others.
These books take real, historical situations and inject fictional characters and events. They also tell fairly action-oriented stories that, while self-contained, lead us through the history of the time.
Novik's trap is that she isn't willing to tell a self-contained story. Oh, each book, including War of Eagles, does tell a story, but she appears to be posing more questions for future books than answering them within this one. I found Victory of Eagles enjoyable, but ultimately unsatisfying. I want to find out more about the characters of Novik's world, and what's going on there, and I want to anticipate enjoying the next book in the series BECAUSE of these characters and situations, not because the author has left me hanging.
Yes, I would recommend this book, and the entire series, to anyone who asks, but I would like to see Novik more confidently tell stories knowing she doesn't have to hold back to keep her audience for the next novel.
And where do we go from here? (SPOILERS) July 21, 2008
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
I wanted to like this book so much. I loved the first three (and most of four); I read the advance chapter and I just about hung over the reserve librarian until my copy showed up.
But after reading VoE, I spent the rest of the weekend in a sizeable depression. Lawrence can't forgive himself, and I halfway felt he didn't forgive Temeraire for talking him into his treason. They're on their way to Australia on a convict ship (although carrying dragon eggs) and I can't imagine where Ms. Novik is going to take this series and keep up what she had done so well in the earlier books. Not to mention both Lawrence and Temeraire being cut by former crew and friends and Lawrence enduring another death that cuts quite close to home.
The good news is insight into dragon relations, Temeraire's joy at getting his Lawrence back (and organizing a dragon militia in the process). Missing are Volly and James and not much insight into Harcourt, Tom, Lily and only small parts for Maximus and Berkley.
All in all, this was not what I had been hoping for. Let's see what happens next.
p.s. Why is anyone surprised that Temeraire hasn't gotten an egg yet? I don't have a copy of "Throne of Jade" handy, but didn't they say that Celestials can't be bred?
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