Oh my goodness, I hardly know where to begin. This book was so much fun to read! The basic premise is, it’s an alternate history of the Napoleonic Wars — with dragons! Yes, that’s right. There was an aerial combat corps (dragons) at the Nile, at Trafalgar, and so forth. Hoo boy!
Well, I have three things to say about this book, but before I get going, I must reiterate from my previous post that His Majesty’s Dragon does not read like a trashy best-seller. It is very well-written and well-planned. I detected no loopholes or forgotten threads in the plot, everything makes sense and hangs together, there weren’t too many adverbs, and aside from a couple of really minor events the plot twists were unpredictable.
Ok. First. As you know, I’m a big fan of Patrick O’Brian; I’ve read all twenty of the fabulous Aubrey-Maturin books several times each and I can’t seem to stop blabbing about it either. So I am by now fairly familiar with Age of Sail terminology, geography, and some of the major battles & historical figures. One of the things I love the most about PO’B is that there is no exposition at all in his books. He never explains anything to his modern readers. No paragraphs begin with “It was April, 1805. Napoleon had just…” And yet, somehow, you always know what’s going on. He doesn’t ever tell, but he shows. And because of that he makes you feel like an insider, like an accomplice. Yeah, you know what’s going on. True, he uses the plot device of making Dr. Maturin a clueless landlubber who doesn’t know larboard from starboard and can’t climb aboard without getting wet. But mainly what this does is make you laugh at the dear doctor; the fact that you too are learning the difference between larboard and starboard is secondary.
Naomi Novik does the same thing. Not only is there no exposition about the war or the society or any of that, but there’s no exposition about the dragons either. All is gradually revealed, but she doesn’t tell, she shows. She uses the same plot device, by the way, making the human protagonist an outsider who must learn the ropes. We incidentally learn along with the protagonist, but the fun is in his learning (and his occasional blunders).
The second thing I loved about this book is the way she integrates the dragons into the story. Now, I should confess that “High Fantasy” is my second-least favorite genre, beaten only by chick lit. (Aside: here‘s my post on chick lit, if you are curious.) I don’t know why I should dislike High Fantasy, especially considering how much I love D&D, but there it is. Well, I should be a little more specific. What I really hate is High Fantasy that takes place in another world that has no reference to ours. I like fantasy if it includes some quasi-rational explanation for its existence. Roger Zelazny’s Chronicles of Amber are a great example of this — ours is one of many shadow worlds, etc. Or Harry Potter: the one thing I really like about them is that they take place in our world. Narnia, ditto — if you have the right wardrobe, you can get there from here.
His Majesty’s Dragon, of course, takes place entirely in our world. Not only that, but the dragons don’t seem at all like mythical or magical creatures. They just seem like rare, large, gorgeous, flying creatures. There are experts who study them; there is some attempt at explanation (they have “air sacs”); it’s evident that the author has thought about evolutionary adaptations and so forth. Their integration into the world, from a literary point of view, is absolutely seamless.
And third. While it’s obvious that this book incorporates two genres, historical fiction and high fantasy, I think it also incorporates a third: animal stories. I’d bet anything that the author was crazy about horses at some point in her life. Because that’s what the dragons remind me of. Super intelligent horses. I mean this in the best possible way. The way the captain’s relationship with his dragon grows from initial reluctance to acceptance and eventually deep love and mutual respect is as moving as anything you’ll find in James Herriot. And it’s interesting how Novik makes the dragons seem animal-like despite the fact that they are as intelligent (or more!) as humans. Why is that? I don’t know. I have to think about this some more…
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His Majesty’s Dragon was also reviewed by:
10 Comments
Yay! I am so glad that you liked the book. I knew you would. Wait until you read the rest of the series. In my opinion, they are all just as good.
What an awesome review! It’s not my normal read, but after this maybe I need to broaden my scope!
I really enjoy this whole series! My review of His Majesty’s Dragon is here
Oh! I knew it! YAY! Read the rest… I don’t agree that they’re all just as good (I thought the first one was the best, interestingly enough)but they are good. And I agree about High Fantasy. While I like it, I think authors who write it spend too much time in world building and not enough in plot or character development. I like the alternative world fiction better than the new world fiction.
Hev, thanks! I can hardly wait to get to the next one!
J.Kaye, tell you what. You read this one while I read the serial killer one, and then we can compare notes. :)
Marg, thanks! I added the link.
Melissa, I agree about the too much time world building. That’s exactly what I meant when I complained about too much exposition — only you said it better. And yes of course I will read the rest. No-brainer. :)
Sounds fantastic! definitely something I’d enjoy and must look out for :)
Hi Julie! Glad you enjoyed the book. And I’ve been wanting to read the Patrick O’Brian books for such a long time, but I kept dithering because the library doesn’t have the first one! Now I’ll have to get my hands on it. Somehow.
I’ll be linking your review to mine, of course. :D
Yati, don’t dither any longer! :)
Actually, one of the things hubby & I were talking about was what it would be like to read His Majesty’s Dragon if you weren’t already, um, immersed in the time period (via Patrick O’Brian if not actual history books). I think from my reading of PO’B I have a better sense than I might otherwise of just what a heroic shift in mind-set would be required for someone like Laurence to go from the Navy to the dragon corps. Though Novik does a good job of conveying it, too. But having that extra knowledge really adds to the fun.
Your glowing review makes me ashamed to say I didn’t like this one much — I think I read it on the recommendation of Booknut. However, part of your review offers me an explanation of why that might be . . . because I don’t like animal stories! I used to love them as a kid, but as I get older I find them more and more aggravating. I wish I liked this book better. I like the idea.
Inkling, what are you talking about? Of course you love animal stories! Don’t you????
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[...] reviews the book here and makes a good point on how well Novik avoids exposition — something I really appreciated [...]