TEMERAIRE: Black Powder War

It is important to understand that this book contains the first three volumes of the series. I actually read each book individually, but I read them one after the other. As of this date I have finished the entire series. The characters are extraordinarily compelling. The story is unique and if you like history, particularly the Napoleonic era, it is fabulous. Norvik has a big imagination, but she has also wisely used a lot of common sense in how the situations unfold. All the chain of command and political issues that one would expect in a historical about this era are prevalent. When you add dragons to the mix, its even more intriguing. Temeraire, and the other dragons are wonderful characters. It will not be hard to suspend you disbelief at all. Dragons are intelligent, but they have their own natures and act accordingly. No character ever acts outside the bounds of their reality. This is often a problem with these sorts of books. People or creature do something that's just not realistic for their reality. Here, dragons are self absorbed creatures, concerned mostly about eating, treasure and their Captains and crew. Novik gives a good nod to the common mythology that of Dragons being great hoarders of cool shiny stuff. They have a bit of a magpie nature. But they are not just that. They love and they grieve and they hold vendettas. Some are, intelligent, not so intelligent, active, lazy, generous or greedy. In short, they are quite "human". However, besides great story lines and characters, this series is rich with the broad themes of human or dragon rights, the nature of warfare and fair play, loyalty, and ethical moral conduct. I like books which entertain me, but I particularly like ones which make me think. I enjoy the comparison between the true historical situation and the fantastical situation with dragons. It makes one look at parallels in current society. Norvik manages to do all of this without preaching at us. She does it with humor, adventure and entertainment. So, if you want something out of the ordinary, if you want to chuckle quietly, and smile when you read, worry about the characters a bit because it is just not certain what might happen, then this is the book for you. It is an epic adventure! It's obvious why Peter Jackson ( Lord of the Rings) has optioned the series. He likes epics with juicy characters and broad themes. I just hope he doesn't screw it up like so many directors do. My recommendation is to read the series for yourself before any movie comes out. Norviks vision is tremendous. You won't be sorry.

IMPORTANT: This is a complilation of the first three books in the series! This is an excellent series, compelling, well written, with a fresh voice, set in an alternate history where dragons battle for the countries, in the early 1800s. The main character is a dragon, Temeraire, fresh to the scene, and it is a darn refreshing read!

I have a hard believing that anyone could buy this book without realizing that it's a collection of previously published books (with a new short story). If you did make that mistake, though, is that a legitimate reason to give the collection a bad review? I hope people who read these reviews note that the one-star reviews are almost all from people who loved these books, but who didn't pay attention to the description and thought they were buying a new book in the series. These are wonderful books, but YES, this is a re-release of the first three books, NOT a new book, just like it says in the description, and on the cover. This new edition is really attractive and makes a great gift. The early books were never released in hardcover, so I hope all of them will eventually be re-released in collectible editions.

'In His Majesty's Service' arrived today, and it's a great replacement for our much-loved, worn-out paperback copies of the first three Temeraire books. Beautiful illustration on the dust jacket, and I like the new font for the text. My 10-year-old son and I can't wait for book 6! P.S. I hope books 4-6 will eventually be published in a single hardcover volume as well.

First of all, this is a book that is being sold as three books in one: His Majesty's dragon Throne of Jade Black Power War. I like this version of a repeat being sold by Del Rey books. I don't own the mass paperback versions on the three books that are being in this one compilation. At first I thought this was to be a completely new story by Naomi Novik, but it wasn't, just the publisher selling more copies of previous novels in the series. However, I liked it that way. I wanted to get all the books in the series, eventually, but I don't like paperbacks. They don't last very long in my hands. When this version came out and read carefully that it was three books in one, I wanted to get it. I liked the cover and I don't have extra books lying around of the same series. This book is hardcover bound with deckle edge pages. To me this makes it a cool looking book. I am a fan of this series, and I love how Naomi Novik tells the story. Very compelling and fast paced storyline. Now, if you have previous mass paperback versions of this series, don't get this book. You will have the impression that it is a totally new story line, but it isn't. Another thing to point out is that this version comes with a side story never released before called "In Autumn, A White Dragon Looks Over The Wide River". This side story is about Lein and her side of the story. But this little scene is less than 20 pages long. If you are a fan of the series, this is a great book. Reason for getting this book: 1. If you DO NOT have mass paperback verisons. 2. Want the first three book in one book. 3. Want the never-before-read scenes of Lein's side of the story.