Fantasy

Black Powder War

Black Powder War

  • Downloads：4935
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-04-06 14:57:55
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Naomi Novik
  • ISBN：0007219172
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

Before Captain Will Laurence can prepare his crew for the slow voyage home from China， new orders arrive for him and his dragon， Temeraire: they must fly home immediately， stopping only in Istanbul to collect three priceless dragon eggs， purchased by the British government from the Ottoman Empire。

But the cross-continental journey is fraught with danger; not only will they have to scale mountains and traverse vast hostile deserts， but a Machiavellian herald precedes them， spreading political menace in her wake。 Holding Temeraire responsible for the death of her princely companion， Lien has absconded from China consumed by vengeance。 If she can， she will destroy everything and everyone Temeraire loves。

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Reviews

Elizabeth ，

I can't wait for the next one。 I can't wait for the next one。 。。。more

Curlemagne ，

Laurence's guilty， revolutionary conscience continues to grow。 I wish I knew my Napoleonic history better， to see where Novik departs from it。 I found this one to drag a little compared to the first two， but that flogging scene was brutal， masterful characterization。 Lien is a worthy adversary， too。 Laurence's guilty， revolutionary conscience continues to grow。 I wish I knew my Napoleonic history better， to see where Novik departs from it。 I found this one to drag a little compared to the first two， but that flogging scene was brutal， masterful characterization。 Lien is a worthy adversary， too。 。。。more

Jared Jensen ，

I like this one more than the second in the series。 To me， it is as good as the first。 Without spoiling anything， there are some interesting tensions including a questionable guide， feral dragons， an old nemesis， and some eggs。 Newly introduced characters have great depth， the story has a good plot， even if the end doesn't feel very climatic。 Not every story needs to end with the heroes standing triumphant。 I still enjoyed the telling of it and the interwoven world that Novik has made in this al I like this one more than the second in the series。 To me， it is as good as the first。 Without spoiling anything， there are some interesting tensions including a questionable guide， feral dragons， an old nemesis， and some eggs。 Newly introduced characters have great depth， the story has a good plot， even if the end doesn't feel very climatic。 Not every story needs to end with the heroes standing triumphant。 I still enjoyed the telling of it and the interwoven world that Novik has made in this alternate history。 It has caused me to look into the events of the Napoleonic Wars， which is a good thing。 I'm being entertained and learning at the same time。 I’m enjoying this series and am excited to get to the next book。 。。。more

Charlotte ，

By the end of the third book I'm pretty invested in the series。 I've thoroughly enjoyed Lawrence and Temeraire's journeys across the world as they find out more about different places dealings with dragons and dragon civilization。 I like the integration of dragons into Napoleonic wars。 I know enough about history to know how it would end， but not enough to know how they'd get there。 I felt the middle dragged a little， but it quickly found its pace again。 By the end of the third book I'm pretty invested in the series。 I've thoroughly enjoyed Lawrence and Temeraire's journeys across the world as they find out more about different places dealings with dragons and dragon civilization。 I like the integration of dragons into Napoleonic wars。 I know enough about history to know how it would end， but not enough to know how they'd get there。 I felt the middle dragged a little， but it quickly found its pace again。 。。。more

s ，

i read like 90% of this book extremely quickly and then forgot how to read for over a month。 these dragons are so fun

Kate ，

Still a fun enough read but kind of boring。

Sanjana Manaktala ，

Too much military history and naval strategy for my liking。

Andrea ，

This book series has completely and irrevocably bewitched me and I wouldn't have it any other way。 And to think that I DNF'd the first one in 2019！ I don't usually binge read series， preferring to draw them out over longer periods， but here I am， halfway through the fourth instalment without any sign of stopping。Although I thoroughly enjoyed being reunited with the cast in this third instalment of the series， I couldn't quite give it 4 stars because I felt that the plot was more sluggish than it This book series has completely and irrevocably bewitched me and I wouldn't have it any other way。 And to think that I DNF'd the first one in 2019！ I don't usually binge read series， preferring to draw them out over longer periods， but here I am， halfway through the fourth instalment without any sign of stopping。Although I thoroughly enjoyed being reunited with the cast in this third instalment of the series， I couldn't quite give it 4 stars because I felt that the plot was more sluggish than it could've been and I felt it dragging on at times。However， there were several things that I loved about this book， the new characters being the most notable feature。-The newly hatched Iskierka was a pure delight to meet， I can't tell whether to be amused or feel pity for poor Granby and the hell of a time he's going to have trying to tame her wild spirit， and Simon Vance does an amazing job of capturing her personality in the audiobook。-The ferals were also hilarious and I loved seeing this stark contrast to the disciplined military dragons。-Tharkay was also such an interesting character with his wry and sardonic personality。And of course， the dry and unexpected humour that I loved in the first two books was still very much present and refreshing in this book。 。。。more

Liza Caruthers ，

Feeling a bit of Piers Anthony Syndrome going on。 Loved the first 2， starting to find myself less thrilled as we go。

Anna ，

There is no clear plot arc。 The story felt like a collection of disconnected battles and wandering。

Adzriel ，

Un peu moins apprécié ce tome que les autres， ne serait-ce que parce qu'il y a moins de moments charmants entre Laurence et Téméraire que dans les deux précédents。 C'est le personnage de Tharkay， un peu ambigu et difficile à cerner， qui m'a bien intriguée et m'a permis d'accrocher un peu plus vers le milieu du livre。 On ressent le désespoir de la campagne Prussienne contre Napoléon dans le dernier tiers， mais c'était déprimant de voir Laurence s'y enfoncer par honneur alors que tout semble perdu Un peu moins apprécié ce tome que les autres， ne serait-ce que parce qu'il y a moins de moments charmants entre Laurence et Téméraire que dans les deux précédents。 C'est le personnage de Tharkay， un peu ambigu et difficile à cerner， qui m'a bien intriguée et m'a permis d'accrocher un peu plus vers le milieu du livre。 On ressent le désespoir de la campagne Prussienne contre Napoléon dans le dernier tiers， mais c'était déprimant de voir Laurence s'y enfoncer par honneur alors que tout semble perdu！ N'empêche， les quelques scènes d'action étaient prenantes （la course-poursuite dans les égouts et la fuite à la toute fin， notamment） et， avec ce mystère concernant l'absence des dragons anglais， j'ai bien hâte de lire la suite！ 。。。more

Michelle ，

*3。5

Alexa Ayana ，

Walaupun China begitu menawan dan menawarkan Surga untuk para Naga， Temeraire dan Laurence yang patriotic tetap ingin kembali dan bertempur demi Inggris melawan pasukan Napoleon。 Tapi bukan Temeraire namanya kalau dia tidak bisa menyerap ilmu dari tempat baru dan memadukan dengan pengetahuannya， kemudian dengan murah hati berusaha membagikan pada sesama naga。 Kalau di buku awal aku hanya berharap dengan pertempuran formasi naga di udara， ternyata seri ini menawarkan lebih banyak petualangan/perj Walaupun China begitu menawan dan menawarkan Surga untuk para Naga， Temeraire dan Laurence yang patriotic tetap ingin kembali dan bertempur demi Inggris melawan pasukan Napoleon。 Tapi bukan Temeraire namanya kalau dia tidak bisa menyerap ilmu dari tempat baru dan memadukan dengan pengetahuannya， kemudian dengan murah hati berusaha membagikan pada sesama naga。 Kalau di buku awal aku hanya berharap dengan pertempuran formasi naga di udara， ternyata seri ini menawarkan lebih banyak petualangan/perjalanan keliling dunia melalui misi-misi khususnya。 Kali ini Temeraire dan Laurence harus menjemput 3 telur naga penyembur api yang dibeli dari Turki。 Plot berjalan lambat saat penggambaran teknisnya perjalanan melintasi gurun。 Walau cobaan tetap banyak bermunculan baik dari sisi manusia atau Naga-naga lain。 Dari sisi konflik， intrik politik dan penyelesaian， buku ini tuh paling bikin heart broken。 Solusi diplomatik ekstrim yang harus mereka ambil juga bikin baper。 Selain itu， saat mereka di Prussia mereka yang gak tahu apa2 juga musti menghadapi kemarahan karena pihak Inggris dianggap ingkar janji terhadap sekutunya。Sakit hati， tapi terpanggil untuk menjadi perwakilan perang， mereka babak belur harus tabah menghadapi perang yang gak seimbang， lawan perang yang cerdik dan sekutu yang ngambek。 Secara pribadi aku seneng aja liat interaksi Laurence dan Temeraire sebagai partner yang seimbang。 Oh ya， ada kejutan kecil dari si bayi Iskierka haha。。 Sayang banget seri ini di php terjemahannya seperti biasanya di Indonesia。 。。。more

Samantha ，

This book did not pick up for me until the middle and then it got GOOD！

Emily Winecke ，

It may be the pandemic talking， but my eyes lit up when I realized Novik was going to send us on a land journey across Asia。 On top of that， there's dragon retribution， sassy dragon babies， and a cameo from Napoleon！ Fly me to the moon， Temeraire！ It may be the pandemic talking， but my eyes lit up when I realized Novik was going to send us on a land journey across Asia。 On top of that， there's dragon retribution， sassy dragon babies， and a cameo from Napoleon！ Fly me to the moon， Temeraire！ 。。。more

Scott Johnson ，

I feel like this was the weakest one so far。The plot was a little all over the place without a very clear direction and was really like three separate， disjointed stories。First there are mysterious orders to drive them to Istanbul （never explained despite a character pointing out correctly "how did command know we were done and/or successful already？"）。 Then they're trapped in the palace and。。。。not really doing anything？ There's a weird investigation of the dead ambassador and disappearing money I feel like this was the weakest one so far。The plot was a little all over the place without a very clear direction and was really like three separate， disjointed stories。First there are mysterious orders to drive them to Istanbul （never explained despite a character pointing out correctly "how did command know we were done and/or successful already？"）。 Then they're trapped in the palace and。。。。not really doing anything？ There's a weird investigation of the dead ambassador and disappearing money， then Lian is there？Then after all of that "no we can't do anything to hurt relations" they suddenly bust out and steal the eggs anyway。 Then they land in Prussia and。。。。for some reason voluntarily stay despite a handful of people with a single dragon making zero difference to their position？ Then， once again， despite weeks of "no we can't desert them"。。。。。suddenly that goes out the window again and they flee from Warsaw （I think？ It was really hard to keep track of where the hell they were in this one）？It just felt sloppy and like it wasn't very planned out。 I didn't understand the contrivance that they couldn't do the obviously necessary action because of honor or some shit。 It was taking Laurence's character too far given his development over the first two books and it didn't sit well with me。 He was too pragmatic to stay around for what could be a suicide mission in Prussia， even saying out loud that they won't make any difference but are seriously risking the eggs that they knowingly soured relations with Turkey to steal。 I feel like he would not have risked that gain for a meaningless gesture that could likely cost them everything。The feral dragons were fine， but I could see how some readers wouldn't like them。 Same with Iskierka。 She was fine， though I absolutely loathe her name。Overall， just a weak showing。 The twist at the very end was the most interesting thing that happened which clearly just set up the conflict in the next book。 。。。more

Steve ，

Building on the Temeraire storyline， this one was better than part 2。 Add in some philosophical debate about basic rights， as it applies to dragons but a nice metaphor for others， and nice story arcs， I was loving it。 Solid 4/5。。。on to book 4！

Rebecca （ofliterarynature） ，

3。5 stars。 and /again/ Novik set up an incredibly fascinating potential mystery plot with the whole “oh no what happened to our ambassador/money/dragon eggs” thing and failed to do anything about it。 Why must the plots in these books be terrible。 I also waited the whole book waiting for this terrible “betrayal” to happen and all I got was the Ottoman’s reneging on a deal。 Oh no how terrible？？？？ 🤦🏼‍♀️ （I was incredibly suspicious of the whole errand from the start， there was zero shock value）。 PS 3。5 stars。 and /again/ Novik set up an incredibly fascinating potential mystery plot with the whole “oh no what happened to our ambassador/money/dragon eggs” thing and failed to do anything about it。 Why must the plots in these books be terrible。 I also waited the whole book waiting for this terrible “betrayal” to happen and all I got was the Ottoman’s reneging on a deal。 Oh no how terrible？？？？ 🤦🏼‍♀️ （I was incredibly suspicious of the whole errand from the start， there was zero shock value）。 PS: I’ve come to the very unfortunate realization that as a main character， Laurence is kind of very boring。 He certainly showed promise in book one， but since then？ Any fullness to his characterization has been wiped out， it’s “I must be a good English captain” mode all day every day。 Part of it is the dragging plots of these last two books， but I think it’s mostly because there’s no other good characters for him to play off of - everyone around him is either an enemy， someone he must be polite/diplomatic with， his subordinate， or Temeraire - who seems to be treated more as a willful teenager than anything， which is disappointing。 There’s few things here or there that makes me hopeful for more character growth in future installments， but I’m also glad that my library holds are making me space these out， if you get what I’m saying。 。。。more

Ben ，

In my review for book two of Temeraire I said that the first couple of books felt like set up。 And I still kind of feel that way after reading Black Powder War。 I think that each book has made strides towards a goal of a large scale conflict directly with Napoleon。 This book offers some of that direct conflict with him and his forces but at the same time so much of the book is spent eluding these kinds of battles。 The main quest to Istanbul does not directly build towards that conflict but rathe In my review for book two of Temeraire I said that the first couple of books felt like set up。 And I still kind of feel that way after reading Black Powder War。 I think that each book has made strides towards a goal of a large scale conflict directly with Napoleon。 This book offers some of that direct conflict with him and his forces but at the same time so much of the book is spent eluding these kinds of battles。 The main quest to Istanbul does not directly build towards that conflict but rather indirectly， a quest to acquire more firepower for the war。 However， in stopping there， a reveal for what I assume will be the series' main villain did come forth。 Which was great stuff on it's own。 I'm excited for the possibilities of that adversary and my mind is already playing out potential plot points to come。 But that was mostly just set up for those bigger conflicts that I have wanted for three books now。 And after how this book ends I'm not entirely convinced those bigger showdowns will come in the next installment。 Nonetheless， I still had a lot of fun。 The characters and their relationships are becoming more and more important to the story and to my enjoyment of the series。 That is to say， I'm more invested than I was before。 I also take solace knowing that there are another six books to read。 With that understanding， this slower build up to the direct clashes I am wanting can take the time to get there。 The plot and world and characters can afford to gradually build themselves up。 Now I'm just hoping they all pay off in the end。 。。。more

Tammy ，

Part of: https://www。goodreads。com/book/show/1。。。 Part of: https://www。goodreads。com/book/show/1。。。 。。。more

Kendra Kuhlman ，

This story seemed q little slower than the others。 Still， vety curious to see what happens

Tasha Robinson ，

What a ride this installment in the series is。 Politics and personal conflict， a ticking time bomb in the form of a new egg， a recent enemy turned into a full-scale series enemy that gives this series some extra stakes， intrigue and a heist and uncomfortable officers' dinners and full-scale historical tactical warfare， re-imagined with dragons。 This particular installation covers a wide gambit of situations and tones， but still makes time for some beautiful descriptions， and for the relationship What a ride this installment in the series is。 Politics and personal conflict， a ticking time bomb in the form of a new egg， a recent enemy turned into a full-scale series enemy that gives this series some extra stakes， intrigue and a heist and uncomfortable officers' dinners and full-scale historical tactical warfare， re-imagined with dragons。 This particular installation covers a wide gambit of situations and tones， but still makes time for some beautiful descriptions， and for the relationship between the dragon Temeraire and his captain Laurence to develop just a little further。 （Also a single dragon-masturbation joke， executed in fairly decorous style。 Not that anyone's tuning in for that specifically， but with Laurence being such a stuffy， proper fellow and all， it's always funny to see him blush and aggressively dodge impropriety。） 。。。more

Annie ，

Part of the reason I gave this book an extra star was that （view spoiler）[unlike the previous novels， it felt like there was a chance of failure。 Finally， Temeraire and Laurence experience significant losses and uncertainty！ This sounds bad because it's like I'm reveling in their misery， but I just don't like predictable， happily-ever-after books。Although the sketchy guy turning out to be everyone's savior was a little lame， I enjoyed that he wasn't as black and white as previous characters have Part of the reason I gave this book an extra star was that （view spoiler）[unlike the previous novels， it felt like there was a chance of failure。 Finally， Temeraire and Laurence experience significant losses and uncertainty！ This sounds bad because it's like I'm reveling in their misery， but I just don't like predictable， happily-ever-after books。Although the sketchy guy turning out to be everyone's savior was a little lame， I enjoyed that he wasn't as black and white as previous characters have been。 （hide spoiler）] The struggle of Lawrence deciding whether or not to support the fight for dragon rights is believable and compelling， and I'm looking forward to following that storyline。（view spoiler）[I'm kind of rooting for Lian。 Love a smart female dragon who brings cool battle tactics （even if she is on the "enemy team"）。 I can't blame her for wanting revenge for her companion who was the only one willing to accept her while others shunned her for albinism that she had no control over ;_; （hide spoiler）] 。。。more

Nicholas Eames ，

Fantastic！ On to the next！

Delta ，

Temeraire never disappoints。 Although these books have never really blown me out of the water， I have yet to encounter any true problems with the series。 All three installments so far have been structurally sound， brimming with interesting characters， and made vibrant by plenty of interesting worldbuilding。 But with that being said， Black Powder War was probably my least favorite of the Temeraire books so far - although not by much。 Black Powder War picks up where Throne of Jade left off。 Temera Temeraire never disappoints。 Although these books have never really blown me out of the water， I have yet to encounter any true problems with the series。 All three installments so far have been structurally sound， brimming with interesting characters， and made vibrant by plenty of interesting worldbuilding。 But with that being said， Black Powder War was probably my least favorite of the Temeraire books so far - although not by much。 Black Powder War picks up where Throne of Jade left off。 Temeraire and Laurence， having recently made peace with China， are ready to sail back home to England to help with the war。 However， they are delayed by a fire on their dragon transport and decide to travel back overland instead。 This decision is confirmed when Laurence receives a message that they have been arranged to pick up three dragon eggs from the Ottoman Empire。 All in all， this book had the same slow but solid plot style that the previous books shared。 The only reason I didn't enjoy it quite as much as the others was that the world-building kind of halted。 The universe didn't gain any detail， so the novel wasn't quite as engaging as the previous installments。 Hopefully， book 4 is more creative， otherwise I may not find the motivation to complete this series as each novel is quite long and slow。 Still， I've enjoyed these first three novels very much and they have certainly been well worth reading！ 。。。more

Cassie ，

I think Novik's recent book including a paragraph about locs being dirty made me enjoy this one less than the previous two， probably not going to continue with these。 I think Novik's recent book including a paragraph about locs being dirty made me enjoy this one less than the previous two， probably not going to continue with these。 。。。more

JaneymacD ，

3。5 StarsThis instalment ofthe Temeraire series was fun， action packed and entertaining。 There was not much character development， and everything was very much surface level。 I would like to see more introspection of Laurance and Temeraire。 A deeper dive into the bigger side characters， such as Granby or Tharkay would also make the reader feel more a park of the story， rather than just an observer。 Overall， I really enjoyed the Black Power War and look forward to the next in the series。

Katie Cross ，

Yet again， another stunning installment in a series I can't get enough of。 Literally！ Exploring Europe （there's a Napolean moment that took me by surprise and I LOVED IT） with Laurence， Temeraire， and gang was amazing。 Novick has such a passionate talent for the time period and I have the utmost respect for all she's created。 Can't wait for the next book！ Yet again， another stunning installment in a series I can't get enough of。 Literally！ Exploring Europe （there's a Napolean moment that took me by surprise and I LOVED IT） with Laurence， Temeraire， and gang was amazing。 Novick has such a passionate talent for the time period and I have the utmost respect for all she's created。 Can't wait for the next book！ 。。。more

Bhakti Jethwa ，

3。75 stars。 Back to form for Novik。 Again， the first portion of the book was a little slow， and portions of the last part。 However it was a welcome return to the action I loved in the first book。

Kate ，

I do love this series and the writing especially。 Novik has really fleshed out the relationship between Laurence and Temeraire with all its vagaries。 There were a couple of slow spots in this one for me， but nothing major。I am looking forward to continuing this series。 When I started it， I didn't realize how many installments there are。 While that is wonderful， I am a tiny bit dragon-weary and am going to jump into a few different genres before I pick these back up again。 Then I will be refreshe I do love this series and the writing especially。 Novik has really fleshed out the relationship between Laurence and Temeraire with all its vagaries。 There were a couple of slow spots in this one for me， but nothing major。I am looking forward to continuing this series。 When I started it， I didn't realize how many installments there are。 While that is wonderful， I am a tiny bit dragon-weary and am going to jump into a few different genres before I pick these back up again。 Then I will be refreshed and ready to ride along with Laurence and company， as they trounce Bonaparte and liberate dragonkind！ 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Black Powder War

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Black Powder War&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Black Powder War&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0