10 Things I Loved About His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik

The thing I love about books is that they don't really have an expiration date. (I'm talking fiction here :) Sure slang may get outdated, references may become more obscure, but the story itself can usually transcend time. This means that even if you don't read a book until a year or five or fifteen or fifty after it was published you can still get really excited and find a new author and squeal and hug the book (or your Nook/Kindle/Kobo) as if you read it the day it came out. This happened to me recently.

I'd seen Naomi Novik's books and they were always floating around on my someday TBR pile. The first one was on a "series starter" sale for the Nook so I went ahead and bought it. Like a year and a half ago. Looking for something new to read and wanting a short break from my usual YA fare, I opened it up. And got completely captivated.

So here you go - 10 (un-spoilery) things I loved about His Majesty's Dragon!

1. The premise. I adored the way Novik made this almost an alternate history. It's fantasy, yes, but it's fantasy set during Napoleon's military campaigns. It's set in England (hence, His Majesty), in a very real time and place - but there are dragons! To my mind this is so much harder to do than simply creating your own world. Not only do you have to make sure you create rules for how the fantasy elements work, but you also have to do a ton of research to make sure your historical details are correct AND make sure that the fantasy elements you bring in don't feel anachronistic. And Novik does this well (at least, I think she does - I don't know a lot about this period in history so...)
2. Laurence. At first I wasn't really sure how I felt about him, but I really enjoyed the way his character developed throughout the story. He's very much the protagonist (well, co-protagonist), and he has very strong moral code that sometimes gets him in trouble when he is confronted with injustice.
3. Temeraire. Seriously. Can I please have a Temeraire? I love everything about his character and the way he develops. I love his intelligence and the way he's so child-like. I won't say more for fear of spoilers, but Temeraire is wonderful.
4. Laurence and Temeraire together. While each of them does develop individually, so much of the story is dependent on this bond that has to form between the dragon and his or her rider. Therefore, so much of what happens to both Laurence and Temeraire is dependent on their relationship. It's a story of a friendship more than anything else.
5. Levitas. He's so cute and loyal and...and you have to read it to find out more about this sweet little dragon.
6. Granby. He was the character I was most surprised by and I love being surprised in a good way. I was really impressed with the way his part of the story played out.
7. The Varieties of Dragons. I really liked the way that there were specific breeds of dragons, each with specific abilities. There was just enough discussion of how some of the dragons were bred in order to bring out certain aptitudes without getting too technical or dragging down the story.
8. Lily and Catherine. It was a lot of fun having a certain breed that would only accept female riders and the way Novik deals with that reality in an actual historical period when a female in a military position would not have been well received is quite interesting. I'm curious to see where she takes this in future books.
9. The Training and the Battles. Novik does a really good job of showing the training regimen the dragons go through as well as describing the battles the dragons take part of. It isn't easy to do a battle scene well and Novik is one of the best I've encountered among fantasy authors (so far).
10. There's a Whole Series! The only reason I haven't tracked the next one down yet is because my TBR pile of books I need to read first is massive. But I really want to know what happens!

I'm realizing there's even more I could say! But I'll leave it here and let you go read the book for yourself. Happy reading.

What if, and then what if, and also, what if?

In my last post I reviewed "1945," by Robert Conroy.  This was a novel based on the premise that the Empire of Japan did NOT surrender in August of 1945, thus ending the Second World War.  Instead, a coup let by certain members of the Japanese military succeeded in kidnapping Emporor Hirohito (there actually was such a coup attempt, but it failed when one high ranking Japanese officer decided no to go along with the plan), negated the proposed unconditional surrender, and forced the United States to proceed with their planned invasion of the Japanese home islands.

Although not the greatest story ever told, I did enjoy this book enough that I decided to read two more of Conroy's novels.  I started with "1942," which postulated "what if" Japan's Admiral Yamamoto had decided to continue the December 7, 1941 attack on the US bases at Pearl Harbor with a pre-planned 3rd air strike.

This 3rd assault effectively eliminated any appreciable American defense, and the Japanese forces followed up with an invasion and occupation of the Hawaiian Islands.  "1942" tells of the daring actions of a small group of American guerilla fighters who eluded capture, the daring escape and rescue of the Navy's "Magic" code breakers, and the frequently brutal treatment of American, Hawaiian, and Japanese-American residents of Hawaii.  It also depicts the mad, scrambling efforts by the US Navy to cobble together tools of war in whatever ways they could.  I think I actually enjoyed this story more than "1945."

After finishing "1942," I immediately travelled to the far side of the world and read Conroy's "1945: Red Inferno."  The premise here is that rising tensions between the reluctant allies (primarily the US, led by President Truman, Great Britain's Winston Churchill, and Josef Stalin's Soviet Union) lead to a race to Berlin.  Due to a case of misidentification and poor communication, a fairly minor skirmish breaks out between US and Soviet forces near Potsdam, Germany.  This is all the excuse Stalin needs to launch an assault on all other allied forces in Germany.  With all the nations nearing exhaustion from years of war, and the still unresolved issue of the remaining German military, "1945: Red Inferno" depicts how World War II could have easily bypassed the "Cold War," leading to continued global carnage.

Conroy's storytelling style changes viewpoints frequently.  Usually chapter to chapter, but often within individual chapters.  His books are not techno-thrillers.  The drama takes place not only with high level statecraft, but on the ground (and in the air) combat, and especially the personal struggles of service personnel and civilians. 

For those of you into military fiction or alternative history, I definitely recommend a dose of Robert Conroy, even if you decide not to read them back to back to back, like I did.

Happy reading!

Alan Andrews

"What if...?" 1945, by Robert Conroy

I recently read the book, "1945," by Robert Conroy. I've always been a reader of military history, particularly that pertaining to the second world war. Another genre that I enjoy is "alternative history," probably made most popular by Harry Turtledove, with his "The Guns of the South," and "World at War."

Many of you may know that, by the summer of 1945, the war in Europe was over, and the war in the Pacific Theater was drawing closer to its inevitable conclusion. The military might of the Empire of Japan, particularly it's navy, had been mostly depleted. Yet still, as the armed forces of the United States and her allies won victory after bloody victory, the forces of Japan continued to furiously fight back, using suicide attacks with aircraft, submarines, and surface vessels. Plans were being made in Washington DC to implement "Operation Coronet," the invasion of the Japanese home islands. By most accounts, such an operation would have cost the lives of as many as a half million additional American lives, and even more Japanese lives, including civilians. In August of that year, the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, led Japan's Emperor Hirohito to persuade his military leaders to accept surrender. Many reports indicate that there were some in Japan's military who would have preferred to continue fighting, regardless of the cost. There are accounts of an attempted coup, which would have involved kidnapping Hirohito, and continuing the war.

Robert Conroy's "1945," is an alternative history novel that speculates what might have happened had this attempted coup succeeded only hours after Japan had already announced her surrender. Conroy switches his point of view from chapter to chapter, so the reader can see the thought processes of Japanese and American generals, admirals, statesmen and political leaders, as well as those who were fighting on the front lines. He describes the difficulties faced by an American public exhilerated by the end of a terrible war, only to be suddenly faced with the harsh reality of its continuation, even escalation. American servicemen in Europe, preparing to leave that continent and return home, are suddenly ordered to cross the world and fight yet another fierce enemy.

An unexpected side effect of the war's continuation was the dynamic concerning the Soviet Union, which declared war on Japan day's before her unconditional surrender. In Conroy's story, the Soviets see this as an opportunity to witness the weakening of the U.S. military, which they perceived as a threat to their expansion efforts. The Soviets also use the invasion as a chance to intervene in China, which was fractured between the Nationalist forces of Chiang Kai Shek, and the communist revolutionaries, led by Mao Tse Tung.

I found "1945" to be an enjoyable read. I appreciated the changing viewpoints, which were easy to follow, although I felt the chapters were a bit short. The book is interlaced with fictional characters and historical figures, such as President Truman, Emperor Hirohito, and military leaders such as Douglas MacArthur, Omar Bradley, Chester Nimitz and Anami. I enjoyed it so much, in fact, that I have now started reading Conroy's "1942," which postulates what could have happened if the Japanese navy had launched another follow up attack on Pearl Harbor in December, 1941, further crippling America's armed forces in the Pacific. So far, I'm finding it to be every bit as thought provoking as "1945."

"1945" was shelved in the science fiction/fantasy section of the Barnes & Noble that I frequent.

Happy slappy reading!

Alan Andrews
Basso for hire


"What if...?" 1945, by Robert Conroy