His Majesty's Dragon - Naomi Novik

[goodreads]

Title: His Majesty's Dragon (Temeraire #1)
Author: Naomi Novik
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 4.5/5
# pages: Audiobook ~10hrs
Date read: September, 2013

Aerial combat brings a thrilling new dimension to the Napoleonic Wars as valiant warriors ride mighty fighting dragons, bred for size or speed. When HMS Reliant captures a French frigate and seizes the precious cargo, an unhatched dragon egg, fate sweeps Captain Will Laurence from his seafaring life into an uncertain future - and an unexpected kinship with a most extraordinary creature.

Thrust into the rarified world of the Aerial Corps as master of the dragon Temeraire, he will face a crash course in the daring tactics of airborne battle. For as France's own dragon-borne forces rally to breach British soil in Bonaparte's boldest gambit, Laurence and Temeraire must soar into their own baptism of fire.

"His Majesty's Dragon" is one of those books that I've had on my to-read list for AGES, but have never gotten around to. I think I first had it recommended to me in 2009 or 2010. I picked up the ebook version of it once or twice, but for some reason never got past the initial fight scene and had a COMPLETELY wrong impression of it.

Last week I finally decided to download the audio version of it. Several of my friends rave about it, so I figured it was about time... and I was hooked immediately! I loved the story, loved Laurence and - most importantly - loved Temeraire. The idea of combining the Napoleonic wars with dragons was pure genius and gave a fascinating setting to what could otherwise have been a rather run-of-the-mill fantasy story.

In style it reminded me of a mix between "Harper's Hall" by Anne McCaffrey and Liveship Traders by Robin Hobb - both among my favourite fantasy authors.

I've already uploaded the next book to my mp3-player.