Buddy Read with my Dragon loving peeps at Buddies Books and BaublesThere are parts of this book I really enjoyed and then there are parts of this book that totally bored me. Naomi Novak’s writing is always beautiful and detailed and had I not read Uprooted before starting this series I might not have had such high expectations but alas I did and so I wanted something more.Throne of Jade is a lot more about cultural differences, social acceptances and politicking. Unlike His Majesty’s Dragon whic...

There will be serious spoilers in this review. Seriously. Spoilery.2,5 stars, but I'm sad to say that I can't round this off to three stars. It's just not good enough.I loved His Majesty's Dragon, I really did. I loved the setting, the world, the action, and most of all, the characters. It was epic, and emotional, and nerve-wrecking, and fun.Throne of Jade are all of those things as well. Just not all the time. Actually, not even most of the time. It drags, is what I'm saying. The bigger part of...

I have never audiobook'd a whole series before, but I might have to for this one because Simon Vance is simply amazing. He should read all the books that way I could enjoy them all, even the ones I probably wouldn't like--pretty sure he could make me like 'em. So 5 stars for him and 4 stars for the book itself because, honestly, I don't know how far I'd get or how much I'd enjoy if I'd read these books on my own.The writing is very descriptive, with long passages about early-19th Century culture...

Two important things I must establish before getting on with the actual review:1. This is absolutely one of the best Simon Vance performances I have ever listened to. His Temeraire is not what I imagined when I read the first book myself, but it forever will be now. Vance expertly captured every nuance of the young dragon with Chinese roots. 2. This is what Temeraire looks like in my head. Deal with it.As I discovered in reading the previous book in the Temeraire series, His Majesty's Dragon, th...

I've read reviews that say this second book in the Temeraire series is boring... I would have to disagree. There are sea monsters, battles, assassination attemps, intrigue, and an allusion to dragon sex. What's not to love???In this second book in the Temeraire series, Laurence and Temeraire must travel to China. In the first book it was discovered that Temeraire was a Chinese dragon meant as a gift to the French. Now, the Chinese apparently want their dragon back and they will stop at nothing t...

Another book that I have been putting off writing a review for, because I did not enjoy it nearly as much as I thought I would.The story has enough of Temeraire and Will to satisfy, and plenty more in the form new dragons, a new country, great action and interesting history, but it really tested my patience.My chief complaint, is that most of the book was a journey and NOTHING happened in between, apart from a single interesting incident involving a sea-serpent. It was a chore turning pages and

4.2/10, DNF at page 237, therefore one star. This might be the pettiest reason why I’ve ever DNFd a book, but why the hell would you use freaking semicolons in almost every sentence? It took me out of the book because it was that jarring. No immersion possible, absolutely not. And once I finally managed to ignore them I realised that it’s just a boring book with an altogether boring plot that bored the hell out of my boredom. I really like the premise of this series, but the execution just isn’t...

These books--the audiobooks in particular--are amazing. I'm not usually a fan of "alternate earth" scenarios, but these are just fantastic. On to the next!

Introducing…Throne of Jade: the pros and cons.Yes, I'm starting with the cons, so what? This is my review, I do want I want. ✘ The pace is slow.Wait. No. It's not slow. It's painfully slow. That kind of painfully slow:✘ There isn't much action.There is so little action here that Laurence reading to Temeraire at night feels like a major event. Exciting, right?✘ There is a story, but it's not that gripping.Laurence, Temeraire and friends are on a boat to China. It takes them a long time to get to

Throne of Jade offered a relaxing continuation to the story, containing all of the elements I enjoyed in His Majesty’s Dragon. “Relaxing” might seem like an odd term to attribute to a military dragon story, but the smooth writing and slow pacing had me snuggling into my seat under a pile of blankets, enjoying what I would earnestly call a true “armchair adventure.” Exciting action scenes are spliced throughout the tale, but for the most part my expectations for this series has developed into a k...

A fun read, but not quite as captivating as the first book. We got an interesting look at shipboard life as they travel for a long time, which made the book drag a bit, but not too much. The story had some twists & turns, some quite unexpected. From the long build up, it seemed to end quickly & completely, much to my surprise. A bit too abruptly & neatly, perhaps. I look forward to reading the next book, which I have, but I won't be reading it next. I don't feel I HAVE to read the next book.

This was much slower than the first book and the pacing was overall off, with lots of meandering and a rushed ending. It was enjoyable in a quiet way, but I hope the rest of the books in the series pick up as I prefer to have a bit more action with these stories.

3.5/5.0 stars. I liked it well enough, especially all the parts with Temeraire and Lawrence, but it did get a little slow for me in the middle. The ending was better, and I look forward to continuing the series.

I can't seem to get engaged with this instalment of Temeraire. I enjoyed the first book very much as it was action-packed & the bromance provided the lighter relief. Even as the first bit of this book was rather exciting with a suspenseful circumstance whereby others were seeking to split this partnership and the action following, the rest, I found a little bit of a let down. It is more like a court intrigue novel without there actually being a court (except at the very end). I just couldn't get...

A bit slow, even compared to the first one which was already fairly slow going. This book seems to exist solely for the purpose of world building. We learn a great deal about the differences in Chinese and British cultures, mostly with how they treat dragons and not much else. There are some nice conversations between Temeraire and Lawrence, a couple gripping battle scenes, and some cute childish antics on the part of our lovable dragon of war. Overall though, not much of a plot, but it does res...

3.5 that I'm rounding up because I love Temeraire. This one was rather like war - long stretches of boredom punctuated by insane action. I kid, a little - I actually love the slowness of these books, but this one did have me wondering at the overall plot. Nonetheless, lots of fun!

#1) Throne of Jade ★★★★★➸ Trigger warnings for (view spoiler)[misogyny, racism, alcohol consumption, murder & attempted murder, gun violence, military violence & naval warfare, animal death, and animal illness & injury (hide spoiler)]. Blog • Trigger Warning Database • Twitter • Instagram

MY BLOG: Melissa Martin's Reading ListThis was supposed to be my St. Patrick's Day book (green) read, but I still read it in March so it still counts =) I love Temeraire and Laurence so much ! A man and his dragon, what's not to love ! Now the Chinese want Temeraire back. I think it's stupid as everyone stated, they had given the egg away to the French and just because Laurence ship took over the one with the egg in it doesn't mean they deserve to get Temeraire back. BUT . . . that's not what ha...

*** 4 *** A buddy read with my buddies from BBB and loving it! I thought I knew dragons, since I am well versed on Dragon behavior due to my rich PNR expertise. I already knew that DRAGONS are petulant, temperamental, strong willed, gorgeous, smart, always hungry, and charming. Now I see they get sick and act like babies, just like real men do, get preconceived notions, are ready to get into a fight at the slightest provocation, and like spicy foods :-) I am glad there is much more to learn abo

I just really love these books and the Laurence/Temeraire relationship is phenomenal <3 The fact that they branched out from the typical European/British setting and went all the way to China for this book was fantastic.