Throne of Jade

Naomi Novik’s stunning series of novels follow the adventures of Captain William Laurence and his fighting dragon Temeraire as they are thrown together to fight for Britain during the turbulent time of the Napoleonic Wars.

History takes flight in this deliciously addictive novel, which captures the Napoleonic period perfectly and skilfully layers history with imagination by adding a Dragon Air Force to the battle for England.

Temeraire is a Celestial dragon, the most highly-prized of all draconic breeds; famed for their intelligence, agility and most of all for the Divine Wind – their terrible roar capable of shattering the heavy timbers of war ships and devastating woodland. Captured by the British, Temeraire was meant to be the companion of the Emperor Napoleon and not captained by a mere officer in the British Air Corps. The Chinese have demanded his return and the British government cannot afford to provoke the Asian super-power into allying with the French – even if it costs them the most powerful weapon in their arsenal, and forces Laurence and Temeraire apart.

Reviews

'I took a jaundiced view of dragon books until Novik won me over with her first novel. the combination of military history, sympathetic characters, and engaging style makes this series great, intelligent fun.’
The Times

‘Plenty of intrigue, swordplay, exotic locations, plausible invention. In short a treat.’
The Telegraph

‘These are beautifully written novels, not only fresh, original and fast-paced, but full of wonderful characters with real heart.’
Peter Jackson

‘Novik has stirred the passions with a genre-busting historical fantasy of the first order.'
Sunday Sport

'In the best tradition of fantasy, historical fiction and nautical novels.'
Guardian

About the author

Naomi Novik was born in New York in 1973, a first-generation American, and raised on Polish fairy tales, Baba Yaga, and Tolkien. She studied English Literature at Brown University and did graduate work in Computer Science at Columbia University before leaving to participate in the design and development of the computer game Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide. Over the course of a brief winter sojourn working on the game in Edmonton, Canada (accompanied by a truly alarming coat that now lives brooding in the depths of her closet), she realized she preferred the writing to the programming, and, on returning to New York, decided to try her hand at novels. Temeraire is her first.

Naomi lives in New York City with her husband and six computers. Her website and livejournal are at www.temeraire.org