Dear Author: Romance Book Reviews, Author Interviews, and Commentary

Warning: may include spoilers

Dear Ms Novik,

After finishing “Empire of Ivory,” I wondered where you’d take me in the follow up book. Answer: through the wringer. “Victory of Eagles” sees Temeraire and his captain Will Laurence having to face the results of their actions - seen as treasonous by most of the military - which ended “Ivory.”

I mentioned how while reading the series, one needs to be alert to the major and minor changes you’ve made to the actual history of the times. Unlike Patrick O’Brian’s famous Aubrey and Maturin books or countless others written in the same vein, the Temeraire books don’t stick exactly to what really happened. And with this story, history is not merely bent, it’s twisted like a pretzel.

Things start out slowly with Temeraire sinking into mental and physical despondency in the breeding ground in Wales. After what he and Laurence do to save the dragons of Europe and the world, the two are separated upon their return to England. Laurence knows what he faces while Temeraire only slowly begins to understand just how the military views what they did. Laurence is now a …

Dear Ms Novik,

I’m so glad I waited until now to read “Empire of Ivory” even though I’ve had a copy in my hot little hands, well actually piled on top of my TBR heap by my computer, for months now. Something told me to wait, to keep it in reserve until closer to the date when book five will be released. But after the emotional roller coaster of this book, I think I’ll need a little while to process, digest and prepare myself for what’s in store for Laurence and Temeraire.

I can’t imagine anyone being able to just pick up the series at this point without having read books 1-3. There’s so much history all ready. So many great characters we’ve met, so much world building you’ve already - for lack of a better term - built up. I think new readers would be floundering as well as missing so much of the richness that makes reading these books such a delight.

The journey of Temeraire and his crew from China is at last over - and from my last letter you know that I found parts of that just …

Dear Ms. Burkhart,

As I told you when you offered us an e-copy of “Survive My Fire,” dragon shapeshifters usually do little to light my fire. Shapeshifters period have pretty much lost my interest at this point, and yet your book grabbed me from the start. Perhaps it’s because up til now Chanda has rarely shifted to human form yet once she does, she generally stays there or maybe it’s because her dragon form is the result of a curse and not a lifelong thing. I might not have always known exactly what was going on but the ride was interesting.

In a land of poisoned sands and unending drought, Chanda has been trapped as a dragon for centuries. When yet another warrior comes to her lair, she wants to eat him. The last one was certainly tasty.

As the last dragon warrior of his tribe, Jalan must kill the White Dragon to save his people. He survives her teeth and claws. He even survives her Fire. Yet he loses the battle to protect his heart from the proud, fierce woman revealed by the silvered full moon.

While Jalan must choose between his …

Dear Ms Lackey,

The Fairy Godmother was the first book of yours that I tried and I loved the spin on the traditional fairy tales. One Good Knight is good but not quite as good as that one.

When a dragon storms the castle, what should a (virgin) princess do?

Why, turn to her studies, of course! But nothing practical-minded Princess Andromeda of Acadia finds gives a definitive solution. The only Traditional answer, though, is soothing the marauding dragon by a virgin sacrifice. Things are going fairly smoothly with the lottery–except for the women chosen, of course–until Princess Andromeda herself is picked!

But facing down the dragon doesn’t go quite as planned, and now, with the help of her Champion, Sir George, Andromeda searches for the dragon’s lair. But even–especially–in the Five Hundred Kingdoms, bucking Tradition isn’t easy. It takes the strongest of wills, knowledge, quick wits and a refusal to give up, no matter what happens along the way….

First off let me say I loved Andie. Give me …

Dear Ms. Rowe,

While reading “Must Love Dragons” I kept getting feelings of deja vu. I think other readers will as well since there are a lot of similarities with “Date Me, Baby, One More Time.” I feel that a reader’s response to that book will determine their grade for this one.

You left us with a lot of unresolved issues from “Date Me” and pick right back up where that book ended. Theresa Nichols is a dragon in despair. Her human roomie has gotten married, gone on her honeymoon and left T to starve while acting as temporary guardian of the Goblet of Eternal Youth (currently in the form of an espresso machine). Everyone wants the Goblet, including Satan who’s always got an eye open for expansion opportunities, and if T doesn’t keep it safe, not only will she get tossed into the chamber of unspeakable horrors for all eternity but her former roomie, Justine the chief Guardian and Satan’s love child, will as well.

To add to T’s problems, Zeke, the man with whom she’s been having cyber sex for six months, suddenly demands to see her in person or he’ll break off …

Dear. Ms Novik,

What can I say but “wow.” No, I guess “Wow!” would be a better way to phrase it. You’ve created a stunning new world with vivid characters, action and scenery. My colleague Jane has already filled our readers in on the plot so I’ll head straight into my thoughts on various aspects of the story.

I really enjoyed how you filled us in on the backstory without dropping it in huge chunks on our heads. I never felt lost or confused nor got bored wading through masses of information at one time. I loved the various names for the dragon breeds and how they were just as important as individual characters with their own quirks and charms. Temerarie is wonderful but I’m glad you made him a bit mulish about flying endless flight patterns and smug about his beautiful new breast collar. We’re none of us perfect, right?

I do agree with many readers that you’ve developed a wonderful air equivalent to the many Napoleonic Naval series in print. Laurence is a man to whom honor and duty are more important than his life, even if he does sometimes have trouble …

Dear Ms. Novik:

This really is a series for the ages. I believe that this trilogy will make every best fantasy list out there. The things that I like best are learning about the dragons themselves and seeing the interaction between Temeraire and Laurence. The things I like least are the battle scenes. I got a tiny bit tired of the fight scenes, but that is clearly a personal preference. I wished for more Temeraire and Laurence reading, interacting and loving one another and less Temeraire and Laurence in battle but I am a romance reader. Those would be the things I would like the best!

The opening chapter begins with Laurence being called to leave Temeraire by Lord Barharm, a diplomat. The Chinese are in Britian and they want their Celestial back. Britain is fearful of the Chinese’s relationship with the French (evidenced by the gift of such an amazing dragon egg) and is pressuring Laurence to lie to Temeraire and to leave him. Laurence refuses to do so in a dramatic scene. The Chinese delegation headed by Younxing, brother of the …

Dear Ms. Novik:

I resisted for about 3 weeks in buying your book. It wasn’t a romance. It featured a male protagonist. It was about war and warlike things. War scenes are hard for me to follow. Even the glowing reviews couldn’t budge me but then I saw it for sale at Fictionwise and I thought, why not.

There is a kind of glowing feeling that you get when you close the cover of a really good book. It makes you happy that you are a reader. It invigorates your love for books. It makes the grass greener, the flowers more fragrant, it . . . well, I guess you get the idea.

The plot is fairly simple: Naval captian William Laurence, a younger son of the gentry, who likes the opera and has an understanding with a gently bred young woman, captures a French frigate. On board is a dragon’s egg. Laurence immediately calculates the bounty he will recieve as a result of turning over a dragon’s egg. The ship’s surgeon informs him that the egg is hard and …