Books I've Read This Week (July 28)

Back again with BIRTW quickly after the last one, but without much news, I'm afraid. I finished Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik and I'm just into Black Powder War.

In the second book of Novik's delicious Temeraire series, Throne of Jade, we find Temeraire, the Celestial dragon, and his companion, Wil Laurence, on their way to China after being forced to leave England. A Chinese delegation had arrived and the British government, not wanting to insult a world power, agrees to return the dragon to China. The Chinese view Laurence's attachment to Temeraire with disdain but the dragon refuses to go without him. So off they sail around Africa and through the Indian Ocean narrowly escaping an attack of a sea serpent when Temeraire saves the day.

They find the treatment of dragons to be very different in the Far East where the number of indivduals and species is much greater than in Europe. Some dragons are celebrated and indeed worshipped while others are beasts of burden and even go hungry in the streets. Temeraire meets his mother, finds himself courting, and learns how to read and write Chinese characters while Laurence struggles with jealousy, culture shock and the loss of one of his crew, Willoughby, in an attack on their quarters. Temeraire becomes intrigued by the possibilities of dragons having free will, earning wages, and not being bound by the British goverment into military servitude. I'm sure that attitude will not be looked on favorably once our two heroes are back in England.

They have to make it there though which is the focus of Black Powder War. Right now they're struggling overland through deserts and mountains on their way to Turkey to escort some dragon eggs back home. I'll be sad when this book is over and I don't have any more Temeraire and Laurence adventures on my shelf.

Unread books on my shelf at home (too embarrassing!):
If You Could See Me Now, Cecelia Ahern
Shark Island, Joan Druett
Darcy & Elizabeth, Linda Berdoll
The Art of Detection, Laurie R. King
Danse Macabre, Laurell K. Hamilton
Magic or Madness, Justine Larbalestier
Dead Secret, Diane Connor
Luck in the Shadows, Lynn Flewelling
Site Unseen, Dana Cameron
Virgin Earth, Philippa Gregory
Quidditch Through the Ages, JK Rowling
Dead Guilty, Diane Connor

Books on hold at the library:
Dark Tort, Diane Mott Davidson (18 of 19 holds)
Miss Zukas and the Stroke of Death, Jo Dereske (ready for pickup)
Out of Circulation, Jo Dereske (ready for pickup)
Final Notice, Jo Dereske (check shelf)
Miss Zukas and the Raven's Dance Jo Dereske (1 of 1 holds)
Dead in Vineyard Sand, Philip R. Craig (in transit)

I really need to snap out of my slow reading malaise and trim down this list. I'm just distracted by other things right now. I hope I have more to report next time on Books I've Read This Week. Happy Reading!