Empire of Ivory (Temeraire, #4)

404 pages

English language

Published July 28, 2007

ISBN:
9780345496874
Goodreads:
129510

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4 stars (1 review)

Empire of Ivory is the fourth novel in the Temeraire alternate history/fantasy series by American author Naomi Novik. Set in Africa, the novel follows William Laurence and his dragon Temeraire's search for a cure to the disease that has paralyzed the dragon community. Novik visited southern Africa in search of places in the fourth novel. Empire of Ivory was released in paperback in North America by Del Ray on September 25, 2007. The British hardcover edition was published by Voyager on November 5, 2007.

3 editions

Variously sharp and muddled, but still excellent

4 stars

The first portion of this book is a bit muddled, but the story flows well from hooks planted two books earlier. Again, we get another major culture and their treatment of dragons, and we finally address one of the most glaring problems of the story's timeline: the slave trade out of Africa. There's a lot to like here, even if some of the story goes a bit slow, and other moments feel a little too contrived.