Guns of the Dawn
Ratings24
Average rating4.2
15
Ratings24
Average rating4.2
Guns of the Dawn is a pacey, gripping fantasy of war and magic, from Arthur C. Clarke Award-winning author, Adrian Tchaikovsky. ‘One of the best books I've ever read’ – Peter Newman, author of The Vagrant The first casualty of war is truth . . . First, Denland’s revolutionaries assassinated their king, launching a wave of bloodshed after generations of peace. Next they clashed with Lascanne, their royalist neighbour, pitching war-machines against warlocks in a fiercely fought conflict. Genteel Emily Marshwic watched as the hostilities stole her family’s young men. But then came the call for yet more Lascanne soldiers in a ravaged kingdom with none left to give. Emily must join the ranks of conscripted women and march toward the front lines. With barely enough training to hold a musket, Emily braves the savage reality of warfare. But she begins to doubt her country's cause, and those doubts become critical. For her choices will determine her own future and that of two nations locked in battle. ‘An engrossing story, beautifully told’ – SFX ‘Moving, gripping and wonderfully paced’ – The Bookbag
Reviews with the most likes.
I was initially skeptical, because I knew Tchaikovsky for his Science Fiction work, and this book was clearly not that. I'm not a big reader of Jane Austen novels either, which the start of this book resembles more. But the story eventually won me over, if not the heroine. Emily takes much too long to realize that her basic assumptions of the world are wrong, and several times I found myself shouting at her to wake up already. She gets there in the end, but it takes an entire epilogue chapter for that to happen.
A beautiful book. And a look at what war and affect has on people.
This man is quickly climbing up my list of favorite authors. Not the way most of my favorite authors do, by releasing a book I devour and make part of my personality, but by the workman's approach: Adrian Tchaikovsky just writes a lot of things, and they're all different and they're all really good (we will forget about Shards of Earth for now- that could have been my fault haha)
Now, Guns of the Dawn. Guns is a standalone Flintlock fantasy about one of my new favorite heroines, Emily Marshwic. Guns is commonly pitched as “Sharpe meets Jane Austen”, and that seems very apt. The first third of this book seems very Jane Austen-esque, and reads like a period drama. But when a king is assassinated, and war goes poorly, noblewoman Emily is conscripted to join the army and must learn how to fight. I really enjoyed Emily, and the second half of this book continuously gets better and better. The ending was fantastic. While I've known many veteran fantasy fans that love this book, I also think it would be a great intro to adult fantasy. I will say though to those that are unaware, this is very low magic. You could almost remove the magic entirely and have the same story.
9/10
