#emilie harcourt

[kingoftheu]

William Laurence truly has one of the funniest character arcs of all time. He does a complete 360 over the course of the series. Totally turned around yet somehow exactly where he started. He completely changed his worldview while being absolutely steadfast about it. He undergoes impressive character development while his character does not change at all. He is so damn stubborn about his preconceived notions of honor that he is willing to abandon his preconceived notions of dragons, gender, and race. He transcends the regency society he lives in not by breaking the confines of rigid values but by expanding those confines to include everyone.

[skelettflickan]

Some quick doodles of Them. Trying to figure out how to draw all the characters again!!

[wildtornado-o]

Textposts have no right to be so fun 2 draw

Other textposts: 1 2 3 4

[captainlaurence]

Anyway, now that I’ve finished my read through, thanks to anyone who has tolerated my rants.

I’m a few years late to this fandom but please feel free to message me whenever. I’d love to connect with more Temeraire fans ;-;

Cheers.

[sapphiccharacterstournament]

Canon Sapphic Characters Tournament Round 1 (Bracket 5)

[bacarraroses]

Name: Emilia 'Emily' Harcourt

Clan: Toreador

Generation: 9th

A young fledgling in the city of London, Emily Harcourt is a rare jewel. Originally trained classically as a dancer, she's a doctor and a capable socialite, chased after by four different Clans before she was Embraced by the Harpy of London, her sire, Jessamine Harcourt. Emily currently maintains a haven with her sire, focusing on her dance career while also maintaining her status amongst the Courts of London.

[saintes-rpg]

Due to no activity, please unfollow

@kyriceleison

The faceclaim Emily Rudd is now repoened!

[challengevictorien]

Réunion de famille pour Halloween chez les MacTavish !

[slimyshield]

bro. you're telling me that laurence had full on amnesia. like "weeks have passed and I still can't remember anything" amnesia. "the doctor thinks that if I haven't remembered anything by now I never will" amnesia. and the sight of his beloved dragon of eight years did not jog his memory, nor being told of various huge events in his life, including literal treason, which years after the fact still weighed heavily on him. none of that helped. I repeat: not even temeraire, the one living being above all others whose company he preferred. not seeing granby, who he knew almost as long as he knew temeraire, or berkeley or harcourt, or even emily roland, who looks a good deal like her mother, the woman laurence was lowkey dating for years. no, you're telling me that what jogged his memory at long last was seeing tharkay, who he had not known before temeraire; and he called him by his first name even as he remembered everything. and then he called in a favor to thee Napoleon Bonaparte, a favor earned when laurence committed treason, a favor that laurence practically vowed never to cash in on, in order to save tharkay's life even though he had also just realized tharkay was a spy, which laurence was super pissed about. and then later tharkay invited laurence and temeraire to live on his estate with him. as though this is all happening in a fucking romance novel instead of a nine-book series about the napoleonic wars. and I'm supposed to be normal about it??? I'm supposed to think that laurence and roland wound up together when tharkay is right there??? I Could Not Believe Mine Own Eyes reading the last two pages of league of dragons. oh my god

[marioposssa]

There's a joke I've heard a few times, that Laurence is so formal that even his lover calls him by his last name.

And there's certainly something to that idea so I wanted to do some fun statistics on the question:

Who get's called by their first name in Temeraire, how often (and by whom)?

For anybody who only wants the numbers here's the overall highscore:

Total mentions by first name only (638 total)

1st "Jane" Roland: 243

2nd "Emily" Roland: 154

3rd "Catherine" Harcourt: 100

4th "Edith" Galman/Woolvey: 55

5th "John" Granby: 25

6th "Tom" Riley: 23

7th "George" Allendale: 8 (all in Victory of Eagles)

8th "Tenzing" Tharkay: 6

9th "Henry" Ferris: 5 (all by his family in Empire of Ivory)

10th "Jean-Paul" Choiseul, "Augustine" Little, "Bertram" Woolvey, "Gerry" Stuart: 1

The more in-depth answer got way longer than expected, so I decided to split this post up a bit. For a more thorough look at first four places, keep on reading after the cut.

For place 5-10 read on in part 2. For a look into usage of Will and some dragon thoughs go to part 3

The place for most first name mentions over all goes to Jane Roland, who is mentioned a staggering 243 times out of 638 total. Laurence starts both thinking of her and addressing her as Jane after their first night together and even Temeraire uses Admiral Rolands first name in conversation (in Black Powder War).

What is interesting to me is that, after Laurence starts he does not really stop thinking of her as 'Jane' or addressing her as such in conversation, even after their break at the end of Empire of Ivory and through Laurence's general feelings of guilt in the later books. To me this goes a long way of showing that Laurence still considers them close, even if he can not get over the harm he has caused with his actions after taking the dragons cure to Napoleon.

Beyond Laurence narration, we also get two other moments in League of Dragon where Excidium talks of her as 'Jane' and 'my Jane' <3.

Looking beyond Jane Roland, one of the most consistent topics in her conversations with Laurence beyond the war seems to be her daughter. As soon as Jane first mentions Emily by her first name in His Majesty's Dragon, Laurence picks it up and Emily Roland becomes Emily more often than not from then on. This seems to happen especially often in more familial or interpersonal scenes, such as when Laurence takes her and Demane to task about their relationship in Crucible of Gold or when she is meeting Laurence father at Wilberforce's subscription-rally early in Empire of Ivory.

Emily is also called by her first name by both Temeraire and Mrs. Pemberton, who in their own way might both count her as part of their family or as in their care. We may also guess that, since Emily is friendly with a number of characters especially other minors over the course of the book, she may also go by Emily in a lot of other occasions that are simply not part of the narrative.

Interestingly, while Laurence is shy of calling any of the other aviators by their first name, he starts calling Catherine Harcourt 'Catherine' in his head by Empire of Ivory. Specifically he starts using the name after seeing Tom Riley greeting her on the 'Allegiance'. This moment seems to signify a shift in Laurence perceiving her as different from just her status as an aviator friend or acquaintance. While to our knowledge he never uses the name to her face, he also starts calling her Catherine when talking to Tom Riley.

The usage of 'Catherine' continues through Laurence narration in Victory of Eagles, though he is back to using 'Captain Harcourt' in the later books.

Overall there are 100 times when Harcourt is called Catherine.

In conversation it is mostly Lily (11) who uses her first name, but there's also Jane Roland who calls Harcourt Catherine in non-formal settings (2).

And then there's Choiseul in His Majesty's Dragon of course. His use of 'Catherine' is a pretty good indicator of their intimacy, even before Laurence picks up on their relationship. I think it works so well, since at that point in the books, the mention of any first names has been pretty rare. In response she calls him Jean-Paul. This stops immediately after Choiseul's betrayal though, and indeed he never mentions her by name from this point on until his execution.

I also want to mention Rankin, who certainly has not earned the informality, but calls Harcourt almost dismissively by her first name at her first introduction to Laurence. Possibly being condescending both about her age, as well as her being a women.

Overall I think the use of Harcourts first name in the books is the most varied and it can almost always tell us as much, if not more, about the people using it in their different forms than about Catherine Harcourt herself.

Forth in place of intimate mentions is Edith 'Woolvey' née Galman. As Laurence former promised childhood friend he is consistently on a first name basis with her. She is mentioned as just 'Edith' 55 times in the course of four of the books: His Majesty's Dragon, Victory of Eagles, Blood of Tyrants - where Laurence thinks of her exactly once during his amnesiac arc and finally League of Dragons.

As you may have guessed from the numbers, the women make up the staggering majority of all first name mentions with a staggering 552 of 638, or 86% of all moments.

-----

Notes on the gathered data: I looked at all instances of known first names of main or supporting characters, but excluded the following:

Any mention where the first name was part of the full name or was prefixed by a title (such as Captain Catherine Harcourt, Lady Emily)

Any dragons, since dragons (with exceptions) only have single name

Any character mentioned exclusively by their first name (I'm sorry Demane, Sipho, little Gerry the Orphan and various babes)

[dc-megatournament]

DC Ladies Only Tournament

Match ups for Round 1

Thanks to @circlejourney for their tournament bracket generator. It really helps make these a lot easier.

PLEASE DO NOT SUBMIT ANY CHARACTERS FOR THIS TOURNAMENT. EVERYTHING IS ALREADY PRE PLANNED.

There are 400 DC Ladies in this tournament. Lets see whos the best of the best.

Leslie Thompkins vs Gamemnae Tula vs Pandora Powerhouse/Naomi McDuffie vs Spoiler/Stephanie Brown Sky Alchesay vs Giganta Sungirl vs Black Canary/Dinah Laurel Lance Susan Shoemaker vs Freefall Scandal Savage vs Black Alice Cupid vs Elvith Superwoman/Lucy Lane vs Virtue/Holly Ann Fields Psi/Gayle Marsh vs Sue Dibny Lodestone vs Silver Slasher/Ki-Lan Queen Bee vs The Wanderer/Vitoria Phantom Lady/Dee Tyler vs Nicki Jones Madison Payne vs Silver Banshee Redwing/Carrie Levine vs Martha Kent Hera vs Dorothy Spinner Kathy George vs Godiva Barbara Gordon vs Dream Girl Dawn Allen vs Lana Lang Wonder Woman vs Vicki Grant Marilyn Moonlight vs Maxima Otho-Ra vs Coil Rose and Thorn/Rose Canton vs Sayeh Livewire vs Nubia Zealot/Lady Zannah vs Phantom Lady/Stormy Knight Alex Danvers vs Vengeance Moth Bulletgirl/Susan Kent vs Plastique Jenny Sparks vs Nemesis/Soseh Mykros Emerald Empress vs Stargirl Blackstarr/Rachel Berkowitz vs Jayna Magenta vs Saturn Queen Inferno vs Maps Mizoguchi

Darla Dudley vs Tao Jones/Siong Spider-Girl/Sussa Paka vs Sojourner Mullein Roxy Rocket vs Blitzen/Valerie Kameya Star Sapphire/Carol Ferris vs Battleaxe Crow Jane vs Wink Onyx vs Psyche Shadow Lass vs Maggie Sawyer Arkham Knight vs Atlanna White Canary vs Rocket Shay Veritas vs Naomi McDuffie Julie Madison vs Iolande Shimmer vs Catwoman/Holly Robinson Willow Zimmerman vs Peek-a-Boo Lady Frankenstein vs Nightshade Crazy Jane vs Lyssa Drak Katana vs Sabina Punchline vs Bolt/Alinta Laodice vs Jinx Catgirl/Kitrina Falcone vs Lady Shiva Supergirl/Linda Danvers vs Wonder-Woman/Peng Deilan Gazelle vs Jenny Quantum Fever vs Brick House/Marta Emilia Harcourt vs Summer Pickens Aquamaria/Maria vs Juniper Bleez vs Avery Ho Zatanna vs Firebrand/Danette Reilly Mirage/Miriam Delgado vs Dreamer Swift/Shen Li-Min vs Caitlin Fairchild Arisia vs Mayfly/Moon Robinson Silver Swan/Vanessa Jane Kapatelis vs Beast Girl/Kareli Carmen Leno vs Lightning/Jennifer Pierce Inza Nelson vs Atomica

Jeyra Entinn vs Mongal Sister Superior vs Lois Lane Blackfire vs Alanna Strange Libby Lawrence vs Saturn Girl Cheshire vs Silk Spectre/Laurie Juspeczyk Looker/Emily Briggs vs Power Girl/Kara Zor-L/Karen Starr Comet/Andrea Martinez vs Halo Space Case/Casey Brinke vs Knight/Beryl Hutchinson Nina Mazursky vs Breeze Nudge vs Cameron Chase Vixen vs Magpie Poison Ivy vs Rose Wilson Sublime vs Jaquar Lena Luthor vs Enchantress Lady Clayface vs Quantum Queen Snarlgoyle vs Akka Sarah Essen vs Artemis Crock Flashback/Sara Quinones vs Ventriloquist Antiope vs Little Miss Redhead/Janie Ice/Tora Olafsdotter vs Freak Katharsis/Kulap Vilaysack vs Doctor Poison/Marina Maru Speedy/Mia Dearden vs Harley Quinn/Dr Harleen Quinzel Beautiful Dreamer vs Operator Misfit/Charlie Gage Radcliffe vs Ryan Wilder Batwoman/Kathy Kane vs Jade Mercy Graves vs Firehawk/Lorraine Reilly Maya Ducard vs Black Orchid Sidewinder vs Iota/Isadora Wellington-Smythe The Whip/Shelly Gaynor/Michelle Gaynor vs Defacer Janissary/Selma Tolon vs Guillotina/Necahual Martinez Bumblebee vs Menagerie/Sonja Tiffany Fox vs Alura-El

Divine vs Killer Frost/Louise Lincoln White Witch vs Abby Holland Wildcat/Yolanda Montez vs China White Lady Vic vs Bekka Crimson Avenger/Jill Carlyle vs Adeline Wilson Andromeda vs Phantom Girl Verdict/Sam Payne vs Cheetah/Barbara Minerva Carrie Kelley vs Vicki Vale Grace Choi vs Jolt/Carlotta Rivera Harmonia Li vs Manteau/Roxie Hodder Circe vs Amazing Woman/Erik Storn/Erika Strong Amethyst vs Catspaw Celsius vs Thunder/Anissa Pierce Faora Hu-Ul vs Emiko Queen Hawkgirl/Kendra Saunders vs Traci 13 Deep Blue/Mizuko "Debbie" Perkins vs Manhunter/Kate Spencer Savant vs Kole Weathers Lara Kent vs Raven Sleepwalk vs Phillipus June Robbins vs Andrea Allen Sonia Sato vs Scream Queen Faith vs Steel/Natasha Irons Nocturna vs Knockout/Kay Fury Flatline/Nika vs Jessica Cruz Huntress/Helena Bertinelli vs Flamebird/Bette Kane Madame Xanadu vs Cheetah/Deborah Domanine Miss America vs Phase Liar Liar vs Golden Glider Thunder vs Chameleon Girl Cat Grant vs Cyborgirl Linda Park West vs Cyclone Shrinking Violet vs Lori Lemais

Sparx vs Aura/Lindsey Wah Red Canary vs Kristen Wells Tremor/Roshanna Chatterji vs Manitou Dawn Jesse Quick vs Bonny Hoffman Empathy/Lucia vs Kathy Branden Tanya Spears vs Dawn Granger Meow Meow vs Iris West Allen Lightning Lass vs Isis Copycat vs Fatality/Yrra Cynril Sensor Girl/Princess Projectra/Wilimena Morgana Daergina Annaxandra Projectra Velorya Vauxhall vs Artemis Grace Trajectory/Eliza Harmon vs Gimmix/Jacqueline Pemberton Strange Visitor vs Lara Lor-Van Valentina Vostok vs Shrike/Vanessa Kingsbury Mad Harriet vs Silver Sorceress La Sangre vs Karin Grace Lian Harper vs Chloe Sullivan Wither/Jade Tice vs Lori Morning Gypsy/Cynthia Reynolds vs Goldstar/Michelle Carter Mary Marvel vs Voodoo Blacksmith vs Killer Frost/Crystal Frost Batwoman/Kate Kane vs Fire/Beatriz da Costa Dusk vs Lilith Clay Iris “Irey” West vs Dolphin Yara Flor vs Night Girl Queen of Fables vs Miss Martian Terra vs Monstergirl/Rita Lopez Phantom Lady/Sandra Knight vs Lisa Jennings Lady Blackhawk vs Djinn Aquagirl/Lorena Marquez vs Hope Taya Renee Montoya vs Solstice Nightmare Nurse/Asa vs Amanda Waller Phantom Lady/Jennifer Knight vs Nightstar

Thara Ak-Var vs Talia al Ghul Killer Frost/Caitlin Snow vs Dr Mid-Nite Big Barda/Barda Free vs Starfire Gotham Girl vs Hawkwoman/Shiera Hall Cheetah/Priscilla Rich vs Bombshell Queen Clea vs Doctor Multiverse Catwalk vs Gilotina Weather Witch vs Jennifer Morgan Wonder Girl/Cassie Sandsmark vs Medusa/Dr. Myrna Rhodes Mera vs Chaos Kitten Heatstroke/Joanne vs Dr Light/Kimiyo Hoshi Mindboggler/Leah Wasserman vs Puff Enigma/Quinn Nash vs Silk Spectre/Laurie Juspeczyk XS vs Princess Andy Tuppence Terror vs Tarot Silk Spectre/Laurel Jane Juspeczyk vs Shocking Suzi/Jo Hamill Hippolyta vs Bright Eyes/Sienna Lopez Batgirl/Cassandra Cain vs Tam Fox Temper/Avia Joby Weinberg vs Supergirl Mother One/Rachel Lynn Rhodes vs Donna Troy Maxine Baker vs Duela Dent Urcell vs Atlee Little Barda vs Coagula Linear Woman/Liri Lee vs Madame Rouge Bratgirl/Merissa Cooper vs Dr. Francine Langstrom Empress/Anita Fite vs Windfall/Wendy Jones Primer/Ashley Rayburn vs Argent/Toni Monetti Alysia Yeoh vs Element Woman/Emily Sung Maria Mendoza vs Jinny Hex Hawk/Holly Granger vs Elasti-Woman Christine Blaze vs Arrowette/Cissie King Jones Teen Lantern vs Summer Zahid

Forerunner vs Ice Maiden Matrix vs Iron Butterfly/Kahina Eskandari Dawnstar vs Esper Lass/Meta Ulnoor Catwoman/Eiko Hasigawa vs Encantadora/Lourdes Lucero Beauty Blaze vs Ya’Wara Catwoman/Selina Kyle vs Cir-El Pantha/Rosabelle Mendez vs Bulleteer/Alix Harrower Ursa vs Bluebird/Harper Row

[kingoftheu]

My “hey what was the name of that dragon” look became a reread of the entire Temeraire series. So, without further ado: The Temeraire Books (sans Golden Age because that’s a different kettle of fish) from least-good to best.

#9 Crucible of Gold

Novik has a habit of ramming three plots into one book, even when that doesn’t really work. Crucible of Gold is the worst offender. We have the shipwreck/marooning plot, the Inca plot, then the Brazil plot. There were things that worked I think. The Inca dragons present another perspective that’s quite interesting and influences things going forward, Iskierka trying to get Granby hitched is fun. But the Brazil plot with Tswana is a let down, I will admit, we learn little of them, and while I do not expect realism from this series how tf are they holding together their empire. Napoleon showing up personally is unfortunate, I don’t think it was needed and lessened his mystique. Tom Riley’s death could have had a bit more oomf to it, but was a real surprise.

#8 League of Dragons

None of these are bad, and I think the ending is the strongest part. Laurence in command and Temeraire finally seeing fruits of his efforts at reform. Roland is a Duchess and Tharkay has his fortune! Yay. The Russian opening is a complete cop out though, ruining the cliffhanger of the last book. The Duel is fine, but the long recovery and weird romance thing is not. Would have liked to see the final battles of the series on page rather than that. Also, man, Lien did basically nothing personal to Temeraire and Laurence did she? She helped Napoleon a ton broadly which harmed them, but it’s hardly the personal touch I would expect from the main villain of the series.

#7 Blood of Tyrants

Another one with three plots in one. Japan, China, Russia. Japan feels the most like Novik felt like she was obligated to show off some new place every book. The aid who joins Napoleon is a neat concept, but otherwise it was a drag. The Amnesia plot was an unnecessary drama font, we’ve already been treated to Laurence being vaguely horrified by everything under the sun. The introduction to the Chinese Legions is suitably impressive, and Russian Dragonkeeping is suitably horrible, and the fake rebellion/conservative faction squabble in China functions well. But it all feels disconnected. I feel like Russia should have all been one book.

#6 Black Powder War

Central Asis to Istanbul to Prussia we go!!! Tharkay is of course a highlight of this one. And we are introduced to everyone’s favorite fire breathing brat. But it suffers from a lack of through-line. The Istanbul Plot gets finished and you feel like it’s all over but then there is a Prussian plot that just drags on. The frenzied chase is great, as is Iskierka’s introduction. But man. It has nothing to do with the rest of the book. Just a whole lot of disconnect between the parts. I do like how whittled down Temeraire’s crew winds up by the end of it all, adds some really stakes to the whole thing.

#5 Empire of Ivory

A surprising amount of this book is just them sitting around in England feeling bad about the Plague. And then them sitting around looking for the mushrooms. That’s boring. So boring. Tswana-kanda is cool and a fairly unique relationship with their dragons. I don’t know enough about Tswana culture to judge its accuracy/sensitivity, and them suddenly being able to reach thousands of miles and overrun the continent is a bit Deus Ex. But I really, really, can’t complain about that, because the slavers all get ducking wrecked and it is so satisfying.

The ending is what truly elevates this book. That is, without a doubt, the key turning point of the entire series. And is emotionally wrecking, while also establishing Napoleon’s characterization going forward. It is a moment of profound moral clarity for Laurence and Temeraire and justly a high point.

#4 Throne of Jade

It’s a slow boat to China, and perhaps a little too much time even getting them on that boat. On one hand this does give a sense of the time it takes to travel on the other hand it does leave out actual time in China a bit cut short. The scheming is largely out of the hands our protagonists, and fairly obvious at that. However this is our first, and most influential, trip abroad. Exposure to China sets up Temeraire’s arc for the rest of the series and even makes the reader reassess things. And it’s not like the boat trip is devoid of interesting moments. The Sailors v Aviators v Chinese Envoys bit is engaging, as is the split between Riley and Laurence. Hammond is also a personal fave.

#3 Tongues of Serpents

I’m as surprised as you are, considering how little this has to do with the rest of the series. But what it does have going for it is an intense and direct plot. A long chase through the Outback, with a decent start as they avoid political maneuvering. The reveal of who exactly is at the end of the trail is a surprise but does make sense. Kungile is a fine addition to the main cast of characters. Rankin is a suitably irritating figure and he and Caesar deserve each other. The convicts are a fun lot. The ending is perhaps a forced confrontation, but I do like the look at early Australia.

#2 His Majesty’s Dragon

The one that started it all. And really it introduces the characters so well. Laurence realizing the truth about Rankin is such a distillation of his character. Temeraire discovering himself is also a fun arc. And we the readers are eased into this brave new world as well. Some of it can be a little ‘event happens characters react’ until the final battle, and it was painfully obvious Trafalgar wasn’t the end of it. The divine wind comes out of nowhere to be honest. However the battle is still engaging and Laurence’s growth is strongest here. We also meet a fine cast of supporting characters in Lily’s formation.

#1 Victory of the Eagles

The Darkest Hour. Real consequences to Laurence’s actions in the prior book. Our first Temeraire POV book and that elevates things considerably. A frantic race against time as Napoleon’s novel tactics bring him closer to victory than at any other time in this book. Laurence’s depression and moral surrender. Wellesley! Termeraire’s band of breeding ground friends, and his first stabs at true leadership. The desperation of the countryside. The scene with the King is surprisingly heartbreaking. A triumphant victory in the end in one of the best battle scenes. But not an unmarred one. The fleet lost, and Laurence’s disgrace hardly undone. Transport to follow. A true high point for the series.

[darlingofdots]

Formal vs Informal Address in German Temeraire Translations: a report

So I have picked up my German copies of the Temeraire books for the first time in over a decade for reasons unrelated to this post but I immediately got distracted by the matter of formal address in German and how translators have to make a very specific and important choice when translating from English. German (like French and many other languages) has two forms of direct address in the 2nd person, an informal one for friends, family, children etc., and a formal address for strangers, teachers, colleagues, professional contacts. It is famously a Whole Thing when you switch from formal to informal with somebody: usually the person with a 'higher' position in the relationship has to explicitly offer it and it can be a big deal! A common instance might be when you've worked at a new job for a while and your colleagues tell you to use informal to indicate they consider you Part Of The Team, or your girlfriend's parents do it when you've been dating a while and they signal that you're part of the family now. In translation, this can be a really tricky choice! For instance, I have not watched Elementary in German but I would say Sherlock and Joan would absolutely start out addressing each other formally (Sherlock calls her "Watson" most of the time), but by the end of the show there is no way they would not have switched. Obviously English-language media does not have an explicit conversation about this and the closest analogue would be switching to first names when they've only ever used last names before, but you can't rely on that and translators end up having to make choices about characterisation and relationships based on like, vibes. With all that said!

In the Temeraire series, there's a lot of formal address around, such as among officers; I knew Laurence would be addressing his cadets formally because even though they are like, 9 years old, they are his officers and deserve to be treated with that respect. I only have books 1-5 in German but I'd be willing to bet that this doesn't change even Emily's been with him for nigh on ten years, and the same goes for Temeraire. Also Laurence uses formal address with both his parents, in case you were wondering.

What I was not sure about was a) how other people address dragons and how dragons address each other and b) the finer interpersonal relationships among aviators. Jane addresses Iskierka formally but Temeraire informally; the dragons of the formation are formal with each other but Temeraire, Lily, and Maximus are not, and Temeraire quite happily scolds Iskierka like a misbehaving child. I would LOVE to find a bit of, say, Laurence talking to Lily or Berkley to Temeraire!

Among the aviators, Laurence and Jane are informal with each other once they've slept together, but I just saw that Laurence is also informal with Harcourt but not with Chenery, which is interesting but I suppose makes sense if you go by the dragons' relationships too. What really fascinates me is that at the end of Victory of Eagles, Laurence and Granby are still formal, which makes sense because until five minutes ago Laurence was his superior officer, but if I were the translator for this series I'd have them switch to informal with the beginning of book six but unfortunately I do not have that on hand so I can't check.

Now for the main event: Tharkay uses formal address with Laurence when he leaves to fetch more ferals at the beginning of book 4, and I thought he switched for the infamous "Laurence, what are you doing" which would have been exactly the right moment if you'd asked me, but in fact there is one random informal when they're out rescuing Granby in London (loose quotation: "that is [Woolvey's] problem and for those who would weep for him, even if they are close to your [informal] heart")? And then he goes right back to formal all the way to "Laurence, what are you [informal] doing" and finally switches properly, at which point Laurence follows his example. At first I thought that was weird and I am not sure if it was done on purpose, but on second thought I kind of like that he tries it out first when speaking of something personal (Laurence's concern for Edith) but isn't sure of it yet and retreats back to familiar territory until he realises that he needs to shock Laurence out of his war crime depression.

It's interesting to me that Tharkay was the one to take that step. Traditionally, like I said, it would be on the person in a position of authority to offer or, like with Granby, Laurence could have just switched once Granby was confirmed in rank to indicate that he wants to be friends now that he doesn't give orders anymore. Of course it makes perfect sense that Tharkay would not care one bit about rank, and he's not really an officer anyway and he certainly does not consider Laurence to have authority over him. I love that the translator (Marianne Schmidt) recognised that moment on campaign for what I think it is: not so much a turning point in their relationship but one that cements a degree of intimacy that Laurence doesn't have with anyone else. They would not have had access to book 6, I think, when they were working on book 5, so it very much is a deliberate choice based on their interactions up to this point. I made a list recently about people that Will Laurence calls by their first name (former first lieutenants, Catherine Harcourt, 1 FWB, and Tharkay) and now I feel like I need to make another list of people German!Will Laurence uses informal address with!

[isostatic-uplift]

Musing about female aviators and Longwings…

How many women do the Aerial Corps train relative to the number of Longwings/Longwing eggs? Surely there must be more than the number of dragons, because it seems inevitable that some would die in action before becoming captains… but how many more are there? Based on the set of characters we encounter it seems like they’re relatively few and far between (not that I trust Laurence to actually notice the number that there are based on his initial impressions of Emily Roland and Harcourt, lol). If there are so few, are they near-guaranteed to become captains? Do any of the male aviators resent that? I wonder too what it must be like for the women who never end up being captains, given that they’re only in the Corps because of the Longwings… what happens if one of the women fails an attempted harnessing? Does she leave the Corps at that point, or stay in as a lieutenant?

And, for all of the female aviators, where do they go when they retire? What do they do? It’s hard to imagine them integrating back into the rest of society afterwards if the existence of female aviators is supposed to be a secret, but we never see what happens instead.

Also I wonder if Longwings can tell if people are trans? Like have they refused potential captains because of it, or made unexpected choices of bystanders? Have any of those folks realized they’re trans because of it? (If so I guess it means more than one egg cracked at the hatching, ha)! I keep thinking that I would 100% have run away to become an aviator if I were a character in that universe, because doing so would be the closest thing to living as a man — not that I imagine this Temeraire-universe self to be sufficiently self-aware to put words to that — but gosh a failed harnessing would be a devastating way to come to that understanding, especially if the only reason for being allowed in is to harness a Longwing…

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🏷️ Book boyfriend/girlfriend challenge

🦇 "All I want for Christmas is Colin McCory"

💜 I saw someone post this adorable challenge & had to share some of my favorite book boyfriends AND girlfriends (my little bi heart refusing to play by the rules) too! Don't tell my gf I'm doing this (because she'll only laugh).

❓ Answer one of the prompts below!

💜 first book boyfriend or girlfriend: 🦇 Rishi Patel from When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon 🦇 Helene from An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir 🦇 Khalid Khorasan from The Wrath & the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh (but also Shazi, I just can't)

💜 most recent book boyfriend or girlfriend: 🦇 Mason West from Unromance by Erin Connor (hello SWOON) 🦇 Arthie Casimir from A Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal (girl got me good) 🦇 Talia Avramov from Payback's a Witch by Lana Harper (I'm not drooling, I swear) 🦇 Max Harcourt from The Breakup Tour by Emily Wibberley & Austin Siegemund-Broka (RILEY WHY!?) 🦇 Mel...(but also Bebe???) from Triple Sec by TJ Alexander (...but also Kade?)

💜 all-time book boyfriend or girlfriend: 🦇 Zafira AND Nasir from We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal (how do I CHOOSE?!) 🦇 but also just Colin McCory from Truly, Madly, Deeply by Alexandria Bellefleur because BECAUSE

💜 books I'd recommend because of the book boyfriend or girlfriend: 🦇 The Fiancee Farce by Alexandria Bellefleur 🦇 Stars Collide by Rachel Lacey 🦇 Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

😅 Wow I'm indecisive. This must be so much easier to do without your heart tugging you both ways.

[sapphiccharacterstournament]

Canon Sapphic Characters Tournament Bracket 5 Round 1 Masterpost

Cheryl Blossom (Riverdale) vs Monet de Haan (Gossip Girl)

Millie Harcourt (The Bletchley Circle) vs Emily Grace (Murdoch Mysteries)

Ashley Davies (South of Nowhere) vs Cassie Ainsworth (Skins)

Thirteenth Doctor (Doctor Who) vs Amanita Caplan (Sense8)

Raelle Collar (Motherland: Fort Salem) vs Tituba (Salem)

Tara Jones (Heartstopper) vs Lake Meriwether (Love, Victor)

Zelda Spellman (The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) vs Sarah Bishop (A Discovery of Witches)

Ilana Wexler (Broad City) vs Rosa Diaz (Brooklyn Nine Nine)

Siuan Sanche (The Wheel of Time) vs Ellaria Sand (Game of Thrones)

Allie Novak (Wentworth) vs Bibi Garvey (Bad Sisters)

Lupe García (A League of Their Own) vs Nico (Vida)

Katherine Mayfair (Desperate Housewives) vs Shelly Lambert (Minx)

Gigi Ghorbani (The L Word: Generation Q) vs Kate (One, Mississippi)

Logan Rawlings (Young & Hungry) vs Mabel Mora (Only Murders in the Building)

Maggie (Good Omens) vs Bilquis (American Gods)

Alice Pieszecki (The L Word) vs Alice Jones (Once Upon a Time)