I had gotten the impression that this book was a crossover between Captain Horatio Hornblower and Eragon, but I was wrong. It's Captain Horatio Hornblower x How To Train Your Dragon.
As a teenager I used to read and re-read the Horatio Hornblower novels constantly, so I was pleased with the similarities. And the historical accuracy--assuming that C.S. Forester did his research well, Ms. Campbell did, too. Whole sections might have been borrowed directly from the earlier Hornblower novels, only in a tactful way that wouldn't compromise copyright protection. In one case I thought I'd caught her putting a quote in the wrong mouth:
[Regarding Bonaparte invading England]
"I don't say they cannot come, but they cannot come by sea."
But when I went back and looked it up, she'd attributed it to Lord St. Vincent, which is probably correct.
The Wikipedia article on C.S. Forester says that he deliberately kept Captain Hornblower away from major naval battles in order to "avoid entanglements with real world history." I'm not sure how true that is, but there's no such reticence in His Majesty's Dragon. Captain Laurence and Temeraire are right in the front lines. Battling--cannon balls, muskets, talons and all.
Q: is it talons or claws?
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