Guns of the Dawn

by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Denland and Lascanne have been allies for generations, but now the Denlanders have assassinated their king, overthrown the monarchy and marched on their northern neighbour. At the border, the war rages; Lascanne's brave redcoats against the revolutionaries of Denland. Emily Marshwic has watched the war take her brother-in-law and now her young brother. Then comes the call for more soldiers, to a land already drained of husbands, fathers and sons. Every household must give up one woman to the army and Emily has no choice but to join the ranks of young women marching to the front. In the midst of warfare, with just enough training to hold a musket, Emily comes face to face with the reality: the senseless slaughter; the weary cynicism of the Survivor's Club; the swamp's own natives hiding from the conflict. As the war worsens, and Emily begins to have doubts about the justice of Lascanne's cause, she finds herself in a position where her choices will make or destroy both her own future and that of her nation. A standalone, action-packed historical adventure from the esteemed author of the Shadows of the Apt series.

• ISBN10: 0230770037
• ISBN13: 9780230770034
• Publish Date: 12 February 2015
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 29 April 2015
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Pan Macmillan
• Imprint: Tor
• Format: Paperback (UK Trade)
• Pages: 672
• Language: English

Reviews

[wyvernfriend]

When I went to Octocon this year one of the people there was Adrian Tchikovsky, I hadn't seen him listed as a guest but any panel he was on he was interesting so I decided to try at least one of his books. There will be more.

This is pretty much a standalone. There could be more books afterwards but in and of itself it is a complete story.

Emily Marshwic believes the stories that tell her that the war is going well, however almost all the men in their country are fighting this war, and now they want the women to serve. She goes and finds herself face to face with war and the reality that it is and she realises that she may have been told lies. The only person who understands is the man she blames for her father's death, but he's an ear she can use and he seems to care.

It's a world that's somewhat reminiscent of World War I, a war where the leaders are willing to keep throwing people at the battles, a world where magic is the big guns, but a war where winning may not be the best thing for everyone and even when you're defeated things might not be good.

I'm looking forward to more by this author.