Vici is a short story that serves as a prequel to the Temeraire series. It can be read for free here. In the beginning, we meet a man named Antony who is being sentenced for his crimes. He’s given the option to have an honorable death by trying, and surely failing, to kill a dangerous dragon in the area.

It was a pretty cute story, and it made me laugh in several places. Since this is my first exposure to the Temeraire series, I don’t know if any of the characters in this story are in the main series. My guess, based on what very little I know about the series, is that this story takes place quite a bit before the main story and is meant more as an explanation for how things came to be the way they are. Either way, I’ll find out very soon since I hope to start the first book later today. ( )

Vici is a short story introducing us to the world of Naomi Novik’s Termeraire series. It is considered Book 0.5 of the series. If you are interested in reading this series, start here and you will get a perfect little glimpse of what you’re getting into.

You can find this story by going to at Fantasy Magazine. It was originally published in the anthology titled The Dragon Book: Magical Tales from the Masters of Modern Fantasy edited by Jack Dann. ( )