Tamora Pierce is one of my favorite authors. I first read her “Circle of Magic” quartet when I was in 5th grade and the rest of her books followed shortly after.
She writes primarily in two worlds: The Circle set, and the Tortall books. This week will showcase the first series I read, The Circle of Magic.
The Circle of Magic and most subsequent books revolve around 4 young people, thrown together by circumstance. They come from different countries and different backgrounds and discover their powerful magical abilities together. Sandry, a noble whose parent’s death sent her to the temple city, has thread magic. Daja, a Sea Trader (viewed by many with hatred) and the sole survivor of a shipwreck was branded bad luck and cast away from her people. Her power is connected to metal. The thief Briar was about to be sentenced to an early death, is deeply connected to plants. Tris is a weather-mage rejected by her family for her dangerous lack of control. Together, these four must overcome their differences and bind their burgeoning magic in order to save their lives.
This set focuses on disasters that happen with the young mages in the area. The second set, The Circle Opens, deals with the kids ending up with students of their own in different countries and working through a varied set of serial killers. The Will of the Empress is the beginning of The Circle Reforged, and sends the four, now back together, to Sandry’s cousin in the north, where they face new trials and danger. The most recent book focus’s on Briar’s student Evvy and his teacher Rosethorn as they help a small island.
Again, I fell in love with these books when i was 11 years old, and I continue to reread them.
Lyoness of Avalon 