Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


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Daughter of the Lioness: Land Back, but make it fantasy

Trickster's Choice by Tamora Pierce

Trickster's Queen by Tamora Pierce

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The Daughter of the Lioness duet is the final set in the Tortall series that I will be re-reading. There’s also the Beka Cooper books that I’ve never read and the first of the unfinished Numair series, but I’ll be moving away from Tortall after this. Until this point, we’ve been moving further and further away from the Mary Sue of it all. At the beginning we had Alanna. Alanna was imbued with skills and abilities that are unbelievable for any eleven-year-old to possess, like […]

Protector of the Small: Anything boys can do, Keladry can do better.

First Test by Tamora Pierce

Page by Tamora Pierce

Squire by Tamora Pierce

Lady Knight by Tamora Pierce

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I love every Tortall main character (that I’ve read. I still haven’t read the final series with Beka), but Keladry of Mindelan is hands-down my favorite Tortall MC and one of my favorite MCs ever. I adore her and her story. She is tenacious, hard working, grounded, tough, kind, unbendingly dedicated to justice, and just a lovely human. It is a joy to see her grow, find community, and succeed (spoilers?). While I have mostly been reading this series before bed, I tore through Protector […]

The Immortals: A horse-girl’s dream (plus environmentalism, political intrigue, and meddling gods)

Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce

Wolf-Speaker by Tamora Pierce

Emperor Mage by Tamora Pierce

The Realms of the Gods by Tamora Pierce

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Now that I’ve finished re-reading Alanna, I’ve moved on to the second quartet in the Tortall universe. It’s mostly been a bedtime read, but I also did a move while reading this quartet, so it also served as a nice comfort read for awhile instead of picking up any of my other ongoing books that required more critical thinking. Overall, there were fewer problematic under/overtones in this series than The Song of the Lioness (with one notable exception). We get to skip right past having […]

Song of the Lioness: I will always love Alanna

Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce

In the Hand of the Goddess by Tamora Pierce

The Woman Who Rides Like a Man by Tamora Pierce

Lioness Rampant by Tamora Pierce

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I began reading The Song of the Lioness quartet from Tamora Pierce’s Tortall series as bedtime reads after reading Lord of the Rings before bed in 2025. I’ve read them so many times before, so I know I can put them down and go to sleep whenever I feel drowsy. I have loved these books since I was in 7th grade – about 25 years – and I will always love them, but damn has it become clear how much I and the world have […]

Cozy Fantasy at its best

Sandry's Book by Tamora Pierce

Tris's Book by Tamora Pierce

Daja's Book by Tamora Pierce

Briar's Book by Tamora Pierce

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Sandry’s Book These were a re-read on a recent flight, and I blipped through all four of them like they were candy, but with a newfound appreciation. Or maybe the same appreciation I’ve had all along? These books were, and continue to be, a lodestone for how to write ‘cozy fantasy,’ where the stakes are real but the peace between (and the world building, aside from the magic rule building) is as important. Should go without saying that of all the Pierce quartets of books, […]

Pierce absolutely sticks the landing

Shatterglass by Tamora Pierce

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So concludes The Circle Opens Series, and a what a way to finish the series! Tris Chandler and her teacher Niko Goldeye are travelling just like the rest of the young yet extraordinarily powerful mages from Winding Circle. They make their way to the South to a Tharios. Tharios is a Greek/Mediterranean inspired town with a horrible and dehumanizing caste system added on. In Tharios, Niko attends a conference on vision magic, and Tris stumbles upon an immigrant glass blower, Keth, who isn’t in control […]



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