Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time
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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

May 24, 2026 by beereadsbooks 1 Comment

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 […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Young Adult Tagged With: lady knights, Strong Female Character, tamora pierce, Tortall

beereadsbooks's CBR18 Review No:23 · Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult · Tags: lady knights, Strong Female Character, tamora pierce, Tortall ·
· 1 Comment

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

April 21, 2026 by beereadsbooks Leave a Comment

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 […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Young Adult Tagged With: #fantasy, #YAFiction, animals, shapeshifter, sorcery, Strong Female Character, tamora pierce, Tortall

beereadsbooks's CBR18 Review No:19 · Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult · Tags: #fantasy, #YAFiction, animals, shapeshifter, sorcery, Strong Female Character, tamora pierce, Tortall ·
· 0 Comments

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

February 16, 2026 by beereadsbooks 6 Comments

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 […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Young Adult Tagged With: #fantasy, #YAFiction, sorcery, Strong Female Character, Swords, tamora pierce, Tortall

beereadsbooks's CBR18 Review No:10 · Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult · Tags: #fantasy, #YAFiction, sorcery, Strong Female Character, Swords, tamora pierce, Tortall ·
· 6 Comments

Take that pink ribbon off my eyes, damn it

First Year by Tamora Pierce

Page by Tamora Pierce

Squire by Tamora Pierce

Lady Knight by Tamora Pierce

March 7, 2021 by katie71483 6 Comments

I was introduced to Tamora Pierce and the realm of Tortall in 1986 by a classmate of mine named Alec Deleon. He was reading a copy of Alanna: The First Adventure while in the library at lunchtime. I asked him why he was reading a book about a GIRL when he was a BOY in that know-it-all way that ten-year-olds have. He said I should try it since I liked The Hero & the Crown by Robin McKinley. Evidently that little jerk was actually paying […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult Tagged With: #fantasy, First Year, katie71483, Lady Knight, Page, Protector of the Small, Squire, tamora pierce, Tortall, YA, Young Adult

katie71483's CBR13 Review No:7 · Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult · Tags: #fantasy, First Year, katie71483, Lady Knight, Page, Protector of the Small, Squire, tamora pierce, Tortall, YA, Young Adult ·
Rating:
· 6 Comments

An introduction to Tortall

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

July 17, 2020 by kittenkong42 1 Comment

The 4 books that make up the Song of the Lioness series are Tamora Pierce’s first exploration of her world of Tortall. A western medieval society with chivalry and magic of many kinds. I read the first book in this series (Alanna) when I was a child and for many years never even realised it had sequels. But it stuck with me over the years and about 10 years ago I found the books again and read them all with new eyes. I come back […]

Filed Under: Children's Books, Fantasy Tagged With: tamora pierce, Tortall

kittenkong42's CBR12 Review No:14 · Genres: Children's Books, Fantasy · Tags: tamora pierce, Tortall ·
Rating:
· 1 Comment

Double Cannonballing with a Messy Author

November 21, 2017 by Emmalita 13 Comments

Twelve years ago I was sharing a house in Annapolis, Maryland. My housemate had 3 kids who visited every other weekend. Her youngest, Rosemary, introduced me to Tamora Pierce and I introduced her to Joan of Arcadia. I have since read most of Pierce’s books, both her Tortall and Emelan worlds. She has a gift for writing characters that stick with you. She has written some wonderful female characters. However, as a person, Pierce has revealed herself to be messy on race and representation. She […]

Filed Under: Fantasy Tagged With: tamora pierce, Tortall, Trickster’s Choice, Trickster’s Queen

Emmalita's CBR9 Review No:104 · Genres: Fantasy · Tags: tamora pierce, Tortall, Trickster’s Choice, Trickster’s Queen ·
Rating:
· 13 Comments
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Recent Comments

  • Emmalita
    on Protector of the Small: Anything boys can do, Keladry can do better.
    This is my favorite of the Tortall series. I haven’t reread it in a while and I think I need...
  • Malin
    on The Daevabad Trilogy: “Fencing. Fighting. Torture. Revenge. Giants. Monsters. Chases. Escapes. True love. Miracles.”
    Happy half Cannonball. I love The Adventures of Amina al-Sarafi, so I really do need to get around to these...
  • MsWas
    on The best surprise I’ve had so far this year
    What a lovely review of what sounds like a loving and beautiful book!
  • Emmalita
    on 29 Minutes to Yummy
    I love Isa Chandra Moskowitz! I’ll have to see if my library has this one.
  • KimMiE"
    on They go into the woods and do what?
    Wow. . .I am horrified and also fascinated.
See More Recent Comments »

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