I had to really think about what rating to give this. On one hand the book is very flawed but on the other, I didn't want to put it down.Just as a bit of a disclaimer, I do know that this particular series by Tamora Pierce is not geared towards my age group, and that's likely part of the problem. But as with her continuing _Lioness_ series, this latter book is much more readable to the older audience.So, the adventures of Sandry, Tris, Daja and Briar continue as the latter three return from their travels to discover that, once reunited, they've grown apart. It's a bit of a shock to them, but not to any of the readers who are over 18 (the age of our protagonists) or have spent any significant time away from close friends. As people grow, age and experience life, they change, and it's hard to reconnect with people who haven't had those same experiences, especially if they were traumatic. And all of them, Sandry included, have experienced their share of trauma.Their ways of dealing with it set them even more apart. Sandry retreats into her "titled noble" facade, Tris has her own cold and remote mask to hide behind, Briar goes through woman after woman with no attachment to any of them, just so he doesn't have to be alone at night. Daja is the best adjusted of the group, but she's feeling out of place as well. No longer allowed to stay at Winding Circle for free due to their age, she's forced to buy a house of her own that she really didn't want. Nothing's at all the same for the four friends and none of them know how to deal with it.But, of course, a solution arrives in the form of accompanying Sandry to Namorn for a visit that her cousin, Empress Berenene has practically ordered (financial blackmail). The reader already knows that it's not likely to be a trouble free visit and what they go through up in Namorn will forge them together as friends again, but even already knowing all of that, the story is entertaining enough to make you want to stay with it.What follows is no surprise at all. A glittery, shiny court and a seemingly friendly empress-cousin, which is, of course, little more than a shiny facade covering up all the conniving, scheming and backstabbing you'd expect in a setting like that. It's something that takes the four friends a bit too long to grasp, to my way of thinking, given how worldly some of them are. Oh, Briar thinks he knows, but he still allows himself to be snowed over by the extensive gardens and greenhouses.Anyone who reads the inside flap of the book knows that the empress wants to marry Sandry off and thus, keep her lands and money for Namorn (herself, really), so when Sandry finally realizes that, it's, again, no surprise to the reader. Still, Sandry does try to make the best of it, as do her friends, even while they're still in-fighting.One pleasant development in the book is Daja's romance. It was something that had been hinted around but seeing it actually happen definitely put a smile on my face.Of course, it all comes together when Sandry is put in danger and needs her friends to rescue her. Then all arguments are thrown aside and they band together to get her out of there and themselves out of Namorn. Not that the road out is smooth (big surprise), but it's nothing four genius mages can't handle, and, once again, nothing the reader didn't expect.One of the major flaws in the book, the biggest, I'd say, is that every single piece of the plot is spoon fed to the reader. Every major and minor character's view point is shown at some time in the narration, so there's never any surprise when something happens, you always know it's coming. Absolutely nothing is left to the imagination, and there's no build up of mystery or suspense; you always know what will happen, and given who these four are, you always know they'll find a way out. It's a major weak point and if Ms. Pierce had stayed with only the viewpoints of the four mages, she might have had a much, *much* stronger book.That said, it's still an entertaining story, even knowing everything that will happen. It doesn't get boring and although you already know that the four mages will find a way out of whatever predicament they're currently in, you still want to stick around and see how they do it.
No longer children, but accomplished mages in their late teens, Sandry and her foster siblings travel to Namorn and encounter a world they certainly weren't prepared for - especially since their circle was broken. Travel and separate experiences have distanced them emotionally from each other, and they don't always learn to work together before a threat strikes...The series assumes that you've been kept up-to-date on the siblings' histories. Pierce doesn't spend a lot of time explaining what's been going on, and who can blame her - you've had two tetrologies to read about Sandry, Tris, Daja and Briar. By the time you've made it this far, you're invested.Tamora Pierce does an excellent job describing the rich world of Namorn, a refreshing change from the humble temple the children grew up in and the towns they traveled to. The siblings are treated to the highest echelons of Namornese society, largely because Sandrilene fa Toren is cousin to the Empress and the wealthiest maiden in the country. Pierce lavishes us with vivid textual descriptions of the hidden inheritance Sandry wants to ignore and treasures that the Empress offers specially designed for each of the siblings. Pierce's research into building up the Circle universe shows, from descriptions of homes to the histories of names and common customs. Having the book focused on Sandry, who is out of touch with her Namornese heritage, is a nice way to discreetly explain things to the reader.The plot and pacing is good. The multiple characters and perspectives is a little daunting at first, as I usually ended up trying to track what was happening at one point in reference to another. Pierce weaves the characters' relationships carefully, showing just where fences are broken and re-mended.My only difficulty was trying to identify with the characters. Surely there are child geniuses that earned advanced degrees at fourteen or fifteen. Yet the four have not only medallions at fourteen (while one normally studies into their late twenties), they are also highly successful, politically powerful and extremely wealthy (even Tris, who has the potential to earn that much). It feels like due to pure accident, they've become wildly powerful, and they feel overwhelmed with the amount they can wield. It isn't like they didn't work hard, but they're shining examples of what happens when all the right things fall in the right places. There are rare examples in which a mage with a talent falls on the wayside, such as the boy with unmagic (Magic Steps Circle Opens 1) or Eilisa Pearldrop (Briar's Book Circle of Magic 4) - these could have easily been Briar or Tris or Daja.Aside from that, the book itself is good. Most of the characters are substantial, with thoughts and motives behind their personalities. Crumbs of potential plot - a cut-off statement here or noted observation there - help set up bigger events. There's lots of rereadable value in this book, and it's a good start to the new tetrology.
What do You think about The Will Of The Empress (2006)?
I wasn't sure I would like this one, so I didn't read it for a long time after finishing the first two sets of books starring Sandry, Daja, Briar, and Tris. I finally decided to try it, and I'm glad I did. The story itself is interesting but, as usual, it's Briar who really makes the book for me. He's my favorite character. I especially loved the part in the middle where he has to take off all his knives. I think the end count was ten, not including the ones he left in his boots.Sandry's cousin has been pressuring her for years to visit her estates in Namorn, where her mother was from. She can't bring a troop of armed guards, because that would be an insult to her cousin, the empress. So Sandry's uncle sends her old friends Daja, Tris, and Briar. They've grown apart in the five years or so they've been away from each other. Their old connection is closed off, and things are just a bit tense between them.Once they arrive, they soon realize that the empress intends to keep them all in Namorn permanently. Sandry's a noble whose estates give her a high income, and the empress wants it to stay in Namorn. Tris, Daja, and Briar are all mages with considerable power and would be great assets to the empress.Add in the kidnapping-and-forced-marriage attempts that keep happening to Sandry, and none of the four want to stay. They'll need to work together and reopen their connection if they want to have a chance against the empress and her mages.
—Rachel
As far as I am concerned, this book was my favorite. I really enjoyed The Circle Quartet books, even though I'm 19 (I was 17 when I read The Will of the Empress) years old. And I did like the Circle Opens but I much prefer to see them all together. Not saying the books weren't amazing in themselves I just missed all the things they did and said together. I've read all nine books more than I can count, making them tattered. I pride myself on keeping my books in top condition no matter I do. But these books I will find myself reading over and over again even though I have a shelf of 60 books I still need to read (I have this compulsion/obsession to buy any book that looks interesting or comes from an author that I already have books for, resulting in a large amount of books that clutter my room that is used for two girls. There everywhere.) When I saw The Will of the Empress I was extremely excited. I bought it and didn't read it for a year and a half. This sounds like at first I didn't find it interesting but at the time I was having trouble getting through the Cirle Opens books and finding the time to actually read period (senior year of high school was all I could seem to think about sometimes). When I finally did read it tho, I was sucked in. They were all back together. But with adult responsibilities and adult problems. I wanted more.The problem I see that some people have with her book is Briar and Daja. This may spoil the story for some of you.In Briar's case I don't find it intolerable that his character has turned into what it did. He ended up being the guy who goes around to find girls to 'share his bed with.' For the time these books are set in and after the hints we are revealed about his time away, this seems completely plausible and acceptable to me. He was in a nasty war (you don't get much other than his dreams) and he can't sleep half the time. What else would a guy do. And its not like we get graphic scenes of him and other girls. He's just seen flirting with other girls. And we hear from other people that he's with them at night. With Daja, I totally expected her to be gay. You have this big, blocky, smith mage girl. She's tomboy through and through and from the first four books I could already tell, that this could possibly happen. The relationship she develops with another female is sweet, and I find people who cannot tolerate same sex relationships to be ignorant and not worth my time. And if someone really can't tolerate and you've read the other eight books, and you don't because of one scene where Briar finds Daja and the girl in her room and then walks out again, you need grow up and move on. Her feelings for this girl are not graphic and there aren't explained in great deal. But we see that she comes to care for her.The book itself followed like the others did except for the obvious turmoil that each of our four young mages must come to bear with. And the pressures of finding a place they want to be. The Empress of Namorn is selfish and conceited. I didn't like her and I thought that since being an Empress since 16, she would know that things are not as she saw them. So I thought Berenene was naive, which I find didn't work in the book for me, and she also underestimated Briar, Tris, Daja and Sandry. As an Empress you would be more cautious in my opinion.All in all I loved the book, from the relationships that they renewed, to Daja's own personal finding, to Briar's faults. I still find Sandry utterly annoying and Tris is still my favorite. If you read the other eight, there is no reason that you wouldn't enjoy this one as well.I desperately wish that another Reforged book would come out but...I still wish.I also hope for a book on Briar's time spent in Gyongxe. And if the rumors are true, the book on Tris going to Lightsbridge.
—Jade
Well written, although the jump in ages between the last ""Circle"" books was a bit difficult to get my head around. I'm glad Pierce acknowledged this and tried to keep the characters young. I also enjoyed that Sandry, Briar, Tris, and Daja, reunited. In the last novel of the Circle Opens, I was definitely disappointed to find that the four mages did not reunite. I think this novel added closure, which came full circle. However, it was not quite consistant with those circle of magic novels. I understand Pierce is writing Melting Stones as a novel between The Circle Opens and runs concurrently (time-wise) with this novel, which I think will settle some confusion there, but I hope she writes one for each of the students.Overall, I think this novel was up Pierce's par, and was extremely entertaining. It was a little slow to get into, but once it got going, the book was difficult to put down!
—Christine Ricci
