5.0 out of 5 based on 28 reviews. – Customer review on 25/05/2007

Alanna has just one wish – to become a knight. Her twin brother, Thom, prefers magic and wants to be a great sorcerer. So they swap places and Alanna, dressed as a boy, sets off for the King’s court. Becoming a knight is difficult and dangerous – but Alanna is brave and determined to succeed. And her gift for magic is to prove essential to her survival.

This is the first book in one of the best series ever, by the best author ever. This is the first book I ever read by Tammy and so it has a special place in my heart. I was 11 and I found the book in the bottom of a box in a secondhand book store. I can not say enough to recommend not only this book, but anything by Tammy. I would recommend her in general to 11 – 14 year olds and mainly girls because female heroines are her specialty. She isn’t just limited to that age group though, I am 21 and I can still pick up one of her books and be totally sucked into the worlds and adventures she creates.

Another great thing about her is that any book she writes it is always set in one of two worlds. One is Tortall (Song of the Lioness is set here) and the other is Winding Circle. So you get to see how past main characters are going. This is the order I recommend these books be read. You don’t have to read them in this order if you don’t want to, each series can stand alone. But if you read them in this order you get the behind stories of why certain things happen.

TORTALL
The Song of the Lioness Quartet
1. Alanna: The First Adventure
2. In the Hand of the Goddess
3. The Woman Who Rides Like a Man
4. Lioness Rampant

The Immortals
1. Wild Magic
2. Wolf-Speaker
3. The Emperor Mage
4. Realms of the Gods

Protector of the Small
1. First Test
2. Page
3. Squire
4. Lady Knight

These don’t have a Series Title
1. Trickster’s Choice
2. Trickster’s Queen

Beka Cooper – Set 200 years before Song of the Lioness, but best read after reading it
1. Terrier
2. Bloodhound (2008)
3. Elkhound (2009)


WINDING CIRCLE
Circle of Magic
1. The Magic in the Weaving
2. The Power in the Storm
3. The Fire in the Forging
4. The healing in the Vine

The Circle Opens
1. Magic Steps
2. Street Magic
3. Cold Fire
4. Shatterglass

The Circle Reforged
1. The Will of the Empress
2. Melting Stones (2008)

5.0 out of 5 based on 28 reviews. – Customer review on 22/07/2007

If you want a book (and a series) that is full of all the things that are good about fantasy - a little magic, a bit of humour, a bit of seriousness, a good 'baddie' and a little romance thrown in for good luck - then this may be the book you are looking for. Although it is aimed towards the younger readers, it is well worth checking out as an older reader also, as it is a great light read, as is the rest of the series.

5.0 out of 5 based on 28 reviews. – Customer review on 25/04/2007

Starring into the purple flames Alanna knew her life would change forever. The adventure starts with Alanna and her brother Thom switching places. Thom the first born son was to be trained to be a knight and Alanna was to learn to be a lady along side the school of magic. Now dressed as a boy and starting life as a Page in the King's castle Alanna (Alan) must fight to keep her true identity a secret.

5.0 out of 5 based on 28 reviews. – Customer review on 29/06/2009

These books are really a fantastic read, enjoyable and worth a re read. Beautifully done for the age group, and quite enjoyable for the older person too. I'm in my forties and I thoroughly enjoyed these books :-)
Well worth having the entire set and reading them from start to finish.

5.0 out of 5 based on 28 reviews. – Customer review on 03/05/2009

The Alanna books(and any others that follow in the Alanna World) are suitable for anybody who wants to read fantasy. I am a teenage girl who is absolutely obsessed with these books and would like to encourage others to join me in my obession. i have already hooked my mum and we are both waiting eagerly for the next chapter in the tortallian world.

the entire fact of a girl pretending to be a boy is exciting (to me and mum anyway) and the way her romance with the prince blossoms seemes odd yet interesting

5.0 out of 5 based on 28 reviews. – Customer review on 23/04/2009

I started reading Tamora Pierce's book in my mid teens and loved them now im in my late 20's and cant wait for the latest one to own i have nearly all the tortall books (waiting patiently for bloodhound to arrive) didnt get much in to the winding circle one's as much, as i felt that the tortall ones are more adult friendly. but saying that i love the first Alana book and hoping my kiddies will to in years to come.

5.0 out of 5 based on 28 reviews. – Customer review on 20/09/2007

For anyone who hasn't read a book by Tamora Pierce, this is a great book to stat with. It was the first of her books I read and is now my favorite book. Basically it is about a girl who wants to be a kinght, she trades places with her twin brother so she can become a knight. This book is about her time as a page. The other books in this series are also very good. So read it and enjoy it!

5.0 out of 5 based on 28 reviews. – Customer review on 15/09/2007

It all begins here. Alanna and Thom are twins with a plan. She's going to be a knight. He's going to be a sorcerer.
Alanna ('Alan') and her manservant, Coram, make their way to the capital city of Tortall, where the young girl will begin training as a knight. Posing as a boy, she shows herself top of the class, and befriends Prince Lance, Gareth (Gary) the younger, Raoul, Alex of Tirragen, Sir Myles of Olau and George Cooper, the thief from the city. But something about Duke Roger of Conte scares her. She has a great adventure to come...
I loved this book, and I highly recommend it to all, but it is generally targeted at older readers, and is based on girl concepts.

5.0 out of 5 based on 28 reviews. – Customer review on 08/07/2007

The first in the 'Song of the Lioness' quartet, this story is simple and charming. I first read this book whilst scrounging as much reading material as I could from the library, and now have the pleasure of owning it. I still enjoy reading it, despite the fact that I am in my twenties, and if that isn't an endorsement for how well this 'young adult' book is written, I don't know what is!

5.0 out of 5 based on 28 reviews. – Customer review on 18/06/2007

Brilliant, utterly magical. The hilarious deception of Alanna dressing as a boy captured my attention, and the interest of Alanna's magical aptitude and stubborn temperament led me to regard this book as something of a marvel, increased by the knowlegde that it had three books after it. The kind of book you just don't want to end.