Reviews

Battle Magic by Tamora Pierce

soniagracelm's review against another edition

4.0

I always love Tamora Pierce, and she continues to write stories about characters I love. This is no exception. Though Battle Magic is not quite up to the standard set by The Will of the Empress, which remains my favourite Circle book, it's certainly a worthy installment into the series, and fills a gap in canon to tell the story of Briar, Evvy, and Rosethorn in Gyongxe and Yanjing.

As usual, Tamora Pierce dives right into a tough subject, dealing with strange magics, war, and torture. Her world is beautiful and deadly, with war magic placed side-by-side with mischievous painted gods who make rude gestures at people when they're not looking.

I'm glad she chose to write this book and expand the Circle world a little further. I'll always love Tortall, but the Circle books are special. The world is better developed, there's more diversity and the magic system is much more interesting. I can't wait for Tris to go to Lightsbridge!

applegnreads's review against another edition

2.0

Could have been soooo much better.

pearlc's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

 

This book goes over the war Briar, Evvy, and Rosethorn got caught up in during their travels. This was my first time reading this one and I kinda wish I'd read it before my Will of the Empress reread.

This also has a very different feel than the other Emelen books. More Totall if that makes sense to anyone else. It wasn't a bad book and it very much goes into the horrors of war. It was just very underwhelming. Probably my least favorite of the Emelen books. I'm a bit concerned that's because it doesn't have the nostalgia the other do. 

bookishpapercuts's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

moondom's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture

Moderate: Slavery and Animal death

pet cats are killed off-page but the grief of them is an ongoing reference

sturmykins's review against another edition

4.0

I very much enjoyed this book. It was definitely odd to read something where I knew some of the shape of it already, since I'd already read the books that chronologically bookend these events. But despite knowing some things, I still found it very enjoyable and engaging.

lemonlaiime's review against another edition

5.0

Read in September 2013 - reread in October 2013

sailorkchick's review against another edition

5.0

Loved it! The book goes between Rosethorn's, Briar's and Evvy's perspective as they help defend Gyongxe from the Yanging emperor.
It makes me want to go back and read Will of the Empress so I can feel like this has a sequel.

melbotics's review against another edition

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

jalexpulliamkepler's review against another edition

3.0

This is not one of Pierce’s best works as the passive characters keep the plot wandering and the plot unfulfilling, and two of the three protagonists are too powerful to create tension. That being said, I still enjoyed returning to the Circleverse as a long-time Tamora Pierce fan!

Book content warnings: cat death and graphic torture