Realms of the Gods

This one, even though this is the end of the series where the large climax and final judgements are made, is my least favorite of The Immortals series by Tamora Pierce. The mood of the novel changes so dramatically, so very quickly. It is the darkest of the books and it starts out dark from the first pages and it ends dark again.

In the story, Ozorne got away and has amassed a giant army with the help of the Goddess of Chaos (whom probably should have been introduced previously, but wasn't) and has been causing a lot of havoc in Tortall. When Numair and Daine go out of the fort they were defending, they find that the Skinners are too much for either of them to handle and are only saved by Daine's mother and father and taken to the Realm of the Gods. Finally reunited with her mom and finally really meeting her dad, she still finds it weird and feels she doesn't know this woman who is now the Green Lady. Also, knowing that her friends are still in trouble back home, Daine wants to get back home to help. So her dad gives her a map of the Realm and sends her on a journey to the dragons, because they can't send her back themselves.

In my opinion, this journey seems a little unneeded. We do get introduced to Gold Fleck and the other darklings, Numair and Daine finally tell their feelings (which I will get to in a moment), and they meet up with Stormwings from previous books. However, the whole Hero's Journey that happens I think should have been done differently. The glimpse that we got of the realm was small and all they did was travel through it. Nothing they did their enhanced or hindered the people in the other realm, except for when they sent other Lesser Gods away to help out. Daine and Numair didn't do much. I feel like they should have been able to do something besides let things get steamy. In this Realm we got to know the Dream God who let them know what was going on in the human realm. this seemed like a cop-out to me. "Here have information, but not enough that I have to get too into it." :/ Come on. Make your book a little thicker and give us the actual fear that people were feeling. If you're going to have it be dark, give us chances for happiness too. In the other books there was humor and laughing even at just small parts. Give us the people we spent time with and got to know... In the end, I thought it was boring. Unneeded or needing to be advanced.

For the relationship between Daine and Numair, it was the only thing that grew on their journey. There were small things that Pierce did to say, Numair kind of likes her. But this was the first book that actually had him show any affection and after these small moments, he's kissing her face off and things start getting steamy. Pierce should have done a few more tell tell signs of it in book three, more than just telling the crown prince off. I think it would have been more believable.

Pierce got much better at setting than when she first started, I'll give her that. But it took me longer to finish this one than the others. It finished off the series and wrapped everything up, even with the God and their own battles, but I'm dissatisfied with it.

Emperor Mage

Emperor Mage has always been my favorite of the series and I think I discovered what I love most about it.

After finding evidence that Emperor Ozorne is the perpetrator behind the happenings in the north, in books 2, he pack peddles and tries to offer piece so then he won't have the whole of the civilized world at his throat. Alanna, Gary, Sir Gareth, Numair, and Daine and their friends join them in meeting with the Emperor. While they are there, they find that not all is happy. The God's are angry with the Emperor and have been throwing bad omens at him that he isn't listening too. Famine, more wars, and rats (to name a few) are being ignored. But now that his beloved birds are sick he calls for Daine's aid. She is able to heal them and sees that he cares for them. How can someone so kind to animals be such a horrible person?

But not only is she troubled about the Emperor but now she is visited by the God of Carthak, the Old Hag, and she won't let up. Suddenly dinosaurs are coming to life and she kills herself while doing it...

I enjoy this books so much for two very important reasons: the Emperor is a complex person who is indeed horrible, but also is very charismatic and compassionate, if you are the right person. He sees himself as doing the right thing, as all bad guys should--bad bad guys don't have conviction in what they are doing to destroy the world and those tank the novel. At some points you do question if he is the bad guy or simply "misunderstood." And two: Numair and Daine's development. Throughout the last three books, it's been very subtle. She has been very young and him about... 15?? years older than him. Any romantic relation between them would have been perverted. She was 13 in the first book and that would have been too much of an age gap. But as she's getting older, the gap seems to lessen. They go from very much teacher-student exploring wild magic to very much caring about one another. They aren't fully there yet, but toward the end when Daine believes the Emperor has captured Numair, she very much freaks out and causes a lot of destruction all because she "loses her temper." It was magnificent. That might be a third reason I like the book. The chapter called "Daine Loses her Temper." The climax of the book was fantastic too.

There were some problems though was how jumpy it was. In the middle of the book it jumped a lot and I felt like the descriptions of events lacked so then they were kind of confusing. I also felt, while her temper was building and she was able to see what was going on while she was otherwise occupied was a cop-out and unneeded. It was as if Pierce needed a way to have her know things, when there would have been easier ways to find it out. Pierce could have given us full scenes and actually shown us, the reader, the reason why Daine lost her temper. Make us feel for the characters more. Help us to shed a tear. I think that part could have been better handled.

Even with this fault, I can look it over and enjoy this book. I don't know if other's enjoy it as much as I do, but it is still probably my favorite in this series.

Wolf Speaker

Book number two of the "Immortals" by Tamora Pierce was always a quick read for me.

Daine returns to her wolf pack that helped her when she was younger, but now they need her help to stop the humans who are ruining the water, woods, and scaring off the game. With Numair at her side they confront the Lord and Lady of Dunlath but find there is more going on with them and their guests, whom Numair has a history with, than they origionally thought. When Numair and Daine get separated by a magical barrier, Daine is on her own with her animal friends to figure out how to stop these traitors to the crown. Not only does she get help from her Pack and the other animals that reside in the woods, but from Immortals and humans alike. Basilisks, Coldfangs, Horraks, Ogers, and Stormwings make their appearances though not all are Daine's friends.

As I said, it always seemed to go quickly--maybe through simplicity or the fact that I got engrossed into it or a combination of the two. This is for a younger YA audience who is stepping into fantasy, as I was when I first read it. It explains very thoroughly how her magic is used and applied and how Daine grows and experiments with her powers that she discovers.

It is a very simple and straightforward novel that is very plot driven. Daine is really the only one who develops throughout the novel because we don't necessarily see any of the other human characters and their actions. Numair throws lightning at the barricade and they come up with plans, but that is about it. It is very centered on Daine and her relations with the animals around her. All of the animals are very willing to help her out without any saying they won't, even if it was against their nature or something. They all were curious which simplified things too much for me. No need to persuade or beg or say "okay, I'll try somewhere else." It was all too easy for me.

I'd reread this if I was going through the series again or if I was looking for something that was very plot or quest based, but I don't know if I'd read it again simply to read it.

Wild Magic

Another revisit to an old friend. Wild Magic is the first book in Tamora Pierce's second Tortallian Series "The Immortals." Daine is probably my favorite lead character in the Tortallian Universe with Numair being a close tie with George for the lovely side kick. I love the chemistry that evolves with them as they grow as characters and as people.

It starts out with Daine (though it always comes out Diane in my head) meeting up with Onua, a horse-mistress for the Queen's Riders, and becomes her assistant. They are traveling south to the capital, Corus, when they come upon the steel-winged, harpy-looking-things they name Stormwings, that are attacking a very large hawk. They distract the Stormwings, killing some and making vengeful enemies of others, letting the hawk get away. Daine finds the hawk through mysterious ways, she tries to heal the hawk through traditional means, but nothing seems to work. Alanna, the Lioness, shows up to help and the hawk turns into a man who had shapeshifted to flee traitors he was spying on. Alanna and her company leave and let Numair (the man/hawk), Daine, and Onua make their way, more slowly, to the capital again. They become closer friends on their travels, but Daine has things in her past that are haunting her. She also finds, through Numair's help that she has a strange type of magic that makes her "knack with animals" more than just a knack. With suddenly fantastic--heavy on the fantasy part of the word--creatures suddenly appearing and attacking, Daine has to learn to use her Wild Magic to help save her new friends and find a home among them.

It's a very simple book. One that has a taste of the beginning Alanna: The First Adventure books where it starts explaining the mundane works of life, but Pierce incorporates the plot into it. There isn't an entire chapter of "this is what they did in everyday life because I guess I should explain that." Instead there is plot woven through it as well as the excitement you expect from a fantasy novel. Pierce definitely progressed in her store writing abilities with this one.

Setting was much better in this book than in previous books and it flowed better.It didn't bog us down, but gave us an idea of what this somewhat cliched fantasy world was actually like.

Of course there was the reappearance of George, Jon, Alanna, Thayet, Buri, and a few others, which is awesome. And it incorporated them into the story, not just letting them hover in the background like they do in "The Protector of the Small" series that I didn't really care for, but will be reading again anyway. They brought their wit and charm and experience into the story which filled it. I think Daine and Numair do a great job in the later books in the series of standing on their own two feet to make the story, but this one made it more relatable and lovable to the first series. It expanded the circle that is the Tortallian Universe and incorporated the pieces we were already given.

I love Daine and Numair. They are amazing and I love them as they grow and... spoilers. Won't say it. They are amazing. I very much enjoy these books.