Lioness Rampant (Tamora Pierce)

Author Biography

Tamora Pierce has written numerous renowned fantasy novels, set in either the “Tortall” universe or the “Circle” universe. In 2013 she received the Margaret A. Edwards award for her body of work.

Published By: Atheneum Books for Young Readers

Year: 1988

ISBN: 0-689-31116-8

Reading Level: Grades 7 and up

Reader’s Annotation:

Alanna searches for the Dominion Jewel, which allegedly has the power to save a troubled realm. Her search could hardly be timelier, as sudden tragedy and an old enemy’s return bring Tortall to the brink of destruction.

Plot Summary:

Alanna of Trebond and Olau is fulfilling her dream of wandering as a knight errant – and finding it dull and aimless. Then she hears of the Dominion Jewel, a legendary magical artifact that has great power in a ruler’s hands. Together with her manservant Coram, her cat Faithful, and their self-appointed guide, the Shang warrior Liam Ironarm, she sets off for the Roof of the World mountains where the Jewel is allegedly hidden, hoping to bring it home to Tortall. On the journey she finds new romance with Liam, aids refugees from war-torn Sarain, is joined by the exiled Princess Thayet, and eventually battles the elemental being Chitral for the Jewel.

Back in Tortall, the Jewel’s protective power is sorely needed. Queen Lianne has died and King Roald committed suicide in grief. Alanna’s former lover Prince Jonathan is due to be crowned king, but various enemies are plotting against him. Worst of all, her sorcerer brother Thom is drunk with his own power and has done the unthinkable: raised her archenemy, Duke Roger, from the dead.

Critical Evaluation:

The Song of the Lioness quartet comes to an epic, engaging conclusion in this final book. In contrast to the episodic, character-driven structure of the series’ previous three entries, Lioness Rampant is a classic hero’s journey, in which Alanna seeks out a hitherto-unknown source of tremendous magical power, then brings it home just in time to save Tortall in its darkest hour. Over the course of it all, she makes invaluable new friends, survives terrible dangers and devastating losses, and finally realizes which of the three men who love her (Jonathan, George and Liam) is the one with whom she belongs. But most importantly, she discovers the life path she most wants, learning to strike a balance between adventure and order, between independence and loyalty to others, and between the “masculine” and “feminine” sides of her own personality.

Once again, this coming-of-age adventure is a bit of a cliché fest by today’s standards, original though it might have been in the ‘80s. But its action is no less exciting, its villains new and old are no less sinister, its scenes of friendship and romance are no less endearing, its death scenes no less heartbreaking (while there isn’t a Harry Potter-style bloodbath, we still lose several major characters), and its feminism no less effective. The “girl power” quotient is filled not only by Alanna herself this time, but by the beautiful, indomitable Thayet and her fiery handmaiden Buri. Readers who have followed Alanna through the first three books will thoroughly enjoy this last of her youthful adventures – and be eager to see her as a seasoned knight alongside Tortall’s future heroines.

Curriculum Ties:

•Fantasy worlds

•Feminism

Challenge Issues:

•Mild profanity

•Sexual references

•Violence

•Disturbing imagery

•Bodily function references

•Suicide
•May-December romance

Why This Book?

Lioness Rampant fulfills all the promises made by the first three Song of the Lioness books and concludes Alanna’s journey to womanhood in the most gratifying possible way.