Emperor Mage (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: 1995

ISBN: 0-689-85613-X

Reading Level: Grades 7 and up

Reader’s Annotation:

When a peace delegation travels from Tortall to the empire of Carthak, Daine is invited to join them. Little does she know that the gods are angry with the ruthless Emperor Ozorne… and willing to use her magic as a tool to punish him.

Plot Summary:

A delegation of Tortall’s most prominent nobles and mages is sent to the empire of Carthak to negotiate a peace treaty with Emperor Ozorne. With them comes fifteen-year-old Daine Sarrasri, to heal the Emperor’s beloved birds from a mysterious illness with her renowned wild magic. Once there, Daine is treated to splendid luxury and shown the grand sights of the city and palace, including Ozorne’s menagerie of exotic animals and hall of dinosaur fossils. She also sees remarkable feats of magic from the Emperor himself.

Still, the trip is unnerving. For all his talk of peace, Ozorne is an old enemy of Daine’s beloved teacher Numair, and is rumored to be responsible for unleashing the dreaded Immortals onto Tortall. Worse yet, he neglects the worship of the gods and commands his people to worship him instead. As the days pass, Daine has visions both of her old mentor the Badger god and of Carthak’s patron goddess, the Graveyard Hag, who warn her that the gods are angry with the Emperor. What threats might Daine and her friends face at Ozorne’s hands? How will the gods punish his crimes? And what role might Daine play in his downfall?

Critical Evaluation:

This third installment of the Immortals quartet is arguably the most exciting yet. Leaving behind her familiar “pine and chestnut forests and cold lakes,” Daine is thrust into the venom-laced beauty of a glittering, decadent imperial palace. A world filled with exotic wonders, natural, man-made and magical, but which is built on the backs of slaves by an arrogant, sadistic emperor-mage, whose divinely ordained ruin is foreshadowed with increasingly sinister clarity. Ultimately Daine becomes the gods’ agent, as both her wild magic and her fighting spirit reach spectacular new heights.

As with some of Pierce’s other books, I’ll admit that there are some unfortunate racial implications here, with the pseudo-European heroes pitted against an “exotic” empire’s decadence, social injustice and villainous ruler. (Though Ozorne isn’t overly “othered” and there are sympathetic Carthaki characters too.) Still, this absorbing heroine’s journey is very much worth reading. In addition to her primary adventures, Daine saves the lives of birds, at long last learns her father’s identity (a startling revelation), and continues to be forced to question her prejudice against the deadly Stormwings, who are victims of Ozorne’s cruelty just as much as his human slaves are. She also gains a valuable new animal friend, a pygmy marmoset names Zek, and begins to show signs of more than just friendly feelings for her teacher Numair. This chapter of her story is excellent by itself, but leaves us eager to read more too.

Curriculum Ties:

•Fantasy worlds

•Feminism

•Animal behavior

•Paleontology

Challenge Issues:

•Violence

•Disturbing imagery

•Bodily function references

•Illegitimate birth references

•Racial issues

Why This Book?

For every reader who’s enjoyed Daine’s adventures so far, Emperor Mage is an epic, captivating third installment.