To be clear, when I say “I couldn’t put them down,” that is not a figure of speech or an exaggeration; I literally could not put them down. I took them absolutely everywhere with me, including school, where I read through most of my classes (or at least as much of them as I could get away with). I was hanging on every word and could not wait to see how the story ended. I read them several times throughout high school and college, and the thing that impressed me the most was the main character, Alanna. I will expound on this momentarily, but I would be remiss if I did not first mention my most recent experience with these books. 

A few months ago, I decided it was high time for me to re-read the series that had captivated me so fully in my teens. My schedule being what it is, I wasn’t able to sit with the physical books, but I checked out the audiobooks from the library and took them with me on my daily commute. Perhaps this was my mistake.

I’m not sure precisely what has changed between my first read and now (other than 15 years and a minor in creative writing) but I did not have as great an experience with this most recent visit to the land of Tortall. I still find the overarching storyline to be creative and compelling, but I’m not as big a fan of the way the author takes us from point A to point B. I don’t want to spend this post picking apart the books, but I did want to be honest and to write this post with a disclaimer in case anyone decides to read them. I still stand by the story itself, but the actual writing leaves a lot to be desired. I think it was listening to it being read out loud that made me realize how choppy it can be—the story bounces around without any real transitions and it just about gave me whiplash. I also find the dialogue to be weak and unrealistic, and the character development to be lacking at points. That being said, I do still think it’s a good option for younger readers; just maybe not when you’re in your 30s. 

The biggest redeeming point for these books is, as I mentioned earlier, the character of Alanna. Growing up, I did not have many strong women to look up to and I think that is a big part of why I was so drawn to Alanna; if she could be tough and brave and go on countless adventures, then maybe I could, too.

I suppose I should issue a spoiler warning for anyone who still wants to read these books after those last few paragraphs…I will be discussing what happens throughout the books, obviously, so if you don’t want to know how they end, then you probably don’t want to read the rest of this post. All right, here we go…

From the first pages of the first book, Alanna drew me in. She knew exactly what she wanted and she refused to take no for an answer. Despite her father’s decision to send her away to the convent to learn to be a lady, Alanna never lets go of her dream to become a knight. She concocts a plan to switch places with her twin brother, Thom, who is being sent to the palace to train in service to the king. What Thom wants most in life is to be a great magician, one thing Alanna has no interest in at this point in the story. Instead of accepting her fate, Alanna changes the records to say that both of the twins are male and takes Thom’s place in the capital city, sending him to the convent to study magic in her stead. 

Part of this plan involves convincing Coram, who works for their father and is meant to accompany Thom to the capital, not to turn them in. Though initially unwilling, Coram finally agrees to assist her, eventually becoming one of her closest friends and companions and helping her maintain her cover for several years. Alanna certainly has her work cut out for her at the palace; smaller and weaker in her fighting skills than the other “boys” training to be knights, she has to work twice as hard to keep up the pace, all while hiding her true identity. After a very rocky start, Alanna eventually finds her footing and begins to excel at her training and in her studies. 

Throughout the story Alanna shows, not only strength of body, but also of character. Early on, she befriends George Cooper, king of the thieves. She is not judgemental, willingly accepting his company and that of his people, while never supporting their crooked ways. This friendship eventually leads to their marriage, though that is several books away. Something I love about this story is the fact that, while there are romantic relationships featured, the story never revolves around them. Alanna is never reduced down to who she is dating and is always shown to have value of her own, regardless of to whom she may be attached at the time. 

When Roger, Duke of Contè, comes to the palace, Alanna is the first (and only) person to see through his lies. He spends the greater part of four books attempting to kill one (or all) of the members of the royal family (his own relatives, I might add) yet everyone else is so quick to trust him. Even when no one else believes her, Alanna stays true to her convictions and is eventually, through amazing strength and fortitude, able to uncover and prove his plot and ensure his conviction. Not to mention her ability to save Jonathan from Roger’s “sweating sickness” when he was on the brink of death. Unfortunately, Alanna is the one who is forced to kill Roger, something for which she always felt guilty. Always…until her brother, Thom, brings him back from the dead. Dun dun dunnnnnn.

All the while, Alanna continues to excel at her training. She becomes squire to Prince Jonathan (a coveted position) before withstanding the Ordeal, and becoming a knight in her own right. Some of her other accomplishments include: keeping Jonathan safe while on the front lines of a war, teaming up with Jonathan to defeat the Nameless Ones who terrorized the desert people, training with the Shang Dragon (even though she was much too old by Shang standards to begin training), braving the ice cave to retrieve the crystal sword, helping George defeat “Claw,” and, absolutely least of all, dating Prince Jonathan after he finds out her true identity. (Listen, he’s a catch (at first) but that doesn’t outweigh any of her actual accomplishments.) And the list goes on.

After her true identity is finally discovered, Alanna goes abroad and is adopted into a desert tribe. Already a knight of Tortall, she also becomes a talented Shaman and protector of The Bloody Hawk until she is able to train a replacement. But she knows she can’t stay in self-imposed exile forever, and returns to the palace to, once again, save Jonathan from Roger. 

Let’s just take a moment to recognize that Alanna had to expose and kill this guy, not once, but two times, despite never wanting to kill anyone in the first place. In spite of all his treacherous acts, Alanna maintains both a heart and a conscience, which shows a completely different kind of strength. 

Speaking of different kinds of strength, I honestly think she deserves credit for learning to love in the way she does at the end. Her mother had passed away and her father sent her and Thom to live elsewhere and be raised by strangers. Her life was full of trials and tribulations, and she even believed at one point that she never wanted to marry. Yet she allowed herself to change her mind, falling in love with both Jonathan and George, and eventually to marry George. (Let’s be honest- Jonathan was a real jerk there for a while. As a kid I wanted Alanna to end up with him, but as an emotionally healthy 30 year old who has gone to therapy, I say YAS QUEEN, George every time.)

There is a lot of growth in Alanna from the first book to the last, and she rises to every occasion. But I wish there had been a more gradual growth, particularly in the vein of Alanna’s confidence and belief in her own self-worth. All the way through until the end, she wonders if she is good enough, strong enough, pretty enough…etc. I understand what it’s like to feel that way, but it frustrates me a bit that after all she accomplishes (which is A LOT), she doesn’t find a deeper sense of self-worth. As a child, I didn’t pick up on that. But as a child, I didn’t have much self-confidence either. It isn’t until the very end that Alanna exhibits any sense of belief, that I can see, in who she is and what she’s worth. But at least she finds some in the end. 

These books didn’t exactly teach me how to be emotionally healthy and make good choices; Lord knows Alanna isn’t and often doesn’t. Those things I learned the old fashioned way—life experience. But this story did give me one of my first solid examples of a strong woman that I could look up to. And for that, I am forever grateful.