I quite enjoyed this book, though not as much as I liked Sandry's one. I do like how the kids are a lot closer and are always there to help one another out . I am quite enjoying this Tamora Pierce series and am finding it hard to put the books down. ( )

Tris is a teenage girl who has just moved from a complicated life to new home where she will be with three other children her age. Each of the children has a magic of some sort. In the first book the children have some issues but as they get to know each other they become good friends and settle into their life. Then trouble begins.
I liked this book alright. Tris is not my favorite of the four so having it from her point of veiw was not so enjoyable. It is a good book. Well put together. ( )

Tris is a little annoying. She's driven too much by circumstance - she deals with what's in front of her without really thinking about what comes next. Which may be related to her power, and how she had to suppress it as best she could for years - but it still makes her annoying to read about. Her dealing with Cousin Aymory here really shows that - she thinks he can just back away, then she blows up (more or less literally!) when he suffers the consequences of his choices. She does blow up in the right direction, but still. ( )

Tris's book focuses on a pirate attack. It's quite a complicated plan that the pirates have, and of course, somehow the 4 from the Earthquake are the first to notice something is going on. A cunning pirate queen has united an armada of pirate ships, joined by her mage brother who enslaves other mages - with money and magic, and has created "gunpowder". With all of them working together, with a spy inside, they almost pull off their plan. The 4 are quick to jump in where they may or may not be needed, forcing their magic to work together and bleed together again. ( )

When pirates attack; Tris and her friends must combine their magical gifts to save their community. Still learning how to control their powers; the young mages must battle the pirates and their own inabilities. ( )