Lady Knight

While satisfying to see Kel actually get her knighthood, survive her ordeal and prove herself to everyone it was also interesting to see her learn more about herself and about what she has to do to survive. There's war and she has to rally troops and get people to obey her, she's in a position where he has responsibility, where they don't think things will go wrong but when they do she just does what she has to do to ensure that she and as many around her as possible survive.
I like Kel. She's an interesting character, driven but at the same time able to see how other people work and how to motivate them.

Coming straight off the successfully lengthened story in Squire, Lady Knight is an apt conclusion to Keladry's quartet. As the conflict with Scanra in the north gears up Keladry is shown a vision by the Chamber of Ordeal, tasking her with a quest to find and defeat the mage who is creating the killing machines which are magically animated by the souls of children. Keladry has clearly always been a champion for animals and other downbeaten people (sevants and page alike), but it is this conflict which truely earns her the moniker "Protector of the Small." Pierce's previous two series focus on themes around knighthood and kingdoms; and animals and wild magic, respectively, so the explorationof themes around social justice in this series show more fit well into the changing scope of Tortall and its ruling class. Next we get to explore the burgeoning area of spy craft (thanks George Cooper) and Pierce begins to explore the external nations to Tortall in more depth, so the expansion of her realms and storytelling craft are given a full range of potential. show less

Lovely as always. Which is a kind of funny thing to say about a book where the mood varies between fury, anxiety, grief, and blind stubborn determination (OK, flashes of excellent humor, happiness, and triump, but most of it is pretty grim). Still - as usual for a Pierce, the setting and the people are beautifully evoked; the tasks, both immediate and promised, are challenging and important; and the flow of events draws the reader along and deep into that world. Kel is set in charge of a refugee camp - oh, before she gets there, she attaches a small boy to her service (because he was being abused, and because he's useful to her. In that order). Tobe turns out to be very useful on a lot of levels, too. She's given the duty of commanding show more the camp because, unlike any of the other knights available, she will actually care about the refugees and work to protect and care for them, not just treat them as impedimenta - Wyldon demonstrates, again, that he has more depth than he's willing to show the world. She also has a prophesied task from the Chamber of the Ordeal, to deal with the mage who's creating the killing machines she's already fought. She struggles with the conflict of duties this raises; unfortunately, circumstances intervene until the conflict...doesn't go away, exactly, but shifts so that her choice is clear. Her expedition into enemy territory, with the cavalcade following her (in several senses) produces many of those flashes of humor; it's also got some of the grimmest, saddest scenes in the whole quartet. But a happy ending, for many. I really would like to see more of Kel, and Tobe, and all the rest of her crew - but for now, I think, I'll just have to imagine what happens to her. She is my favorite of the Tortallan heroes. show less

*Review of the series as a whole*
Alright, Kel is totally OP (especially in the beginning, when she's supposed to be a 13-year-old beating up 15- and 16-year-olds), but she faces challenges and obstacles, and doesn't always win, and overcomes. I'd forgotten how much I loved Keladry - I really hope Pierce does a follow up or at least mentions her in another book so I can see what becomes of her!

I always appreciated that Kel didn't have any magic, and succeeded with just her stubbornness and ambition. Her journey - as a knight and as a woman - is beautiful and inspiring. I only hope I will be as brave as Lady Keladry of Mindelan if I ever need to.

"Lady Knight," the final installment in Tamora Pierce's Protector of the Small quartet, far surpasses the preceding volumes in depth, complexity, and stakes. While the series' "hero's task" revealed itself late in the series, it does not feel crammed or rushed at all. A great deal of the book is spent focusing on Kel's frustration; her assignment during the Scanran war is to run a refugee camp, which seems to her completely at odds with the task set her by the god-like being which is the Chamber of the Ordeal. It has ordered her to stop the enemy mage responsible for horrific acts of necromancy. She's the only knight she knows of to have ever been set on a specific mission by the Chamber, and the abhorrent nature of the mage's deeds show more pull at her sense of justice with every breath she takes. It is to Pierce's credit that it is not immediately obvious just how entangled her two missions are. More obvious are Pierce's intense emotions and opinions on war and the dignity of life. This is a great novel for young adults that deals with difficult situations and themes. Highly recommended. show less

Description: Keladry of Mindelan has finally achieved her life-long dream of being a knight. But it’s not turning out as she imagined at all. With the land of Tortall at war with the Scanrans, she has been assigned to oversee a refugee camp. But Kel has had a vision in the Chamber—a vision of the man behind the horrific battle machines that her fellow knights and friends are now fighting without her. She is torn between a duty she has sworn and a quest that she feels could turn the tide of the war.

Thoughts: I'm sad that this subseries is done. I really liked Kel and her compatriots and would have happily read a few more books about her adventures. I greatly appreciated that Kel was just an ordinary girl who pushed herself to be the show more best she could be and to never ignore the pain and suffering of others to get what she wanted.

I have only two real complaints about this one. Firstly, the climax of the story was handled a bit too quickly and easily for my tastes, but it wasn't out f character for Pierce's books. Secondly, I'm irritated that we don't get to find out what happens to Kel in the romance department. On the one hand, Kel is the most independent and focused of Pierce's heroines, never letting boys turn her head too much from her goals and business. That's nice to see. And Pierce didn't just throw her together with someone at the end of the series to wrap it up, thank heavens. But it was immensely frustrating to watch Kel's feelings grow and change and to not really get an answer as to who she would end up with. Three other weddings at the end but we couldn't even get a clear answer about Kel and Dom or Kel and ANYONE?

I would recommend this subseries with much less reservation than the others I've read so far and I'm glad I stuck it out through the ones I didn't love to get to this one!

Rating: 3.99

Liked: 4
Plot: 4.5
Characterization: 4
Writing: 4
Audio: 3.5

http://www.librarything.com/topic/188600#5178490 show less

The conclusion to the Protector of the Small series, and a fitting end it was. The first two books in the series were really wonderful, focused on Kel's journey to become a female knight through dint of hard work (no magic involved). Then in the third volume, we see her life as an apprentice, and while I enjoyed the story, it wasn't as engrossing as the first two entries in the series. In this volume Kel has finally become a knight proper, just in time for the war that is engulfing Tortall.

The series really switches tracks in this book. Previously, we had been reading about Kel's journey to become a knight, and the adventures that ensued. Now, she has met that goal, and this story turns from a coming-of-age tale into an epic show more adventure.

Ever since she entered the Chamber of the Ordeal, Kel knew that she was destined for a particular mission. Her job, given to her at the time of her commissioning as knight, is to find and stop the Nothing Man. A wizard working for the Scanran Empire, his great travesty is in harvesting the souls of children to control killing robot machines. When Kel is assigned to build and oversee a refugee camp, instead of joining troops marching against Scanra, she is both angry and frustrated. She thinks that Wyldon is once again doubting her abilities, but even worse, she has no idea how she can track down and destroy the Nothing Man if she is chained to a camp. Of course, destiny is not such an easy thing to evade, and her duty of protecting the civilians under her care soon becomes dangerously entangled with her need to find and kill the man giving her nightmares.

I loved this story. Kel is still wonderfully Kel. She is caring and loyal and brave, but willing to risk everything to do what is right. Though she resents her assignment, she dutifully undertakes the task which is perfectly suited to her skills. She has always been good at caring for people and animals. Then, after the catastrophe, we have a new and exciting twist to the story, as she defies orders to do what she knows is the right thing and save her people. I liked how other friends came to her aid, and how the commanding officers know her so well that they understand why she disobeyed direct commands. I liked how she and her friends voyaged into dangerous enemy territory and defied the odds to save her people. I liked how Kel had to earn the grudging respect of a new lot of people; now that she had already proved her mettle to the castle and soldiers, she had to prove it to civilians. As you can see, I liked a lot about this story. It is much longer than the other books in the series, but appropriately so, as Pierce took her time developing the tale to a satisfying conclusion. I hope that Kel makes some appearances in future series, because I would love to know more about how her life further unfolds. show less