In the Hand of the Goddess

Originally posted on Tales to Tide You Over

My sister and my boys have told me to read Tamora Pierce as far back as I can remember, so much so I thought I had. By now, I’m pretty sure I didn’t, or if I did, it was a different series. I’m having a great time exploring Tortall. It’s a sign of strong writing when, despite having read several books since the first in the Song of the Lioness series, I recognized all the characters when they reappeared in book two. More than that, I remembered the complications and suspicions, both Alanna’s and my own.

I had one small quibble in that the book is almost a series of short stories tied together with large time jumps. It took me a bit to adjust to this, but since nothing much happened in show more the time jumps, I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. The story is a mix of action and summary to get you to the next point of action, covering a large time span…that of Alanna’s time as a squire for Jonathan.

The focus is less on her schooling than her emotional development. She’s still determined to see herself as both the same as any other squire and somehow exempt from the physical and emotional changes of puberty. Both George and Jonathan have something to say about that, as does an odd encounter in the woods.

Along with her relationships and challenges involved with her secret, Alanna is thrown into the realities of politics and battle. I thought both situations were well written as was the tangle of her direct enemy in this book, one she suspected but lacked proof of before. Interesting solution for why she didn’t come forward earlier though I’ll say no more for fear of spoilers.

I like Alanna. I like her friends, her familiar (yes, she gets claimed by a cat), and the complications she faces. She has help from odd quarters, but neither depends too heavily on that help nor takes it for granted. This last is huge because, while she’s the hero (capital H and all), she is never an island able to accomplish everything on her own and without tripping points. It makes her feel real and easier to form a bond with. show less

Good grief, this book aggravated me. Alanna is a bit of a dim protagonist-- in the opening pages of the book, she essentially meets god (well, the goddess), but from the way she handles the conversation (and the amount of times it is mentioned later), you'd be forgiven for thinking she just bumped into her next-door neighbor at the swim club. Her buddy George kisses her (repeatedly) unasked, and she doesn't do a single thing about it! Her best male friend with whom she is having sex gets jealous when she talks to other boys, and she herself thinks of him all the time and hates it when he's with other girls, but she has no idea why these feelings might be! Get a clue, girl! In other news, there's an Evil Teacher at the knight school that show more only Alanna can figure out is Evil, and as an unschooled squire she consistently beats trained knights in combat. Well, how special can you be? And to top it all off, on the cover she's in a leather miniskirt and her hair is all dolled up, which makes no sense for a girl trying to pretend to be a man or woman in pseudo-medieval times! (originally written July 2008) show less

In the Hand of the Goddess runs less than 50k words and it’s to the pacing’s detriment.

Our hero, Alanna, begins the story as a 14-year-old squire and ends as an 18-year-old knight. Her assorted adventures pass at such a breakneck pace that I sometimes worried about whiplash between chapters. The transitions between large gaps of time are often abrupt, only an offhand comment indicating that months of time have passed from one scene to the next.

Mild spoilers, ahead:

That said, In the Hand of the Goddess is a compelling tale with a complex and well-drawn protagonist. I’d happily follow Alanna anywhere, and the characters surrounding her seem to agree. This tale sees Alanna proving her mettle in battle for the first time, despite the show more machinations of Obviously Evil Cousin Roger™ (does anyone else picture this guy doing some hammy mustache twirling when he orders her kidnapping?) and some really sketchy royals from a neighboring kingdom. The scenes of Alanna picking up skills from foot soldiers and healers during the tedious downtime often skimmed over in war stories are some of the best in the novel. She quietly and steadily proves herself to be hardworking, friendly (if brusque), and willing to learn from and befriend comrades across social strata.

One of my favorite characters in the series, Alanna's moderately supernatural cat, makes his first appearance in this book. Although he sometimes serves as a convenient catch-all when Danger Is Afoot (deus ex faithful), Faithful is hilarious and a great foil to Alanna's sometimes dour demeanor.

We also watch Alanna stumbling her way into womanhood, complete with lessons in ‘learning to be a girl’ from George’s mother Eleni and an ill-advised romance with good friend/master/poor life choice Prince Jonathan. If either of them had bothered to think for more than a moment they’d realize their wants and needs are incompatible, but, well. Young love. There’s a moderately irritating subplot involving Jonathan sleeping with a court lady (who’s secretly one of Obviously Evil Cousin Roger™’s minions) who flirts with everyone and is possibly the most caricature-y creature to appear in the series.

My George/Alanna shipper heart always sighed in frustration during the scenes with Alanna and Jonathan. It’s quietly heartbreaking when George willingly waits on the sidelines for all the young people to come to their senses, staying a faithful friend to everyone in the meantime. If you don’t adore George Cooper (despite his sometimes problematic ways of expressing his affection for Alanna--not cool to wait till a girl’s hands are full so she can’t stop you from kissing her, you Rogue), I’m not sure which books you’re reading.

Alanna’s mentor figures continue to be never-ending delights. Sir Myles of Olau guides her as best he can, knowing full-well she’s hiding her true sex and waiting for her to admit it without letting it effect their relationship. Coram helps Alanna run Trebond after the death of Alanna’s father, worrying about his young charge like a mother hen from afar. Eleni is witty and kind, doing her best to help Alanna learn what of the womanly arts she’s interested in without trying to change her fundamental nature.

The novel’s conclusion--in which Alanna undergoes her Ordeal (the weirdly secret sorta-religious ceremony that all squires must pass to attain knighthood), discovers Obviously Evil Cousin Roger™’s plot to hide his machinations from the court and slowly kill Queen Lianne with a wax idol, and Alanna’s subsequent coming out as a lady knight--is satisfying, if rushed. Pierce nicely wraps up most of the plotlines, leaving a few (Thom’s new status as Grand High Muckety-Muck Sorcerer-Type and a delightfully pompous attitude, what the hell Alanna’s going to do now that she’s a knight who’s not really welcome at court, are Alanna and Jonathan going to stay together?) open to keep readers excited for the next installment.

Would recommend to: young readers new to or looking to expand their fantasy reading, fans of Tamora Pierce, readers who like sword and sorcery settings, and readers who like kickass heroines.

Would not recommend to: readers specifically looking for diversity, readers who prefer 1st person POV, readers who aren’t fans of fantasy, and readers who may be sensitive to milder non-consensual acts (there are several instances when George or Jonathan kiss or touch Alanna without explicit consent) or to non-explicit sexual acts between minors. show less

A 1984 novel, book 2 of 4 in The Song of the Lioness, and book 2 in the Tortall series.

A girl disguised as a boy doesn't trust an evil sorcerer.

B (Good).

In the first book, things only started happening toward the end. In this one, things never stop moving. It's mostly just built out of standard action/adventure tropes, though. And even though the this book isn't appropriate for kids, it still has a children's-book style of writing that feels incomplete without illustrations.

(Feb. 2023)

And as I re-read this series I remember why this particular series is my least favorite of Tamora Pierce's work -- and I'm still enjoying it, but this book suffers a bit from middle-book-syndrome. It covers so much ground so quickly that I lose a little investment in Alanna as a character. I do like that she discovers her own brand of femininity. I think the evil sorcerer trope is less convincing. I feel like the storyline was rushed to get us to the next big arc, but I also really enjoyed Tamora Pierce's letters at the end. These were published in a context and that's important to remember. Enjoying the re-read, but Circle of Magic and Beka Cooper are still my faves.

Ooh, and I LOVE the new covers.

Advanced reader's copy provided by show more edelweiss (2023) show less

I just finished rereading the whole Song of the Lioness. Miscellaneous thoughts:

* This is the best story Tamora Pierce has written, by far. If you've read other Tamora Pierce books and didn't like them, I still recommend this one to you.

* While it's sold as four separate books, and each book does manage to stand on its own, they're best read together as a single long story and all at once.

* Simple, straightforward style of writing.

* I just love it, ok? It's not always perfect but I even love the imperfections.

Recounts Alanna's adventures as a Squire, preparing to become a knight and revealing her sex to all of her friends who have known her only as a boy.

I wasn't as enthralled with this second book in the quartet finding the plot a bit too episodic with an insufficient sense of time between events. I'll definitely be finishing the series but I'm hoping the writing and plotting in the next book is much smoother.