Reviews for Trickster's Choice (Daughters of the Lioness Series #1)

The average rating for Trickster's Choice (Daughters of the Lioness Series #1) based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2009-04-14 00:00:00 Charlene Wagner This was a good book in some ways, but messed up enough that I probably won't look for more in this series. The writing style was fine - easy to read, nothing detracting from the story, etc. The plot was interesting and moved at a good pace (even if it was clearly part of a series and didn't really conclude, there was a nice ending). The world, while not overwhelmingly original, managed to stay far enough out of generic fantasy kingdom to be interesting (I really liked the crows). Unfortunately, the main character is perfect. Eventually I realized that the book wasn't gripping in any way, because I knew that the hero would save the day. Yes, most books end up that way, but you want to be tricked into thinking that it might not, because that's what makes it exciting. Here, not so much. The funny thing is that I didn't actually dislike the character. She starts off really well - the smart ass 16-year-old daughter of a great hero whose parents want her to make something of herself. Okay, so she's good at pretty much everything (clever, athletic, attractive, moral, relatively likable). All of this wouldn't be a problem, because the character has SUCH an attitude, you expect that she's going to get into a lot of trouble for it, have to learn humility and the value of working with others, and all that. The problem is, she never does. Everyone loves her, she talks her way out of everything, not once do her actions lead to anything other than the desired outcome and everyone defers to her with only token grumbling. Which leads to the second thing that really bugged me. The plot basically hinges on a native people taking their land back from the white-skinned invaders. These people were warriors, have been subjugated for generations, finally have their prophesied leader at hand... and are completely unable to do anything at all without our hero. I'm guessing the implications here weren't intentional, but once you notice some things, you can't un-notice them.

Review # 2 was written on 2017-11-19 00:00:00 Cassandra Dabor $1.99 Kindle sale, May 11, 2019. If you like YA fantasy, I highly recommend this book and its sequel, Trickster's Queen! And if you like Tamora Pierce's brand of YA fantasy, several of her other books are also on $1.99 Kindle sales right now (go to ). But these two Trickster books are my very favorites of everything Tamora Pierce has written ... and I've read most of her books. These ones, though, are the only ones I've read multiple times. This duology follows 16 year old Alianne, the daughter of Alanna, who was the heroine of the SONG OF THE LIONESS series and is now a famous knight in the kingdom, the first woman to achieve that. Aly respects her mother's accomplishments but they have a bit of a fraught relationship because Aly wants to be a spy, like her father. Her parents flatly refuse (spying is too dangerous), but the gods have other plans. Aly is kidnapped while on a solitary excursion one day and ends up being sold as a slave in another kingdom, the Copper Islands. According to the trickster god Kyprioth who appears to her one night, this is intended to be an opportunity for Aly to make a difference in the lives of the noble family who has bought her as a slave. Aly and Kyprioth make a deal, and a new world of experience opens up to her. Aly finds that this family, surrounded by conspiracies and deadly danger, needs her skills, especially the spycraft that she's picked up over the years from working with and watching her father. Meanwhile, Kyprioth is making sure that Aly's family can't find her through magical means and interfere with his secret plans for the Copper Islands. I loved the intrigue in this book and Trickster's Queen! Aly's an intelligent young woman and has a little bit of that Scarlet Pimpernel trope going, the capable person hiding behind a mask, that I love so much. The romance element is very minor, but there's a little bit of light flirting with a crow shapeshifter. I like that the crows are very, well, crow-like in their personalities. This first book doesn't end on a cliffhanger, but the overarching plotline isn't resolved until you read both books. It's not necessary to have read the Alanna books to enjoy these, although doing that will give you a better grounding in this fantasy world, where there's swords and sorcery and gods who regularly intervene in the mortal world.