Circle of Magic: Book 1

Overall

A story of four misfit kids learning about themselves and their abilities. The worldbuilding and characters are the bone and muscle of Pierce’s work. And the magic is the.. skin that ties it all together. Ok so its not a perfect analogy but it works.

First, the characters were really the draw for me. The different perspectives and different histories help worldbuild as well as giving defined color to each character. Sandry, Daja, Tris, and Briar not to mention their teachers are well-fleshed out and feel like they exist outside of the pages.

Sandry’s story starts with her in the dark. There has been a plague in the city that she and her parents were in. She is in a safe store room magicked to be a secret and the only other person who knows where she is is killed. She is left in the dark and alone to try and survive. She begins to braid a thread after realizing she can weave light into the thread.

Daja starts her story in the wreckage of her ship, surrounded only by water and debris. She is barely holding onto life when she sees a chest floating nearby full of survival gear. In her desperation she reaches out to it, willing it to come within her reach. And she can’t believe it when it actually responds. Nico finds her in the wreckage.

Tris has been tossed from one home to another. No one wants to put up with her or her strangeness. Odd things keep happening around her, strange winds and storms, with Tris usually in the middle of it all with no answers. She had been tested for magic and none could be found . Everyone just assumed she was possessed or haunted. No one wants her and no one keeps her. She builds walls higher and higher. Nico delivers her to Winding Circle.

Briar is at the end of the line. He and his gang have been caught in a theft and with his history he is headed to manual labor on the docks. Nico steps in and takes him instead to Winding Circle.

The first book does a lot of the setting the stage for the series. The kids get their introductions and Pierce does a great job packing in a lot of personality into a small bit of prose. Their backgrounds are present but not overwhelming (I’m that guy that likes flashbacks so I was ready for more about all of them) making their trauma very relevant to the present storyline. The way that the kids all get safe adults and spaces in the story after their respective experiences had a huge impact on me growing up. Reading through this time, the hug between Rosethorne and Briar hit hard. Her telling him that he won’t be hungry was just a shot through the heart.

Character Breakdown

I’m going to stick with the main cast here, namely the kids and their mentors. I do plan on bringing in more as the books carry on.

Sandrilene Fa Toren

I was super into making friendship bracelets as a kid. As an adult I’m an avid crochet-er <– that… and the thought of magic in the weavings just makes me happy. This little lady is the perfect stitch witch and her boldness and strength of character is still something I admire. She never hesitates to stand up for others and she uses her status and influence to help those around her.

Trisana Chandler

She is temperamental and she wields her words like weapons all to hide a good heart and too much feeling. She was rejected so much as a child she was surrounded herself with hostility to keep the hurt away. She can’t see the value of herself and constantly underestimates her own potential. She’s probably the hardest to like initially but it’s like when a cat chooses you. Watching her build a family is just so lovely.

Daja Kisubo

I related to her hard growing up. She was thoughtful and soft spoken her outside face giving little away to what was burning on the inside. She went through so many hardships but never lost sight of who she was even as her people relabeled her as bad luck but she persevered trying to be the best her she could be.

Briar Moss

I was in love with this kid the moment he appeared. A thief with a heart of gold and a mouth full of sass the self named Briar Moss has Green Magic giving him an affinity for plants. Most of the time he seems to prefer plants to people, unless of course they’re his people. I love the way he looks out for his family even if he is in constant denial about it.

Niklaren Goldeye

I never wanted to trust him as a kid and I kept waiting for him to turn on… someone I don’t know who. I haven’t read all of the series so I guess it could still happen but to be honest I think it was more my trust issues. Adult me just sees a very tired person with a lot of talent and not enough time to save the world the way he wants to. He needs a nap. He’s a good dad.

Lark

As a kid I didn’t pay much attention to Lark, she was comfortable and safe. So not in a bad way but more like I took her for granted. As an adult those two things are so appreciated. Lark has a quiet force to her that feels like it is looking out for you and the others around you. She lets you grow but still has structure. Good parenting. It also flew over my head that she was involved with Rosethorn but now they are just so good together.

Rosethorn

I loved her then and I love her now. She has a lot in common with my own mom and watching her with Briar in particular always makes me happy. She is formidable and fierce, speaking more sense than most around her and one of my favorite role models. I love the crusty, kind characters.

Frostpine

I loved him before but I have a whole different appreciation for him now. I related to Daja a lot as a kid, the way she internalizes and waits for the hammer to drop when she is dealing with others. As an adult, I was more aware of how good Frostpine was to her and for her. He pays attention and he makes a safe space for her while still just getting to know her. Plus his vibe is so chill.

The Trauma and the Response

Something that surprised me as an adult was the way trauma was handled for these kids.

Their introductions were at breaking points in all of their lives, they were forced out of their routines and comfort zones and in Daja’s case out of their whole society. Stuff was pretty brutal for essentially children to have to get through.

They show signs of PTSD, like Sandry being afraid of the dark, and learned survival behaviors, like Briar hiding a food cache, in a very realistic empathetic way. What’s even better was the way the adults reacted around them.

Reading it as a kid, it was the children I was relating to. I remember the adults fondly but it was Briar’s attitude or Sandry’s boldness that I would remember the most. Now, after learning more about mental health these characters stand out even today. They create safe spaces built on trust and structure, they listen and respond to the kids having a firm hand when it came to nonsense but still hearing them out with respect.

The meditation and techniques they learned in the sessions with their mentors is one of those things I found myself doing because it helped them and I found out it helped me too. If Briar did it then I could to. And it worked. All thanks to loving these characters.

Nostalgia

So Briar was my accidental introduction to Tamora. I found the his book in the second series and I fell instantly in love. Alanna came after that and I stuck mostly with Tortall and all the series she had there but to tell the truth, The Circle of Magic was and still is my favorite.

I love the cast of characters and the alternating POVs. I love the complexity of their backgrounds and the simplicity of the telling. People are what they are and it’s something to lean into rather than be ashamed of.

I think in the reread my adult self was surprised to see how simplistic the writing was. That isn’t a slight but in books made for kids understand-ability is crucial. Pierce is accessible and incredibly relevant in the way she handles mental health.

That was the other surprise. There were things about trauma and PTSD and other issues that were modern in their approach to the kids and their development. It makes me wonder what I soaked up as a kid and what translated. I know that it probably helped me look at others differently. Everyone has gone through something. It’s better if we help each other out and lean into our strengths, rather than judging and dismissing so we all stagnate.

How Does It Hold Up

So it reads a bit different as an adult but to be honest it just made it better. To have the memories of what it felt like to read it the first time through, to have fond thoughts about these characters still even without the reread, all juxtaposed with what we know today about mental health and healing, it’s overwhelming how good this series is. Pierce was waaaay before her time and, in my opinion, should be required growing-up reading like Lord of the Rings and Roald Dahl.

There’s representation. There’s healthy relationships on many fronts. There are all sorts of characters and hardships that resonate through great storytelling. There’s creative worldbuilding and relevant storylines that will keep the audience engaged and that they will be able to relate to.

I loved it as a kid as I have said over and over, but I was happy to find out I still love it as an adult. Maybe even more so. The storytelling holds up. The messages are good and there are healthy examples of relationships of all sorts. It’s a great cozy read and worth all the hype.