I received this Audiobook from publisher, Finished Copy from Publisher for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Source: Audiobook from publisher, Finished Copy from Publisher
I am absolutely thrilled to be the next stop on the blog tour for Tempests and Slaughter by Tamora Pierce. I first discovered her books about 10 years ago when I got my job as a middle school librarian. I quickly devoured every one of her stories. Alanna: The First Adventure remains a favorite. I couldn’t wait to dive back into that world.
About the Book:
Title: TEMPESTS AND SLAUGHTER
Author: Tamora Pierce
Pub. Date: February 6, 2018
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Pages: 480
Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook
Arram. Varice. Ozorne. In the first book in the Numair Chronicles, three student mages are bound by fate . . . fated for trouble.
Arram Draper is a boy on the path to becoming one of the realm’s most powerful mages. The youngest student in his class at the Imperial University of Carthak, he has a Gift with unlimited potential for greatness–and for attracting danger. At his side are his two best friends: Varice, a clever girl with an often-overlooked talent, and Ozorne, the “leftover prince” with secret ambitions. Together, these three friends forge a bond that will one day shape kingdoms. And as Ozorne gets closer to the throne and Varice gets closer to Arram’s heart, Arram begins to realize that one day soon he will have to decide where his loyalties truly lie.In the Numair Chronicles, readers will be rewarded with the never-before-told story of how Numair Salmalín came to Tortall. Newcomers will discover an unforgettable fantasy adventure where a kingdom’s future rests on the shoulders of a talented young man with a knack for making vicious enemies.
Act fast! The first printing of the hardcover includes a collector’s edition poster!
Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Audible, B&N, iBooks, TBD
My Thoughts:
First things first, I listened to this one on audiobook. Ariadne Meyers did an excellent job with the narration. The different voices that she used for the many different characters were excellent. They were distinct and really seemed to fit the characters. Her pacing was great and she really kept my attention. This audiobook is 13 discs and I usually switch to the book about halfway through when they’re that long. This one was so great I listened to all but the last disc and a half! (At that point I just wanted to know how it ended so badly that I grabbed the book and finished.)
Now, on to the story itself… I loved being back in this world! I read The Immortals series years ago and loved it. Of course I thought Numair was super interesting. When I found out we got to know more about his early life? YES, PLEASE! However, when reading this book I didn’t really think of Arram in terms of “young Numair.” Maybe I would have if I’d re-read The Immortals, but I’m glad I didn’t. I honestly kind of forgot some of the things that went down in his later life. It was nice to read this one “fresh.” (Note: In case you’re wondering, you can totally read Tempests and Slaughter without having read any of the author’s previous books.)
I so love the world that Tamora Pierce creates. The magic, the animals, the gods and goddesses, the traditions… all of it! Add in her varied and interesting characters and I am 100% sucked into her stories. I cannot get enough. We get a deeper look at the training of mages and how the Imperial University of Carthak runs, too. Which is awesome. I just didn’t want to leave the world.
I have no idea how I’m going to wait for the next book! Plus, I went back and re-read summaries about The Immortals and I now realize how much has to go down that I am super nervous about! Oh dear. Sometimes, being a reader is hard!
About the Author:
Tamora Pierce is a bestselling author of young adult fantasy books that break past the traditions of the fantasy genre to feature teenage girls as knights, wizards, and above all: heroes. A #1 New York Times bestseller and the recipient of the 2013 Margaret A. Edwards award, Tamora has written over 30 books, including the upcoming TORTALL: A SPY’S GUIDE (Oct. 31, 2017) and TEMPESTS AND SLAUGHTER (Feb. 6, 2018).
Tamora was drawn to books from a young age. Raised in rural Pennsylvania, the child of a “long, proud line of hillbillies,” her family never had much. “We were poor, but I didn’t know it then. We had a garden where my folks grew fruit and vegetables and our water came from a well,” she explains. But one thing they did have was plenty of books. So Tamora read.
A self-proclaimed “geek,” she devoured fantasy and science fiction novels, and by the age of 12 was mimicking her literary idols and writing her own action-packed stories. It was thanks to her father that Tamora began writing. “He heard me telling myself stories as I did dishes, and he suggested that I try to write some of them down,” Pierce says.
But Tamora’s novels had one major difference: unlike the books she was reading, her stories featured teenaged girl warriors. “I couldn’t understand this lapse of attention on the part of the writers I loved, so until I could talk them into correcting this small problem, I wrote about those girls, the fearless, bold, athletic creatures that I was not, but wanted so badly to be.”
Seventeen years later, after graduating from the University of Pennsylvania, a brief career in teen social work and some time spent writing for radio, Tamora Pierce held true to her childhood crusade, and published ALANNA: THE FIST ADVENTURE, the first in a quartet about a valiant, young, female warrior. Pierce’s heroine struck a chord with readers across the country and quickly earned her a loyal following.
Now, with over 30 critically-acclaimed books to her name, Pierce lives in upstate New York with her husband Tim and their menagerie of nine cats, two birds, a flock of pigeons, various raccoons and squirrels, and one opossum. “It’s a pretty good life, if I do say so myself. Struggling along as a kid and even through my twenties, it’s the kind of life I dreamed of but never believed I would get. Yet here I am, after a lot of work, a lot of worry, a lot of care for details, and a massive chunk of luck, the kind that brought me such strong friends and readers. Pretty good for a hillbilly, yes? And I never take it for granted.”
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Giveaway:
3 winners will receive a finished copy of TEMPESTS AND SLAUGHTER, US Only.
Ends on March 2nd at Midnight EST!
Tour Schedule:
Week One:
2/1/2018- Fiction Fare– Review
2/2/2018- herbookstacks– Review
Week Two:
2/5/2018- Here’s to Happy Endings– Review
2/6/2018- A Dream Within A Dream– Review
2/7/2018- Book-Keeping– Review
2/8/2018- Eli to the nth– Review
2/9/2018- LILbooKlovers– Review
Week Three:
2/12/2018- Jump Into Books– Review
2/13/2018- BookHounds YA– Review
2/14/2018- Jessabella Reads– Review
2/15/2018- YA Bibliophile– Review
2/16/2018- Nerdophiles – Review
Week Four:
2/19/2018- Book Briefs– Review
2/20/2018- Smada’s Book Smack– Review
2/21/2018- Confessions of a YA Reader– Excerpt
2/22/2018- YA Books Central– Excerpt
2/23/2018- The Book Nut– Review
Week Five:
2/26/2018- A Backwards Story– Review
2/27/2018- The Book Shire– Review
2/28/2018- Falling Down The Book Hole– Excerpt
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