Reviews with content warning for Grief - The Magic in the Weaving

This is a reread for me, but it's been many years since the last time I had read this. This is one of many books Tamora Pierce has written for this fantasy land, and the start of my favorite of her series. I love the introduction of each character, and the depth she gives each of their unique cultures, in the short amount she gives each introduction. The setting of The Winding Circle Temple, and the new home of Sandry, Tris, Daja and Briar, has always fascinated me. I love that they live in a world of magic, but that they all believe the can't be magic, just because their magic doesn't look like everyone else's. Sandry led such an atypical life for a noble, even before her parents pass, that she has always been so endearing to me. Her steadfast insistence on treating everyone like equals, yet still using her status when needed was just neat. We also meet their caretakers, Lark, a weaver, and Rose thorn, a gardener, who are not boring average adults you usually saw in the children's books of this era. I recommend this series to anyone who enjoys high fantasy, with strong female characters.

Sandry's book is mostly focused on Sandry, but gives us a fair chunk of introductions to the other characters and the lovely setting. Sandry is a noble born girl, who lost her parents to an epidemic that swept the country they were visiting. She loses her parents, then her governess in short order, and nearly loses her sanity and self before she is found and brought to her nearest family member, her Uncle, ruler of Emelan. He is ill equipped to handle a young girl, so it is suggested she be sent to stay and get educated at The Winding Circle Temple, and large religious and educational facility a few leagues away. Sandry leaps at the chance. On arrival, she quickly realizes that the other girls of her station are not quite like her, and disapprove of the friends she makes as they are below them, so to speak. Sandry ends up moving out of the dorms, into a small cottage with three other misfits, Daja, a trader girl, Tris, a merchant's disowned daughter, and Briar, a former thief from the streets. They are living with Lark and Rosethorn, who just want them to thrive, but there is strange magic afoot, and danger ahead.

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clarabooksit's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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therainbowshelf's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I disliked this for the first 10-15 minutes of listening, but it grew on me. It was tough to keep the characters straight in my head for some reason. Once I figured them all out, it was a super fun middle grade adventure. I loved watching each character come into their own unique magic. This felt like Avatar the Last Airbender and Percy Jackson crashed into each other.

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quasinaut's review against another edition

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adventurous funny hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I am so, so delighted at how well this book holds up after so many years. I've been long overdue for a reread. It was a joy to meet Sandry, Tris, Briar, and Daja again, and watch them discover their magic, form a friendship, and grow through their trauma. I adore the characters, settings, and stories that fill this world. Can't wait to continue on in the series.

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ladydisdain's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is the perfect series for any inquisitive young mind who wants to know what's happening in the town below the castle in all those high fantasy epics. While temple life is still relatively genteel, the opportunity to spend some times outside of courts and quests is welcome. An almost definitive take on found family, Pierce weaves in (get it?) a sampler of fantasy background characters and pairs them with People with Real Jobs. And it works. The kind of magic explored here feels real and spiritual in a way that resonates out here in our otherwise tawdry world. My wife is a knitter, a spinner, a gardener, and has vowed to take up smithing as soon as we have a house. Of course there's magic in crafting and caring for the earth. Of course there's power in the storm.

Poor Sandry does get a bit shafted in her own book as this is more a vehicle to introduce and bind our cast of characters than a novel centered on a personal journey for Sandry. As usual, Pierce is spending the first book in the quartet setting up the pieces for the rest- we've got 80% character introduction and world building, 20% THIS book's plot points, but the characters and world are charming enough to let it slide. Definitely not the strongest of the series, but a vital introduction to some of the most beloved characters I have ever spent an afternoon with.

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