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booksthatburn's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
tense
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
4.5
SQUIRE is the third book of Kel's quartet, covering her time as a squire (as the title implies). It wraps up storylines related to Joren's bullying when Kel was a page and Lalasa's kidnapping. We also finally get an answer as to her mysterious benefactor's identity. Her practice at tilting continues with more practice and some tournaments. There is a completely new storyline related to Kel's time with the King's Own as Lord Raoul's squire, as well as her care of a griffin (which is both introduced and resolved). The end sets up some things to be addressed in the next book, including but not confined to war with Scanra.
The worldbuilding leans into a details of the tournaments and the role of the King's Own, folding in Kel's lessons on tactics and strategy from her knight-master. There are references to things learned in previous books and other series set within Tortall, which help give a feeling of depth for those who have read those earlier stories. It's a character-focused story, with references to what Kel is learning and how she's thinking about the information, punctuated by action scenes when she's in training or combat.
I like Raoul as her knight-master, their rapport feels easy and her admiration for him shines through. She sees much less of her friends as they continue their training at the Palace or have knight-masters of their own to follow around Tortall. The plot focuses on the inglorious and brutal work of defending peasants, killing bandits, and dealing with the increasing forays of Scanran raiders. Kel also starts to solidify her own ideas of justice and the ways that the current laws and customs fail those they're meant to protect. She's also figuring out what she wants from love and relationships, finding herself in a romance filled with long separations.
Kel sounds a bit older than she did in PAGE, with her narration on the page finally tracking her age better than it did in FIRST TEST. The story could make sense if someone started here without having read the first two books. There's a more robust storyline here during her time as a squire, and while the resolutions to past bullying and harassment won't be quite as satisfying without knowledge from earlier, there are sufficient and succinct explanations which let the events make sense anyway. Such a reader would miss out on the sense of how much she's grown up, but as she learns and matures even within this volume they might not miss too badly the early parts of that journey. I do still recommend reading the quartet from the beginning, since at times it feels like one single long book that just happens to be broken into parts. There's a lot of overlap of timelines, since the books are divided based on Kel's status on her journey to knighthood, and the events around her refuse to be so neatly confined.
The worldbuilding leans into a details of the tournaments and the role of the King's Own, folding in Kel's lessons on tactics and strategy from her knight-master. There are references to things learned in previous books and other series set within Tortall, which help give a feeling of depth for those who have read those earlier stories. It's a character-focused story, with references to what Kel is learning and how she's thinking about the information, punctuated by action scenes when she's in training or combat.
I like Raoul as her knight-master, their rapport feels easy and her admiration for him shines through. She sees much less of her friends as they continue their training at the Palace or have knight-masters of their own to follow around Tortall. The plot focuses on the inglorious and brutal work of defending peasants, killing bandits, and dealing with the increasing forays of Scanran raiders. Kel also starts to solidify her own ideas of justice and the ways that the current laws and customs fail those they're meant to protect. She's also figuring out what she wants from love and relationships, finding herself in a romance filled with long separations.
Kel sounds a bit older than she did in PAGE, with her narration on the page finally tracking her age better than it did in FIRST TEST. The story could make sense if someone started here without having read the first two books. There's a more robust storyline here during her time as a squire, and while the resolutions to past bullying and harassment won't be quite as satisfying without knowledge from earlier, there are sufficient and succinct explanations which let the events make sense anyway. Such a reader would miss out on the sense of how much she's grown up, but as she learns and matures even within this volume they might not miss too badly the early parts of that journey. I do still recommend reading the quartet from the beginning, since at times it feels like one single long book that just happens to be broken into parts. There's a lot of overlap of timelines, since the books are divided based on Kel's status on her journey to knighthood, and the events around her refuse to be so neatly confined.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Animal death, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Ableism, Alcoholism, Bullying, Confinement, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicide, Xenophobia, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
inferiorwit's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Child death, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
house_of_hannah's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Kel seems like a juggernaut rather than an actual person at this point in the story. We start this book when she is 14, and ends a bit after her 18th birthday. A majority of the book takes place when she is 14-15, and then we rush through the other years. For some reason her 15th birthday was never mentioned, so I was a bit confused on what year we were in for a few chapters.
As with the other two books we don't really see Kel change at all. Sure, she gets taller (she's 5'10'' !), but her voice is still exactly the same. I think it would have been interesting to see her mentally and emotionally mature as well, but since she grew up with the Yamani people she was already more mature for her age. Still, it's been difficult to actually view her as the ages indicated due to this.
This book definitely has a lot more action, and grander setting than the first two. Since Kel is training under a knight she is traveling all over the realm. It would have been nice to hear a bit more about the individuality of the villages and cities they were in, since it was quite glossed over.
Between the action can be dull. Since we go through 4 years in this book we have a lot of telling instead of showing. We can have over half a year be summarized in just a few pages. They definitely saw a lot of fighting, but we'll just hear one or two sentences about it and move on. Obviously you can't talk in detail about everything that happens, but it does feel a bit strange.
The reason I say Kel is a juggernaut is that she is obviously so much more useful than a majority of the people in this book. She can do no wrong, and always does what is right and needed for the situation. She seems flawless at this point, and I actually found it a bit annoying at a few moments. Even the climax, which this entire book built up to, was just a blip because of how perfect she is.
Regardless, I did enjoy this one more than the other two. I'm looking forward to finishing this series, and I hope we see more of the human side of Kel in the final book.
As with the other two books we don't really see Kel change at all. Sure, she gets taller (she's 5'10'' !), but her voice is still exactly the same. I think it would have been interesting to see her mentally and emotionally mature as well, but since she grew up with the Yamani people she was already more mature for her age. Still, it's been difficult to actually view her as the ages indicated due to this.
This book definitely has a lot more action, and grander setting than the first two. Since Kel is training under a knight she is traveling all over the realm. It would have been nice to hear a bit more about the individuality of the villages and cities they were in, since it was quite glossed over.
Between the action can be dull. Since we go through 4 years in this book we have a lot of telling instead of showing. We can have over half a year be summarized in just a few pages. They definitely saw a lot of fighting, but we'll just hear one or two sentences about it and move on. Obviously you can't talk in detail about everything that happens, but it does feel a bit strange.
The reason I say Kel is a juggernaut is that she is obviously so much more useful than a majority of the people in this book. She can do no wrong, and always does what is right and needed for the situation. She seems flawless at this point, and I actually found it a bit annoying at a few moments. Even the climax, which this entire book built up to, was just a blip because of how perfect she is.
Regardless, I did enjoy this one more than the other two. I'm looking forward to finishing this series, and I hope we see more of the human side of Kel in the final book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Bullying, Misogyny, and Sexism
Minor: Rape, Sexual violence, Vomit, and Kidnapping
manarnia's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is such a wonderful installment in the Tortall universe. Kel is just so good, and she has some really great people around her.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, and Death
Moderate: Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, and Blood
Minor: Alcoholism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Vomit
meganpbennett's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Squire follows Kel after she successfully completes her Page training as seen in Page and First Test. Sir Raoul selects her to be his squire, and she follows the Kings Own around Tortall for her years as a squire. She sees combat in many conditions, jousts against a variety of people who don't want women to become knights, and learns more than she thought she could while following the King and Queen on a Progress around the country and fighting off raiders. And then she faces the Chamber of the Ordeal.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, and Blood
Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, and Misogyny
Minor: Vomit
victorianrogue's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Child death, Sexism, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, and Blood
Minor: Animal cruelty, Vomit, and Kidnapping