The Realms of the Gods by Tamora Pierce

Genre: Young Adult
Sub Genre: Fantasy; Magic, Fantastical Animals, Dragons, The Immortals, Tortall
Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Back Cover: During a dire battle against the fearsome Skinners, Daine and her mage teacher Numair, are swept into the Divine Realms. Though happy to be alive, they are not where they want to be. They are desperately needed back home, where their old enemy, Ozorne, and his army of strange creatures are waging war against Tortall. Trapped in the mystical realms, Daine discovers her mysterious parentage. And as these secrets of her past are revealed so is the treacherous way back to Tortall. So they embark on an extraordinary journey home, where the fate of all Tortall rests with Daine and her wild magic.

This is the final book in the Immortals quartet. In this book we finally learn of Daine’s father. This story at first was a little confusing as we get to see more of the gods and goddesses in their own setting. Their trials to getting back to their friends brings both Numair and Daine closer, which I loved. I also enjoyed the interaction with the dragons. There is a lot that Daine has to take in and choose as this story goes on. But she ends up returning to Kit and her friends with Numair. I really liked this a lot and was happy with the out come. For another series by Tamora Pierce this was great to have someone who is more of an average girl who becomes extraordinary. The world that started in the Song of the Lioness series has grown rich with the addition of these books, and I love how they just billed on one another. I look forward to reading the next quartet, Protector of the Small which starts with The First Test.
Publisher: Simon PulseISBN: 141690817X
Pages: 368
Series: The Immortals
Volume: 4

Emperor Mage by Tamora Pierce

Genre: Young Adult
Sub Genre: Fantasy; Magic, Fantastical Animals, Dragons, The Immortals, Tortall

Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Back Cover: Sent to Carthak as part of the Tortallan peace delegation, Daine finds herself in the middle of a sticky political situation. She doesn’t like the Carthaki practice of keeping slaves, but it’’s not her place to say anything – she’s just there to heal the emperor’s birds. It’’s extremely frustrating! What’s more, her power has grown in a mysterious way. As the peace talks stall, Daine puzzles over Carthak’s two-faced Emperor Ozorne. How can he be so caring with his birds and so cruel to his people? Daine is sure he’s planning something. Daine must fight the powerful Emperor Mage, knowing that the safety and peace of the realm depend on stopping Ozorne’s power-hungry schemes.

This is the third book in the Immortals series. Daine travels to Carthak to help the emperor’s birds. Only things are not what they seemed. Ok first and for most I do not like Ozorne at all. Well I guess your not supposed to but he’s just evil. I did like the power that Daine was given for the book. I found that it was great when she handled it quite nicely. I love the relationship between Numair and Daine. But I loved this book as there is so much going on and it just add more to the world of Tortallan. Numair going back to the city that he used to live and go to school. Daine making friends with the heir to the throne. It was very well done. I’m looking forward to reading the next book in this series of the Realms of the Gods.

Publisher: Simon PulseISBN: 1416903372
Pages: 358
Series: The Immortals
Volume: 3

Wolf-Speaker by Tamora Pierce

Genre: Young Adult

Sub Genre: Fantasy; Magic, Fantastical Animals, Dragons, The Immortals, Tortall

Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Back Cover: When Daine is summoned by the wold pack that saved her life a year earlier, she knows she has to go. She and Numair travel to Dunlath Valley to answer the call. But when they arrive, Dain realizes with a shock that it’s not just the animals whose lives are threatened; people are in danger too. Dunlath’s rulers have discovered black opals in their valley and are dead set on mining the magic these stones embody. Daine learns that Dunlath’s lord and lady plan to use this power to overthrow King Jonathan – even if it means irreversibly damaging the land and killing their workers. On a mission to save both her animal friends and her human ones, Daine has to master her wild magic in order to fight for the kingdom and triumph over the would-be usurpers.

In this story you get to meet the wolves from Daine’s old village. After learning what has been going on in Dunlath Valley Daine must save everyone. And at one point even have to learn to do some magic on her own. As her powers grow and she learns what she is capable of she has to find away to help those innocent people. I love the way the animals are portrayed in this book. They bring a new light to how the characters don’t have to be human to be significant. I loved the way the wolves interacted together and how they were different from other packs. I also liked the friends that Daine makes here with Maura. She starts to see more of what she can do which at first scares her. But she takes it in strides. It’s a great story can't wait to read the next book, Emperor Mage.

Publisher: Simon Pulse

ISBN: 1416903445

Pages: 368

Series: The Immortals

Volume: 2

Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce

Genre: Young Adult

Sub Genre: Fantasy; Magic, Fantastical Animals, Dragons, The Immortals, Tortall

Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Back Cover: Thirteen-year-old Daine has always had a knack with animals, but it’s not until she’s forced to leave home that she realizes it’s more than a knack – it’s magic. Whit this wild magic, not only can Daine speak to animals, but also she can make them obey her. Daine takes a job handling horses for the Queen’s Riders, where she meets the master mage Numair and becomes his student. Under Numair’s guidance, Daine explores the scope of her magic. But she begins to sense other beings too: immortals. These bloodthirsty monsters have been imprisoned in the Divine Realms for the past four hundred years, but now someone has broken the barrier. It’s up to Daine and her friends to defend their world from an immortal attack.

Daine is a young girl who has been run out of the only place she could call home. She is still fearful of people and what they may do to her if they find out her secret. After helping Numair, he begins to teach her how to use her magic. She still doesn’t tell them everything at first out of fear. But as time goes on she learns that she can trust them. As more immortals show they learn that battle is on its way. Daine actually is a big help even with both her magic and her new friends. I love this world that Tamora has created. I think that it’s great that you get to see the characters who I grew to love from her Song of the Lioness series. I find that Daine is a great new character to add to the growing world of Tortall. I can't wait to read the next book in this series, Wolf-Speaker.

Publisher: Simon Pulse

ISBN: 1416903437

Pages: 384

Series: The Immortals

Volume: 1

Radiance by Alyson Noel

Genre: Young Adult

Sub Genre: Paranormal; The Immortals, Ghosts, Afterlife

Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Back Cover: From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Immortals comes a new middle-grade series featuring Ever’s younger sister, Riley. Riley Bloom has left her sister and crossed the bridge into the afterlife – a place called Here, where time is always Now. She has picked up where she left off when she was alive, living with her parents and dog in a nice house in a nice neighborhood. When she’s summoned before The Council, she learns that the afterlife isn’t just an eternity of leisure. She’s been assigned a job, Soul Catcher, and a teacher, Bodhi, a possibly cute, seemingly nerdy boy who’s definitely hiding something. They return to earth together for Riley’s first assignment, a Radiant Boy who’s been haunting a castle in England for centuries. Many Soul Catchers have tried to get him to cross the bridge and failed. But all of that was before he met Riley…

This book is a spin off of Alyson Noel’s Immortals series. It fallows Riley after she has left Ever. She is now with her parents and her dog Buttercup. Riley learns that there is more to Here and Now. She actually has a job. Now she is connected to Bodhi who she feels is a dork by the way he dresses. The story is written for middle-grade. I like that we get to see what happens to Riley and how things are a bit different from her perspective. I really enjoyed reading this book and look forward to reading the next adventure in the series, Shimmer.

Publisher: Square Fish

ISBN: 0312629176

Pages: 192

Series: Riley Bloom

Volume: 1

Shadowland by Alyson Noel

Genre: Young Adult

Sub Genre: Paranormal Romance; The Immortals, Magic

Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Back Cover: Ever and Damen have traveled through countless past lives – and fought off the world’s darkest enemies – so they could be together forever. But just when their long-awaited destiny is finally within reach, a powerful curse falls upon Damen… one that could destroy everthing. Now a single touch of their hands of a soft brush of their lips could mean sudden death – plunging Damen into the Shadowland. Desperate to break the curse and save Damen, Ever immerses herself in magick – and gets help from an unexpected source – a surfer named Jude. Although she and Jude have only just met, he feels startling familiar. Despite her fierce loyalty to Damen, Ever is drawn to Jude, a green-eyed golden boy with magical talents and a mysterious past. She’s always believed Damen to be her soul mate and one true love – and she still believes it to be true. But as Damen pulls away to save them, Ever’s connection with Jude grows stronger – and tests her love for Damen like never before…

This is the third book in the in the Immortals series. Because of Ever’s trust in Roman she can’t even hold hands with Damen. Now all she is doing is trying to fix her mistake. Also a new character is introduced in this story, Jude. The twins that had been introduced in the last book are now in our world learning quickly. There is much that is happening in this story. Jude is a great addition to the series. I look forward to seeing where the story will go in the next book Dark Flame.

Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin

ISBN: 0330520512

Pages: 368

Series: The Immortals

Volume: 3