Lady Knight (Protector of the Small #4)

Summary:

Keladry of Mindelan has finally achieved her life-long dream of being a knight. But it's not turning out as she imagined at all. With the land of Tortall at war with the Scanrans, she has been assigned to oversee a refugee camp. But Kel has had a vision in the Chamber--a vision of the man behind the horrific battle machines that her fellow knights and friends are now fighting without her. She is torn between a duty she has sworn and a quest that she feels could turn the tide of the war. . .  (Summary and cover courtesy of goodreads.com)

Review:

This really is the grand finale of the “Protector of the Small” series.  I loved seeing how Kel tried to start managing being a female knight.  She’s totally different than Alanna in so many ways and she’s not afraid to embrace that.  In this book she’s forced into a few tricky positions with contradicting priorities, but somehow she manages her way through.

Perhaps it’s because I’ve been reading a lot of these books in a row, but it seemed to me that this was one of the most bloody of Tamora Pierce’s book.  She’s certainly not afraid to shy away from slightly more graphic situations and some abhorrent treatment of children (although that doesn’t get into detailed – just referenced).  I don’t say that as a bad thing per say, but definitely as a warning if that’s the sort of thing you can’t handle.

Warning: Frequent and repeated violence.

Rating: 5 stars!

Who should read it? Only those who have read the previous books in the series.

Want to read the whole series?

• First Test (Protector of the Small #1)

• Page (Protector of the Small #2)

• Squire (Protector of the Small #3)