ewee (7/26): The Will of the Empress, by Tamora Pierce

[ok, a book without pictures, as instructed by kayan. an easy read, but no pictures!]

continuing in my line of low-brow consumption, pierce's book provided plenty of diversion after a long day of work and a longer evening of bad television. it's fairly standard fare -- magical youngsters come of age, and learn to be adult magical folk. they come to terms with mean people (the empress), with family (each other), and their jobs (magic). they heal from earlier hurts (earlier in the circle of magic series). they conquer their fears. they overcome childish pouting and tantrums. and they prevail in the end (wait, was that a spoiler?...oh come on...).

nothing really extraordinary. nice attempt to diversify the characters, bit stiff, but in the very male world of sci-fi/fantasy, the presence of color and gender is a welcome addition. in general, pierce seems to specialize in strong female characters who do good but don't simper.

overall, entertaining and engaging enough to provide a lovely escape. good for the commute, or lunchtime reading if you're already inclined to read this stuff.