The four young mages, Tris, Sandy, Daja, and Briar, are just starting to settle into their new home at Winding Circle Temple. But even as they struggle to cope with the powerful magic that binds them together, Winding Circle comes under attack by pirates armed with fierce new weapons.

On a journey to Gold Ridge, the four young mages-in-training, Daja, Sandry, Tris, and Briar, find their special magics overlapping, sometimes in frightening and destructive ways. One burst of this combined magic leads Daja to create an astonishing vine made of living metal.

Briar Moss and his fellow mages-in-training Sandry, Tris, and Daja, have faced earthquakes, pirates, and fire. But their greatest challenge is still ahead. It comes in the unexpected form of a disease, a devastating plague that is ravaging the citizens of Emelan.

Sandrilene fa Toren has moved to the palace of her uncle, Duke Vedris, to care for him after his recent heart attack. While the two are out riding Sandry sees a boy named Pasco dance a magic spell. To her dismay she soon learns that since she discovered Pasco, she must handle his magical education until a proper teacher can be found. At 14, Sandry feels she is too young for this. Even worse, 12-year-old Pasco refuses to believe he even has magic. But Sandry has greater worries than Pasco....

Briar and Rosethorn are in ancient Chammur, where Briar gets involved in a war between street gangs at the same time that he ends up trying to train a young stone mage he has discovered. Intrigue, adventure, humor, nastiness, all set against a fascinating culture, this is classic Tamora Pierce.

In the medieval and fantastic realm of Tortall, Keladry of Mindelan (known as Kel) is the first girl to take advantage of the decree that permits females to train for knighthood. Up against the traditional hazing of pages and a grueling schedule, Kel faces only one real roadblock: Lord Wyldon, the training master of pages and squires. He is absolutely against girls becoming knights. But Kel is not a girl to underestimate.

Daine has always had a special connection with animals, but only when she’s forced to leave home does she realise it’s more than a knack...it’s magic. With this wild magic, not only can Daine speak to animals, but she can also 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 apprentice. Under Numair’s guidance, Daine explores the scope of her magic. But she encounters other beings, too, who are not so gentle. 

Tamora Pierce begins a new Tortall trilogy by introducing Beka Cooper, an amazing young woman who lived 200 years before Pierce's popular Alanna character. For the first time, Pierce employs first-person narration in a novel, bringing readers even closer to a character they will love for her unusual talents and tough personality.

Alanna of Trebond is no ordinary girl: her dream is to become a knight. So she disguises herself as a boy and begins training at the palace of King Roald. Alanna quickly finds out that the road to knighthood is not an easy one, but her skills and stubborness help her become friends with Prince Jonathan and his followers. At the same time, Alanna makes an enemy of the prince's uncle, the overly charming Duke Roger.

Evvy, the fierce young stone mage introduced in Street Magic, has accompanied her guardian, Rosethorn, on a mission to study a mysterious plant die-off. With the help of Luvo, who is the living heart of a mountain, Evvy discovers the real source of the threat, which is far greater than anyone had imagined. Preventing a natural disaster may cost Evvy her life.