Beka Cooper
fantasy
Series · fantasy
Circle Reforged
The Circle Reforged series by Tamora Pierce has 3 books and is best read in publication order, starting with The Will of the Empress (2005).
- Books
- 3 books
- First published
- 2005
- Status
- completed
- Last checked
Start here: The Will of the Empress (2005) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The order the books were released — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
The Will of the Empress
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Will of the Empress - Book 2:
Melting Stones
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Melting Stones - Book 3:
Battle Magic
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Battle Magic
The order the story's events happen in, novellas slotted where they belong.
- Book 1:
Battle Magic
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Battle Magic - Book 2:
The Will of the Empress
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Will of the Empress - Book 3:
Melting Stones
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Melting Stones
About the Circle Reforged series
Circle Reforged brings Pierce's original four Circle of Magic mages back together as adults, opening with The Will of the Empress, in which Sandry, Tris, Daja, and Briar reunite for the first time in years for a voyage to Namorn -- Daja's ancestral homeland, ruled by Sandry's aunt, the Empress Berenene -- only to find their years apart have strained the magical thread-bond that once made them near-inseparable, even as the Empress works to keep Sandry permanently at court through marriage and politics. Melting Stones follows a different member of the extended Circle family: Evvy, the young stone-mage Briar took on as a student in The Circle Opens, sent to a volcanic island to investigate stones that are inexplicably dying, in a quieter, more solitary story than the other two books. Battle Magic, published last but set two years earlier in the internal timeline, sends Briar, Rosethorn, and Evvy into the mountain kingdom of Gyongxe as the imperial army of neighboring Yanjing prepares an invasion, forcing the three mages into the middle of a full-scale war they can't simply out-magic their way past. Together the trilogy widens Emelan's geography and politics well beyond Winding Circle and the earlier quartets' more contained crises, testing what the original four mages' bond means once distance, new students, and larger-scale conflicts complicate it.
How to read this series
Read The Will of the Empress and Melting Stones after finishing Circle of Magic and The Circle Opens, since both assume you already know all four original mages and, in Melting Stones' case, Evvy from The Circle Opens. Publication order for this trilogy is The Will of the Empress (2005), Melting Stones (2008), Battle Magic (2013) -- but Battle Magic is a prequel set two years before the other two books in the internal Circle timeline, so readers who prefer chronological order should read it before The Will of the Empress. Reading in publication order isn't a problem either; nothing in The Will of the Empress or Melting Stones depends on having read Battle Magic first.
Frequently asked questions
What order should I read Circle Reforged in?
Publication order is The Will of the Empress, Melting Stones, Battle Magic. Battle Magic is a prequel set two years earlier in the internal timeline, so chronological-order readers should read it first instead.
Do I need to read Circle of Magic and The Circle Opens first?
Yes -- Circle Reforged assumes you already know Sandry, Tris, Daja, Briar, and (for Melting Stones) Evvy from the earlier two quartets.
Is Battle Magic really set before The Will of the Empress even though it was published later?
Yes -- Battle Magic takes place about two years before the events of The Will of the Empress and Melting Stones, despite being published last in 2013.
What is Melting Stones about?
It follows Evvy, Briar's stone-mage student introduced in The Circle Opens, investigating why stones on a volcanic island are inexplicably dying.
How many books are in Circle Reforged?
Three -- The Will of the Empress (2005), Melting Stones (2008), and Battle Magic (2013).
If you loved this, shelve these next
Reading order last verified .