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Circle Reforged

by Tamora Pierce

The Circle Reforged series by Tamora Pierce has 3 known books (3 published) and is best read in publication order, starting with The Will of the Empress (2005).

Books
3 known books (3 novels)
Published
3
First published
2005
Status
completed
Shelved under
Fantasy
Last checked

Start here: The Will of the Empress (2005) — then read straight through in publication order.

Book one

Cover of The Will of the Empress

The Will of the Empress (2005)

Reading order

The date order of published books and any announced future entries — the default way to read the series.

  1. The Will of the Empress

    Novel

    The Will of the Empress (2005) opens Circle Reforged at 550 pages, the longest of the trilogy, reuniting Sandry, Tris, Daja, and Briar as adults for a voyage to Namorn that strains their old magical bond.

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  2. Melting Stones

    Novel

    Melting Stones (2008) is the shortest entry at 312 pages, turning away from the original four mages to follow Evvy, the stone-mage Briar trained in The Circle Opens, investigating dying stones on a volcanic island.

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  3. Battle Magic

    Novel

    Published last in 2013 but set two years earlier in Emelan's internal timeline, Battle Magic runs 464 pages and sends Briar, Rosethorn, and Evvy into a mountain kingdom facing invasion.

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The order the story's events happen in, novellas slotted where they belong.

  1. Battle Magic

    Novel

    Published last in 2013 but set two years earlier in Emelan's internal timeline, Battle Magic runs 464 pages and sends Briar, Rosethorn, and Evvy into a mountain kingdom facing invasion.

    View book

  2. The Will of the Empress

    Novel

    The Will of the Empress (2005) opens Circle Reforged at 550 pages, the longest of the trilogy, reuniting Sandry, Tris, Daja, and Briar as adults for a voyage to Namorn that strains their old magical bond.

    View book

  3. Melting Stones

    Novel

    Melting Stones (2008) is the shortest entry at 312 pages, turning away from the original four mages to follow Evvy, the stone-mage Briar trained in The Circle Opens, investigating dying stones on a volcanic island.

    View book

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.

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).

Reading order last verified .