Tamora Pierce

2 universes Last reviewed 2026-08-07

Tamora Pierce is an American fantasy writer born December 13, 1954, in South Connellsville, Pennsylvania, who earned her degree from the University of Pennsylvania. She began writing after discovering J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings in sixth grade, initially writing fan fiction as a way of processing her parents' divorce, and is best known for her debut series The Song of the Lioness (1983-1988), which opens with Alanna: The First Adventure and was inspired in part by her sister Kimberly. She went on to write further series set in the same world, including Protector of the Small, the Circle of Magic books, the Immortals quartet, the Trickster's Choice/Trickster's Queen duology, and the Provost's Dog/Beka Cooper series. Her books have been translated into twenty languages and have appeared on lists such as Time magazine's 100 Best Fantasy Books and NPR's 100 Best-Ever Teen Novels. In 2013 she received the Margaret A. Edwards Award from the American Library Association's Young Adult Library Services Association, recognizing her significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature. She lived in California before returning to Pennsylvania and eventually settling in New York with her husband, Tim Liebe.

Universe(s)

Books

• Alanna: The First Adventure (1983) · Tortall Core Canon
• In the Hand of the Goddess (1984) · Tortall Core Canon
• The Woman Who Rides Like a Man (1986) · Tortall Core Canon
• Lioness Rampant (1988) · Tortall Core Canon
• Wild Magic (1992) · Tortall Core Canon
• Wolf-Speaker (1994) · Tortall Core Canon
• Emperor Mage (1995) · Tortall Core Canon
• The Realms of the Gods (1996) · Tortall Core Canon
• Sandry's Book (1997) · Circle of Magic (Emelan) Core Canon
• Daja's Book (1998) · Circle of Magic (Emelan) Core Canon
• Tris's Book (1998) · Circle of Magic (Emelan) Core Canon
• Briar's Book (1999) · Circle of Magic (Emelan) Core Canon
• First Test (1999) · Tortall Core Canon
• Magic Steps (2000) · Circle of Magic (Emelan) Core Canon
• Page (2000) · Tortall Core Canon
• Squire (2001) · Tortall Core Canon
• Street Magic (2001) · Circle of Magic (Emelan) Core Canon
• Cold Fire (2002) · Circle of Magic (Emelan) Core Canon
• Lady Knight (2002) · Tortall Core Canon
• Shatterglass (2003) · Circle of Magic (Emelan) Core Canon
• Trickster's Choice (2003) · Tortall Core Canon
• Trickster's Queen (2004) · Tortall Core Canon
• The Will of the Empress (2005) · Circle of Magic (Emelan) Core Canon
• Terrier (2006) · Tortall Core Canon
• Melting Stones (2007) · Circle of Magic (Emelan) Core Canon
• Bloodhound (2009) · Tortall Core Canon
• Mastiff (2011) · Tortall Core Canon
• Battle Magic (2013) · Circle of Magic (Emelan) Core Canon
• Tempests and Slaughter (2018) · Tortall Core Canon

Aggregate across all universes

These are separate, unrelated universes; the totals below are plain sums of already-published per-universe facts, never a blended or averaged score across them. See each universe's own figures above.

• Total Core Canon books across all universes: 29 books
• Award recognitions across all universes: 1 (1 won)

← All authors