Squire (Protector of the Small Quartet, Book 3)

by Tamora Pierce

Paperback, 2002

Call number

J FIC PIE

Publication

Laurel Leaf (2002), 432 pages

Description

After becoming a squire to Lord Raoul, commander of the King's Own, Kel of Mindelan, must face a terrifying test in the Chamber of the Ordeal before she can be a knight.

User reviews

LibraryThing member LisaMaria_C
When we started out in First Test, Keladry was a little girl aspiring to train as a knight. Page, which covered three years, took her through puberty. Now Squire, covering her four years of training as a squire under Sir Raoul of Goldenlake of the King's Own, she grows into a young woman looking
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anxiously to facing the Chamber of the Ordeal to become the first Lady Knight in a century other than Alanna "the Lioness." I liked many of the supporting players, especially her mentor Raoul and I liked her romantic interest in this book and I flat out love Keladry, who doesn't depend on magic but sheer force of character to make it through. She's the anti-Bella and I love her for it.
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LibraryThing member Crowyhead
After Kel passes her exams and becomes a squire, she is terrified that none of the knights will have her. Fortunately, Sir Raoul of Goldenlake, Alanna's good friend, sees Kel's talent and takes her on. What follows is an intense period of activity, as Sir Raoul is to escort the Prince of Tortall
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and his Yamani fiancee in a tour of the kingdom. Kel learns to hold her own in the jousting tournaments (she is frequently challenged, and must repeatedly prove her worth as a fighter), rescues an orphaned gryphon, and has her first taste of war. She also falls in -- and out -- of love for the first time, which brings me to one of the things I really love about Pierce: her female characters almost never end up with the first person kiss, or even the first person they fall in love with. It's such a refreshing change from the way romance is often portrayed in YA novels (and in novels in general). The romances are important, but they're definitely not the only thing going on.
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LibraryThing member bluesalamanders
This is possibly my favorite Tamora Pierce book - Kel is my favorite, in my opinion the most realistic, the least Mary Sue, of Pierce's heroines, in part because she doesn't have any innate magical abilities and has to figure out everything without that kind of help, and Squire is my favorite of
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the Protecter of the Smallbooks.
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LibraryThing member melissarecords
As a squire to Raoul of Goldenlake, Kel participates in the king's progress throughout Tortall. The unexpected acquisition of a baby griffin complicates her life while continuing jealousies plague her on the jousting field. And the Chamber of the Ordeal looms ahead as she works toward becoming a
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knight.
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LibraryThing member knielsen83
Well, this book is just like the rest of Tamora Pierce's wonderful books. There's some added romance (which was nice) and I can't wait to read the last book in the quadrilogy.
LibraryThing member nmhale
The third installment in the Protector of the Small series, which I am greatly enjoying, more so than the Alanna series by the same author. This book is just as engrossing as its predecessors, if about one hundred pages longer. Kel has finally become a squire, to none other than the famed Sir Raoul
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of Goldenlake, the Giant Killer. She joins the King's Own along with him and enters the gritty work of being a knight. Of course, as the first openly female knight in a century, she faces more handicaps than her fellow males, but handles it all with her Yamani aplomb. A fun series that always keeps me wanting more; I look forward to reading the last book in the series.
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LibraryThing member Nikkles
A great book and a great series. Really worth reading.
LibraryThing member thelorelei
Keladry of Mindelan has finally become a squire, defying all those who did their best to force her out. She isn't home-free, however. She worries about who will be willing to take her on, and she still hasn't outgrown her tendency for gathering strays, but this time, with the stray in question
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being a baby griffin, the risks may outweigh the benefits.
Squire is a wonderful continuation of Keladry's story; as she advances towards adulthood (and knighthood) it becomes obvious to everyone around her that she has the beginning spark of the ability to command. It is such a pleasure to read this story of a girl who keeps her head in the most terrifying situations and has the makings of a leader.
Also, "Squire" finally gives Kel a slightly larger story arch than merely gaining her knighthood. Tortall is edging towards war with their northern neighbors, but there is something different behind their enemy this time. Something larger, and more heartless than mere material greed.
This is a roundly satisfying installation in this quartet of books, and I definitely recommend it to fans of Pierce and to "girls who do things".
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LibraryThing member wagner.sarah35
A fun read in the Protector of the Small series. Tamora Pierce revisits several themes, especially the ability of girls to become knights in the fantasy kingdom of Tortall. Kel proves her opponents wrong, time and again, as she prepares for the ordeal which will make her a knight. A good read for
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fans of young adult fantasy.
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LibraryThing member wyvernfriend
very readable book 3 of 4. Keladry is finished with her page training, she's been selected as Squire and she has to still deal with the discrimination.
LibraryThing member JenJ.
I didn't want to stop listening, I was so enthralled by the audio version of this book. Even though I had read this previously, I love the story of Kel's training and her sense of justice. Dunne distinguishes each voice clearly without drawing the attention of the listener outside the story. Simply
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excellent.
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LibraryThing member mamzel
In so many ways, this fantasy is more realistic than many other stories where it refers to the aspiration of a girl gaining a position in a man's world. From the mentorship (albeit silent) of another woman knight, the frank talk about sex with her mother, friendship with boys changing to a sexual
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attraction, and even the mention of feminine needs, this book accurately charts the way a girl has to work and fight to prove herself in a man's world.

The fantasy aspects of the story are absolutely charming. The way Kel communicates with animals and has a flock of sparrows flitting around her is such a contrast to her life full of injuries, dirt, and violence.

I came into this series with this book and I wish I had started at the beginning.
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LibraryThing member jjmcgaffey
Love it. Lots of my favorite scenes, including the one that bugged me into reading the series this time - the fan game. And Kel gets whole bunches of new responsibilities, from the griffin baby to her squire duties, training for command, Raoul, and Cleon (in very different ways). She continues
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dealing with various types of idiots who want to put her down, but also encounters a few who really look up to her - a very different experience. And the royals listen to her, and agree, at least in part - again, a new experience, her voice directly making a difference. The Chamber's visions are weird - I don't know if her pretrials helped or hurt her in the real thing. And a happy not-ending, leading to a new set of experiences. Funny - Kel thinks she's perfectly straightforward and doesn't understand all the complications of politics and people - but over and over, she reads a situation and handles people so that everyone (who deserves it) is as happy as possible - from Roald and Shinko to Lerant. It's a skill I wish I had. OK, next...
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LibraryThing member wealhtheowwylfing
Kel has finally reached the moment in her training where she can be selected as squire to a knight--but what if no knight picks her? To her great relief, Lord Raoul picks her as his squire, and immediately thrusts her into a brutal training regime and equally tiring travel schedule with the King's
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Own. I loved their jousting sessions.
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LibraryThing member treehorse
"More Raoul is nice. While the romance added a bit to what Kel experiences, I felt it was sort of extraneous. I wish Pierce would stop attaching every 'cool' female. What about singles?"
LibraryThing member Isana
Ah~ This series is so great. I loved all of Kel's adventures. Pierce does a super job of making her so awesome, but balanced so that she's not perfect. I'm really in love with Kel. And the conversation at the end was so sweet. I was tearing up even though I knew it was going to happen. I'm glad I
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decided to reread this series. I'm still in love with it.
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LibraryThing member Linyarai
This book was a perfect accompaniment to the others, and set up for the final book beautifully. I don't want the next book to be the last. Even though this isn't the first time I've read the series, I never want it to be over.
LibraryThing member GlenRH
As with all of Tamora Pierce's books I truly enjoyed this one. Why? Because it teaches good principles and models how to deal with all the challenges that come your way.
LibraryThing member LibraryCin
This is the third in a series. Kel has been studying to be a knight for a while now, but many don’t think a girl should become a knight. However, she is determined. She is chosen as a squire to Lord Raoul – that is, she has now finished her education and is training with a real knight.

I
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listened to the audio, so I do suspect that had a bearing on my rating. It just didn’t hold my attention at some points, though other parts were good. Fighting is one thing that I just don’t find very interesting, especially on audio; I tend to tune out. That being said, I finished it two days ago and sadly, I have already forgotten most of it, unfortunately. However, there is one more book in the series, and I will plan to finish it.
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Awards

Evergreen Teen Book Award (Nominee — 2004)

Pages

432

ISBN

0679889191 / 9780679889199
Page: 0.2836 seconds