In the ninth chapter of\u00c2\u00a0Tris<\/i>\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Book<\/i>, Rosethorn asks for Briar\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s assistance in repelling the pirates, and then everyone learns just how powerful the circle of friendship is. THIS IS CANON. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to read\u00c2\u00a0Circle of Magic<\/i>.<\/p>\n
THIS BOOK IS SOMETHING ELSE.<\/p>\n
Foreshadowing<\/b><\/p>\n
oh my god NOW I KNOW WHY. NOW I KNOW WHY<\/i>.<\/p>\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Some of the spells we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve done with you four \u00e2\u20ac\u201c the weaving spell, the spell Niko used with Tris to see what happened at Bit, the one Frostpine and Daja used on the harbor chain \u00e2\u20ac\u201c those are called great-spells. Without a senior mage who understands great-spells to guide them, young mages have been known to get so caught up in one that they die. They feed their magic and their lives into the pattern of the spell, without ever realizing what they were doing.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n I missed one specific detail here that would have clued me in to what happened later in the chapter: Lark says \u00e2\u20ac\u0153their lives\u00e2\u20ac\u009d were used in the pattern, AND OH MY GOD, THAT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S EXACTLY WHAT BRIAR DOES. I brushed over this, and it was\u00c2\u00a0right there<\/i>.<\/p>\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I hope they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll be all right,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Sandry whispered to Tris.<\/p>\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Maybe bring our cord out here, just in case,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d the other girl said quietly.<\/p>\n Sandry nodded, and went to get the circle of lumpy thread.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n RIGHT THERE.\u00c2\u00a0RIGHT THERE<\/i>.<\/p>\n Rosethorn and Briar<\/b><\/p>\n The vast majority of this chapter covers a single scene, and really, it\u00c2\u00a0needs<\/i> to. This is a huge moment\u00c2\u00a0in terms of worldbuilding\u00c2\u00a0and<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0character development, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s also an important part of the effort to fight back against the pirates. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t feel any need to cover the second-by-second actions of the huge fight (since my video does a good job of that), so I think it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s best that I talk about some smaller details and the overall ramifications of what Rosethorn and Briar do. As I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve already pointed out, I thought that whole great-spells monologue was something meant to highlight that Briar and Rosethorn were about to do a great-spell. I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t find it necessarily surprising that they teamed up and used their magic to repel the pirates. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s in the\u00c2\u00a0details<\/i> that I was impressed and shocked and utterly thrilled.<\/p>\n Let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s start off with this:<\/p>\n Rosethorn waited until Skyfire was done speaking with a runner, then told him, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153You\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re so busy planning how to weave magics, shield that and blending this, that you forget it doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t\u00c2\u00a0have<\/i> to be magic alone.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Which is a vital point to make within this book because it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a motif we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve seen over and over again. The magical world at work in the Emelan books is not one that gives us a separate system that does not rely on the physical world. They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re nestled within one another; they borrow from one another; they rely on one another. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s no separating them. So I like that Rosethorn reminds Skyfire that their actions should reflect that.<\/p>\n When she and Briar then begin to spread their magic beneath the surface of the beach, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s clear just how intertwined magic is with the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153natural\u00e2\u20ac\u009d universe. (I know that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a clunky phrase, given that magic\u00c2\u00a0is<\/i> natural in Emelan, but I hope it makes sense what I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m referring to by using it.) Plus, their magic is centered around creation, which is just the coolest shit ever. Even if it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s being used as a defensive weapon, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s still about giving life to these seeds:<\/p>\n In her magic was the power of stone-cracking vines, of pine seedlings that could grow over a farm in a handful of years, mixed with the demand for haste that only humans felt.<\/p>\n It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s potential.<\/p>\n Circle of Friendship<\/b><\/p>\n But it feels like this pales in comparison to Briar Moss and his friends and THE CIRCLE OF FRIENDSHIP. Look, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not a child, but once Rosethorn started screaming because of the burning plants, I FELT LIKE THAT WAS SERIOUS ENOUGH TO WARRANT AN INTERVENTION. That seemed\u00c2\u00a0horrible<\/i>, and echoing what the kids later say, NO ONE PREPARED THEM FOR HOW BRUTAL THIS WAS GOING TO BE. At no point did Rosethorn tell Briar that if she started feeling pain that it was just temporary, that it was a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153mere discomfort.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Here\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s one of the only people he has\u00c2\u00a0ever<\/i> trusted, screaming in agony right next to him. I think it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s entirely understandable that once he hears Rosethorn\u00c2\u00a0and<\/i> witness the horror of the attack on the beach (NOOOO, THAT POOR WARRIOR WOMAN WHO TOOK CARE OF LITTLE BEAR,\u00c2\u00a0TAKE IT BACK<\/i>), he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d want to do something more. That being said? I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t expect\u00c2\u00a0this<\/i>:<\/p>\n Like this<\/i>, Briar told his friends. He slammed into his pattern, taking them along. They roared through its crossings and turnings, bringing it to life in the mind they now shared. Now they saw, as he did, how to build the magical fire until every green thing in the cove had to grow fast or explode. They fed the thorns and stickers with their anger and bitterness. Daja had her own memories of pirates, as did Sandry. Tris was furious at these parasites who burned and killed and made her new home unsafe. The four boiled thorugh every root, branch, vein and needle, forcing them higher, longer, thicker, sharper \u00e2\u20ac\u201c definitely much, much sharper.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n He provided them with a cathartic outlet, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all. TRIS\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S ANGER BROKE ME INTO A MILLION PIECES. And yet? I still wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t able to fully appreciate what had happened here. It wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t until Niko arrived at Discipline (AFTER THESE FOUR CHILDREN\u00c2\u00a0BURIED THE PIRATES IN GROWTH ON THE BEACH\u00c2\u00a0HELP<\/i><\/b> ME<\/i>) that I discovered just how dangerous their collaboration was. However, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m siding with Tris here. I understand Niko\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s fright and anger, but these four CHILDREN have been tasked with dealing with shit most children don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even dream about until they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re twice the age of these characters. Niko shouts at them as if they\u00c2\u00a0do<\/i> know better, but the truth is that they don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t. Their schooling is irregular and chaotic, and the recent siege is definitely not helping that. There is some responsibility here that Niko and the other teachers need to accept! So I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m so pleased that Pierce gives these kids the space within the text to stand up to Niko because I think it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s super important. I think it makes the story\u00c2\u00a0better<\/i> when this is acknowledged!<\/p>\n Look, this is not exactly the first fantasy novel where someone does something special and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153impossible\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and all the grown-ups are flummoxed as to how kids accomplished something of this nature. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a common trope within the genre, but I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve never seen it used like this. This whole final scene is uncomfortable, angry, and awkward. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not some glorious revelation of a chosen one; it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s about four kids possessing a power that scares the shit out of those around them<\/i>. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s about how this magic can easily turn against the wielder in an instant, and no one has taught them\u00c2\u00a0how<\/i> to wield it correctly. And I think that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what makes this stand apart from other books that borrow from the same basic trope. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a lot more emotional and realistic to me.<\/p>\n So, Niko\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s taken the circle of friendship<\/span> thread from Sandry, which worries me a little bit. When will he give it back? Are they going to have time for more lessons amidst the pirate attacks? WHERE WILL THIS BOOK GO NEXT?<\/p>\n The original text contains use of the word \u00e2\u20ac\u0153idiot.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=39G52Xnouks<\/p>\n Mark Links Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n – Mark Does Stuff is on Facebook!<\/a> I’ve got a community page up that I’m running. Guaranteed shenanigans! In the ninth chapter of\u00c2\u00a0Tris\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Book, Rosethorn asks for Briar\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s assistance in repelling the pirates, and then everyone learns just how powerful the circle of friendship is. THIS IS CANON. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to read\u00c2\u00a0Circle of Magic.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[478,477,483],"tags":[482,250],"class_list":["post-3053","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-circle-of-magic","category-emelan","category-triss-book","tag-mark-reads-emelan","tag-tamora-pierce"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3053","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3053"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3053\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3053"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3053"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3053"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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