Tamora Pierce

For this American writer fantasy fiction is a strong hold. Born Tamora Pierce on December 13, 1954 in South Connellsville Pennsylvania, Fayette County; she cut her own niche with writings that feature young heroines. The name Tamora was born out of a spelling error when her maid was filling her birth certificate, contrary to the mother wanting to name her Tamara.

The best place to start is the Song of the Lioness series, the earliest of Tamora Pierce's multi-book series: it opens with Alanna: The First Adventure (1983) and runs to 4 books across 1983–1988, ending with Lioness Rampant (1988). Tamora Pierce's other series stand alone, so they can be read in any order.

Tamora Pierce has 38 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1983 and 2025. 32 of them belong to 11 named series — the largest being the Circle of Magic series with 4 books — and 6 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.

Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. Tamora Pierce's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Song of the Lioness (1983–1988, 4 books), The Immortals (1992–1996, 4 books) and Circle of Magic (1997–1999, 4 books), plus 8 more.

This guide splits Tamora Pierce's 38 books into 11 named series and 6 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: Circle of Magic (4 books, 1997–1999); The Circle Opens (4 books, 2000–2003); The Immortals (4 books, 1992–1996); Protector of the Small (4 books, 1999–2002); Song of the Lioness (4 books, 1983–1988), plus 6 further series.