Alanna: The First Adventure

It took me a while to get in to this book. For one, the copy I got from the library had the dumbest looking cover. It looked like a bad 80's book about horses. I finally bought my own edition that has a less-dumb looking cover and I must say that I've really enjoyed this book. Even though I'm a total tom-boy, it's sometimes a hard sell for me to appreciate a heroine who must prove her strength by completely denying her feminine nature and becoming fully masculine. There is the tension of those who know her secret identity as a woman telling her that she will only be happy if she fully accepts herself, so there is that. Of course, I haven't read the last few chapters yet, and there are many more books in this series, so I could be premature in my judgment. Regardless, I've really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone who liked East by EdithPattou or Mists of Avalon by Marian Zimmer Bradley.

Author: Tamora Pierce