A 2026 Reread Review. There are no spoilers for further books in the series, but there will be spoilers for this one.
Magic Steps, being the first of The Circle Opens quartet has a few jobs to do and I think they're handled pretty well. First, to open a new series, setting the tone and whatnot; second, to continue a universe by handling a time-jump within that universe and keeping the characters recognizable within that time-jump; and third, to tell its own story without rehashing the ones that came before it.
I honestly feel like, though following their adventures in their first year as mages, we didn't quite get enough time with Sandry, Tris, Daja, and Briar. Breaking them apart to deal with them as individuals, while necessary for this quartet, feels a little sad. I would have enjoyed getting more adventures with them together. But alas, in Magic Steps we just get Sandry, largely outside of Winding Circle. I like Sandry and her journey throughout this book is an interesting one. Not something I would have ever wished on a 14 year old, but honestly, she doesn't feel 14. I don't know if that's a consequence of the "time period" in which she's growing up or the fact that she takes basically doing police work in stride or what... I think it's actually somewhat horrifying that Sandry's thrown into basically running her uncle's household at such a young age, even if she is a noble. It's just a weird mix.
I enjoyed the introduction of Pasco. I like that his magic works through dance. That's been a thing in many of our cultures for thousands of years, even if more modern religions tend to look down on that kind of thing. He's also a bit of fresh air alongside the more serious Sandry and the crap she has to deal with. I also very much like Yazmin. Probably one of my favorite side characters introduced here. Pasco's grandfather can take a hike, honestly. I very much get that he's a very realistic character, but I've always hated close-minded people like him, magic involved or not.
I also liked the general concept of unmagic. Everything has an equal and opposite, so why should magic be any different? It's just another form of physics, after all. It is interesting that, due to the nothingness that surrounds it, unmagic basically acts like Depression. Those who haven't been cleansed or have to work with it definitely start suffering from depressive symptoms. Dragonsalt acts as an anti-depressant, pretty much... though it sounds (to my admittedly sheltered mind anyway) like it's meth. So... ya know... fun times all around. I do feel very sorry for the poor, unnamed mage.
I sort of vaguely remembered what happened to the Dihanurs but... uh... yeah... I had forgotten just how horrifying their end was. So, so gross and bad and just... I'm very glad my brain doesn't conjure up images when I read most of the time. And in a Young Adult book, too... just... wow. It is not explicitly gory at all, but the violence, like all violence in Tamora Pierce's books, is not shied away from.
So anyway... Magic Steps was quite good. A very good start to a new quartet.
In Other News
I just wanted to remind anyone in Texas that early voting for the mid-terms has started and you should get out and vote. Anywhere else, please check your local voting procedures and act accordingly. I think it should honestly go without saying that if you can, you should vote. I personally subscribe to the "Vote Blue, No Matter Who" way of thinking at the present time, but I can't tell ya'll what to do so... yup.
Go vote. It's fucking important.
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