Lioness Rampant
 |
 Original Atheneum U.S. hardcover of the book featuring the title character. | |
| Author | Tamora Pierce |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | David Weisner |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Song of the Lioness |
| Genre | Fantasy novel |
| Publisher | Atheneum Books |
Publication date | 1988 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| ISBN | 0-689-31116-8 (first edition, paperback) |
| OCLC | 17619765 |
| LC Class | PZ7.P61464 Li 1988 |
| Preceded by | The Woman Who Rides Like a Man |
Lioness Rampant is a fantasy novel by Tamora Pierce, the fourth and last in a series of books, The Song of the Lioness. It details an adventure of the knight Alanna of Trebond, and her final battle between with her archenemy, Duke Roger of Conte.
Characters
- Alanna of Trebond – Heroine.
- Jonathan of Conté – Prince, and later king of Tortall; Alanna's friend and former paramour.
- Gareth of Naxen the Younger – one of Alanna's friends; has succeeded his father as governor of the capital city.
- Raoul of Goldenlake – Another of Alanna's friends, and commander of the King's bodyguard.
- Alex of Tirragen – Yet another friend of Alanna's, who defects to her enemies' side.
- George Cooper – The capital city's 'King of the Thieves': Jonathan's spy, and ultimately Alanna's fiancé.
- Thom of Trebond – Alanna's twin brother: a powerful but arrogant magician.
- Roger of Conté – Antagonist: Jonathan's cousin and rival.
- Liam the Shang Dragon – a master of martial arts; Alanna's friend and paramour.
- Princess Thayet jian Wilima – a K'mir Princess of Sarain, Tortall's neighbor. Later Jonathan's queen.
- Buriram Tourakom – Thayet's maidservant and bodyguard.
- Princess Josiane of the Copper Isles – a traitor conspiring with Roger.
- Delia of Eldorne – Roger's former lover and assistant.
- Si-cham – Priest of the Mithran Order who tries to help Thom overcome his illness.
- Rispah – George's cousin. Marries Coram.
- Myles of Olau – A nobleman, and Alanna's adoptive father.
- Eleni Cooper – George's mother. Later marries Myles of Olau.
- Faithful – Alanna's telepathic cat, given her by her presiding goddess.
- Coram – Alanna's friend and caregiver since birth.
Plot summary
The first chapter of this book finds Alanna, Faithful, and Coram on a quest for the 'Dominion Jewel', which grants immense psychokinetic power to any monarch who owns it. In the town of Berat, Alanna befriends martial-arts champion Liam Ironarm, called the 'Dragon of Shang', who joins the quest. The party thence traverse the realm of Sarain, evading a civil war between the native 'K'miri' tribes and the ruler, Warlord jin Wilima, and acquire new companions in Princess Thayet, the Warlord's only child, and her protector Buriram Tourokom. At the mountain range known as the 'Roof of the World', Alanna acquires the Jewel from its immortal guardian, Chitral. Upon return to her native land of Tortall, Alanna learns from a friend that their fellow-student Prince Jonathan has been made King but not been crowned, and that Alanna's twin brother Thom, to prove himself the most powerful sorcerer in the realm, has resurrected Duke Roger (killed by Alanna in an earlier book). Alanna therefore takes Jonathan's side and gives him the Dominion Jewel, and Jonathan names her as his King's Champion. Meanwhile, Thom is rapidly poisoned by his own magic, by its interaction with that of Roger. On the eve of the Coronation, Tortall's Great Mother Goddess warns Alanna that the Coronation will be a "crossroad in time", decisive of the realm's future. During the ceremony itself, insurgents storm the palace and Alanna and her friends must protect Jonathan. Here, Thom dies, drained of his life by Roger's magic, while Liam Ironarm and Alanna's cat Faithful are killed in the battle. Ultimately, Alanna kills Roger. After the insurgents are captured, Alanna returns to the Bazhir (a Bedouin-like ethnicity of Tortall's southern desert) to recover from her losses. Jonathan marries Thayet, and later appoints George a baron to guard Tortall's coast. Thereafter Alanna marries George.
