Tamora Pierce Wiki

Welcome to the Tamora Pierce Wiki! Want to edit and see fewer ads cluttering your screen? Consider creating an account and participating in our small community! Registered users will be able to edit pages, will only see ads on the community's main page, and more.

READ MORE

Tamora Pierce Wiki
Register
Advertisement

Maura of Dunlath (pronounced MAHR-rah of DUHN-lahth), born in 440 HE,[1] was the second daughter of the previous lord of Dunlath from his second marriage. She was the younger half-sister of Yolane of Dunlath, and sister-in-law to Lord Belden.

Maura was one of the closest living relatives of King Jonathan on his father's side, presumably a third cousin.[2] She also possessed the Gift from the Conté line. However, her Gift wasn't very strong, just powerful enough to light a fire or candles.[3]

Biography[]

Early life[]

Her older sister, Yolane, believed that Maura was beneath her for being the child of a 'country nobody', as Yolane put it, while Yolane's mother had been from one of the oldest families in Tortall.

Dunlath under Yolane tried to emulate the palace in Corus, leaving Maura forced to eat meals alone at the lower table, as the servants were no longer allowed to eat with them. Maura’s Nurse also put her on a “backboard” which was supposed to prevent round shoulders. On discovering that Princess Kalasin of Conté did not have to use a backboard, Maura thought she might be able to persuade her nurse to cease using it.

Plot against the Crown[]

Maura was ten years old when she first met the wild mage called Daine. Her sister and brother-in-law had gotten themselves involved in a plot to overthrow the Conté family for Ozorne Tasikhe, the Emperor Mage of Carthak. Daine and Numair Salmalín were sent to investigate the disappearances of members of Tortall's various armed forces in the general Dunlath area. Maura was ignorant of her family's treasonous planning for some time. They were working in concert with a few mages who studied with Numair at the Carthaki University: Tristan Staghorn, Alamid Mokhlos, and Gissa of Rachne. Tristan was a very accomplished war mage and responsible for quite a lot of the destruction.

When talking with Daine, Maura revealed a knowledge of her sister's snobbiness and general rudeness when it came to the lower classes. When Maura learned that Daine could talk to animals, she didn't think it was odd and took the news very calmly. She said that even though her sister was rude to the servants, she wasn't, so she received good food that remained hot. She showed concern for the fate of Dunlath if a treasonous plot were discovered, and ran away to tell Jonathan IV of Conté. The Nurse and Cook at Fief Dunlath were fond of her, and concerned when she ran away.

She was looked after by Rikash Moonsword, who explained Stormwings value others' young, particularly when they are neglected.

After Yolane's plot failed, Maura inherited Dunlath.

Lady of Dunlath[]

Being the next heir of Dunlath, Maura became Lady of Dunlath. As she was underage at the time of her inheritance, Douglass of Veldine was appointed as her knight-guardian, presumably until she is eighteen.

She also took part in the Immortals War and defended her lands against invaders.

At fifteen years old, she talked about the battle for Dunlath during the pages' summer camp, Keladry of Mindelan and Nealan of Queenscove being a few of the pages in attendance.[4]

Physical description[]

Maura is described as being painfully plain in appearance, and about ten years old when Daine first meets her. She is of a stocky build and has straight brown hair with bangs, freckles, and a pug nose. Her eyes are large, brown, and frank.[5]

Personality and traits[]

Maura was her elder half sister's opposite in almost every way. While her sister was snobbish and cruel, Maura was kind and did her best to make friends with people if she could. She was kind to the servants, earning their trust and favorable opinions. Because Yolane forbade her from playing with commoners, Maura grew up very lonely and isolated from other children, making her wish she had companionship.

Appearances[]

So far Maura only appears in Wolf-Speaker and has been featured in passing in one of the later novels, Page, but Tamora Pierce plans to write a novel or perhaps even a series starring Maura.[6]

Notes and references[]

  1. Tortallan timeline
  2. Wolf-Speaker, Ch. 3 (pg. 73; Simon Pulse paperback)
  3. Wolf-Speaker, Ch. 5 (pg. 153; Simon Pulse paperback)
  4. Page, 'Vanishing Year'
  5. Wolf-Speaker, Ch. 2 (pg. 65; Simon Pulse paperback)
  6. Words of Tamora Pierce

See also[]

Advertisement