Tess of the Road cover

Tess of the Road

by Rachel Hartman

In the medieval kingdom of Goredd, women are expected to be ladies, men are their protectors, and dragons can be whomever they choose. Tess is none of those things. Tess is...different. She speaks out of turn, has wild ideas, and can't seem to keep away from trouble. Then Tess goes too far. What she's done is so disgraceful she can't even allow herself to think of it. Unfortunately, the past cannot be ignored. So Tess's family decides that the only path for her is a nunnery. But on the day she is to join the nuns, Tess chooses a different path for herself. She cuts her hair, pulls on her boots, and sets out on a journey. She's not running *away*; she's running *toward* something. What that something is, she doesn't know. Tess just sees the open road as a map to somewhere else--a life where she might belong. In a return to the spellbinding world of the Southlands created in the award-winning, *New York Times* bestselling novel *Seraphina*, Rachel Hartman explores self-reliance and redemption in this wholly original fantasy. This description comes from the publisher. *Tess of the Road* takes place in the world first described in *Seraphina*.

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Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?