The most important characters are Alanna, her squire Coram, her cat Faithful, whose speech she understands, and Prince Jonathan, Alanna's first love. Also important are the members of the Bahzir tribe that adopts Alanna, notably their chief, Halef Seif, and two magically gifted girls, Kara and Kourrem, whom Alanna trains to be shamans. Later in the story, an important role is also played by Alanna's old friend George Cooper, the King of the Thieves.

The most important theme is Alanna's own growth into womanhood. The character starts out by being impetuous and quick to anger. Becoming an adult means taking responsibility for her own actions, as Alanna does after she kills the Bahzir shaman Ibn Nazzir in combat. Although Alanna has no desire for the kind of power Nazzir used, Bahzir law dictates that she must take the place of the slain shaman until...