Review: Mastiff by Tamora Pierce

Title: Mastiff (Beka Cooper #3)

Author: Tamora Pierce

Release Date: October 25th 2011 by Random House

Read: December 4th, 2011

Pages: 608 eBook version

Series: 

1. Terrier
2. Bloodhound
3. Mastiff

Description:

The Legend of Beka Cooper gives Tamora Pierce’s fans exactly what they want—a smart and savvy heroine making a name for herself on the mean streets of Tortall’s Lower City—while offering plenty of appeal for new readers as well.

Beka and her friends will face their greatest and most important challenge ever when the young heir to the kingdom vanishes. They will be sent out of Corus on a trail that appears and disappears, following a twisting road throughout Tortall. It will be her greatest Hunt—if she can survive the very powerful people who do not want her to succeed in her goal.

What I thought:

This is the third and Final book of the Beka Cooper Trilogy. I have loved reading all of Tamora’s other works, and she’s one of my favourite authors, so of course I read this as soon as I could.

The tales of Beka Cooper are set many years before the rest of her books, involving Alanna, Daine and Kel, and by the last name, she’s an ancestor of the awesome George Cooper.

At first, I was a bit lost as the book started, being as it’s been a few years since the last book left off, but you quickly get back into it. These books are written as a type of journal that Beka keeps so she remembers what happens, if she needs to report it later. She works with the Provost Guard as a Dog, a kind of police for the realm or Tortall, and after missions she needs to report what happened.Writing this way keeps her memory sharp too, as she says.

The characters are all interesting and different. Pounce is one of my favourites, the constellation in the form of a cat that helps guide Beka, and of course her scent dog Achoo is awesome. Her companions that join her along the way are a good diverse group, the strong lady knight Sabine, her fellow Dog Tunstall, and Farmer the mage who brings little laughs during the book.

I won’t say exactly what happens so as not to spoil anything, but her and her companions end up on a Hunt, with her scent hound and partners they search the land for someone. I love the fact that there’s never a dull moment in this book, there’s lots of twists and turns, lots of action and a couple of battles, but there’s also thinking and a deep plot in the book.

I admit that I was quite surprised near the end, after they found who they were looking for. I was not expecting that, but it was definitely a twist!

I suggest that anyone who likes magic, sword battles, and other cool worlds pick up the first book in this series, and read all three. Then of course go onto the other novels as well!