Beka Cooper: Terrier

Note: I've already reviewed this book, but it was a crappy review so I deleted it and am reposting it in the proper form.
Summary: "I well knew the rules to follow with our training Dogs: Speak when you're spoken to. Keep out of the way. Obey all orders. Get killed on your own time." -Beka Cooper

Beka Cooper is one of the newest Trainees for the Provost's Dogs Guard in Tortall's capital city. A Puppy who's eager to prove herself and to be the Puppy who fastest made it to Dog. However, Beka is assigned to the Lower City, Corus's toughest district. She'll have to learn faster and fight harder than she ever bargained for. The Lower City is filled with the fastest pickpockets, nasty Rogues, murderers with hidden plans, and flirty-rusher friends. When Beka gets wind of a string of murders happening right under the Dogs' nose, she can't resist the scent and trails it. All the while she is also tracking the Shadow Snake, a child's nightmare become a child murderer. She'll have to use her own brand of magic and her friends if she ever hopes to survive her first year.

"This is the beginning of Beka's story, her legend, her legacy..."

Review: First off, you do not have to read any of Tamora Pierce's other Tortall series to understand this book. I didn't, I wasn't even aware of who Tamora Pierce was! Terrier is a great story and to me that's a much bigger compliment then just saying the book is good, it's told from Beka's point of view via her journal. It's a bit on the longer side (568 pages), so be prepared. Pierce does an amazing job with the journal format; making it feel extremely real. I guarentee by the fourth chapter you'll forget you're reading her journal. Ah let's see characters? Pierce creates such an array of cast of characters, you're bound to find someone you love. Whether the righteous and brave Beka herself, or her Dog partners Tunstall, or Goodwin. Or as I did, take a great loving for the Rusher Rosto The Piper, and his slight flirtations with Beka.

What I really love about this book? It's just action nonstop, this book is perfect for any girl who loves kick-ass heroines because I have never met a heroine who can hold her own like Beka can. It takes a very cool spin on fighting, and on the dangerous world of criminals. Tamora Pierce shows just how blurry the line can be between the law and the criminals. In short: You'll be rooting for Beka the entire way, it's impossible not to! Everything about this book just wrapped me in, and enough so that I could read it twice in one year. Go pick it up, seriously!

Rating: 5/5 It's one of the few books I can re-read with never getting tired of and that in itself is probably the biggest compliment. I can't give it anything below a 5/5.

Reviews from The Pros:
"Pierce tries out a new style of storytelling and succeeds admirably...With its rolllicking adventure, appealing characters, and inclusion of Tortall's history, Terrier, will be in strong demand by Pierce's fans. It will keep readers on the edge of their seats." --School Library Journal

"Pierce's leisurely, detailed introduction and exploration of characters result in a diverse and memorable cast." --The Bulletin

"Having followed her signature heroine into the next generation with her Trickster duet, Pierce now looks back into the history of Tortall and finds another fierce, lovable gal who won't take any guff...Pierce deftly handle the novel's journal structure, and her clear homage to the police-procedural genreapplies a welcome twist to the girl-legend-in-the-making story line." --Booklist

"The fun of this offering is in the dynamic characterization and action that takes readers to Beka's inveitable triumph. Beka--who narrates her story via diary--is appealing in her dedication to her fellow Lower City dwellers, and sketches of her compatriot Dogs adn the criminals they sometimes apprehend and sometimes befriend are equally deft. Indeed, perhaps the book's greatest strength is its raw portayal of the fine line between law and lawlessness in teh choices Dogs make as they do their jobs." --The Horn Book Magazine

Pick it up!
-She Who Reads A Lot