Mastiff

Gr 7 Up—Beka Cooper, police detective, returns in the final volume (Random, 2011) in Tamora Pierce's trilogy. Lord Gershom sends Beka, her scent hound Achoo, and her partner Tunstall on a mission to retrieve the King's kidnapped son. Tunstall's love, Lady Sabine, accompanies them on their search along with Farmer, a mysterious young mage. As Achoo follows the scent of the young prince, the detectives' quest is met with surly commoners, arrogant nobles, and evil mages using dark magic. When their every move is shadowed by wicked forces, Beka begins to suspect that she is traveling with a traitor. Susan Denaker turns in a remarkable performance, giving each character a unique voice and infusing emotion into her narration despite dull writing. Listeners may be disappointed in this title because it has little action and drags on interminably until the very rushed (and unconvincing) reveal of the traitor within their midst. Still, libraries circulating the first two audiobooks may want to add the concluding title to their collection to satisfy Pierce fans.—Tricia Melgaard, formerly Broken Arrow Public Schools, Tulsa, OK