To the great joy of her many fans, Tamora Pierce's Trickster's Choice begins a new saga of Tortall to add to The Song of the Lioness Quartet, the Immortals Quartet, and The Protector of the Small Quartet.

At the center of each of these books is always a strong and resourceful young woman who masters the arts of swordplay and knightly warfare in the magical medieval country of Tortall. Alianne, or Aly, daughter of the warrior queen Alanna the Lioness, has all these skills, but also a delicious sense of humour, which serves her well when she is chosen by the trickster god Kyprioth to serve as his secret agent and a slave for a year in the embattled Copper Isles. There the dark-skinned natives, or raka, have been conquered and crushed by the laurin, light-skinned people from the mainland. The burning raka resentment is fuelled by prophecies of a twice royal queen who will free them, aided by the "wise one, the cunning one, the strong one, the warrior, and the crows". Just how each of the colourful characters and Aly herself fit into this prophecy and Kyprioth's tricky plan keeps readers guessing. Aly plots to show her skill at spying as she flirts with the god and is courted by Nawat, a crow transformed into a handsome young man, who is puzzled when she rejects his attempts to mate-feed her with grubs and ants.

The pages of this long but fast-paced adventure zip by, enlivened by intrigue, skirmishes, comedy, romance and lots of dramatic clothes. (Ages 10 to 14) --Patty Campbell, Amazon.com

2008-02-11 Ali, the only woman with a backbone??

Through all of the Tamora Piece's books, there is no other heroine that quite matches to Ali. I am a self confessed Pierce fanatic (or perhaps fan is a less harmful word), and from the many readings Trickster's Choice has received I have never once become bored with Ali's antics.

Pierce offers here a character that, unlike many past heroines who appear confined by a rigidly outlined plot, will bumble along with you. On the first chapters we are greeted by someone that does not yet understand her place in life, and perhaps never will. From there on it seems as if we help her to make the decisions that ultimately decide her future.

The useful skills Pierce has equipped Ali with make for exceptionally interesting reading. For me it wasn't so much a story but a handbook. I'm not sure, and will definitely never try it out, but I think I could possibly be an extremely accomplished spy.

I welcomed this series with open arms. If you're looking for a light, witty and intriguing beginning to a new angle of the Tortall books, or simply something to introduce you to them, then Pierce certainly delivers. My only complaint was the brief nature of some explanations. However with a bit of imagination this really wasn't a problem, and in many ways added to the story.