Reviewed by Candace Cunard for TeensReadToo.com

This second book in Tamora Pierce's THE IMMORTALS QUARTET centers around the further development of Daine's magical ability to communicate with animals.

The story begins when the wolf pack that lives near her former home village sends an envoy to ask for her assistance communicating with the humans who are ruining the lands where these wolves hunt. Daine, who owes a debt of gratitude to these wolves for having cared for her once she escaped her village, can't say no to their request, and along with her wizardly teacher, the powerful mage Numair Salmal�n, she journeys to Fief Dunlath, the area known by the wolves as Long Lake.

There, things are much worse than they initially seemed. Not only are the rulers of Fief Dunlath completely disregarding the impact of their actions upon the local wildlife, but Numair recognizes one of their guests as a Combat Mage from the Carthaki Empire, a country currently engaged in small skirmishes with Tortall. It soon becomes apparent that the Lady of the fief is engaged in double dealings with the Carthakis.

While Numair speeds back to warn King Jonathan of what is happening, Daine stays behind with her wolf-friends, gathering information and making plans for putting an end to the mining and garrisoning of soldiers that are destroying the natural habitats of more animals than just the wolves.

In a continuation of her skills from the previous book, Daine learns how to share her mind with animals, seeing through their eyes and sensing with their senses. She also discovers, much to her surprise, that any lengthy mental cohabitation could give her unexpected animal characteristics, like the ears of a mouse or the eyes of a hawk, that fade away only after she has detached herself from the animal's consciousness. With the help of a whole network of animal friends, Daine sketches out a plan of attack that will show the nobles of Fief Dunlath what happens when you mess with the wildlife.

Overall, I found this book quite enjoyable; the continued development of Daine's character was accomplished smoothly, and the characters newly introduced in this volume were fleshed out in their own rights. Particularly notable characters included, not just Numair, but also the baby dragon Stormsong, known as Kitten, and all of the wolves of the Long Lake pack.

If you liked the first book, you'll love the next one! ( )

Daine's wolf pack from her former home asks her to talk to the humans in their new territory about the destruction of the land, the water, and the hunting grounds in the new valley they have moved to, but it turns out that the situation is much different - and much worse - than anyone could have guessed.

Wolf-Speaker is one of my favorite Tortall book. Although the main characters are (as usual in Pierce's books) just a touch too good to be true, Daine grows and learnes and makes mistakes throughout the story and people besides her play roles vital to the plot. I particularly like Maura, a young noblewoman who is terrified but brave, and Tkaa, one of the immortals that Daine meets and befriends. ( )

This is an amazing book. I loved every page. The story is intriguing; the characters are realistic, and the setting is new and full of adventure. ( )

This was a good sequel to Wild Magic. In this book, Daine is 14 and gets a visit from one of her wolf friends, Brokefang, that his home-Dunlath- is in danger. Humans, two-leggers, are chopping down trees, blowing up mountains, and enslaving animals and immortals alike. With her gift of talking to animals, its up to Daine to bring peace back to Dunlath and to figure out what is behind all of this destruction. ( )

Daine, Numair, magic, wolves, ogres and of course, the Badger. This is one book the family enjoyed reading inded. ( )