Dog Warrior

by Wen Spencer

Book Overview

On the run from a fanatical cult, Ukiah Oregon is surprised to discover Atticus Steele, a brother he didn't know he had. He's even more surprised when Atticus involves them in the traffic of an alien drug that could end up getting them both killed.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0451459903
• ISBN13: 9780451459909
• Release Date: October 2004
• Publisher: Roc
• Length: 306 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 4.2" x 6.7"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 12 and higher

Customer Reviews

Wen Spencer just keeps getting better....

Three "Ukiah Oregon" books ago, Wen Spencer was a new novelist with an engaging character and some new novelist faux pas under her belt. I still read "Alien Taste" in one sitting and went out and got the next two books. "Bitter Water" is the toughest read of the group, but every one of them is enjoyable and pulls you through the story. The first thing I will say about Book Four is you don't need the first three books to read and understand it. But, I believe you will be so engaged by Ukiah Oregon's story that you will WANT them. In this novel, Ukiah Oregon discovers he has a big brother. While the feeling of not being the only one is good, neither brother can trust the other. Strongly recommend you read this book when you have several hours to devote to it. You will not want to put it down.

An Excellent Continuation of the Ukiah Oregon Saga

First, if you haven't read the other 3 books about Ukiah Oregon run out and buy them. While they're not NEEDED to thoroughly enjoy Dog Warrior, you won't want to have to run to a bookstore or wait on them to be shipped to you once you get hooked on Wen Spencer's amazing story. Secondly, don't start reading before bed the night before you have somewhere to be in the morning. You might not get there. Or you might get there clutching your copy of Dog Warrior and growling at the insensitive people taking you away from your book. On to the good stuff. Dog Warrior is a wonderfully written book with a concise plot, characters who make you feel for them deeply, and an interesting premise. Though alien invasions have been done to death in science fiction, Wen Spencer has found a new twist to an alien species bent on world domination/destruction. In all, Dog Warrior is an exciting and enjoyable read, my only complaint about it is that I wish it were longer!

Just gets better

I must admit that when I dicovered that Dog Warrior was to be from another POV, I was somewhat disappointed. After reading Alien Taste, Tainted Trail, and Bitter Waters I wanted to know more of Ukiah's story, not someone else. However, everything that I have read from Wen Spencer has exceeded my expectations, and she did not disappoint me this time. Even though much of the story is seen from Atticus Steel's POV, I felt like I learned even more about Ukiah. The action is non-stop excitement, but the characters resonated deeply with me. Bottom line: This book expands the series and grows the characters in ways that make me want more. Highly recommended.

Be prepared to miss sleep!

From the moment the book starts you know something is different. Instead of Ukiah, the book opens from the viewpoint of Atticus Steel. Atticus we soon learn has the same amazing abilities that Ukiah has. Like Ukiah at the start of Alien Taste Atticus knows only that he is different, but not how or why he has abilities no one else seems to have. In Dog Warrior, Wen Spencer shows that she can keep a series fresh even after three previous books. More of the background is revealed and some questions are answered only to open up new questions. Atticus and Ukiah also reveal in different ways that even those with amazing abilities can still be human, often much to their own dismay (When you have utterly perfect memory, every painful moment of your past is a mere reminder away). Unlike Alien Taste, Tainted Trail, or Bitter Waters, Dog Warrior is told primarily from Atticus's point of view, not Ukiah's. Even if Ukiah and Atticus share the same genes and powers, we quickly learn that they have grown into different personalities. Ukiah's Mothers allowed him to grow up without losing his innocence. In Alien Taste Ukiah is still passing from childhood into adulthood, and in Dog Warrior we are reminded how little time has passed in the series as Atticus sees the child that is still in Ukiah's personality. Atticus however did not have nearly as easy a childhood. When he is found as a young child he is slips into the care of the state, passing from one foster home to another, never having the chance to form lasting family ties. Unlike Ukiah, Atticus is forced by life to give up his childhood and seize control of his life. With a new and subtly deadly drug on the street, a cult that is engaged in a hidden war, and a collision of government agencies, Atticus and Ukiah must decide whether they are family or foes. Neither quite trusting the other they each set out doing as they feel they must as the story unfolds with hardly a moment of rest. I can easily give Dog Warrior five stars. One I started reading it was difficult to stop for any reason. Even better Wen Spencer writes books that are a pleasure to reread; each time subtle details emerge showing not just clues to events to occur in the current book, but also ties between each of the books. By the time I finished Dog Warrior it was no longer late at night, it was early morning. Wen Spencer owes me several hours of missed sleep, but I will be more than happy to take payment in future books.

Wen rings changes with an alien eye

Wen Spencer's latest Ukiah Oregon novel, Dog Warrior, is remarkable in several ways. First, it maintains the headlong pace and action of its three predecessors, but while doing so, and seemingly by accident (ha!), it sheds light on the varieties of experience of both humans and aliens. The alien Ontongard, the mutant Prime, the Pack, and the cult all are illuminated in the eye of experience by the new lead character, Ukiah's "brother" Atticus. Originally one body, Ukiah and Atticus were separated by a cleaver, and never reunited physically in time. Atticus passes his "test" to become a Dog Warrior by showing his love for his partner Ru, and for his little brother Ukiah, in the same way that Ukiah passed his own test by loving his Moms and Max Bennett...and later, Indigo and his son. The novel is both structured and kaleidoscopic, and manages all of this with an effortless unpretentiousness that is the hallmark of the mature and superb novelist. I really liked the book, even though I was redshirted in it in a very messy way...after all I did volunteer. Go buy this book, so Wen will be asked to write more of them. Walt Boyes Editor-in-Chief CONTROL Magazine