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4.21 AVERAGE
4.21 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
"I learned a lot," he told her. "Friendship and kinship matter more than adventure. Boundaries only exist in our minds. A heart can travel to the horizon without moving a paw step. And I made the best friend any cat ever had."
Tallstar living his best life on his mental and physical journeys, let's goooooo!
The first chunk was most engaging thing about the book, because it introduced a dynamic not seen in the original series - that of the tunnelers and the moor runners. They have a very delicate yet healthy balance between each thinking they are superior to the other group and recognizing their clans need both to thrive. Tension definitely arises when younger cats are placed in one group over another; tunneling is, objectively speaking, a hard and more dangerous job and they appear more short-staffed than the moor runners. Tallstar is, justifiably, a little terrified of the dangers of tunneling, but initially feels he must follow in his father's footsteps and take that role. When he changes his mind and joins the runners, there is blowback, but it gives him a new perspective - that moor running is also fucking hard! It is just hard being a damn cat!
Sandgorse's death marks a turning point for the clan. I'm not sure why, as he isn't the first casualty from tunneling, but it's after his death that Heatherstar decides to abolish the tunneling role altogether. Whatever advantage tunnels may have given them over other clans, it's obviously not worth any more lives lost. It's hard to actually picture these tunnels, I suspect they're much smaller than I imagine, because cats, and it's hard to understand how they collapse so easily. Why, for instance, do rabbits not have this same tunneling problem? We need a cat scientist in the field! In any case, Tallstar's decision is made for him to join the moor runners, but at this point he's angry he can't carry on his father's legacy. So he turns instead to vengeance.
Often, the cats go on journeys in search of some physical goods or help. Tallstar is driven mostly by revenge against Sparrow, a rogue cat who he believes left his father to die in a collapsing tunnel. That, combined with messages he receives about his destiny lying beyond Windclan borders, compels him to leave the camp, mainly in search of Sparrow, but to also see the larger world outside of his home. It's a very natural decision for a Windclan cat to come to, imo; spending so much time on the moor, where you can likely see much more than cats living deeper in the forest, how could one not dream of setting foot on distant lands you can literally see all the time?
"When we don't know the truth, we invent stories to fill the gaps...sometimes it's the only way we have to make sense of our lives."
Borders come up a lot in this book, both travelling beyond one's borders and the ongoing discussion over territory. I like how the latter is still somewhat underdeveloped, promoting a murky theory that borders should exist to denote fair food rations but not to start wars over trespassing. The struggle between capitalistic fascism and communism runs through the entire Warriors universe, sometimes swaying more heavily into one over the other. If the cats are ever to choose one over the other, they will need to RIOT IN THE STREETS AND BURN THE WHOLE SYSTEM TO THE GR-we're not talking about cats anymore, are we. It's always such an interesting back and forth, though, between clans helping each other in times of need and fighting each other when they feel wronged or seek greater control.
It's hard to read the Warriors series and be a Person Online without getting spoilers, but I genuinely didn't know about the friendship between Talltail and Jake before reading this. And it ran deeeeep. I always love a good behind-the-story plot insight, and it kind of blew my mind to read the scene where Talltail saved Jake (Firestar's father) from dog attacks and realize he singlehandedly saved the future of all the clans for generations (so I guess ignore all that stuff I said up top about Talltail being just a guy, lmao). This bromance is hella intimate. Both cats are introduced to A Whole New World while being with each other, and it's transformative in ways that only strengthens their bond. Their physical closeness and words to each other are a little *eyebrow raise*, but regardless of whatever label we put on it, it's a very special relationship while holding significance for the reader as well.
The ending was rushed. For a 500+ page book, Talltail's path to becoming Tallstar could have been drawn out better, but the pacing is way off towards the end. We jump forward in time to a battle with Shadowclan in which Talltail loses his frenemy, Shrewclaw, who uses his last breaths to demand Talltail avenge his death (my guy, we've been down this road already?!) The next jump is to Talltail receiving his nine lives, leaving unsaid what exactly eventually made him leadership material. He is obviously a smart enough, strong-willed cat who's able to make decisions and direct others, but I mean, so am I, that doesn't mean I should be girl-bossing an entire society. Also, it's a rare tradition, but we couldn't get out of this without an ableist naming ceremony! Deadpaw is...really ice cold for a cat who doesn't have use of one of his paws. And there was very little pushback to change it. Freaking paw-some, y'all.
I didn't hate this one, but it could have been a novella. Some great themes, though, as Warriors always comes through with.
This, like most of the SE's, is a strong addition to the Warriors series. It's fun (though annoying) reading about Tallstar, who readers know to be level-headed and noble, as an angsty, bratty apprentice/warrior. I also love seeing Jake, Firestar's father, and the way the kittypet ends up being the wisest character in the whole book.
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"You're hare-brained!" Shrewpaw snarled. "You're an embarrassment to WindClan with your dumb accusations! Nobody likes you. You should be underground! We won't miss you." -p 224
I hate to agree with him, but Shrewpaw was absolutely correct here.
This entire book aside from the very beginning and the very end was a tolerance test to see how much a protagonist can irritate you by making the most insane, irrational decisions before you finally relent and just DNF the book. I survived the gauntlet but found myself surprised at how angry I was getting with every page I turned considering I’ve largely heard nothing but praise towards this super edition, likely due to the inclusion of queer coding which I will get to. You might pick up on very quickly that I find irrational thinking a little irritating. If this trait of mine has clouded my judgement in how I analysed the characters then I suppose that is a shame but I couldn’t help how annoyed this book made me feel at times.
I’m going to start with a list of “things” I consistently liked. This won’t have any impact on the chronology of this review, however, because the “things” are all characters as I can’t think of a single plot point that wasn’t incredibly frustrating, even if you could argue that that’s good writing to reflect how Talltail was feeling I’ll have to rebut you and remind that this is warrior cats and I don’t think warrior cats is trying to get that meta for its mostly child audience to self reflect as they read between the lines: it is just simply not the case! I digress. I really loved Barkface, I appreciate that he was always very kind and supportive of Talltail. It feels a great shame that his friendship dynamic with Talltail disappeared in the middle of the book because that was very sweet and felt like a very genuine depiction of friendship compared to a lot of other friendships the series has illustrated which seem shallow and built on respect rather than an enjoyment for each other’s company. Similarly I also loved Jake but that goes without saying. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of anyone reading this book and not liking Jake! I adore his role in the narrative because by the time he shows up I was practically tearing my hair out begging someone to snap Talltail out of his downwards spiral. Jake plays a far more important role to the story so I’ve dedicated a larger section of the review to him but I need to make it known that I do love him. I really enjoyed Hawkheart because his characterisation across his appearances in the entire series is very consistent and I like the fact that he’s a bit grumpy, I think it’s fun and distinct for a medicine cat (I know grumpy med cat is a bit of a trope but Hawkheart definitely embodies the trope in a way that really works and never comes across as spiteful). Granted, my warmth towards Hawkheart also stems from how rational he is. A rational cat in this book is a rare sight and it is incredibly welcome. Which brings me onto my final character who I loved: Heatherstar. Whenever she was on the page you could trust that she was going to be saying something very rational and very necessary. I would physically feel the tension in my shoulders melt away when she entered the scene because it marked a point of relief from whatever nonsense was occurring.
Now we can shift focus onto the various miseries of TallTail’s ever so melodramatic life that he suffers through with such grace (please note the sarcasm). The woes start immediately, with Talltail being less than a month old and already a victim of bullying, perpetrated by Shrewkit, later Shrewclaw. At first I was fine with Shrewclaw’s constant teasing because it felt like something kids would just do, but then it carried on past the point of being childhood teasing and became such a repetitive feat of the overall dialogue that I just grew weary of it. It’s also reflective of the other side characters being perhaps a little incompetent because, despite knowing their apprentices don’t get along, their mentors still have them train together and make no effort to separate them or stop the bullying in any way, resulting in them physically assaulting each other during their warrior assessments in a spat that was perfectly avoidable. The bullying escalated further to the point where this was no longer a representation of two characters butting heads, but instead depicted unceasing emotional torment as Shrewclaw continues to pick on Talltail not only when they’re both adults, but also during sensitive moments when Talltail is grieving and I don’t understand why the book does this. It’s so frustrating thinking that maybe Shrewclaw won’t start hurling abuse at Talltail when he’s clearly feeling down, and yet he does! What were they trying to achieve? Because it ends up coming across that Shrewclaw has no concept of empathy and yet the narrative vaguely tries to redeem him but in such a pathetic way that I was just left confused about the entire arc. They have Shrewclaw have a mate and have kits which seems redeeming until you note that one of those kits was Mudclaw who is similarly aggressive. Are we supposed to assume that this apathy was a genetic trait? So then Shrewclaw was inherently mean? And then not only that, but when Shrewclaw dies trying to avenge his mother, he asks Talltail to avenge them both (post TallTail’s whole revenge arc, too. I think they were going for a “this is what real revenge looks like”) but this happens at the end of the book and literally nothing comes of it. Besides, it’s a weird request considering they were absolutely not friends. Then when Shrewclaw gives Talltail one of his lives they admit to not being friends again- so why is he here? I understand his function in the narrative and the purpose he serves in Talltail’s arc but the execution was anger inducing for the reader as the bullying never had to escalate to the point it got to.
Also, I have got to mention that Shrewclaw gets his name calling from the Horrid Henry school of teasing, dubbing Talltail the “wormcat”. It’s difficult to look past when you’re familiar with Horrid Henry, I kept hearing it in his voice. It makes me wonder if anyone working on the book (as the writing team is based in the UK) was aware of this similarity.
Alongside Shrewclaw making Talltail’s life as miserable as possible, we are also introduced very early on to Talltail’s troubled relationship with his mother, Palebird, who he feels as though it is his duty to make her happy and that he is constantly failing this as she grieves losing Talltail’s sister, Finchkit, and also suffers from poor health postpartum. If this seems a bit heavy for a children’s series, you’d be correct (although granted these aren’t topics that warrior cats haven’t dabbled in before). I really do think that the things Palebird is going through and the themes she introduces to the narrative deserve to be handled with a lot more nuance that warrior cats can afford them. Palebird’s neglect of Talltail and seeming disinterest in his life, followed by immediately starting a second family with another tom after Talltail’s father dies who she is much more involved with and is shown to care far more about her new kits creates a horrible representation of the effects of grief and illness on families. The portrayal ends up coming across like Palebird never loved Talltail, which they hastily attempt to undo during his leader ceremony by making her affirm that she loves him, but by this point the damage has already been done and all of her past actions drown out these words. She is constantly dismissive of Talltail, she snaps at him when he’s trying to interact with his half-siblings and she overall exhibits a disinterest in his life. I don’t think the writers should have coupled these traits that Palebird is neglectful or uncaring towards Talltail with her being a representative of grief and chronic illness. It is not fair. Her role in the narrative was less frustrating, and more deeply uncomfortable to read. I wish the writers had done literally anything else with her arc, preferably something more caring. I understand that they were trying to create a combination of things that made Talltail snap, but if you cannot approach a topic with the sensitivity it requires (either due to writing ability or target demographic) then it should not be included in your book.
In an attempt to the review this story chronologically, we’re now going to go onto the Shadowclan debacle. This book’s plot is composed of a lot of character based plotpoints and how Talltail experiences and reacts to them, such as Shrewclaw bullying Talltail endlessly. I suppose you could argue not a lot actually happens in the story outside of Talltail suffering, but there is this oh so delightful inclusion of clan conflict. Clan disputes often are a bit silly but the world building usually does an okay job at contextualising the conflicts in a way that lets us empathise with why territories are supposedly so important. This book does not do that. The conflict is random and stupid and barely makes sense in the warriors universe unless we are still operating under the early series’ logic of “Shadowclan is the evil clan”. Shadowclan just decide one day that they’re going to invade Windclan. Why? Pretty much because they can. Because they could also hunt on the moors if they really wanted to. Not because they need to. It is literally just “because”. So that’s already irksome. Then it gets worse. This attack functions in the plot as a means to give Tallpaw something to blame himself about and feel guilty over. He blames himself for the Shadowclan patrol ambushing Windclan camp, and he blames himself over Brackenwing’s death (Shrewclaw and Barkface’s mother; one of Palebird’s close friends). From this point, Tallpaw becomes absolutely insufferable. All he does is mope and tell everyone that he’s a murderer- which he obviously isn’t he’s just being irrational, but nobody challenges this belief! So he just mopes about it continuously! In fact, Shrewpaw actually affirms his belief and blames him too, adding fuel to the fire. When reading a book, you want the protagonist to show some form of backbone and have at least some wits about them. You do not want them to be the narrative’s punching bag and succumb to every blow to the point they’re just an angsty blob who vents at every opportunity. Like I said, this story’s plot relies on Talltail’s reactions to events to propel the narrative forwards. This makes him hit a character development wall, splatting against it like a piece of rotten fruit. The way he reacts to Brackenwing’s death after this utterly nonsensical battle reduces him into being possibly the most pathetic protagonist ever written.
This conflict is then almost forgotten about for the rest of the book as Talltail trudges through the swamps of angst and victimisation, right up until the end of the book. The root of the conflict is still ridiculous (because there is no concrete motive), but I prefer the execution this time, exploiting tunnels to steal prey is much more gripping than just flat out assailing your neighbours unprompted. This rather senseless Chekhov's gun feels like an afterthought based on its position in the book, like the Erins suddenly remembered they ought to circle back to that before concluding the story. It is here where Shrewclaw dies, which, again, feels unnecessary and absolutely nothing comes of it. I can kind of understand why they included these battles at all, presumably just to kill off some cats and make Talltail react to different deaths, but the way Shadowclan and their motives are written is so goofy and totally took me out of the narrative. A battle should feel high stakes and important! Not slapped in to a story randomly just to make your protagonist even more whiny than he already is.
We’re getting into the really important plot beats now. Talltail’s turning point (which is to say a complete nosedive into insanity). At the beginning of the book Inwas actually in awe at the way Sandgorse and Tallkit’s relationship was written. They seemed to have a really healthy and supportive bond and actually encompassed a genuine father-son dynamic (whereas I’d argue most child-parent relationships in warriors come across as weird friends. Certainly the children calling their parents by their names instead of “mum” or “dad” does not help. Nor does the fact that kits mature within roughly a single week. Bluestar’s super edition depicts kits only two days old with their eyes open and talking). I was really happy to see it! In his kithood we see the first signs of Talltail being the wimp to outwimp all other wimps as he faces one minor inconvenience practicing digging and immediately starts crying but actually I think it is nice to see kits in this series act age appropriate. Regardless, this twee joy gets thrown out the window the second Tallpaw decides he wants to be a moor runner as he hates being under ground. Instead of being supportive, Sandgorse instantly becomes another contributor to Talltail’s misery, pretty much disowning him and refusing to even look at him which is a very rational and normal reaction for a loving father to have, of course (sarcasm). Tallpaw nearly dies when his father takes him underground and this prompts Heatherstar to ban that particular tunnel on account of it being dangerous (this was obviously a good decision, I love Heatherstar) but Sandgorse spins this to assign blame to Tallpaw, claiming that him being a wuss has made months of work pointless. This is stupid but Tallpaw takes it to heart and becomes desperate to make Sandgorse proud in any way he can. This is an okay motivation, I just wish the context were different and that the plot wasn’t so focussed on making Talltail as miserable as possible. Sandgorse shouldn’t blame his son who almost died on that tunnel getting banned and he shouldn’t have done a complete 180 on his affections towards him just because he wanted to be a moor runner. This, like so much of this book, is irrational. It’s upsetting to see so much of Tallpaw’s motivation be driven by such miserable circumstances.
When Sparrow, a rouge without training, asks to see the tunnels and Sandgorse takes him, only Sparrow makes it out alive as the tunnel caves in. Tallpaw never got to make Sandgorse proud. He views Sparrow running out of the collapsing tunnel without Sandgorse… as murder. Which is just so unbelievably not the case. Nothing has ever been the case less. Literally nothing. This plot point is the king of frustration in this kingdom of ridiculous and irritating story beats. This one is the cherry on top. It is INFURIATING. Tallpaw has already been moping about murdering Brackenwing (which he obviously didn’t do) but now he’s also seething about Sparrow murdering Sandgorse. He claws at the ground and growls for no reason. He isolates himself from the rest of the clan and insists to anyone who will listen that Sparrow is a murderer. Some characters try to weakly correct him and say the cave in was a tragic accident but it goes in one ear and out the other. Suddenly, Tallpaw is without friends, he’s constantly moping, he’s constantly angry and overall he is just a complete jerk. He’s horrible. You’ve never known such a pathetic wet wipe loser to be so cold. The grief he feels over not getting to make Sandgorse proud is understandable and you can almost empathise with him for it, but the way he reacts to his death overall is just the epitome of insufferable. I would physically feel tense and like my insides were twisting whenever I’d pick up the book at this stage that’s how anger inducing I found this to be. It goes beyond being irrational. Tallpaw has leapt to so many different wrong conclusions by this point that I viewed him as a complete lunatic. None of his thought processes made any sense and they certainly didn’t make for a fun, nor insightful reading experience. Whilst this could be seen as an examination into the role anger plays in grief, I cannot look last how frustrating the irrationality is.
After this, Tallpaw begs to train as a tunneller because he thinks it’ll make his father proud in starclan, and that it is something he needs to do to right all the wrongs in his whole life- which is irrational. Heatherstar then bans tunnelling altogether because it is too dangerous- which is rational and is why I love Heatherstar. Unfortunately, this makes Tallpaw even more angsty and even more angry, therefore making him even more insufferable. Tunnelling overall as a topic was frustrating in general. It could have been a really interesting debate on tradition versus the acknowledgment of unsafe practices but instead it turns into the reason Talltail’s Dad can’t look at his son anymore and yet another element to Talltail’s overarching misery (which at this point is getting very old. You can’t have this relentless cascade of negative events befall a character without having them have something to cling onto to allow them to have hope. It ends up making the reading experience really bleak). It’s such a missed opportunity to explore this aspect of Windclan and how the cats really feel about it, especially considering most tunnellers actually in the end were quite happy to not have to go underground anymore.
All of the ingredients in Talltail’s misery cake combine wonderfully and result in him feeling like a complete outcast as he begins longing to leave the clans for good. I actually quite liked this plot line in theory as it is at this point completely justified for Talltail to feel that way, however, the execution is irritating because this is when Talltail is at his peak point of angst and irrationality so it was still grating to read. I suppose the imagery of being isolated on the moor was nice. I’ve always enjoyed the oxymoronic sentiment of being suffocated in wide open spaces, particularly in this context where Talltail is surrounded by cats he’s known his whole life and yet he’s never been more alone. But that’s not all there is to it, as is gleaned from the title of the book. He wants revenge (which is stupid). So he announces to his clan that he is leaving which his mother totally dismisses because of course she does. The problem I have here is the reason he is leaving and how the subsequent reaction is inappropriate it what he is saying, especially with the context of the warrior code dissuading against killing cats. He is leaving with an absolute focus on murdering Sparrow. At first it isn’t clear if he means murder or assault but it is later clarified that he absolutely wants to see Sparrow dead. He fantasises about it in detail. So- if someone you live with one day after becoming so angry and isolated announced to you that they’re going on a journey to kill a man, how would you react? Because I personally would think “wow you’ve gone completely insane!” but Windclan’s reaction is so subdued! They sort of go “oh no you can’t leave” but nobody really tries to stop him. They’re just allowing him to hunt down a cat who they know, are possibly friends with, and a few months ago lived with. That is madness! They can’t condone that! It’s understandable that they don’t want to see him go but they really neglect to acknowledge his motivation of genuine murder which I think is really, really silly.
If you’ve read a few series of the mainline books, you will know that warrior cats loves a travelling segment. They tend to be quite boring but actually Talltail’s expedition outside clan territory does have a unique sense of wonder to it, and I enjoy the difficulties he faces along the way such as being poisoned. It’s quite dramatic but it does add a good amount of spice to the events. That being said, as he navigates the Twoleg-place the writing becomes so confusing. They cat-ify so many descriptions of basic human things to the point where I did not have a clue, at times, what on earth was being described to me because the descriptions were made so clunky by Talltail’s lack of knowledge. I suppose this is reflective of the characters perspective but I wish fewer things were described in that manner so that I could actually follow along with where he was. Early on in his journey, Talltail meets Jake and at last the tone of the story changes to include what it has been missing so, so badly: hope. Jake is Talltail’s medicine (I suppose saying his SSRI would be more appropriate). From the moment we meet him, Jake is warm, friendly, and charming in a way that comes across as intelligent which is a nice change from kittypets’ usual descriptions typically swaying towards them being colossal idiots. His motivations are clear and make sense, he just fancies going on a little adventure because he doesn’t really know a life outside of the town he lives in. In particular, he is very assured about the direction his life will take. He has a confidence in his indenture that is so refreshing to read. He knows exactly who he is and he role models this wonderfully to Talltail whilst simultaneously proving that understanding your destiny doesn’t mean there isn’t any room for personal development. As for his relationship with Talltail, whilst it is a little rushed I do think they click really well as Jake fully sees and understands and loves Talltail which is something Talltail sorely needs. Meanwhile Talltail learns very quickly that Jake is to be respected and that there is so much he can learn from him, and in return, Talltail takes him on that warrior adventure that Jake has been craving. In this respect they have a very mutually caring bond and that is unbelievably lovely to see. You can understand immediately why these two are a popular pairing. They just get each other and are described as having one of the closest “friendships” warriors has ever portrayed.
The travelling portion doesn’t last proportionately that long, which actually amused me a little as you’d expect the rouges to be miles away by this point but they’re just barely past the nearby town, as Talltail tracks down Sparrow and the rouges. Jake is possibly the only cat to try and dissuade him fro murder but Talltail concocts a wicked plan and goes off to carrying out the dirty work, feeling much too excited about the deed he’s bout to commit (his emotional instability is genuinely concerning). Finally, and I do mean finally, Sparrow reveals that Sandgorse sacrificed himself to save Sparrow, and that Sparrow (obviously) did not murder him. Talltail ends up saving Sparrow from being Mufasa’d into oncoming traffic off a cliff side and all of his pent up resentment washes away at last. The only downside is that after this, Talltail goes home and is forced to part ways with Jake who affirms to him (and he says this consistently too, like a CBT therapist with the aim to reinforce positive mental beliefs) that he will always be a warrior. Jake, here, represents Talltail’s whole entire sense of belonging. It would not be a stretch to argue that they complete each other, as terribly dramatic as that sounds for a kid’s book about cats. Their final goodbye scene is genuinely a bit of a tear jerker as a result of all that it entails. That Talltail is finally happy and that he finally feels as though he has a home, because Jake has shown him what belonging truly feels like. It is a heartbreaking watching Talltail beg Jake to come with him so that they can stay together, even going as far to offer to become a kittypet and live with him. There is a desperation here so reflective of the bond they have forged over the last month (and, yes, it has only been a month). Jake, being as wise as he is, tells Talltail that he would be miserable living as a kittypet and they are forced to say goodbye following what is essentially the cat version of a kiss on the cheek. What I especially like about all of this is that because of Jake, Talltail is changed for the better. He reflects on his time with Jake constantly, using Jake’s wisdom to inform his decisions to become more well rounded and less angry. It’s arguably quite good character development stemming from the catalyst of loving and being loved. I found it really sweet.
Between them sharing their nests, being actively physically affectionate, having a lasting impact on each other and overall being portrayed as having one of the strongest warrior cats bonds, this fact even being stated by Talltail himself (“Grief stabbed at Talltail’s chest. Jake. That was the deepest bond he’d ever known”) I think it is very understandable to see why these two are shipped like crazy. I have to admit to enjoying this ship quite a lot. I find it very sweet. But the nail in the coffin for me is that Tallstar never actually takes a mate and actively panics at the thought of being Reena’s mate (which was a sentiment that came absolutely out of nowhere and made me laugh out loud when his inner monologue suggested that perhaps Reena viewed him romantically, especially after he’d treated her like dirt and then tried to murder her buddy). Something about the way he instantly becomes awkward at the mere thought is incredibly comical.
The last few bits of this book are incredibly rushed. The pacing seriously accelerates here but, to be honest, I’m not really complaining. After Jake’s departure I think that Talltail’s arc concludes, meaning it is only naturally that the book gets to wrapping up too. We get the whole ordeal with Hopkit, who I enjoy how much he takes a shine to Talltail and how Talltail clearly really cares about him too. This is what I mean about it being rushed, though, as we get an entire “going into Riverclan camp to talk to the medicine cat to save a kit with sepsis“ scene within a single chapter. Following this we can an absolute classic example of early warrior cats blatant ableism and Hopkit is renamed Deadpaw and this decision being excused by having Deadpaw say that he likes I his name so it is perfectly fine (it’s not). From here we blast into the future where Tallstar is receiving his nine lives, which, having read this book, I cannot lie, feels undeserved. You cannot ditch your clan to go and dabble in attempted murder and then become leader. If anything Jake should be Windclan leader considering that’s where Talltail got his shiny new (and massively preferable) personality from. That being said, aside from the extremely random Mole cameo and the fact that Shrewclaw got to give Tallstar a life, I did enjoy his leader ceremony. It made me feel emotional, whelmed so to speak. Tallstar gets closure on a lot of his past troubles which may be clumsily shoehorned in to this ending but I appreciate them nonetheless considering the tone for the rest of the book was so bleak, he definitely deserved getting to hear that his mother loved him. Finally, the ending comic depicting Jake and Tallstar reuniting in the bizarre inbetween between starclan and regular cat heaven. Whilst this did make me cry I am not fond of the implication that they cannot visit each other in their respective heavens, which I am choosing to ignore. The last few pages were far nicer to read than the rest of the entire book, so I’d say we leave on a high, certainly feeling warm and fuzzy compared to the torrent of rage the rest of the book made me feel which I believe emphasises the importance of hope in narratives. This book absolutely serves as an example of the consequences of constant negativity and treating characters like punching bags- you end up with a deeply frustrating and needlessly bleak narrative that is difficult to get through. I’m glad I made it to the end, though. I suppose it was worth it : )
This is a low rating, yes, and I will forever associate this book with frustration, however I am cursed with Warrior Cats Fan brain and alas I struggled to put the book down every night, adoring the quick pacing and the easily comprehensible language that lets me turn my brain off. Don’t get me wrong, I hated this reading experience, but in such a way that I almost loved how infuriating it was, similar to getting mad at a soap opera and tuning in every week regardless. Terrible. Awful. Like pulling teeth. But alas perhaps a part of me enjoyed it.
I was bored and have other audiobooks to listen to. I want to go back to the usual Warriors series.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
> sees everyone saying tallstar and jake are super gay
> it’s warrior cats how gay can it be
> reads it all in one sitting
> they can never be together
> their love is stronger than anything ever in this series including that time everyone had to fight hell and that other time one guy died nine times in one sitting
> i’m crying
> i’m 30
10/10 no notes
> it’s warrior cats how gay can it be
> reads it all in one sitting
> they can never be together
> their love is stronger than anything ever in this series including that time everyone had to fight hell and that other time one guy died nine times in one sitting
> i’m crying
> i’m 30
10/10 no notes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I very much enjoyed this installation. It was fun learning about the internal workings of WindClan. Am I the only one who never knew that WindClan once had both moor runners and tunnelers? Talltail suffers great grief after his father maligns his desire to be a moor runner rather than a tunneler and this only gets worse after Sandgorse, his father, dies in a tunnel collapse. Talltail blames Sparrow, a sojourning rogue, for Sandgorses death, and decides to exact revenge by tracking him down and killing him. En route, Talltail meets several kittypets, including Jake, who travels with him for a while. Jake, he of the flame-colored pelt and the green eyes, ultimately returns to his housefolk but I was absolutely charmed by the love between Talltail and Jake. And, Jake is gonna have a kit, named Rusty!
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes