Setting and characters
In the Warriors universe, there are four Clans of wild cats that live in a forest: ThunderClan, RiverClan, WindClan, and ShadowClan. SkyClan is the fifth Clan; the Clan is driven out by the other Clans when its territory is destroyed by humans building a town, and scatters shortly after arriving at a new home in a gorge. SkyClan is later rebuilt in Firestar's Quest. Cats in each Clan live in their own territory, which they defend from other cats and in which they hunt. Each Clan is adapted to its own prey and members usually possess (or are taught) special skills which suit the territory's terrain. BloodClan is a group of stray city cats introduced in The Darkest Hour (Book 6 in the original Warriors series). However, they are not considered to be a true Clan because they do not believe in StarClan or the warrior code.[4]
StarClan is a group of spirits made up of the Clans' deceased ancestors who give guidance to the Clans. After death, most of the spirits of Clan cats join StarClan. StarClan is said to be represented by Silverpelt (the Milky Way), and each individual star represents the spirit of a single dead warrior. Upon joining StarClan, the cats' spirits take the form in which they were most happy while living (i.e. blindness and deafness can be cured, and wounds can be healed). StarClan warriors keep watch over the Clans, usually watching the Clan they lived in while alive. They provide guidance to the Clans, often through dreams and other signs or omens. Often, this occurs when medicine cats go to the Moonstone, which is used in the forest territory to communicate with the medicine cats' ancestors from their respective Clan every half-moon. When the Clans live by the lake, the medicine cats gather at the Moonpool, the replacement for the Moonstone. In an author chat, Hunter said that StarClan can "just get glimpses of" the future, which they occasionally pass on.[5]
In addition to StarClan, there also exists the Dark Forest, also known as The Place of No Stars. The spirits of cats who cause great pain and suffering to others during their lives reside there instead of in StarClan. Cats known to walk the Dark Forest include Tigerstar, Thistleclaw, Hawkfrost, Brokenstar, Darkstripe, Hawkheart, Shredtail, Snowtuft, Mapleshade, Sparrowfeather, Redwillow, Clawface, and Antpelt. Dark Forest cats gain the ability to walk in dreams like StarClan, beginning with Tigerstar in the Warriors: The New Prophecy series.[6]
Beyond the Clans' territories lies a mountain range, inhabited by the Tribe of Rushing Water. The Tribe is shown to be similar to the Clans, yet follows a different set of ancestors: the Tribe of Endless Hunting. The Tribe has a Healer, cave-guards, and prey-hunters, who each serve a different function in the Tribe. The Healer leads the Tribe, heals the ill and wounded, and communicates with the Tribe of Endless Hunting, while the cave-guards defend the Tribe and the prey-hunters hunt.[7]
[edit]The origins of the Clans
The Clans' origin is described in Secrets of the Clans. Originally, many small groups of wild cats live in the forest. Without a code of honor to follow or ancestors to provide guidance, they fight constantly for food and territory. One night at Fourtrees, a large battle occurs and many cats die. The spirits of the cats killed in battle return and tell the remaining cats to "unite or die". In this way, the Clans were formed from the previous multitude of small groups.[8] The dead spirits become StarClan, and the code of honor that the cats follow is gradually created, as described in Code of the Clans.
[edit]Clan hierarchy
The Clans have a hierarchical system, with different types of cats having different positions within the Clan. The leader receives his or her nine lives and leader name ending with the suffix -star from StarClan after he or she goes to the Moonstone. The leader conducts important ceremonies, such as promoting warriors and making kits into apprentices. The deputy is second-in-command and succeeds the leader when the later loses his or her last life. The deputy's job is mainly to organize patrols and other everyday tasks. In order to be appointed deputy by the leader, a cat must already be a warrior and have mentored at least one apprentice. An exception to this rule occurs if the medicine cat receives a prophecy indicating that a cat not normally eligible ought to be chosen; deputies in the series appointed in this way include Brambleclaw and Crookedjaw. There is also a medicine cat in each Clan, who receives messages from StarClan and uses herbs to heal sick or injured cats. Medicine cats are not allowed to have kits or mates, as it would distract them from their duties. At each half-moon, the medicine cats from each Clan meet at the Moonpool to talk with StarClan. In a Clan, there is never more than one medicine cat apprentice at any one time: a medicine cat apprentice helps gather herbs and learns medicinal knowledge, but is considered an apprentice until the current medicine cat dies or retires, even if he or she has already received a full medicine cat name. There are also warrior apprentices (usually referred to simply as apprentices) who train to hunt for and defend their Clan, the duties of a warrior. These apprentices are mentored by warriors who pass down knowledge and skills they have learned from their own mentors. Apprenticeships usually last approximately six months. Apprentices occasionally undergo assessments, and become warriors when their mentors deem them ready. Warrior name suffixes (e.g. -claw, -heart, -pelt) are selected by the leader during the warrior ceremony. When a cat becomes old or injured severely and permanently, he or she retires to become an elder. Elders share their knowledge with the Clan and are cared for by the apprentices. The only task they carry out is burying dead Clanmates. Clans also have queens, who are she-cats expecting or caring for their kits, but return to warrior duties when no longer expecting or nursing kits. A queen is not obligated to reveal the identity of her mate. The name of a kit is decided by the mother, occasionally the father, and has something to do with its appearance, or in some cases, something special to the namer of the cat (e.g. Brokenkit broke Yellowfang's heart). A kit's name always ends with the suffix -kit. Kits become apprentices after they are six months old. All apprentices' names end with the suffix -paw.
[edit]Clan terminology
The characters have their own words for certain objects and ideas.
Cat speak: Human speak
Crowfood: Rotting food
Fox dung: An insult; stronger offense than mouse-brain
Fresh-kill: Recently killed prey
Gatherings: A meeting the clans hold in peace each full moon
Greencough: Severe chest infection, can be fatal to elders and kits
Greenleaf: Summer
Greenleaf Twolegplace: A place where humans go only in the summer (a campsite, resort, etc.)
Halfbridge: A dock
Horseplace: The fields and stables beside the lake where the half-tamed cats live
Housefolk: A house cat's word for its humans
Kittypet: A house cat
Leaf-bare: Winter
Leaf-fall: Autumn/fall
Loner: A cat that lives peacefully on its own in one place but doesn't defend its territory
Monster: Usually refers to human machines such as cars and bulldozers
Moonhigh: The time of night when the moon is at its highest; midnight
Mouse-brained: Not very smart
Mouse dung: An insult; stronger than mouse-brain, but less offensive than fox dung
New-leaf: Spring
Nofurs: Another word for humans
One moon: One month (Half-moon: 2 weeks, Quarter-moon: 1 week)
Rogue: A potentially hostile cat who lives outside the clans and never spends too long in one place
Sharing tongues: Term used to describe cats grooming each other
Silverpelt: The Milky Way
Sun-drown-place: The sea to the west, where the sun sets
Sunhigh: Noon
Thunderpath: A road
Tree-eater: Bulldozer
Twoleg nest: A human house
Twolegplace: A human town
Twolegs: The Clans' word for humans
Upwalkers: Another word for humans
Whitecough: Mild chest infection
"Great StarClan!" and "What in StarClan's name?" are exclamations used in surprise and or shock. "Thank StarClan" is used as an exclamation of gratitude.
[edit]Main series
[edit]Warriors
The original Warriors series, released from 2003 to 2004, consists of six books: Into the Wild, Fire and Ice, Forest of Secrets, Rising Storm, A Dangerous Path, and The Darkest Hour. The series follows a pet cat named Rusty who has dreams about the forest that lies beyond the neighborhood he lives in. He discovers later in the series the dreams are from StarClan, the spirits of the ancestors of the wild cats in the forest. One day, he ventures into the forest and is invited to join ThunderClan, one of the four groups of wild cats living in the forest. He accepts the invitation and receives the apprentice name Firepaw. Later, Firepaw receives his warrior name, Fireheart, and discovers that Tigerclaw, the deputy of ThunderClan, wishes to kill ThunderClan leader Bluestar in order to succeed her and become leader himself.
In the third book, Forest of Secrets, Fireheart becomes deputy of the Clan after Tigerclaw tries to kill Bluestar, fails, and is banished from ThunderClan.Bluestar dies in A Dangerous Path, sacrificing her life to protect the Clan from dogs sent by Tigerstar, who becomes the leader of ShadowClan after his banishment. Fireheart then becomes the leader, receiving his nine lives and new name, Firestar.
Tigerstar then, in The Darkest Hour, attempts to take over all four Clans, telling them that the leaders will rule together. Leopardstar, leader of RiverClan, agrees, but Firestar and Tallstar, the leader of WindClan, refuse. Tigerstar then tries to use BloodClan, a vicious group of city cats, to take over the Clans, but BloodClan leader Scourge kills Tigerstar and decides to take over the forest for himself. The four Clans unite and fight against BloodClan. Firestar loses the first of his nine lives in battle against Scourge, but kills Scourge after returning to life, defeating BloodClan and saving the forest.
[edit]Warriors: The New Prophecy
The second series, Warriors: The New Prophecy, was released from 2005 to 2006, and contains six books: Midnight, Moonrise, Dawn, Starlight, Twilight, and Sunset. In the series, four cats, Brambleclaw, Tawnypelt, Crowpaw, and Feathertail, are sent on a mission by StarClan to the ocean, with Feathertail's brother Stormfur and ThunderClan apprentice Squirrelpaw accompanying them. There, a badger named Midnight tells the six cats that humans are making a road that cuts across the Clans' territories, so the Clans must leave.
On the way back to the forest, the traveling cats meet a group of cats called the Tribe of Rushing Water who are being terrorized by a mountain lion calledSharptooth. The Clan cats stay with the Tribe but later run away after realizing that they were being held prisoner and expected to kill Sharptooth. However, before having gone far, they have a change of heart and return to defeat Sharptooth. After luring Sharptooth into the cave where the Tribe lives, a plan to poison Sharptooth fails, and the cats are forced to attempt to fight him off. Feathertail jumps onto a rock spike on the roof of the cave and plummets to the floor with it, falling on and crushing Sharptooth, sacrificing her life to save the Tribe.
In Starlight and Twilight, ThunderClan medicine cat apprentice Leafpool and Crowfeather (formerly Crowpaw) fall in love with each other. Crowfeather admits to Leafpool that he loves her when he saves her from falling off a cliff in a situation similar to Feathertail's death (Crowpaw loves Feathertail before her death). However, the warrior code says that Leafpool, as a medicine cat, cannot have a mate. They eventually abscond, but return because Midnight warns them that a large group of badgers is attacking ThunderClan. Upon returning, they find that a badger has killed Cinderpelt, the ThunderClan medicine cat, while she was helping Sorreltail give birth. Shortly after, Leafpool discovers that Cinderpelt is reincarnated as Cinderkit, one of Sorreltail's kits, though Cinderkit does not know this herself.
The series then centers around the prophecy "before there is peace, blood will spill blood, and the lake will run red". Hawkfrost and Brambleclaw have been meeting with their father Tigerstar in dreams, in which he is teaching them how to become Clan leader by force. Hawkfrost follows Tigerstar every step of the way, but Brambleclaw is split between loyalty to his leader and his own ambition. Firestar appoints Brambleclaw deputy after finally accepting the possibility that Graystripe might never return. The series reaches its climax when Hawkfrost traps Firestar in a fox trap and tells Brambleclaw to kill him. Brambleclaw decides that he does not want to become leader by force, and refuses to kill Firestar; instead, he frees him from the trap. Hawkfrost attacks Brambleclaw, and Brambleclaw is forced to kill Hawkfrost with the sharp stick that kept the fox trap into the ground. The prophecy comes true; blood will spill blood, brothers Brambleclaw and Hawkfrost fight to the death, and the lake will run red, Hawkfrost dies on the shore of the lake, turning the water around him red with blood.
[edit]Warriors: Power of Three
The third series, titled Warriors: Power of Three, was released from 2007 to 2009 and includes The Sight, Dark River,Outcast, Eclipse, Long Shadows, and Sunrise. The plot is centered on the prophecy, "there will be three, kin of your kin, who hold the power of the stars in their paws", which was given to Firestar in Firestar's Quest by Skywatcher. The series follows three young cats named Hollyleaf, Jayfeather, and Lionblaze who are Firestar's grandkits, which makes them the cats of the prophecy. Jayfeather is blind, but soon discovers he has a unique power, as does one of his siblings. Jayfeather has the power to feel emotions and memories coming off of other cats and to walk in their dreams, where he is then able to see. Lionblaze has the power to never get hurt in a fight. Hollyleaf does not have any power and is later revealed not to be the third cat foretold in the prophecy.
In Dark River, the siblings search for missing WindClan kits with help from two WindClan apprentices, Breezepaw and Heatherpaw. While they are searching, the tunnels flood, almost killing them; however, everyone eventually emerges safely. In Outcast, two cats from the Tribe request help to drive away a group of loners that is stealing prey from the Tribe. The Clans send a patrol to help. There, Jayfeather learns that the Tribe came from the lake and tells his siblings about the prophecy.
In Eclipse, a loner cat called Sol warns Jayfeather and Leafpool that the sun will disappear. During a battle involving all four Clans, the sun disappears in aneclipse. Sol then persuades ShadowClan to lose faith in StarClan in Long Shadows. Jayfeather, Lionblaze and Hollyleaf fake a sign from StarClan to convinceBlackstar, leader of ShadowClan, that StarClan is real and should be followed. Sol is banished.
Jayfeather, Hollyleaf, and Lionblaze learn in Sunrise that their true parents are Leafpool and Crowfeather, not Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw. During a Gathering, Hollyleaf reveals this to all the Clans and then runs away into the tunnels because she can not stand the fact that her birth is against the warrior code which means a lot to her. The tunnels then collapses on Hollyleaf, trapping her. The novel ends with Jayfeather realizing that Hollyleaf was never meant to be part of the Three and that either Dovekit or Ivykit, grandkits of Firestar's nephew Cloudtail, is meant to be the third cat of the prophecy.
[edit]Warriors: Omen of the Stars
The fourth series is titled Warriors: Omen of the Stars and is a direct continuation of the previous series.[9] Like the three series before, the series consists of six books. All six books have been published, entitled The Fourth Apprentice, Fading Echoes, Night Whispers, Sign of the Moon, The Forgotten Warrior, and The Last Hope.[10]
In The Fourth Apprentice, ThunderClan apprentice Dovepaw finds out that she has a special power, which is to hear and see things that nobody else can. Dovepaw sees beavers building a beaver dam that is blocking the river upstream far away, causing the lake to dry up. When Dovepaw reveals this, Jayfeather and Lionblaze both realize that she is the third cat in the prophecy, as the beavers are in fact very far away. Firestar is told of Dovepaw's discovery and he announces it at the Gathering without revealing its origin. After discussion, he and the three other leaders decide to send a patrol with two cats from each Clan to go upstream in an effort to restore the river flow and end the drought. Rippletail is killed when a beaver rips his shoulder during an attempted battle to destroy the dam. Lionblaze and Dovepaw recruit three kittypets to help destroy the dam. Just before the beavers return and the dam is about to collapse, the water floods and destroys it. While the patrol is away, Jayfeather is attacked at the Moonpool by Breezepelt and the spirit of a Dark Forest cat. He is rescued by Honeyfern, a StarClan warrior, who fights them off. When Lionblaze and Dovepaw return, Poppyfrost gives birth to Molekit and Cherrykit. Jayfeather then tells Lionblaze that the Dark Forest is rising and Lionblaze confesses to once being trained by Tigerstar. Jayfeather then realises the Dark Forest is training cats in their sleep to fight.
In Fading Echoes, Jayfeather goes to the Dark Forest with Yellowfang and Spottedleaf and discovers that the Dark Forest cats are doing battle training. Firestar admits to the three that he knows about the prophecy and is surprised to find they already know. Later on, a tree falls on the camp and ThunderClan manages to evacuate in time thanks to Dovepaw's far-reaching senses. However, Longtail dies when he tries to re-enter camp, and Briarlight, who tries to stop him, has her backbone broken, causing her to lose the ability to move her hind legs. Ivypaw becomes envious of the attention that Dovepaw receives from Firestar due to her special power, and demands to know why she is hanging out with the older warriors and visiting Firestar often. Hawkfrost visits Ivypaw in a dream pretending to be her friend, playing on her envy of her sister. The book ends in a battle between ShadowClan and ThunderClan after Ivypaw claims to receive a sign from StarClan, although it was actually a ploy concocted by Hawkfrost. Russetfur, ShadowClan's deputy, is killed and Firestar loses a life. After the battle, Lionblaze and Jayfeather are sure that the battle should not have happened and suspect the Dark Forest causes it.
In Night Whispers Ivypaw continues to meet with the Dark Forest in her dreams and Jayfeather finds out. After he finds out, he tells Lionblaze. Dovepaw overhears this. She confronts Lionblaze and Jayfeather and demands that they ask Ivypaw to stop; however, Jayfeather thinks they should use Ivypaw to learn how the Dark Forest warriors are training their recruits. Dovepaw gets angry when she hears this. Dovepaw tries to convince Ivypaw not to go to the Dark Forest, but the young she-cat is oblivious to the dangers. However, Ivypaw eventually begins to think that the Dark Forest is a bit dangerous. Ivypaw becomes increasingly nervous as she goes into the Dark Forest, then finds out the truth: that Tigerstar is training her and the others to fight the Clans. She agrees to spy on the Dark Forest for Jayfeather, Lionblaze, and Dovepaw. Meanwhile, Lionblaze and Cinderheart fall in love with each other, as do Dovepaw and Tigerheart, who start meeting each other every night. Later on, Dovepaw's extreme senses let her patrol know that the camp is being attacked by a fox. No cat is badly injured, but Lionblaze begs Firestar to let him drive off the fox. Lionblaze manages to drive off the fox without being injured. Lionblaze reveals the prophecy to Cinderheart, who becomes convinced that Lionblaze is too good for her. When Dovepaw goes to meet Tigerheart one night, Ivypaw follows her sister. She confronts Dovepaw and Tigerheart because they are breaking the warrior code, and when she fails to convince Dovepaw to end the relationship, she tries to convince her to stop seeing Tigerheart by telling Dovepaw that he is training in the Dark Forest as well. Dovepaw refuses to believe Ivypaw. They are interrupted by a ShadowClan patrol. Tigerheart shoves Dovepaw under some bracken but Ivypaw gets captured by the patrol. Ivypaw is later exchanged for catmint that Littlecloud, the medicine cat, needs. Dovepaw believes that Tigerheart uses her on purpose to acquire the herbs and thinks that he never loves her. In ShadowClan territory, the lake freezes over and Flametail plays games on the ice with his Clanmates. Unfortunately, the ice breaks and he is thrust under the water. Jayfeather tries to save him, but Rock appears and tells him to let Flametail die. That same night, Ivypaw returns to the Dark Forest in her dreams. Brokenstar finds her and says he will test her loyalty to the Dark Forest. He leads her to a clearing in the Dark Forest where a confused Flametail is standing. Brokenstar commands Ivypaw to kill Flametail. Ivypaw refuses to kill Flametail, so Brokenstar threatened to take Dovepaw's life if Ivypaw does not do as he says. Having no choice, Ivypaw leaps on Flametail, but is stopped by Tigerheart. Tigerstar joins in, praising Tigerheart for his bravery and adding that Flametail only knows how to mix herbs, so his presence does not bother him. The novel ends with Tigerstar telling his companions he is confident Ivypaw will fight for the Dark Forest when the time arrives.
In The Sign of the Moon, Ivypaw and Dovepaw get their warrior names: Ivypool and Dovewing. Jayfeather and Lionblaze find signs that indicate the possibility that Hollyleaf might not be dead when a tunnel close to the spot where rocks supposedly buried Hollyleaf is discovered. At a Gathering, Dovewing searches for Tigerheart but denies loving him. Jayfeather, Dovewing, Foxleap, and Squirrelflight then visit the Tribe of Rushing Water when Jayfeather receives a dream from Rock, who insists he go to the mountains for a mysterious purpose. While there, Jayfeather is again sent into the past to convince the Tribe's ancestors to stay in the mountains, at a time when they are weary and very close to returning to the lake, their previous home. Jayfeather, known as "Jay's Wing" in the ancient time he is visiting, succeeds in the mission Rock assigns him, and assigns the new Stoneteller of the Tribe in the ancient times and in his own time as well. He appoints Half Moon as the Stoneteller of the ancient times (whom he has a brief relationship with) and Crag Where Eagles Nest as the Stoneteller of modern times. While in his relationship with Half Moon, Jayfeather is tempted to never return to his own time and stay with her to become mates. Meanwhile Ivypool and Blossomfall go exploring in the cave discovered by Icecloud earlier and get lost, but a mysterious cat leads them out after the spirit of Fallen Leaves, a dead ancient cat, tells them to follow a path out. Jayfeather is told a new prophecy at the end of the novel: "The end of the stars draws near, three must become four, to battle the darkness that lasts forever".
The Forgotten Warrior begins with Jayfeather waking up from a nightmare. He remembers that Lionblaze tells him about how Briarlight sneaks out with Bumblestripe once and is almost eaten by dogs, though Lionblaze saves them without getting hurt. Briarlight tells Jayfeather how she finds a tuft of black fur in the back of the herb store, and Jayfeather recognizes it as Hollyleaf's. While Dovewing and Ivypool are on patrol, Dovewing fears that she loses her special power, being unable to hear, see, or smell farther than an ordinary cat. Dovewing confesses to Lionblaze that she is afraid that she had lost her powers. Lionblaze comforts her but he feels nervous. Bumblestripe is in love with Dovewing and the two go on a midnight walk. Her power finally comes back during this walk, much to Dovewing's delight. Afterward, she and Bumblestripe start getting closer to one another. Birchfall reveals to Ivypool that he is training in the Dark Forest, to Ivypool's horror, though she hides it. Ivypool is still visiting the Dark Forest at nights. When she tells Brokenstar that she wants to teach the cats, he tells her to kill Antpelt again. Ivypool wins and kills Antpelt, who fades and disappears, showing that Dark Forest cats can be killed. On the way back from the patrol, a WindClan patrol accuses them for washing their paws in the river, believing the river to be WindClan territory. Sorreltail stops them before there is a fight, but tensions between the two Clans increase. When chasing a squirrel, Dovewing almost passes the ShadowClan border. Tigerheart spots her and tells Dovewing that his sister Dawnpelt wants to take revenge on ThunderClan because she suspects that Jayfeather kills her brother Flametail. Later, Molekit and Cherrykit become apprentices. Shortly after, Molepaw and Cherrypaw enter camp with their mentors announcing that they are attacked by foxes. They tell them how a stranger scares the fox off before any serious injuries are inflicted. The rest of the Clan thinks that the new apprentices are making it up, but Jayfeather and Lionblaze thinks that it might be Hollyleaf's doing. Lionblaze convinces Firestar to let him track down the stranger so he does. He discovers Sol and brings him back to camp. While on a walk, Dovewing and Ivypool go into the tunnels underground. They hear Sol discussing an attack on ThunderClan with WindClan. Dovewing and Ivypool are overheard by the cats and they try to escape. Hollyleaf appears and helps them get out. Lionblaze sees her and brings her back to the Clan. Hollyleaf reveals that she kills Ashfur with Brambleclaw's support. Brambleclaw lies to the Clan, saying Ashfur's death is an accident. Hollyleaf also tells everyone that she saves the apprentices from the fox attack, not Sol. Everyone welcomes her except for only a few. Hollyleaf begins tunnel training to help with the fight with WindClan. Brackenfur tells the Clan that Sorreltail will be having kits. Sorreltail later goes on a walk, gives birth outside of the hollow, and names her kits Lilykit and Seedkit. In a dream, Yellowfang tells Jayfeather to tell Cinderheart about her past as Cinderpelt so she can help the Clan with her medicine cat abilities. He refuses but tells Cinderheart later anyway. Cinderheart becomes convinced that she should be a medicine cat, revealing to the Clan that she is Cinderpelt, reborn. Yellowfang is mad at Jayfeather for telling Cinderheart her past, but Jayfeather points out it is her idea. Yellowfang becomes nervous, saying she made a mistake. In the end, ThunderClan wins the battle with WindClan by pushing them into the tunnels. Afterwards, Dovewing and Hollyleaf go back to ThunderClan.
In The Last Hope, Ivypool is training apprentices of the Dark Forest when Applefur appears with her apprentices, Blossomfall and Hollowflight, and states that the two want to battle Dark Forest warriors instead of apprentices. Tigerstar appears and states that the apprentices need to know each others' moves in case they need to fight alongside each other. He orders the apprentices to wake up back in their nests because there is a private senior warrior meeting going on. Ivypool insists that she go because she is a mentor, but Mapleshade dismisses this. Ivypool eavesdrops as Brokenstar explains the Dark Forest's master plan, using his claws to create a diagram. They agree to attack at the very heart of the Clan. After all of the cats leave, Ivypool sneaks forward to take a peek at the diagram, but is awakened by her sister, Dovewing. Jayfeather debates whether to go to the Moonpool or not, as he was asked to step down from being a medicine cat due to Dawnpelt's false accusations in the previous book claiming that he killed Flametail. Briarlight urges Jayfeather to go to the Moonpool, but he dismisses this. He heads out of the hollow but realizes that Firestar is following him. Firestar speaks to him and he decides to go to the Moonpool. At the Moonpool, Yellowfang tells him that he must tell Dovewing and Lionblaze about the new prophecy he was told in Sign of the Moon. He asks her to talk to Flametail, but due to boundaries in StarClan, she cannot help him. Later in his dream at the Moonpool, former RiverClan medicine cat Brambleberry tells him that they must unite all the Clans together as one to fight the Dark Forest. After that, he has another dream, but in the Dark Forest. Brokenstar appears and shows Jayfeather the training warriors and apprentices. Jayfeather is horrified as he realizes that so many cats from all Clans are secretly training at night while their Clanmates are sleeping. Before his dream ends, the Dark Forest warriors lunge at him and hit him as a wave. He then wakes up, blind again. He finds Mothwing at the Moonpool, and she asks if he is alright. Mothwing is aware that something is wrong with the Clans and Jayfeather confirms this. He reveals all of the secrets to her about the Dark Forest, the final battle, and their own Clanmates training with the evil cats. Mothwing observes that many of her Clanmates act odd lately: restless and argumentative. Jayfeather tells her that her brother Hawkfrost is in the Dark Forest. In the climax of the series, the Dark Forest cats attack the Clans, and Hawkfrost almost kills Ivypool before Hollyleaf saves her. Hollyleaf dies, from her wounds inflicted by Hawfrost, however, and Ferncloud dies protecting the nursery. Firestar is confronted by Tigerstar, and after a fight, kills Tigerstar. Afterwards, lightning strikes a tree next to Firestar, and ThunderClan discovers that Firestar has died as well. As the deputy at the time, Brambleclaw becomes leader, then names Squirrelflight as his new deputy.
[edit]Warriors: Dawn of the Clans
The fifth series is titled Warriors: Dawn of the Clans and goes back to the beginning of the Clans.
The first book is called The Sun Trail and is set to be released on March 5, 2013.
[edit]Other books
[edit]Super Editions
Super Editions are books in the Warriors series that are approximately double the length of a normal Warriors book. There are four Super Editions as of June 2012: Firestar's Quest, Bluestar's Prophecy, SkyClan's Destiny, and Crookedstar's Promise. One more Super Edition is going to be released on October 9, 2012, entitled Yellowfang's Secret,[11] which is about the former ShadowClan and ThunderClan medicine cat Yellowfang. Super Editions are standalone stories and as the titles imply, the first features Firestar, the second features Bluestar, the third features the modern SkyClan a few months after Firestar's Quest, and the fourth features Crookedstar, the leader of RiverClan.
[edit]Firestar's Quest
Firestar's Quest, the first Warriors super edition, was released on August 25, 2007.[12] It covers the time between The Darkest Hour and Midnight, and fills many plot gaps between the books, explaining Longtail's blindness, Willowpelt's death, and the birth of Leafkit and Squirrelkit. The book details Firestar and Sandstorm's journey to restore SkyClan, the fifth Clan of the forest that is driven out when a town is built and is scattered when it is attacked by rats in its new home.
[edit]Bluestar's Prophecy
Bluestar's Prophecy was released July 28, 2009.[13] It covers Bluestar's life from her birth to the beginning of Into the Wild. It explains Bluestar's constant and unfailing trust of Whitestorm, her kits Stonekit , Mistykit, and Mosskit and her secret mate Oakheart, and tells about her struggle between her Clan and her heart. The book describes a prophecy given to Bluestar by her uncle, Goosefeather, the medicine cat at the time. The prophecy is "Like fire you will blaze through the forest, but beware even the most powerful flames can be quenched by water". However, Goosefeather eventually becomes insane, pushing Bluestar to follow the prophecy at all costs.
[edit]SkyClan's Destiny
SkyClan's Destiny was released on August 3, 2010.[14] SkyClan's Destiny the book follows Leafstar, and her struggle to rebuild the once-lost Clan. The book takes place several months after Firestar's Quest. After Firestar leaves, SkyClan prospers, but not without challenges. The Clan's members are split over whether or not "daylight-warriors", kittypets that join the Clan in the day and return to their owners at night, should be allowed to be part of the Clan. As well, a group of visiting rogues create challenges for the Clan. SkyClan is next seen in the manga series SkyClan and the Stranger.
[edit]Crookedstar's Promise
Crookedstar's Promise was released on July 5, 2011. It takes place during the same time as Bluestar's Prophecy and explains how Stormkit became Crookedkit. The book describes the promise that Crookedkit made to a Dark Forest cat, who he believed was a StarClan cat, named Mapleshade. She tells him that she can give him anything he wants, power over his Clanmates and the other Clans as long as he is faithful to his Clan and puts all other things aside. As a young warrior, Crookedjaw pledges his undying loyalty to RiverClan in exchange for the promise of power, not realizing that his pledge will haunt him when he becomes the leader of his Clan.
[edit]Yellowfang's Secret
Yellowfang's Secret[11] is an upcoming Super Edition about the past ThunderClan medicine cat Yellowfang, and about her life in ShadowClan, being the medicine cat. It is said to be very emotional and is due to be released on October 9, 2012.
[edit]Field guides
Four field guides have also been published. They offer extra information, usually in the form of short stories, and are usually about 150 pages long.[15] Secrets of the Clans is the first field guide to be released for Warriors. This book gives more details about the Clans never before revealed in the books. Cats of the Clans, featuring illustrations and descriptions of the cats, was released on June 24, 2008.[16] Code of the Clans, which describes the warrior code's origins, was released on June 9, 2009.[17]" Battles of the Clans, released on June 1, 2010,[18] is about past battles and each Clan's special battle tactic introduced in the form of short stories.
[edit]Omnibus field guide
Enter the Clans is an omnibus field guide released on June 26, 2012.[19] It is a collective work of the field guides Secrets of the Clans and Code of the Clans, although four pages of color artwork and the double foldout map inserts in the middle of Secrets of the Clans, as well as five pieces of color artwork in Code of the Clans are not included in Enter the Clans.
[edit]OEL manga series
Several series of original English-language manga have been produced by HarperCollins with TOKYOPOP.[20] Four of the manga series consist of three volumes, though The Rise of Scourge is a standalone book.
[edit]Graystripe's Trilogy
Graystripe's Trilogy is a three volume series following Graystripe from the time that he was taken by Twolegs in Dawn until he returns to ThunderClan in The Sight. It was published as the first part of a partnership between TOKYOPOP and HarperCollins.[21] These books tell how Graystripe and Millie found their way back to ThunderClan. It consists of 3 books:The Lost Warrior, Warrior's Refuge, and Warrior's Return. The final volume was published on April 22, 2008.[22]
[edit]The Rise of Scourge
The Rise of Scourge was released on June 24, 2008[23] and unlike the other manga, it only has a single volume. It was the result of a questionnaire on the official Warriors website, which had asked fans what they wanted to see in a new Warriorsbook. The story follows Scourge, the leader of BloodClan, one of the antagonists in The Darkest Hour. It centers around his early years, when he was bullied as a kit for being small. The book follows him until he kills Tigerstar, who had attacked Scourge when he ventured into the forest as a kitten.
[edit]Tigerstar and Sasha
Tigerstar and Sasha, a manga trilogy about Tigerstar and Sasha has also been published. The story tells how Tigerstar and Sasha met each other and what happens after Sasha leaves Tigerstar and ShadowClan. The three books are Into the Woods, Escape from the Forest, and Return to the Clans. The third was released on June 9, 2009.[24]
[edit]Ravenpaw's Path
Ravenpaw's Path is another trilogy which is centered around Ravenpaw and his life on the farm with Barley after the BloodClan battles. Holmes has said that the story takes place in the second half of the year between the original series and the New Prophecy series, soon after Firestar and Sandstorm return to the Clan in Firestar's Quest.[15] The three books are Shattered Peace, A Clan in Need, and The Heart of a Warrior, which was released on August 3, 2010.[25]
[edit]SkyClan and the Stranger
SkyClan and the Stranger is another trilogy which is about SkyClan and how Sol came to know about the Clans. It begins with The Rescue (Warriors), which was released on July 5, 2011.[26] The second book is called Beyond the Code and was released November 22, 2011,[27] and the third book is called After the Flood and was released April 3, 2012.[28]
[edit]Inspiration and origins
The series first began when HarperCollins asked Vicky Holmes to write a fantasy series about feral cats. Initially, Holmes was not very enthusiastic, since she "couldn't imagine coming up with enough ideas". She worked with the concept, however, expanding the storyline with elements of war, politics, revenge, doomed love, and religious conflict.[29] Although the original plan was a stand-alone novel, enough material was created for several books, and the publisher decided upon a six volume series.[29] The first volume, Into the Wild, was written by Kate Cary, under the pseudonym "Erin Hunter", and was completed in about three months.[30] Holmes then began to work behind the scenes, editing and supervising details.[31] Cherith Baldry joined the Erins to write the third book, Forest of Secrets.[2]
The authors have named several other authors as sources of inspiration when writing the novels. In an online author chat,Cherith Baldry listed the authors that inspire her as including Tolkien, Ursula K. Le Guin, and Shakespeare. In the same chat, Victoria Holmes stated that Jacqueline Wilson, Kathy Reichs and J. K. Rowling are some of the authors that inspire her.[2] According to the official website, other authors who have inspired the writers include Enid Blyton, Lucy Daniels, Ellis Peters, Tess Gerritsen, Kate Ellis, Lisa Gardiner, Jaqueline Wilson and Meg Cabot.[1] The authors have also mentioned several other sources of inspiration. The New Forest in southern England was the base for the forest where the original series took place.[30] Other influential locations include Loch Lomond,[32] and the Scottish Highlands. Nicholas Culpeper, a physician who used materials occurring in the natural world as medicine, has also had an influence on the Warriors series. His book, Culpeper's Herbal, is used as a source by the authors for the herbal remedies that the cats use in the books. In addition, the authors mentioned that they may use some fan-created names in future books.[2][10] Also mentioned as a source of inspiration was Rambo.[33]
[edit]Critical reception
The first book of the series, Into the Wild, was generally well-received, with reviewers calling it a "spine-tingling,"[34] "thoroughly engrossing"[35] and "exciting ... action-packed adventure."[36] One reviewer praised the authors for "creating an intriguing world ... and an engaging young hero,[37] but another criticised the characters and imagined world as being "neither ... consistent nor compelling."[38]
The large number of characters involved in the series has often been seen as a negative point; though one reviewer compared the "huge cast" to that of aGreek drama,[39] others wrote that it was "hard to follow"[40] and "a little confusing."[37] The characters have also been criticised as being "somewhat flat"[40]and "limited essentially to each individual's function within the clan."[38]
As one reviewer put it, the cats in the series are "true to their feline nature,"[34] leading some critics to jokingly comment that the books will "leave readers eyeing Puss a bit nervously"[41] and "[wonder] what dreams of grandeur may haunt the family cat."[36] However, this realism also means that the series contains a relatively large amount of violence,[37] with one critic stating that it is "not for the faint of heart."[39] Several critics have compared Warriors to Brian Jacques'Redwall series,[34][38] though one commented that it was "not as elegantly written."[37] The New York Times called the series a "hit with young readers," specifically because of its "sprawling universe,"[42] and the series was able to appear on the New York Times Bestseller List for a total of 112 weeks, as of May 6, 2012.[43]
[edit]Awards and recognitions
Into the Wild was nominated for the 2006 Young Reader's Choice Awards,[44] but lost to Christopher Paolini's Eragon.[45] It was also listed on Booklist's Top 10 fantasy books for youth in 2003[46] and was a Book Sense 76 Pick.[47] The Sight was nominated as the best Middle Readers book at Amazon's Best Books of the Year (2007), and placed sixth out of the ten nominees, with six percent of the total votes.[48] It was also nominated for the Children's Choice Book Awards.[49] In 2006, Warriors also received an honorable mention for the best book series for Publisher Weekly's "On the Cuff" awards.[50]
[edit]Themes
A theme in the series is forbidden love, examples being Bluestar with Oakheart, Graystripe with Silverstream, Leafpool with Crowfeather, Yellowfang with Raggedstar, and Dovewing with Tigerheart. These loves were not allowed as some were with medicine cats while others were with cats in other Clans which are both against the Warrior Code, the code of honor the Clans must follow. Another theme featured in the novel is the reactions of different faiths when meeting each other. To show this, the Tribe of Rushing Water was introduced in Moonrise. In an author chat, Holmes explained that the books never say that the Clans or the Tribe of Rushing Water are right about faith, because both are "equally valid." This leads to fear and suspicion between them because they are afraid of things they do not understand. Holmes said that "ignorance is a very scary thing!"[5] Non-belief, such as where Mothwing or Cloudtail do not believe in StarClan, is also featured in the storyline.[51] On the other hand, Holmes said that another central theme of the series is "faith and spirituality" in StarClan.[9] All books in the series heavily feature the influence of StarClan, not just as the cats think of them, but in terms of explicit prophecies for StarClan which inevitably come true. A few scenes actually take place within StarClan itself, with no earthly cats present as point-of-view characters. Thus, while the differences in belief is a clear minor theme, the existence of an afterlife and the influence of "cat spirits" who have passed on and yet retain their earthly identities is integral to all of the plot arcs in the series.
Another theme surfaces in how the books show characters that can be a mix of good and evil. Holmes has said she is fascinated by these "shades of gray" in personalities. Her example of this was when Bluestar, a relatively noble and honorable cat, gave up her kits for her own ambitions so an evil cat would not take over. Similarly, Holmes has also compared the theme to Brambleclaw and how nobody knew whether he was good or evil.[2] A third major theme, often referred to as nature versus nurture, relates to whether a person is born the way he or she will be, or if other things shape that, as in the example of Brambleclaw. This theme ties into the "shades of gray" theme.[5]
Publishers Weekly noted that friendship and responsibility were things that were taught to characters in the novels,[36] while booksforyouths.com had a review which pointed out the idea that just as Clan cats shun house cats for their soft life, people should realise that it is necessary to experience hardships in life.[52]A Storysnoops review noted that one of the themes was that "it doesn't matter where you come from, only who you are inside".[53] In Dawn, the theme of cooperation is explored. The four Clans, normally hostile to each other, are forced to work together in order to find a new home.[54] Other themes that have been pointed out include family, loss, honor, bravery, death, loyalty, and following rules.[5]
[edit]Editions
All of the Warriors books except for the manga have been published as hardcovers, and the majority of them have also been published as paperbacks.Starlight, Twilight, and Sunset from The New Prophecy, as well as all of the Omen of the Stars books so far, are available in an audiobook format.[55][56] TheNew Prophecy audiobooks are spoken by Nanette Savard, whose performance has been praised by reviewers. AudioFile wrote, "Nanette Savard brings out the youth of the cats who are struggling to help their clan survive and to protect each other from outside danger."[57][58] The Omen of the Stars audiobooks are spoken by Kathleen McInerney,[56] a pseudonym of Veronica Taylor, who is best known for having provided the voice of Ash Ketchum of the Pokémon anime in the past. The books in the four main series have also been released in an eBook format.[59]
[edit]Foreign editions
The Warriors series was first published in the USA and the United Kingdom.[30] Warriors is also sold in New Zealand,[60]Australia,[61] and Canada. Translations from English into other languages such as Czech, Lithuanian, Finnish, Japanese,French, Russian, Chinese and Korean have been published more recently.[62] The first six books have been published inKorea and the first two series in Germany.[2][63] Fandom even exists in Trinidad and Singapore.[64] The first two books have been printed in Poland[65] and Italy.[66]
[edit]Other media
[edit]Website
The Warriors website features Warriors screen savers, and E-cards, along with videos on "How To Draw Graystripe," the process of writing a manga book, and a video to promoting Cats of the Clans. There is also a "How To Draw Manga" page. In addition, there are games, including: quizzes, the New Prophecy Adventure, the Warriors Hunting Game, and the Warriors Adventure Game, a paper-and-pencil-based role-playing game. On the Q&A section of the site, Erin Hunter said that they are working on an online game that would be released in late 2010. It finished the first round of testing in summer 2010, but by January 2011, had not been released. Whether it will be a role-playing game is unknown. Erin Hunter has stated on the official Warriors website that there is still no plan for an official video game, but if there was, it would probably be based on a movie version of the Warriors series, which is currently not under consideration.[1] Many fans have also created their own forum-based role-playing games.[5]
[edit]Movie
During a July 2009 author chat, Victoria Holmes stated that there are currently no planned Warriors movies, and none under consideration:
"Oh, the fickle world of movie making, well, there are currently no Warriors movies in production or even under consideration. The economy is not in a state to invest in a rather dark animation about feral cats, apparently. I promise I'll let you know if there are any changes."[15]
In August 2010, she stated:
"Well, never say never, but there are currently no Warriors movies in production, and no immediate plans."[33]
However, there are many fan-made animations on YouTube.
[edit]Short stories
The first short story written by Erin Hunter was called Spottedleaf's Honest Answer. In it, Spottedleaf talks about her love for Firestar. It gives information on what happened in the Warriors series from Into the Wild to Firestar's Quest.[67]
On January 20, 2009, another short story, called The Clans Decide, was released on the Warriors Ultimate Leader Election site, starring Firestar, who won an election through an online vote conducted in recognition of President Obama's Inauguration Day. The story is about the four Clans voting for a way to survive a tough leaf-bare (winter). Every cat at the meeting voted whether or not the Clans would work together to survive the leaf-bare. In the end, the Clans decided to work together to survive leaf-bare.[68]
Two short stories, titled After Sunset: The Right Choice? and The Elders' Concern were included with the Warriors mobile application.[69] The Elders' Concern has been noted to contain timeline errors. Taking place after Bluestar's selection of Fireheart for deputy, it is about the elder Halftail, who is unhappy with the decision, and wakes the other elders to discuss it with them. In After Sunset: The Right Choice?, Leafpool runs into Brambleclaw in the evening of the day he had killed Hawkfrost; Brambleclaw confides in her his worry that the event was a sign that he was unfit to be deputy.
[edit]Plays
Written by Victoria Holmes for a tour, a play entitled After Sunset: We Need to Talk was first premiered on April 28, 2007, at the Secret Garden bookstore inSeattle, Washington. It details a meeting between Leafpool of ThunderClan and Crowfeather of WindClan after the events of Sunset. The script was released to the public at the official site for the Warriors series.[70]
During a fund raising event in Russellville, Arkansas, Brightspirit's Mercy was performed by various high school drama students. The second of the two plays by Erin Hunter, Brightspirt's Mercy is about Jaypaw, Lionblaze, and Hollyleaf. After going to a Gathering, where it is obvious all of the Clans except for ThunderClan are starving, three cats from StarClan appear to them: Brightspirit, and her parents, Shiningheart and Braveheart, characters created on Wands and Worlds, a fantasy fiction forum, in memory of a 10-year-old Warriors fan, Emmy Grace Cherry, and her parents, Dana and Jimmy Cherry, who were killed in a tornado in February 2007.[71] They tell the three young cats that they must help feed the other Clans. Jaypaw is easily convinced, but Hollyleaf and Lionblaze are harder to win over. Eventually, they agree and hunt, then wait at the WindClan border for a patrol. Ashfoot, WindClan's deputy, accepts the gift, but Breezepaw, too proud to have help from another Clan, refuses to eat it. Jaypaw, Lionblaze, and Hollyleaf then head towards another Clan's territory.[72]
[edit]Trading cards
In the Chinese translation of the series, "3-D trading cards" are packaged in each book. The 3-D effect is caused bystereoscopic lenticular printing. These cards feature pictures of the cats on the center of the bookcover with the Chinese and English names, and biographical information on the back. Current cards feature Firestar, Bluestar, Tallstar, Graystripe, Tigerstar, a collage of the 5 previous cats, Brambleclaw, Feathertail, Leafpool, Onestar, Crowfeather, Hawkfrost, Hollyleaf, Jayfeather, Lionblaze, Blackstar, Squirrelflight, Breezepelt, Sandstorm, Oakheart, Dovewing, Ivypool, Flametail, and Stormfur.[73]
[edit]Mobile application
On June 30, 2011, an official iOS application was released on the iTunes App Store.[69] It contains information about the books in the series, profiles of the Clans and major characters (including app-exclusive information such as the name of Firestar's mother), an interactive timeline and maps, two application-exclusive short stories, and a trivia game.
[edit]E-book only works
[edit]"Hollyleaf's Story"
"Hollyleaf's Story" was released on March 3, 2012. It takes place from the time when Hollyleaf went into the tunnels and was thought to be dead in Sunrise. The book goes on until she goes to the tunnels beneath ThunderClan territory to find that Ivypool and Dovewing are spying on Sol and the WindClan cats. When she first goes into the cave, she is saved by Fallen Leaves and lives with him for the remainder of her time in the caves. The book also tells of her helping the ThunderClan cats in several ways. It was released in e-book form only and is currently unavailable in print.
[edit]"Mistystar's Omen"
"Mistystar's Omen" is an e-book only work that is set to be released on September 11, 2012.
