Finished yet another one of these Warrior cats books. There’s really no end to them, is there? I’ve read online that there’s supposedly some inconsistFinished yet another one of these Warrior cats books. There’s really no end to them, is there? I’ve read online that there’s supposedly some inconsistency here and there during the long story? But that’s not that strange, is it? When there’s so many of them, and there’s so many authors. Although, fact-checking your own stories isn’t to big a wish, is it?
ANYHODDLE! If there was anything wrong in this story, I couldn’t really tell. Usually I’d say book series that are this long are low quality books, but the Erin Hunter team has just got�. something that just makes these books work for me. I don’t know what it is.
In this we follow the chosen three that continue to struggle. Especially Dovepaw who struggles with her sister Ivypaw. And Ivypaw? I really wanted to hit her over the head REPEATEDLY! But I mean, she had to be a bit dumb for the plot, I guess. It’s so damn obvious that Tigerstar in the Dark Forest or The Place With No Stars is just using her for his own agenda as is Hawkfrost. But Ivypaw is blinded by jealousy of her sister Dovepaw. Ivypaw feels that Dovepaw gets special treatment by the leadership of the Thunderclan. And RIGHTLY SO! Because Dovepaw is, thanks to her special power, her sensitive and superstrong senses. If the sisters could have just TALKED to each other, so many issues could have been solved earlier. Oh well�.
I still like Jayfeather. He is a character I love to hate or hate to love? I don’t know, I’m conflicted. He has probably the foulest temper of all the characters and is a bit of a bitch, honestly. But he is also a very VERY good medicine cat and actually does care, if you get past his attitude. Plus he is way too smart for his own good, honestly. And is using his power of seeing others thoughts and being able to visit their dreams to try and solve all the puzzles the story gives us.
His brother, who is also a part of the chosen three, is starting to grind on me though. Lionblaze who has this power where he can’t get hurt in a fight. Like, at all. Which pretty much makes him invincible, as far as we know at least. And he is starting to� abuse that power. And THAT will just never end well, I just know it. So far nothing bad has happened, but it’s just a matter of time. There’s two or three more books in this series after all. (Not counting all the other serieses in this never ending book series�.)
It’s still a very entertaining story though. Much of the success and what just makes these books work I’m guessing is the world-building. It just draws me in and I kinda don’t want to leave this world with cats and their lives. I’m glad the next translated book will soon be released. Can’t wait. ...more
I think I’ve figured out what the biggest strength of the Erin Hunter team is. At least to me. It’s the world-building they got going. It doesn’t mattI think I’ve figured out what the biggest strength of the Erin Hunter team is. At least to me. It’s the world-building they got going. It doesn’t matter what animals inhabit their world, it’s alive vibrant and you just want to stay in it!
Same thing here. Even though things get a bit� dangerous here. Lucky is, as his name suggests, a lucky dog. Things go well for the pack, of sorts. Apart from the young dog Lick, who is one of the so called ‘fierce dogs�, or as we know them Dobberman dogs. She’s fast, VERY strong and has a quick and aggressive temper. But she is VERY loyal.
She ended up a character I kinda rooted for. She tries SO HARD to fit in with the wild pack, and trusts Lucky with every bit of her being. Her temper and her dreams put her in trouble more than once with Alpha though, the leader of the pack and a half-wolf.
Against my better judgement though, I do like Alpha too. In the previous books he has been this strong leader, a bit of a bully, yes, but still he has always had an answer and has only shown confidence.
Not here though. Not at all. It is very clear that he is very insecure now when they are traveling, does not know what to do most of the time, but at the same time is afraid of showing insecurity. Which makes him mean and a proper bully. Especially against Lick, since he HATES ‘fierce dogs�, despite Lick doing everything asked of her and more.
Alphas second in command Sweet is very very cool. She’s one of those that you first don’t notice, because they keep doing these cool things in the background. I don’t know how else to explain it. She hasn’t changed, she’s still the Beta to Alpha, but the more insecure Alpha becomes the more important and strong she is. It’s kinda cool to see. I didn’t like her earlier, but now I kinda do.
Not any huge twists in this book, just a continuation of the adventure. The biggest mystery for me in the Survivor books is what the heck happened to have all these humans die but the animals survived??? Small clues here and there, but I can’t figure it out! Both frustrating, interesting and exciting!
So yeah, the Survivor books might not be quite as strong as the Warrior books, but they are still very good! And I still enjoy them! ...more
And� I’ve finished yet another of Erin Hunters books. Taking them one at a time as they are translated.
The Bamboo Kingdom are not at all as good as thAnd� I’ve finished yet another of Erin Hunters books. Taking them one at a time as they are translated.
The Bamboo Kingdom are not at all as good as the Warriors series, the Bravelands series or the Survivors series. I don’t know what it is� but it’s just too slow moving for me.
Although, to be fair, some action happened in the second half of this book. I will give it that. But this is book two, so the build up is just a tad bit too long.
At least now we know the main plot and what is going on. Rain and Leaf are indeed siblings. And Ghost is highly likely the third triplet of the siblings. That is supposed to be the Dragon Speaker, and get rid of the usurper Sunset Deepwood.
That plan has not gone so well at all, actually. In this book I feel the most sorry for Ghost, honestly. Since he’s grown up among the snow leopards and been raised by them, he doesn’t belong with either species currently. He always felt wrong among the snow leopards, while it was also his home. Now he has found a home and knows that he is a panda, albeit white, but with his upbring he doesn’t feel at home there either.
Which makes Ghost a perfect target for Sunset to use for his own gains. And it takes almost the entire book before Sunset shows his true colours and Ghost releases what is going on. At that point his snow leopard sister Shiver has abandoned him. She tried to tell him what Sunset was doing, but Ghost didn’t listen since he was so desperate to find a home.
Yeah, things are heating up in this book and it is definitely much more interesting than the first one that was very dull. Is it good though? Not to the level that Hunter’s other series are. I will continue when the next one is released though. Out of pure curiosity I suppose. Maybe the next one will be even better? Who knows? ...more
Oh my gosh what a cliffhanger!!! And the last book hasn’t been translated to swedish yet! GAH!
Anyway, even if the earlier books were more� gory and blOh my gosh what a cliffhanger!!! And the last book hasn’t been translated to swedish yet! GAH!
Anyway, even if the earlier books were more� gory and bloody in a way, this one was even worse because here the animals are being tortured by president Silvio the bull and his dog lieutenants in a more mental capacity. It’s scary, the terror balance is horrible� But the resistance still stands strong!
What I love about this is that in the previous books the working animals were more individuals, they looked after themselves and their family, and didn't care that much for each other. But in this book, FINALLY, they have ended up a proper team after half of it. They are now proper FRIENDS and they back each other up!
Caesar, the gigolo rabbit was even downright touched that Miss B, the cat, said she trusted him more than anyone, something no one had ever said to him before! Very sweet and touching!
Another thing I really enjoyed is that we found out a bit about president Silvio the bull’s past! When he was a teen bull, you know? That time between calf and adult bull when they’re all gangly and stuff. (Go to a farm and you’ll see!) He is an ABSOLUTE NIGHTMARE in the present time of the story, but we got a hint of what possibly could have driven him there. I don’t think we’ve gotten the full story, and I hope we will get the full story in the last graphic novel, fingers crossed.
The rat Azelar is showing up a bit more and helps Miss B and Caesar with the leadership, with planning and coming up with ideas so they’ll survive Silvio and his dogs and their�. well� torture.. Yeah, that happens too, even if we don’t see all of it.
So this series keeps becoming better and better. I’ll keep my eyes open for the last part, which I hope will go out on a high!!!! ...more
Reading book two of the FANTASTIC Animal Castle series of graphic novels!
And the second one is JUST as good as the first one, honestly!
Winter has arriReading book two of the FANTASTIC Animal Castle series of graphic novels!
And the second one is JUST as good as the first one, honestly!
Winter has arrived at the castle/farm where all the animals live. And it makes the struggle for the animals even worse. Not for Silvio, his harem (he is a bull, so the harem are cows!) and his dog lieutenants, but for all the rest of the animals that work to gather Silvios fortunes, life is really hard.
Especially now when the rat, who’s name is Azelar btw, Miss Bengalore and the gigolo rabbit Caesar has started the peaceful revolution properly! Azelar is working behind the scenes mostly, the other animals dont� see him or meet him. Miss Bengalore is the face of the revolution. She and Azelar seem to both be more or less inspired by Ghandi. In two different ways. Mostly Azelar, I’d say.
The peaceful revolution goes well, although it’s a struggle to the point of death for all animals. All they want is for life to be fair and democratic, which President Silvio the bull does NOT want! He wants to rule them all, and he does with terror and horror.
Again, not a graphic novel for kids�
The animals are so very relatable in so many ways. We’ve seen this story before, in so many countries sadly. Here though the hope burns brightly. And the stubbornness despite them losing friends who dies.
There ARE some upsetting scenes in this. The artist is NOT holding back with the gore! The ending scene especially, an event our main characters Miss Bengalore and her friend Caesar feared would happen the entire book�
But good. SO SO GOOD!!! These books need to be translated to more languages. The artwork is OUTSTANDING in this book as well!!! ...more
I’m such a sucker for stories about animals that get help to overcome their difficulties. And this is just such a story. Yeah, yeah, it’s written for I’m such a sucker for stories about animals that get help to overcome their difficulties. And this is just such a story. Yeah, yeah, it’s written for little kids, but I still think it’s pretty good. Probably one of the best ones of the series.
What’s extra fun with this book is that I actually got a copy from the author herself!!!! She’s read a review I did here for an earlier part of the series, and liked it so much she wanted it on the back of the last book! Totally honored I said YES! So now my actual name and profession is on the back of this book! As thank you she sent a copy of this book to me and kiddo with a greeting and dedication to kiddo written in it. THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!
Anyhoodle! This won’t take away from the fact I did actually enjoy this book quite a great deal. It’s interesting how these small horses, these mini-shetland ponies, are so strong and hardy� and can get quite old. I can see why this is most likely the last book in the series, because you can tell from how she writes the characters, the horses. They’re getting older and it affects their strength and health a bit. Not their wit though!!! OH NO! Of course not! They’re funny as heck still!
But in this book we mostly follow a professional competitive big thoroughbred horse. The same one that as a motherless foal came to the mini-shetland ponies for help. Now he’s an adult and he is one HELL of a jumper! He loves it too and does try his best for his owner, his groomer/career and his rider. He’s just a good guy but a horse.
There’s a problem though, of course it is. Just like some people are super sensitive or highly sensitive to their surroundings, so is this competitive horse. He’s called Rascal, btw. Well, Rascal gets stressed the F out from the competitive scene, even though he loves jumping in and off itself.
So that’s the issue our sweet and tough little mini-shetland ponies have to solve together with the humans around them, despite not being able to communicate with words. They do have their ways though�.
Such a great book! When animals or kids overcome things, I get teary-eyed every freaking time. And that happened this time too. Truly recommend this for a quite cute read!!!...more
And so we’ve finished the latest Warriors book that’s been translated to swedish! And it was SO GOOD!
On one hand, it’s a bit of a repetition, but on tAnd so we’ve finished the latest Warriors book that’s been translated to swedish! And it was SO GOOD!
On one hand, it’s a bit of a repetition, but on the other hand it actually works. The repetition is that there’s sibling rivalry, just like it was in the earlier books with Jayfeather, Lionblaze and their sister Hollyleaf. This time though it’s between Dovepaw and her sister Ivypaw.
So even though there are similarities, they’re written almost like a mirror, you know? Not as a copy. If that makes sense.
The rivalry between Dovepaw and Ivypaw is just sad, really. Dovepaw is not officially one of The Three special ones. And even though in the beginning when she and Lionblaze and Jayfeather are talking, she kind of likes it, but the more this particular book moves on, she doesn’t.
And I get that! She has such a strong power, it weighs her down. And after that huge three fell over their camp, I mean� Even though she DID save her clan, there were still casualties. She’s also WAY too naive when it comes to having friendships from other clans. Both me and kiddo had a couple of face-palm moments over that. Yeah, she’s very sweet and kind, but she’s also a bit blind sometimes in a way�
Not the same way as Jayfeather though! He on the other hand sometimes sees things more clearly than others, despite actually being blind! It’s a shame he broke that stick though, I like the visions from the ancient cats he had, those were interesting. I hope we’ll see more of those in the future.
I’m kinda impressed with this looooong series of books, how it manages to keep up the quality! Sure, there’s been a few hiccups here and there along the way, but they’re just small and I feel like the author team does keep a pretty good quality on their writing overall.
Now the long wait until they translate the next book! ...more
What an absolutely gorgeous book! And how absolutely gory and horrible it is! But oh so So SO good!!!
Taking the classic Animal Farm and making it intoWhat an absolutely gorgeous book! And how absolutely gory and horrible it is! But oh so So SO good!!!
Taking the classic Animal Farm and making it into a graphic novel is brilliant. Although, it’s NOT Animal Farm. This is another story entirely, even if the premise is the same. Animals being abandoned on a farm in the French countryside. The biggest and strongest animal taking over, a bull named Silvio, and his lieutenant dogs. And they are running a dictatorship of the worst, and bloodiest, kind.
In other words, this might have talking animals in it, but it is NOT, I repeat, NOT a graphic novel for kids!
Our main character is Miss Bengalore. A lady cat that has two kittens to take care of under this dictatorship. And her friend, a rabbit. And he is, well� He is a gigolo. A male prostitute, so to speak. He’s having sex for “money� with lady rabbits. And he gives sexual advice to anyone else who wants to, or doesn't want to, hear them. These two unlikely neighbors end up friends after a failed violent revolution against Silvio and his dogs.
When a traveling old rat shows up and shows a theater, a one man (rat) show, about a human war and peaceful revolution without violence� (It’s clearly Ghandi that the rat talks about.) Well, that starts a fire in Miss Bengalore, and we got ourselves a story!
This first book just sets the stage pretty much, and the suffering of the animals struggling under Silvios rule. Btw, the writer must have taken inspiration from Stalin, Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Il and the ilks like them.
Already in this first book we find out WHY Silvio wants all the animals on the farm to work so hard and collect so much food and stuff for him. He uses it to trade with a human� And what does he trade for? Champagne, wine and the like. He even trades animals that have died working on the fields to get that champagne!
A rotten bull is what he is�
I rather like this! I like it A LOT! It’s so cleverly written and the artwork is absolutely STUNNING! ...more
I wasn’t planning to read this book, dammit! Now kiddo is a bit too old for these kid-horse-books. She’s grown out of them clearly.
But I still work wiI wasn’t planning to read this book, dammit! Now kiddo is a bit too old for these kid-horse-books. She’s grown out of them clearly.
But I still work with kids that like these books, so I was supposed to bring it to a class and had packed a bunch of books to bring with me and this was on the top. Now, the Mulle-books are full of a great sense of humor so I started looking through it and ended up reading the whole thing! Oops?
Anyway, although this one has much the same kind of humor as the others in the series, there’s a serious undertone to it that surprised me.
Because horses can only end up so old, can’t they? And when a horse or pony at a riding school is too old, well�
And that’s what’s happening here. The riding school favorite pony, who is MUCH MUCH nicer to the riders than Mulle is (he is a bit of a crazy pony really�), she’s grown too old at 24 years old to work and is supposed to retire.
But just as the pony is supposed to do just that, she disappears!!! Cue panic! And Mulle and his buddy the little rabbit are on the case to find the disappeared pony!
This was cute, fun and sweet and also shows that even though ponies, according to Mully, think their humans are kinda off hopeless, they do care for their humans despite that. Even Mulle.
So yeah. Cute fun and� yeah, I liked the series undertone as well. I can see why the kids at my school like these. ...more
Anyway, this was a pretty good book about horses and social media. I really liked the main character in this Well. That didn’t end the way I expected�
Anyway, this was a pretty good book about horses and social media. I really liked the main character in this story, Eveline. A girl that sticks to her guns and keeps up with her interest in riding and her love of horses, despite her family having ZERO interest in horses or any animal at all.
And that she’s so humble. I mean, Eveiline is GOOD at what she does which the riding instructors recognize, but she never pushes said skill in the face of others. Never blows her own horn, as they say. I like that too. Because she’s rewarded for it in this story. LIke it should be!
And there’s Felix. The boy in the story, where both me and kiddo thought there’d be a romance, but there wasn’t. Just friendship. And his two glorious horses that all the other girls in the stable want to help care for.
Of COURSE there’ll be drama! OF COURSE there’ll be! A pretty boy with two horses in a stable full of horse-crazy girl� Enter social media, Instagram in this case, and the drama is in full swing.
It’s a really good take on it though. I definitely enjoyed it. Kiddo did too, even if we didn’t read every night. I’m glad we finished it off finally though! ...more
Kiddo found this on the back of her horse-comic/magazine that she is subscribed to and wanted me to find it, so I did. I thought she wanted to read itKiddo found this on the back of her horse-comic/magazine that she is subscribed to and wanted me to find it, so I did. I thought she wanted to read it herself, but no. She wanted to read it with me. So we did.
Was it any good? Well, there’s a lot of horses involved, the story centers around a horse-crazy girl living on a horse-farm so of course horses would be a big part of it.
But to my surprise that’s not all!
There’s a lot of family-secrets revealed here. A ghost sneaking around. A mystery bird that probably is more than meets the eye. Crazy old ladies with a strange past�
Just a lot of mystery going on around that horse-farm! So it was a lot more interesting than I thought!
What pulls down the rating is the habit off this writer to put writing in red squares which makes the writing almost impossible to read. WHY?!??!?! It serves no purpose!
Anyway, well worth it to check it if you want some mystery and some horses. ...more
And so, we’ve finished the last translated Warriors book. It hasn’t even been out for a month yet.
Kiddo, who is OBSESSED with these books, wanted to oAnd so, we’ve finished the last translated Warriors book. It hasn’t even been out for a month yet.
Kiddo, who is OBSESSED with these books, wanted to own this one, so I bought it for her. Who am I to deny such a request??
And I will say, I enjoyed it as well. Of all the Hunter books we’ve read, I enjoy the books about the cat-clans the most.
There’s been a few weaker installments, sure. And reusing an old enemy again and again can be tiresome.
BUT! A lot of it is weighed up by the characters. And there’s some strong characters in this one too!
The new character we get to follow, Dovepaw, is just such a sweetheart! She has such a huge caring heart. Helped up by her big bravery and her special powers. I loved her, I really did.
Lionblaze and Jayfeather have continued to grow on me, and they still do. They’ve grown a lot from losing their sisters. Matured quite a bit, despite having to struggle with said loss and the fact they’re half-clan borns. And that their mother is still in the clan considered a traitor. And their father refuses to acknowledge them.
Rest of the Thunderclan is also pretty cool, I’d say!
And the Shadowclan leader, Blackstar, who I really didn’t like in the earlier books kept surprising me in this one! VERY interesting�
So there’s a lot to unpack here. And a very interesting story about drought, since their lake is drying up. And they have to figure out how and why before all the clans die.
A great book all around! And now we have to wait for who knows how long for the next one� ...more
Impossible to not compare this book with ALL the other books by Erin Hunter me and kiddo have read together. And this?Well. That was a disappointment.
Impossible to not compare this book with ALL the other books by Erin Hunter me and kiddo have read together. And this? Was BY FAR the worst of the lot!
To start with, it's VERY slow. And confusing. Since all the characters are pandas and the two groups off either side of the river are so very VERY similar, we lost track a lot of times on wich group we were talking about.
And in all the other Erin Hunter books the bad guy was very obvious. Not so much here. Might be a good thing as well, of course. But not here. Because all the characters were antsy and worried� and it wasn’t made clear why.
And the river, let’s not get me started. So there was a flood and the river swelled and now you can’t cross it. OK. Fine. It happens. But it’s a RIVER! It’s always moving. And unless it has some mystical way to always and forever have the same refill as it did during the flooding� it will slow down. It will not be constantly flooded for years. Unless something REALLY strange happened! So that annoyed me.
What I did like though, I will say, was how they gave an explanation for the constant eating that pandas do. That was pretty neat. There was even a religious thing around all that. Which was cool. I liked that.
And I also liked the red pandas and their names. VERY nice and cute!
But the characters fell flat for me as did the story. Kiddo wasn’t too fond of this one either. Such a shame.
We both came to the conclusion that off the Erin Hunter series the WarriorCats books are the best and the Survivors books + the Bravelands books end up on a shared second place.
So yeah, avoid this series and stick to the other Erin Hunter books, because unlike this one those are actually worth reading....more
Yet another book read. To me, this was a very predictable and dull book. Because it goes from: Girl meets horse. Girl feels connected with horse. Girl
Yet another book read. To me, this was a very predictable and dull book. Because it goes from: Girl meets horse. Girl feels connected with horse. Girl struggles for horse. Girl gets horse. End of story.
So to me books like these are dull. But kiddo likes them, so eh�
There was a tiny twist to the regular horse-story here though. As it turns out the horse isn’t trained normally and isn’t acting normally. And girl in question is a bit different from everyone else as well, as it turns out�
It’s a small twist, but at least it’s something. Hence it bumps up the rating. We do like representation after all! Which we get from the girl as well, since she IS adopted and has two moms.
So all this representation does bump up the ratings, even if the story was� dull.
I hope I get to read something more fun with kiddo next� ...more
And so� Me and kiddo have finished off the last of the Bravelands books that have been translated to swedish.
I will say one thing. This team of authoAnd so� Me and kiddo have finished off the last of the Bravelands books that have been translated to swedish.
I will say one thing. This team of authors, the Erin Hunter team? They are REALLY good at writing tension. Holy shit.
I mean, the other series had tension in them too, but in this one they really upped the ante! I guess it’s because it’s on the African savanna and there’s both prey and predator animals that have various leads. It creates a tension the other stories could not. Because in those we ONLY followed predator animals. Plus in the particular part the Great Leader is missing, and the savanna is more chaotic than normal.
I really liked the various leads. The young lion Fearless set out for revenge, but also so helpful to his friends. Friends who could have been prey had he not grown up with them. And how he struggles to lead a pack even though he is far too young to do so. I also liked the lion that’s the son of the Big Bad Lion. Despite having such a name, Ruthless, is a total sweetheart. I love him. At least now. In the beginning of the book, maybe not so much. But damn did he grow on me in this book.
Thorn the baboon was a really nice character to. Friends with Fearless since they were very young. And he is SUCH a good hero, really. The best sort of heroes is those that don’t want to be a hero� but ends up doing heroic things anyway. In that way, he is quite perfect. And a hero has to have supportive friends. I really like Thorn’s friends Mud and Nut. Nut especially, since he used to be a bad guy, and now is not. Which makes him a bit spicy when he speaks, and I love that.
And there’s Sky, the elephant. She’s just� good. A little bit dull a character, to be frank. But important to the story to. I was actually happy to see her make a mistake, because that made her less perfect and more relatable.
And that’s just a few characters! There’s the vultures to, and my goth-heart can’t help but love them. The cheetahs� the buffaloos� I could go. There’s a myriad of characters on the savanna and we get to meet quite a lot of them!
I also like how they’ve incorporated real life things in the story, for example the musth that effects male elephants and turns to the gigantic insane murder-mashines! True actually. They attack everything when effected.
So yeah, surprisingly good. I suppose I’ll have to track down the next book for kiddo whenever it’s released in swedish. ...more
Yep. The thrill tag stays. I could also add a tag for a battle too, but alas I don't feel like creating a new tag.
Anyway.
This was incredible! It didn'Yep. The thrill tag stays. I could also add a tag for a battle too, but alas I don't feel like creating a new tag.
Anyway.
This was incredible! It didn't feel like just book three, the mid-book. Since there was a lot that was solved in this one. I really liked the young elephant character and her suitor. They were quite the team in this one! I will say that I liked that even the musth in male elephants, where they go absolutely nuts and are extremely aggressive, was mentioned. And how the female elephants lived in a flock for protection even against the male of their own species.
Same thing with the lions, from what we see in this book. There's a lot that comes from real life lions. Especially the comments about how this is not how it's usually done, since one of the male lions is breaking all the norms. But the females sure show the signs of what you see in wild real lions.
I'm not that well versed in how baboons work though, so I can't say if they've taken heavy inspiration from real baboons, but I'm taking a wild guess that they have.
All in all it really shows that the Erin Hunter team does their research. Even if the basic story from the various series remind of each other, with someone that is power hungry and breaks the norms on how the animals usually live. But even though all the books have their own religion, this one is a bit different from the ones in the other books about cats and the ones about dogs. Here there's a literal Great Spirit that lives in one of the many animals on the savanna. And it's looking for a new host. I think that's pretty neat!
Also, the cult aspect from the previous book is really blown out of all proportions in this one! The bad baboon character is going totally nuts but his group of baboons buys everything he says. And most of the other animals do too. But there's more and more who are jumping off his cult. And there's more wicked things revealed too.
I really liked to follow the young lion in particular when he goes from a true believer of the cult leader to actually understanding how used he is and the lies coming from the cult leader. That whole journey was great to follow!
I loved the good guy baboon as well, who really got to shine in this book! What a journey he was on here! And he slowly became friends with his previous baboon-enemy. A sweet story there.
Anyway, I'll stop gushing over this book! Some might think the Erin Hunter team only repeats themselves. And maybe they do? With just a few differences. But they do it SO WELL! So who cares! I'll continue reading their books with kiddo! ...more
I'm actually adding the thriller tag to this one, because HOLY SHIT! That ending...
Me and kiddo have kept trying to figure out how the bad guy baboon I'm actually adding the thriller tag to this one, because HOLY SHIT! That ending...
Me and kiddo have kept trying to figure out how the bad guy baboon would even do this, but when it all got revealed in the end? Gawd DAMN!!! Talk about spinning a web.
It all pretty much reminds me of how a cult works. And how cult-leaders work when they want to take over the minds of his followers. Because that's exactly what he does. Talking like everything he is saying makes total sense, even if he twists the truth back and forth and here and there to get EXACTLY what he wants.
And the only one who sees through him and actually knows the truth is another baboon.
There's also a cleverly spun murder-story here. Murder? Among wild animals, you say? Why yes. There's a LAW. Yes, in capital letters. A LAW that all animals in Bravelands follow. Only kill to survive. Carnivores do kill, yes. But only when they need to eat. Not unnecessary. But here the great leader, a huge elephant, is killed. And not eaten. And who can even kill a huge elephant?
The plot thickens. And there's so many twists and turns here, it's quite dizzying. The last two or three chapters I was almost breathless at the poor good baboon tried his best to stop The Bad Guy baboon, but was a leagues ahead of him constantly.
And then a cliffhanger at the end, because of course. Kiddo almost screamed at me and threw a pillow at me, because that cliffhanger got her good!
So yeah, the Erin Hunter team did it again, I would guess. Good on them!
I wonder how our hero animals are going to get out of this one? An elephant, a baboon and a lion... ...more
And so we finished the last Survivors book translated to swedish. I will say, out of the three we’ve read, I got the most invested in this one. I don� And so we finished the last Survivors book translated to swedish. I will say, out of the three we’ve read, I got the most invested in this one. I don’t know what it was�
Maybe it was because it included puppies� and possible child (puppy) abuse� What I also liked is that we found a little bit more about the half wolf Alpha and why he acts like he does. And that he’s not in control all the time. Interesting! Beta AKA Sweet is a character that also develops a bit more.
A heart wrenching scene was when Mickey, the dog (border collie) that’s been the most faithful to humans, finally understands that his humans have abandoned him. I mean, dogs are famous for their faithfulness to their owners, so in a book about dogs you HAVE to have such a dog, and Mickey was it. But even he had to give up finally. It was a bit heart wrenching, and very well written. Felt believable.
Not gonna go into detail, but Mickey’s scene there and when Lucky and Mickey find the abandoned puppies are the highlights of the book. As well as when the usually so calm and kind HUGE Newfoundland dog Martha turns into a fierce mama-dog to the abandoned puppies!
Also, I find it interesting that Dobermann dogs are the BIGGEST bad guys so far in the books, apart from the very VERY unnatural and weird things that happen in the nature that surrounds the pack. When reading up on Dobermann dogs they are not violent dogs by nature, in fact they’re intelligent, energetic and VERY caring. But in these books they are described as violent by nature by all other dogs. They’re even called fierce-dogs and described as vicious and cruel. Strange. But I guess you have to have a bad guy, right?
Anyway, these books are well worth checking out. They’re quite good, just like the original series about the cats. I’ll look forward to reading the next book when it’ll be released. ...more
Book two in this new series by the Hunter-team. And I will say that even though the Warriors-books had a slower burn, I really think these books are aBook two in this new series by the Hunter-team. And I will say that even though the Warriors-books had a slower burn, I really think these books are a bit� quicker in the story? If you get what I mean.
I’m still annoyed at the main character Lucky. Although there was a bit less of “I’m a loner-dog! Promise!� this time around, which I appreciate. He is admitting that he likes the bond and belonging there is to be a part of a pack. He admits it. That would never have happened in the previous book.
I liked the half wolf half dog hybrid that is the leader of the wild pack. He’s just called Alfa or wolfdog. A scary character, but not in a villain way. Not once since his introduction did I think of him as a villain. Harsh, tough and sometimes cruel, yes. But not a down and out evil villain. Nor is Sweet, his right hand paw. That pair will do ANYTHING to protect their pack and their territory. Including walking over bodies. The pack-structure is also extremely important in this wild pack. Which was kinda cool to read. I have to wonder why every pack has to have an Omega though, the bottom of the pecking order, the bullied dog? What’s the reason for that, I wonder?
Anyway, there’s obviously similarities to the Warriors books. Especially in this with the wild pack. Bella’s pack of previous pet-dogs are more a gang of friends, even if they DO get tougher in this book, which I really liked. (Especially the smaller dogs! Damn, girl! Who knew a cute Maltese dog could be a fighter like that!) But the similarities are there.
And the spy mission Bella gave to Lucky and is a HUGE part of the book was�. Kinda cold-hearted by her, honestly. Shows that she has slowly grown into her place as a leader to the previous pet-dogs though.
I couldn’t see how this spy mission story would end, but I did not expect what I got. NICE! I like it when even fantasy-books for kids/teens can surprise me! I hope we can get our hands on the next one in swedish soonish. I did enjoy this read for sure, despite some of its weaknesses....more
We finished this book a couple of days ago, me and kiddo. And it’s really different from the other books by the Erin Hunter team.
In the Warrior booksWe finished this book a couple of days ago, me and kiddo. And it’s really different from the other books by the Erin Hunter team.
In the Warrior books we follow cats, and in the Survivor books we follow dogs. Pack of dogs and a flock of cats respectively. But in these Bravelands books we follow many different animals on the savanna in Africa. Which is interesting. Because we got a lion, which is a predator. And a baboon, which is prey. And an elephant, which is prey even if not many predators would dare to attack such a big animal.
It gives a bit of an interesting dynamic I’d say with so many different animals. We follow birds to, a bit, and zebras and wildebeests. Much like a savanna in real life, it’s a bit of a chaotic mess that somehow works.
I will say that I really did like the religion they figure out for each book series. And this one as well, with reincarnation at it’s core. A bit interesting.
And there’s more than one murder-mystery that shows up during the story, which was pretty cool too! One we get to know the murderer for, but not the other. Even if I can guess�
There’s also a bad guy that could give Scar from Lionking a run for his money, even if it follows how lions act in nature. A male lion taking over a flock in real life WILL kill all the lion kittens so he can breed himself and make sure his kittens are the only kittens in the flock. That’s how it works in real life. And it’s what our mister bad guy Titan does quite early on in the story. Except one kitten that manages to run away� and is saved by a group of baboons�
And so the story starts.
Quite a good story I will say! Yet another story-line to follow! ...more
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