''Rising Storm'' is a fantasy novel, the fourth book in the ''

Warriors A warrior is a person specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracies, class, or caste. History Warriors seem to have be ...

'' series, written under the pen name of Erin Hunter. ''Rising Storm'' was written by

Kate Cary Kate Cary (born 4 November 1967 in Birmingham, England) is an author, most well known for her work on the ''Warriors'' series. Works Cary is a contributor to, alongside several others, the pen name Erin Hunter. She is also the single author ...

. The series follows the adventures of four Clans of wild,

anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...

cats. The plot follows Fireheart, newest deputy of ThunderClan, struggling to complete his duties as deputy, while still knowing that the previous deputy, Tigerclaw, is lurking in the forest somewhere, seeking revenge against Fireheart and his Clan. The book was first released as a hardcover in the US on 6 January 2004. It was then released in both paperback and e-book format. The UK has received the paperback version along with Canada. ''Rising Storm'' has been published in multiple languages, including Chinese, German, and French. Reviews for the book were mixed, with reviewers praising the suspense and cliffhanger ending; however, some reviews criticized the growing number of characters and lack of humor and depth.

Synopsis

Setting

''Rising Storm'' takes place in a fictional forest. The forest is home to four Clans of wild cats, ThunderClan, WindClan, RiverClan and ShadowClan, each of which lives in a piece of territory suited to their skills/abilities. The forest is based on

New Forest The New Forest is one of the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, heathland and forest in Southern England, covering southwest Hampshire and southeast Wiltshire. It was proclaimed a royal forest by William the Conqueror, featu ...

in Southern England. In addition to the New Forest,

Loch Lomond Loch Lomond (; gd, Loch Laomainn - 'Lake of the Elms'Richens, R. J. (1984) ''Elm'', Cambridge University Press.) is a freshwater Scottish loch which crosses the Highland Boundary Fault, often considered the boundary between the lowlands of Ce ...

, the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Sco ...

, and the

Forest of Dean The Forest of Dean is a geographical, historical and cultural region in the western part of the county of Gloucestershire, England. It forms a roughly triangular plateau bounded by the River Wye to the west and northwest, Herefordshire to the n ...

also inspired the fictional locales in the novel.

Plot

Fireheart is ThunderClan's new deputy, but the previous deputy, Tigerclaw, still haunts Fireheart's dreams. Fireheart wonders if ThunderClan would be ready if Tigerclaw attacked, as many of the cats are still shocked by Tigerclaw's disloyalty, and many warriors are still badly injured. Bluestar begins to become distrustful of the Clan after Tigerclaw's betrayal, trusting only her most senior warriors, and those who were not Clanborn. Bluestar, accompanied by Fireheart, goes to speak with StarClan, the Clans' warrior ancestors, at the Moonstone, located inside a disused

quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to reduce their envi ...

mine known to the Clans as Mothermouth. On the way there, a patrol of WindClan warriors stop them. The ThunderClan leader later fears that StarClan sent WindClan to stop them from going to Mothermouth and speaking with StarClan, which causes her to slip into further paranoia. Fireheart struggles with his disrespectful nephew and apprentice, Cloudpaw, who disobeys Fireheart's orders to stay away from Twolegs (humans), and is eventually abducted by them. Fireheart and his friend, Sandstorm, then go on a quest to rescue Cloudpaw. They find him, take him back, and he is accepted back into the Clan by convincing the Clan that he went against his will. Meanwhile, Fireheart struggles to cope with missing his best friend, Graystripe, who left ThunderClan with his kits to live in RiverClan, the kits' mother's Clan. The forest gets hotter and hotter as summer drags on, and eventually a

wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire ...

sweeps through the forest. It destroys ThunderClan's camp and taking the lives of two elders, Patchpelt and Halftail, as well as Yellowfang, ThunderClan's senior medicine cat. At the end of the book, it is revealed at a Gathering that both Nightstar and Cinderfur, elderly leader and deputy of ShadowClan respectfully, have died from a sickness, and that Tigerclaw, now Tigerstar, is the new leader of ShadowClan.

Publication history

''Rising Storm'' was first published as a hardcover in the US on 6 January 2004. The book was later also published as a paperback on 15 February 2005 and an e-book on 4 September 2007. In the UK, the book was first released on 2 October 2006 as a paperback. The Canadian version released early on 8 January 2004. It has also been translated into other languages such as German, Japanese, French, Russian, and Korean. The Chinese version was released on 30 November 2008, and also includes a trading card of Graystripe.

Themes

A major topic in this book is power. Tigerclaw is determined to take over ThunderClan, even after being banished from the Clan for trying to do so earlier. Other themes are violence and death. ''

Booklist ''Booklist'' is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. ''Booklist''s primary audience consists of libraries, educators, and booksellers. The magazine is av ...

'' notes that "teens may find their own journey toward adulthood echoed in the protagonist's struggles and self-doubts".

Critical reception

''Rising Storm'' was mostly well received by critics. In one review by ''Booklist'', the reviewer calls the novel suspenseful, also noting how the story echoes the journey to maturity. Another review, by

Voice of Youth Advocates ''Voice of Youth Advocates'' (''VOYA'') is a bimonthly magazine that provides book reviews and information for librarians with a focus on young adult materials. History and profile ''VOYA'' was established in 1978. The founders are Dorothy Brode ...

, noted that while the books lacks humor and depth, there was still appeal in the hidden world of the warrior cats. A ''BookLoons'' review particularly praised the ending, calling it a cliffhanger. A review by ''Horn Book Review'' for both ''Rising Storm'' and ''A Dangerous Path'' was also positive writing "The fourth and fifth entries in the series continue the development of the complex, dynamic characters". However, ''Children's Literature'' was not as positive, saying it was getting hard to remember all of the characters' relatives and leaders.

References

{{Warriors (Erin Hunter) 2004 American novels American fantasy novels Warriors (novel series) Novels about cats Avon (publisher) books 2004 children's books 2004 British novels British fantasy novels British children's books American children's books