Long Shadows (book review)

Long Shadows, by Erin Hunter, is the newest installment in the Warriors: Power of Three saga. Power of Three is the most recent of three six-book series about warrior cats, the first two being Warriors and Warriors: The New Prophecy. There is also a Warriors Super Edition book, called Firestar's Quest, and two Warriors field guides.

Hollyleaf, Jaypaw, and Lionblaze are kin to the legendary clan leader Firestar (who first appeared as Firepaw in the original Warriors series) and are the subject of a prophecy about three of Firestar's relatives who hold the power of the stars in their paws. The three siblings belong to ThunderClan, one of four warrior cat clans, ShadowClan, ThunderClan, WindClan, and RiverClan. One cat from each clan, known as the medicine cat, has the ability to heal other cats with herbs as well as to speak to the cats' warrior ancestors, who are known as StarClan. Jaypaw is the apprentice of ThunderClan's current medicine cat, Leafpool. He has the ability to walk in the dreams of other cats, and although he was born blind, he knows things other cats don't know. When a horrible bout of sickness strikes ThunderClan, it seems as if this more than half of the clan may die. And StarClan has placed their fate in his paws. Can Jaypaw save the sick cats before time runs out?

Hollyleaf is the diplomat of the group. Her dream is to become leader of Thunderclan one day. To her, preserving the warrior code, which all clan cats live by, is more important than almost anything else. But when a mysterious loner begins convincing ShadowClan to abandon the warrior code, Hollyleaf may have to break it herself if she wants to convince them to return to clan life.

Lionblaze is dedicated to becoming the best warrior he can possibly be, but he's hiding a big secret from the rest of ThunderClan--he is visited in his dreams by the dark warrior Tigerstar, who once caused the forest to run red with the blood of innocent cats. Lionblaze is beginning to free himself from Tigerstar's control. However, he is still tormented by bloody visions and violent dreams. Will the darkness within him affect the cats around him?

When madness and murder reach the heart of ThunderClan itself, the three siblings uncover a shocking secret. This revelation forces Jaypaw, Lionblaze, and Hollyleaf to question everything they've ever believed, and it changes their whole world forever.

I LOVED this book! Once I started reading, it was almost impossible to put it down (although that's happened with every book in the series that I've read so far)! This book revealed darkness in the hearts of some cats, which I didn't notice before. It was very descriptive and easy to understand, and it ended in a cliffhanger that left me wanting more! I will DEFINITELY run out to buy the next book as soon as it comes out in early April. However, to new readers of Warriors I'd definitely recommend starting with the first series. The books are much easier to understand that way.

This book was for the 999 Challenge under the category of "Fantasy with Animals".