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silverperri's review against another edition
3.0
This one's fine-- Leafstar's a great POV, SkyClan is unique (especially with the concept of daylight warriors and how much closer they are with non-clan cats), and I liked most of the cast. I hated Sharpclaw, though, and the main driving conflict is really generic and uninteresting. I just really needed to see Leafstar scream at people more, yknow?
anysnaders's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Well, Leafstar has her work cut out for her, for sure. Daylight warriors are an interesting development, one that I imagine could have major implications for Clan dynamics should SkyClan ever return to the Forest (well, or the Lake).
smart_as_paint's review against another edition
3.0
I still have a troubling question: What is Skyclan's Destiny?
Because there are many different stories mixing inside Skyclan's Destiny, but destiny is not one of them. Destiny implies higher purpose— a foretold inevitability. And the best destiny I can find is that Skyclan will go through hard times. Which hardly counts as a destiny. That's a Mothwing prophecy if I've ever heard one. Hard times are an inescapable side-effect of being alive.
This is a warrior book unlike any other. Well, I'm not sure if that's still true. My knowledge of the Warrior Cats isn't as complete as it once was. While I have never forsaken my Warrior honor, I haven't paid attention to the clans since Obamastar was leader. The Hunters are an industrious group of storytellers and I have better ways to light my time on fire.
But what I mean by "This is a warrior book unlike any other" is that there are no other clans. Skyclan is alone. And this simple concept has a ripple effect on the larger story. The other clans serve as counterbalance. They stand in opposition to the protagonists but also validate the existing power structures. They keep you accountable. Your traditions and customs are harder to question if there are three other, similarly sized, clans practicing them along with you. Crazy is only crazy when you're alone.
It has been six moons since Firestar left, taking with him the last true connection to the other clans. And now Skyclan's new leader, Leafstar, must do the best for her clan. Firestar taught Leafstar a warrior code and left her clear understanding of what that means: if you want to be a warrior cat, you need to follow the code. But Leafstar soon learns that things aren't so simple in Skyclan. The only other clan is a dead thing; Starclan only warns that hard times are coming.
And so, Leafstar and Skyclan must walk along a slippery fence. They must carry themselves by their own scruff. On one paw, they can decide which pieces of the warrior code are outdated. And break them without fear of repercussions. On the other paw, without the warrior code, they are just a group of stray cats. And the Twoleg world is often fatal to stray cats. This is compounded by the difficulties of leadership. Not every cat believes that Leafstar is doing what's best for the clan.
And what's incredible is how Leafstar's decisions are genuinely difficult. I felt myself aghast at her breaking the warrior code by allowing the kittypets to join the clan while sleeping in the Twoleg dens at night. These Daylight Warriors make sense but still make me uncomfortable. I've spent years taking Lionheart's comment as scripture:"You must either live with us and respect our ways, or return to the Twolegplace and never come back. You cannot live with a paw in each world." I want to yowl but I know that the Daylight Warriors are probably best for Skyclan. And that's the type of emotional investment that I live for in stories
And so this is a book about the privilege and terror of defining your own identity. It's an age old question with a feline twist. What parts of the warrior code should Leafstar choose to follow, knowing that each amendment weakens the warrior roots that hold up Skyclan's rain-soaked canopy? In short, Skyclan must create its own destiny…
Ah. I think I understand now.
Icestar. That sounds like an incredible setup. Why only three stars?
Well, dear traveler, because of the ending… and also some of the middle bits. In this cat's humble opinion, it sucks harder than a tick in Greenleaf.
The problem entirely revolves around A group of non-clan cats who come to visit Skyclan. They are brave and loyal and a tantalizing demonstration of what a functioning feline society could look like without the warrior code. But it turns out, these cats come with their own drama. And honestly? I don't care. It's too complicated and too quickly resolved for me to explain it here. I understand what The Hunters were trying to do: Sophocles with tails (Sophoclestale). It's a classical tragedy of love and loss and accidental death neatly wrapped up with some traditional Starclan ex Machina. And it all feels too auxiliary— too much like a side-quest for me to really care. And it distracts from the questions of self-determination which I find so engrossing.
There is a certain poetic beauty to this narrative failure. Skyclan's Destiny tastes of unfulfilled potential. The Hunters fall victim to the same fate that Skyclan wishes to avoid. They abandoned too many warrior traditions that define their own series. They spend too much time on a grand tragedy and forget that they were writing in a grand tradition. It stops feeling like a Warrior book and just becomes an unremarkable tale of squabbling cats.
Because there are many different stories mixing inside Skyclan's Destiny, but destiny is not one of them. Destiny implies higher purpose— a foretold inevitability. And the best destiny I can find is that Skyclan will go through hard times. Which hardly counts as a destiny. That's a Mothwing prophecy if I've ever heard one. Hard times are an inescapable side-effect of being alive.
This is a warrior book unlike any other. Well, I'm not sure if that's still true. My knowledge of the Warrior Cats isn't as complete as it once was. While I have never forsaken my Warrior honor, I haven't paid attention to the clans since Obamastar was leader. The Hunters are an industrious group of storytellers and I have better ways to light my time on fire.
But what I mean by "This is a warrior book unlike any other" is that there are no other clans. Skyclan is alone. And this simple concept has a ripple effect on the larger story. The other clans serve as counterbalance. They stand in opposition to the protagonists but also validate the existing power structures. They keep you accountable. Your traditions and customs are harder to question if there are three other, similarly sized, clans practicing them along with you. Crazy is only crazy when you're alone.
It has been six moons since Firestar left, taking with him the last true connection to the other clans. And now Skyclan's new leader, Leafstar, must do the best for her clan. Firestar taught Leafstar a warrior code and left her clear understanding of what that means: if you want to be a warrior cat, you need to follow the code. But Leafstar soon learns that things aren't so simple in Skyclan. The only other clan is a dead thing; Starclan only warns that hard times are coming.
And so, Leafstar and Skyclan must walk along a slippery fence. They must carry themselves by their own scruff. On one paw, they can decide which pieces of the warrior code are outdated. And break them without fear of repercussions. On the other paw, without the warrior code, they are just a group of stray cats. And the Twoleg world is often fatal to stray cats. This is compounded by the difficulties of leadership. Not every cat believes that Leafstar is doing what's best for the clan.
And what's incredible is how Leafstar's decisions are genuinely difficult. I felt myself aghast at her breaking the warrior code by allowing the kittypets to join the clan while sleeping in the Twoleg dens at night. These Daylight Warriors make sense but still make me uncomfortable. I've spent years taking Lionheart's comment as scripture:"You must either live with us and respect our ways, or return to the Twolegplace and never come back. You cannot live with a paw in each world." I want to yowl but I know that the Daylight Warriors are probably best for Skyclan. And that's the type of emotional investment that I live for in stories
And so this is a book about the privilege and terror of defining your own identity. It's an age old question with a feline twist. What parts of the warrior code should Leafstar choose to follow, knowing that each amendment weakens the warrior roots that hold up Skyclan's rain-soaked canopy? In short, Skyclan must create its own destiny…
Ah. I think I understand now.
Icestar. That sounds like an incredible setup. Why only three stars?
Well, dear traveler, because of the ending… and also some of the middle bits. In this cat's humble opinion, it sucks harder than a tick in Greenleaf.
The problem entirely revolves around A group of non-clan cats who come to visit Skyclan. They are brave and loyal and a tantalizing demonstration of what a functioning feline society could look like without the warrior code. But it turns out, these cats come with their own drama. And honestly? I don't care. It's too complicated and too quickly resolved for me to explain it here. I understand what The Hunters were trying to do: Sophocles with tails (Sophoclestale). It's a classical tragedy of love and loss and accidental death neatly wrapped up with some traditional Starclan ex Machina. And it all feels too auxiliary— too much like a side-quest for me to really care. And it distracts from the questions of self-determination which I find so engrossing.
There is a certain poetic beauty to this narrative failure. Skyclan's Destiny tastes of unfulfilled potential. The Hunters fall victim to the same fate that Skyclan wishes to avoid. They abandoned too many warrior traditions that define their own series. They spend too much time on a grand tragedy and forget that they were writing in a grand tradition. It stops feeling like a Warrior book and just becomes an unremarkable tale of squabbling cats.
niffty's review against another edition
2.0
The story is more of a slice of life with Skyclan. There is no main problem going on. The events that seem like they maybe the main conflict in the book don’t show up that much. It was kinda boring. I think some issues within the clan were never fully solved. Most of the characters are boring except for Leafstar. I wish Stick and Red were developed more.
Sharpclaw was getting annoying with him challenging Leafstar all the time over every decision Leafstar made. I think he should have got demoted at one point. I don’t even know if Leafstar has even been talking to Sharpclaw about this. She keeps on telling herself that she will but she never does on page. Even if he was trying to make the clan stronger he should done it in private. He was making decisions for Leafstar and challenging her in public. It could make Leafstar look like a bad leader.
Also I am tired of Spottedleaf popping up everywhere. She isn’t even Skyclan. Why can’t past Skyclan cats do more? Cloudstar or Skywatcher could have been a good one.
At the end the book does the thing of living in a clan is the only way to go and whenever they help out cats they push them to live just like then. Then if the group does not live like then the clan cats look down on them. This is part of the reason that i don’t like it when clan cats go to help other cats that are not clan cats. In this book it wasn’t until the end that we got to even see the group so it was hard for me to care about them or fully understand why they had to seek clan cats for help.
I’m glad that some part mostly at the end Skyclan does its own thing different from other clans. It is only a few things though. If the authors allowed it i think Skyclan could have been really different than the other clans since there are no other clans living around.
Sharpclaw was getting annoying with him challenging Leafstar all the time over every decision Leafstar made. I think he should have got demoted at one point. I don’t even know if Leafstar has even been talking to Sharpclaw about this. She keeps on telling herself that she will but she never does on page. Even if he was trying to make the clan stronger he should done it in private. He was making decisions for Leafstar and challenging her in public. It could make Leafstar look like a bad leader.
Also I am tired of Spottedleaf popping up everywhere. She isn’t even Skyclan. Why can’t past Skyclan cats do more? Cloudstar or Skywatcher could have been a good one.
At the end the book does the thing of living in a clan is the only way to go and whenever they help out cats they push them to live just like then. Then if the group does not live like then the clan cats look down on them. This is part of the reason that i don’t like it when clan cats go to help other cats that are not clan cats. In this book it wasn’t until the end that we got to even see the group so it was hard for me to care about them or fully understand why they had to seek clan cats for help.
I’m glad that some part mostly at the end Skyclan does its own thing different from other clans. It is only a few things though. If the authors allowed it i think Skyclan could have been really different than the other clans since there are no other clans living around.
ktyne's review against another edition
adventurous
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
lisaatje's review against another edition
3.0
A lot happened and nothing happened at all.. I did like reading more about SkyClan, but this book did not have to be this long. Sharpclaw was also hella annoying. The romance between Leafstar and Billystorm was the best thing out of the whole book.
loang's review against another edition
4.0
Rating: 8 out of 10
I'm thoroughly surprised by how much I enjoyed this! Looks like it took no more than a single book to make me fall in love with the entirety of SkyClan!
Not gonna lie, I wasn't entirely convinced when I started reading it, and the odds weren't on my favor for the first fifty pages or so, but fortunately the pacing started getting better as the story progressed! And by the end, I was completely hooked!
See, the plot of this one isn't very clear from the start. The first third of the book (or even the first half, I dare say) was more focused on different side plots than on an overarching challenge. It showed us the daily life of SkyClan and the varied relationships between its members, as well as how Leafstar dealt with the issues her Clan went through.
Plot-wise, this half wasn't really strong, but character-wise, it was fantastic! We got to learn a lot about the side characters and their personalities, which were all charming and lovable! Despite the events being Warriors-usual and not unique compared to other books, the fact that the reader grew fond on all the characters was what made the book so enjoyable.
As for the second half of the book, well, it was great both plot and character-wise! We got introduced to the core challenge of the plot, and tensions rose. Not to spoil anything, but the final resolution of the story was very exciting and shocking! Especially the ending, which I was definitely not expecting to be as brutal as it was.
Something more I loved was the double POVs! I'm pretty sure this is the only Super Edition with it, and it was a pleasant surprise! Though Leafstar's POV was much more prominent than Stick's, I still enjoyed both perspectives greatly.
Talking about her, I adored Leafstar! She was a strong leader for SkyClan, always doing the best she could to help her Clan. Though she had a fair amount of flaws and constantly doubted herself and the decisions she took, I loved seeing her character grow and become more independent! She was the perfect character to root for, and easy to sympathize with! More than anything else, I was delighted to see her lead SkyClan by her own rules and take them down a unique path she had planned for them only!
Stick didn't fall behind, of course. He was a quite interesting morally gray character. His backstory and complicated relationship with ex-mate and daughter made his chapters very fun to read! He was much more flawed than Leafstar and it was fascinating to analyze how different they were in world views and morality.
And they weren't the only characters who had an awesome characterization! In my opinion, Sharpclaw, the fierce and competitive deputy of SkyClan, shone a lot in this novel, his motives and loyalties revealed at the very end of the book. I consider him a well-written morally dubious character, who did quite problematic things to achieve goals he thought were the best for his Clan.
Even if side characters, others like Billystorm, Echosong, Shrewtooth, Cora, Egg, Snookpaw, Frecklepaw, and even more were all characters I was fond of! The narrative made it easy for me to get to like them!
If there was something I didn't like about this book besides the plot being slow at times, it is the fact that everyone pretends Leafstar can't be both leader of SkyClan and have kits / a mate? Putting aside the inherent, blatant sexism of it, the idea itself is just ridiculous. She can have a mate without kits (it's not like they pop out of nowhere, if you know what I mean) and even if she does want kits, she would only need to stay in the nursery until they're old enough to eat prey, in which time Billystorm or the other queens could take care of them while Leafstar performs her leader duties. Leafstar's decision at the end was the best and I love her for it, but the fact that this was a problem in the first place makes me very mad to say at least.
In general, though, SkyClan's Destiny was a very entertaining book! It ended up being better than I had imagined, and didn't let me down even a little bit! I can understand why some people wouldn't like it (the pacing is slow and the plot drags at times) but in my opinion the characters make up for the book's mistakes! It was a wonderful read and one I would love to repeat in the future!
I'm thoroughly surprised by how much I enjoyed this! Looks like it took no more than a single book to make me fall in love with the entirety of SkyClan!
Not gonna lie, I wasn't entirely convinced when I started reading it, and the odds weren't on my favor for the first fifty pages or so, but fortunately the pacing started getting better as the story progressed! And by the end, I was completely hooked!
See, the plot of this one isn't very clear from the start. The first third of the book (or even the first half, I dare say) was more focused on different side plots than on an overarching challenge. It showed us the daily life of SkyClan and the varied relationships between its members, as well as how Leafstar dealt with the issues her Clan went through.
Plot-wise, this half wasn't really strong, but character-wise, it was fantastic! We got to learn a lot about the side characters and their personalities, which were all charming and lovable! Despite the events being Warriors-usual and not unique compared to other books, the fact that the reader grew fond on all the characters was what made the book so enjoyable.
As for the second half of the book, well, it was great both plot and character-wise! We got introduced to the core challenge of the plot, and tensions rose. Not to spoil anything, but the final resolution of the story was very exciting and shocking! Especially the ending, which I was definitely not expecting to be as brutal as it was.
Something more I loved was the double POVs! I'm pretty sure this is the only Super Edition with it, and it was a pleasant surprise! Though Leafstar's POV was much more prominent than Stick's, I still enjoyed both perspectives greatly.
Talking about her, I adored Leafstar! She was a strong leader for SkyClan, always doing the best she could to help her Clan. Though she had a fair amount of flaws and constantly doubted herself and the decisions she took, I loved seeing her character grow and become more independent! She was the perfect character to root for, and easy to sympathize with! More than anything else, I was delighted to see her lead SkyClan by her own rules and take them down a unique path she had planned for them only!
Stick didn't fall behind, of course. He was a quite interesting morally gray character. His backstory and complicated relationship with ex-mate and daughter made his chapters very fun to read! He was much more flawed than Leafstar and it was fascinating to analyze how different they were in world views and morality.
And they weren't the only characters who had an awesome characterization! In my opinion, Sharpclaw, the fierce and competitive deputy of SkyClan, shone a lot in this novel, his motives and loyalties revealed at the very end of the book. I consider him a well-written morally dubious character, who did quite problematic things to achieve goals he thought were the best for his Clan.
Even if side characters, others like Billystorm, Echosong, Shrewtooth, Cora, Egg, Snookpaw, Frecklepaw, and even more were all characters I was fond of! The narrative made it easy for me to get to like them!
If there was something I didn't like about this book besides the plot being slow at times, it is the fact that everyone pretends Leafstar can't be both leader of SkyClan and have kits / a mate? Putting aside the inherent, blatant sexism of it, the idea itself is just ridiculous. She can have a mate without kits (it's not like they pop out of nowhere, if you know what I mean) and even if she does want kits, she would only need to stay in the nursery until they're old enough to eat prey, in which time Billystorm or the other queens could take care of them while Leafstar performs her leader duties. Leafstar's decision at the end was the best and I love her for it, but the fact that this was a problem in the first place makes me very mad to say at least.
In general, though, SkyClan's Destiny was a very entertaining book! It ended up being better than I had imagined, and didn't let me down even a little bit! I can understand why some people wouldn't like it (the pacing is slow and the plot drags at times) but in my opinion the characters make up for the book's mistakes! It was a wonderful read and one I would love to repeat in the future!
_stephanie_98's review against another edition
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
amoryslaysvamps's review against another edition
3.0
I love Echosong and Leafstar, but didn't love this book as much as I thought I would. There were so many interactions with Twolegs and I just didn't like spending the whole book wondering what was going on with Sharpclaw and the loners. I still love Leafstar though and was happy that I got to see her character develop more.