the years that a large portion of fans have an inaccurate view or series of assumptions

about what this book's content actually is.

If I were to summarize its structure, I would say it's a series of three disconnected

but sometimes overlapping short stories where the first connects to the last book, Eclipse,

the last connects to the next book, Sunrise, and the middle one connects most strongly

to specific parts of the fourth book in the next arc and a prequel arc that will be made

over four years after this book's release Suffice to say, it is…a lot.

Whether that lot amounts to good overall quality is yet to be seen, but I know there are a

good number of people who count this among their favorite books for the last third alone

and to this I say, I understand you perfectly, and that is a fine choice.

Long Shadows was released on November 25th, 2008, not even 3 months after Eclipse and,

to precisely no one's surprise, not coming out on the same day as any other books because

of that.

No matter how you felt about their previous 4 to 6 month periods for book writing, this

one coming out less than 3 months after the previous one is undoubtedly a new level of

shocking.

While Eclipse was written by Kate Cary, Long Shadows was written by Cherith Baldry, I imagine

with even heavier guidance than normal from Victoria Holmes thanks to this book containing

the very moment that inspired this arc, and that Vicky intended to build the arc around.

Still, outside of that, it's a likely assumption that the book would have to mainly focus on

material completely uncovered by Eclipse.

Long Shadows may also end up focusing more on plot progression and its effects, not just

because of Cherith's known tendencies as a writer, but also because Vicky's hand

in this particular part of the text would give at least one element of the plot an especially

large amount of focus.

That, however, is a hypothesis we will have to either confirm or reject later.

First, let's begin with an allegiance check-in.

Despite there being a full-scale all clan war in the last book, no casualties were had,

but Poppyfrost, Honeyfern, Cinderheart, Lionblaze, and Hollyleaf were all made warriors so there

are now 21 warriors instead of 16 and 3 apprentices instead of 8.

Wow.

And that apprentice count is including Jaypaw, a medicine cat apprentice who is the very

same age of two cats who are now warriors, so it's likely that even that count will

go down.

The only other difference is that Millie's kits: Briarkit, Blossomkit, and Bumblekit,

have been born and are listed in the nursery.

The speaking cast of this book is 82 cats, which is actually the highest cast size not

just in this arc but in the entire series so far, and the top 10 cats have 67% of the

lines, tied for the lowest in Power of Three with Outcast.

The cast is 50% she-cats, impressively even, but the she-cats in that cast only get 37%

of the lines, second lowest in the arc after Outcast.

These statistics may in part be affected by the highest scorer on this list: Jaypaw.

He has the most lines in Long Shadows, but that means more here than it has in previous

Power of Three books.

The three different point of view cats each getting chapters in every book would imply

a roughly equal division of lines between Jaypaw, Hollyleaf, and Lionblaze.

Here, however, Jaypaw has over 400 lines, almost twice the number of Lionblaze, who

has the second highest lines in this book, and Hollyleaf has a couple dozen less than

even him.

This book is most famous for its final third so I imagine a lot of people would assume

Hollyleaf to be the focal character of the book, but as someone with at least a cursory

understanding of the book's actual contents, I am fairly sure I know exactly how Jaypaw

ends up as the focal character in all three thirds of the story.

Speaking of that story, let's stop dancing around and get into it.

The prologue shows cats named Shadow, River, Wind, and Thunder, the founders of the clans

introduced in Secrets of the Clans, meeting with Midnight, the badger guide from The New

Prophecy.

They want to know why she revealed the secrets of the clans, not the book title, to Sol when

he happened by and Midnight's defense is that telling him everything about the clans

didn't put them in danger because the clans need to learn how to confront threats from

outside…okay well in that case yes Sol's ability to manipulate the clans was entirely

Midnight's fault according to this prologue.

He wouldn't have been able to act like he had supernatural foresight if he hadn't

been given it for free and with Midnight's total consent.

Anyway, Rock, that ancient hairless sightless cat from Fallen Leaves' time who told Jaypaw

more about the prophecy in Outcast appears and chats to Midnight about how her actions

were absolutely necessary because the three need to be prepared for what's coming.

Still no word of what that could be, and it can't be Sol because he isn't coming.

He's here.

Well then, back to our main characters.

Hollyleaf has a nightmare about Sol and is still worrying about him when she wakes up

since he has caused Shadowclan to abandon Starclan and the Warrior Code, the two pillars

of her existence.

Oh also Hazeltail is treating her sort of like a friend and accompanying her through

most of her first chapter.

Anyway Shadowclan is also very aggressive about cats on their border but also patronizes

Hollyleaf for caring about the code…which leads me to wonder which specific parts of

the warrior code Shadowclan cares about now.

Birchfall gets into a fight with a Shadowclan cat and that's the end of the chapter.

In Jaypaw's world, Millie and Briarkit are coughing and it won't be long before this

cough spreads to become a giant green-cough bout across Thunderclan.

For now though, Hollyleaf tries to get her brothers to help her get rid of Sol somehow

and Jaypaw still wants to get whatever information he has about the prophecy.

Hollyleaf agrees with him and Lionblaze reluctantly and they sneak into Shadowclan territory to

watch one of Sol's speeches in Shadowclan's camp.

He's convincing them that Starclan isn't especially powerful and can't prevent harm

and Blackstar applies this to his existing insecurity that they were wrong to go to the

lake but this doesn't reach a conclusion of any specific actions before our protagonists

leave.

Jaypaw also has a vision of Midnight and talks about her to Leafpool so he can learn who

Midnight even is but they conclude that he can't just leave the clans right now to

visit her so if Midnight wants to say something she has to come to him.

In Lionblaze's first chapter, he asks to spar with Ashfur to catch up on battle training

in the hopes of becoming good enough to not need Tigerstar's teachings anymore and Ashfur

and Lionblaze get a little too fight-happy in the process.

Lionblaze also gets a nightmare about accidentally murdering Heatherpaw and Tigerstar egging

him on.

Basically, tensions are rising for all three protagonists.

The sickness is getting worse and the war with all four clans last book trampled the

catnip stems they had, so Jaypaw and Poppyfrost set about picking and protecting what is left.

Jaypaw attends the half-moon gathering alone so Leafpool can stay back and take care of

Millie and Briarkit and there he meets both Rock and Midnight.

They tell him that knowledge isn't power, faith is, and so it's perfectly fine that

Midnight told Sol everything about the clans and pieces of their future…I'm still skeptical

about this.

Jaypaw then talks to Raggedstar and Runningnose who tell him to fix Shadowclan for them without

any guidance or assistance.

Jaypaw gathers his siblings again to give Hollyleaf a chance to expound on how important

it is that Shadowclan believe in their ancestors.

Jaypaw is scared by her intensity.

More cats are coughing.

Tawnypelt arrives in Thunderclan's camp with her kits, now apprentices: Tigerpaw,

Dawnpaw, and Flamepaw.

They have come because Shadowclan has adopted the philosophy that every cat, young and old,

must take care of themselves and Tawnypelt wanted them to be somewhere safe.

Despite some cries that Tawnypelt and her kits shouldn't be allowed in Thunderclan

because they are outsiders and allowing in outsiders is what started the war with Windclan

and Riverclan…uhuh, sure, Firestar allows them to stay.

The three protagonists agree to fake a sign from Starclan on orders from Starclan who

can't just make a sign themselves because they don't feel like it and they recruit

Tawnypelt's kits to lead them there.

By the way, more cats are sick.

The Thunderclan and Shadowclan trios travel to Shadowclan and set up a sign where, when

Blackstar and Littlecloud come through, led by Tigerpaw, they can tip over some trees

and say in as ominous a voice as possible that they should stop denying their ancestors

and that “the forest will fall.”

Blackstar isn't convinced and wants the Starclan cat to show themselves if they want

him to do anything.

So Raggedstar and Runningnose come down physically to talk to him like they definitely could

have done from the beginning to tell Blackstar to get rid of Sol and that some generic brightness

will shine on Shadowclan for many moons.

Blackstar is immediately convinced because his problem was absolutely just believing

that Starclan didn't exist despite all previous evidence and not with anything involving their

philosophy or lack of involvement in the clans.

All of our protagonists' efforts have been worthless, Sol will be driven out, and they

can go home assured that they have saved Shadowclan.

Hollyleaf then starts thinking about whether or not Sol, the cat she hates beyond reason,

might now come back to train them in the prophecy…I legitimately can't make sense of that one.

Littlecloud comes to bring Tawnypelt back to her clan perhaps a day or two after she

left and everything is back to normal.

At this point, Sol meets with Hollyleaf in her territory and says that she and her brothers

need him because he knows things.

He also asks if she's sure she has found the three.

He then leaves.

Hollyleaf isn't swayed at all.

With that, the first short story of the book is done.

It is now chapter 11.

More cats are sick, but now they are out of herbs.

Some chattering Starclan cats confirm that no more catmint exists on Thunderclan territory

and Millie is about to die, but a cat called Brightspirit along with her parents appears

to Jaypaw to tell him the wind has what he seeks.

Okay I know I usually cover the broader and meta points in the next section but I really

need to insert this here because it is the only place where it is relevant.

Brightspirit is a character made to represent a particular fan whose name I won't say

for privacy but is readily accessible elsewhere.

She was an avid reader of every Warriors who, tragically, passed away alongside her parents

when their house was hit by a tornado in 2008, 9-10 months before this book's release.

This is the only book in which she appears and on a technical sense she feels a lot like

a throw-in with little value to the overall story but key in casting any judgments over

this is the reminder that her character is a memorial to a young girl lost to the world

for whom this book series meant a lot.

With that said, back in the clans more cats are sick and this time the newest patient

is Firestar himself.

Pretty much every cat in the camp who isn't sick is worried about the cats who are, and

a couple of nice character relationships are brought up as they do.

Jaypaw uses his dreamwalking ability to go into Kestrelpaw's dream and trick the Windclan

medicine cat apprentice into showing him the location of their catmint so he and Lionblaze

can steal it when they're awake.

They don't include Hollyleaf because of her intense fervor for the warrior code.

However, Lionblaze doesn't want to go either because of his current intrusive thoughts

about killing Heatherpaw.

Meanwhile, cats are getting sicker and Firestar decides that he and all the sick cats should

go to the abandoned twoleg nest to quarantine and so everyone works to set it up and then

get them there in a sort of sorrowful parade.

As soon as it is set up, Jaypaw is told to rest for a minute and forlornly travels to

the lake to visit his stick.

He wonders if sickness is what drove the ancient cats like Fallen Leaves away from the lake

in the first place, and suddenly he sees Fallen Leaves, who isn't sure what happened to

the other ancients.

Jaypaw is determined to get answers and runs out of the tunnels, somehow appearing in the

time of the ancients in the place of one of their cats: Jay's Wing.

Jay's Wing has just become a sharpclaw by navigating and coming out of the tunnels under

their land and he has a sister, Dove's Wing, who is very excited for him.

Furled Bracken, seemingly the leader of the group, officially congratulates him.

Many other cats, all completely unfamiliar to Jaypaw, greet him happily.

Jaypaw knows nothing at all about this world, and doesn't see a version of Jay's Wing

himself in the way that he saw Cinderheart or Kestrelpaw when he went into their dreams.

Whatever this is, it is something new and something very strange.

Jaypaw, in his own head, points out multiple times that he is not Jay's Wing and he in

fact has to convince the rest of the ancients that he is Jay's Wing by lying and making