Rising Storm is the fourth book in Erin Hunter's bestselling Warriors series.
Plot Summary
Fireheart's traitorous enemy Tigerclaw has been vanquished and exiled from ThunderClan — but Fireheart can't shake the feeling that he's lurking out there in the forest, waiting for the chance to strike. And when he does, Fireheart wonders if ThunderClan will be ready. Most of the cats are still shocked of Tigerclaw's disloyalty and many warriors are badly injured. On top of it, Bluestar does not seem like herself because her mind has been damaged by Tigerclaw.
That's not the only problem facing the young ThunderClan deputy. In these blazing summer months, Fireheart struggles to handle ominous omens, his disrespectful nephew and apprentice Cloudpaw, who has a shocking secret. He has been seeing a Twoleg for food and one day was abducted by them. It was Ravenpaw who told Fireheart and Sandstorm where Cloudpaw was being held. Once they saved Cloudpaw, he was accepted back into the clan, But Fireheart gave him a warning. Also, a problem is his devastated Clan leader, who is a shell of her former self. And the fact that his best friend, Graystripe, fell in love with the RiverClan she-cat Silverstream, and had kits with her, although the kits' birth led to Silverstream's death. Graystripe takes the kits and joins Riverclan, his deceased love, while very aware that he has broken the warrior code (book three). The relationship between Sandstorm and Fireheart grows even more. Meanwhile the forest gets hotter and hotter, and a fire sweeps through the forest, destroying ThunderClan's camp and taking the lives of a few cats, including the life of Yellowfang, Thunderclan's medicine cat.
Is the prophecy Fire will save the Clan wrong? When Bluestar, accompanied by Fireheart, goes to speak to StarClan at Mothermouth, a patrol of WindClan warriors, led by Mudclaw, stops them. The ThunderClan leader later frets about StarClan sending WindClan to stop her, and she believes that it was true. Bluestar had eaten traveling herbs before the journey, and cats who are to speak with StarClan are not allowed to eat beforehand. Even so, the WindClan patrol had no right to stop Bluestar from journeying to Highstones, and that troubles Fireheart.
The book ends at the Gathering, when Tigerclaw jumps up to High Rock and announces that he is the new leader of ShadowClan.
Other
- Births: Sorrelkit, Sootkit, Rainkit
- Deaths: Whitethroat (hit by monster by running away from Fireheart), Cinderfur (Implied), Nightstar (sickness), Runningwind (murdered by Tigerclaw), Yellowfang, Halftail, Patchpelt (smoke inhalation from fire)
- Apprentices Made: Fernpaw, Ashpaw
- Warriors Made: None
- Medicine cats made: Cinderpelt
- Leaders Made:Tigerstar
- Cover: The scene in which Fireheart and Sandstorm follow the sick ShadowClan cats to the tunnel under the Thunderpath. Also, the paperback version of the inset shows Fireheart and Sandstorm, one of which is shown to be a darker color like the cat in the larger image.
- Center Cover: Paperback: Fireheart and Sandstorm; Hardcover: Fireheart and Cloudpaw.