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in: A Thief in ThunderClan, Graphic novel arc, Books
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A Thief in ThunderClan

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Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
"Every cat's past—every Clan's past—shapes them...and they have to remember it even as they move on. I trust every cat in ThunderClan. I have to...otherwise, what's the point of a Clan?"
— Firestar to Cloudtail and Brightheart in A Thief in ThunderClan, page 82



A Thief in ThunderClan is the fifth stand-alone Warriors graphic novel.[3] It features Brightheart and Cloudtail investigating a prey thief in their Clan.

Blurb[]

The warrior cats leap off the page in this full-color graphic novel adventure—a stand-alone story set in the world of Erin Hunter's #1 bestselling Warriors series.
After recovering from the dog attack she survived as an apprentice, Brightheart is once again a warrior of ThunderClan. But moons of battle and betrayal have left her with lingering suspicions about where her Clanmates' loyalties lie. So when freshkill starts going missing from camp, she fears the worst.
Alongside her mate Cloudtail, Brightheart decides to investigate without alerting the other warriors. But as she struggles to track down the culprit, she'll have to take a leap of faith—and remember what it means to be part of a Clan.
Set shortly after the events of Warriors: The Prophecies Begin, this action-packed, stand-alone adventure is perfect for longtime Erin Hunter fans and new readers alike.

The praise[]

"Long-standing fans of the series may be pleased to revisit this world, but a sagging resolution and the sheer volume of name-dropping may prove too much for a newcomer cat fancier. Lackluster. [...]"
-Kirkus Reviews[4]

Detailed plot description[]

Four moons after the battle with BloodClan, Brightheart still experiences nightmares of the dog pack attacking her and killing Swiftpaw. Hunting with her mate Cloudtail eases her worries, though Brightheart can't help but distrust her Clanmates since Tigerstar's betrayal. After a successful hunting patrol, ThunderClan's leader Firestar calls for a Clan meeting. He names Whitestorm and Willowpelt's three kits—Rainkit, Sootkit, and Sorrelkit—into apprentices: Sootpaw assigned to Longtail, Sorrelpaw assigned to Sandstorm, and Rainpaw to Cloudtail. While Cloudtail is ecstatic to finally be a mentor, Brightheart can't help but feel disheartened. However, Cloudtail asks for her to help mentor Rainpaw. On a border patrol with Longtail and Sootpaw, Longtail points out the Thunderpath and ShadowClan's territory to his apprentice and Rainpaw. However, Brightheart grows suspicious when Longtail's gaze lingers over ShadowClan's territory, and she remembers he used to be a close ally of Tigerstar's before he was exiled. The next day, Brightheart abruptly feels ill, though her sister Cinderpelt happily reveals she is expecting kits. Brightheart happily shares the news with Cloudtail, and the two later gleefully ponder over their future family.
A moon later, Brightheart discovers Longtail and Bramblepaw speaking with the ShadowClan cats Oakfur and Tawnypaw, Bramblepaw's sister, by the Thunderpath. She begins to grow suspicious of Bramblepaw since he and Tawnypaw are Tigerstar's kits and reports the incident to Firestar. However, Firestar tells her to have faith in their Clanmates, and he also dismisses Graystripe's concerns about repairing the elders' den before leaving the camp. The next day, Firestar names Bramblepaw a warrior with the name Brambleclaw. Brightheart is horrified that Firestar named him after his father's warrior name, Tigerclaw, but Cloudtail reminds her that they must trust their Clanmates since they are all ThunderClan. Struggling to fall asleep in the nursery, Brightheart notices the fresh-kill pile is unusually empty in the middle of the night. She accuses Longtail of stealing prey to ShadowClan since he's on guard, but the tabby warrior sharply denies her accusations. In the morning, Brightheart and Cloudtail inform Firestar, but he doesn't want to accuse their Clanmates without physical proof and assumes there's a logical reason for the missing prey. Brightheart and Cloudtail are determined to find the prey thief though they are unsure where to start.
Cloudtail and Brackenfur hurriedly guide Longtail inside the camp, his eyes bleeding. Brackenfur explains to Firestar how a rabbit scratched his eyes, and Brightheart feels sympathy for Longtail's injuries since she also lost an eye to the dogs. She visits Longtail that night in the medicine cat's den to comfort him. Longtail doesn't believe he'll be a contributive member of the Clan anymore since he lost his sight, but Brightheart shares how she worried about the same thing after the dog attack. After leaving the den, Brightheart notices the fresh-kill pile is empty with strange markings in the dirt. The guard, Dustpelt, hasn't noticed anything since the rest of the Clan has gone to the Gathering. Brightheart points out the strange markings to Cloudtail, but they can't pick up a Clan scent. They wish to speak to Firestar, but he's gone at the Moonstone.
Her attempts to speak to Firestar about the missing prey continue to falter, and Cloudtail, Ashfur, and Thornclaw later report that Firestar had gone off to speak with Smudge, a kittypet. Cloudtail shares his worries about Firestar leaving the Clan to become a kittypet again with his mate, but Brightheart sharply defends Firestar's loyalty to the Clan. Brightheart notices the strange markings again near the fresh-kill pile, wondering if any cat in the Clan has large enough claws to mark the deep markings. Before Thornclaw, Ashfur, Willowpelt, and Sootpaw leave for the dawn patrol, Brightheart asks them to dig up some burdock root in camp for her. After Graystripe orders them to return to their patrol, Brightheart notices their claw marks don't match the odd markings by the fresh-kill pile. After visiting Cinderpelt and Longtail in the medicine cat's den, Brightheart rushes back outside after hearing yowls: Willowpelt has been killed by a badger. She's initially worried to hear that Cloudtail has been sent on the patrol to track it, but Brightheart realizes that she can help her Clanmates by comforting Sootpaw, Rainpaw, and Sorrelpaw. She reassures Rainpaw that the Clan will protect their own.
Firestar calls a Clan meeting to announce that he and Sandstorm will be leaving in two days for a special mission from StarClan, though he is unsure when they will return, and the Clan immediately protests. Brightheart realizes it's too late to inform Firestar about their findings about the prey thief since they don't have a culprit yet. When Firestar and Sandstorm are prepared to leave, Brightheart defends Firestar's mission to the rest of the Clan. The next morning, Brightheart notices the fresh-kill pile is empty again, but she and Cloudtail are cornered by Graystripe for not informing him of the thefts sooner. After apologizing to their temporary leader, Brightheart devises a plan to trap the creature. After loading up the fresh-kill pile with plenty of prey, the ThunderClan cats wait underneath some bushes for the thief to arrive. As the night drags on, Brightheart wonders if the thief will ever arrive when Rainpaw pads forward to eat some of the prey before turning in for the night. However, the thief—an owl—swoops down to grab the apprentice, but Brightheart attacks it. The owl flees after releasing Rainpaw, and ThunderClan thanks Brightheart for her bravery. A few days later, Brightheart gives birth to her daughter Whitekit, and she and Cloudtail know their Clan will always protect her.

Trivia[]

Interesting facts[]

  • James Barry had been working on this book since around September 2022.[5]
  • This was the last graphic novel that James ever worked on before retiring from the Warriors series as a comic artist.[6]
  • Cinderpelt has a snail pet, which appears several times in the book.[7][8][9] This was suggested by James Barry's husband, BD Fenwick.[10]

Mistakes[]

  • A compiled list of the errors present in A Thief in ThunderClan can be found here.
End of spoiler warning

Publication history[]

  • A Thief in ThunderClan (EN), HarperCollins (hardcover), 6 June 2023[3]
  • A Thief in ThunderClan (EN), HarperCollins (paperback), 6 June 2023[3]
  • A Thief in ThunderClan (EN), HarperCollins (e-book), 6 June 2023[3]
  • Der Dieb des DonnerClans (DE), Beltz & Gelberg (paperback with flaps), 19 July 2023, translated by Petra Knese[11]

Gallery[]

US covers[]

Foreign covers[]

External links[]

Notes and references[]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Revealed on the copyright page of A Thief in ThunderClan
  2. ↑ Revealed on the back cover of A Thief in ThunderClan
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Revealed on harpercollins.com (backup link)
  4. ↑ Revealed on Kirkus Reviews (backup link)
  5. ↑ Revealed on James Barry's Instagram (backup link)
  6. ↑ Revealed on James Barry's Instagram (screenshot)
  7. ↑ Revealed in A Thief in ThunderClan, page 39
  8. ↑ Revealed in A Thief in ThunderClan, page 65
  9. ↑ Revealed in A Thief in ThunderClan, page 134
  10. ↑ Revealed on James's Instagram (backup link)
  11. ↑ Revealed on beltz.de
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