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The Elders' Quest

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This article is about The Elders' Quest, the first book in the Changing Skies arc; you may be looking for either The Elders' Concern, a short story taking place during The Prophecies Begin, or The Apprentice's Quest, the first book in A Vision of Shadows.
Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
"There's nothing wrong with being older. I hope Leafstar recognizes that, too."
— Tawnypelt about Leafstar in The Elders' Quest, page 161



The Elders' Quest is a New York Times Best Seller[8] and the first book in the Changing Skies arc. Leafstar is featured on the cover, with Tawnypelt and Crowfeather above her.[9]

Dedication[]

To Roberta

Blurb[]

The launch of a brand-new arc in Erin Hunter's #1 bestselling Warriors series find the Clans navigating an ominous prophecy that foreshadows the destruction of the Moonpool, and the end of the Cats' connection to StarClan.
As Leafbare approaches, a new danger threatens the Clans. Twoleg construction has encroached on Clan territory, poisoning the stream and making prey especially scarce for SkyClan. Meanwhile, their leader, Leafstar is struggling with a loss of vision while trying to maintain authority over a Clan that increasingly doubts her ability to lead.
In ShadowClan, Tawnypelt senses peril as the Twoleg construction threatens the Moonpool, but she can't get any cat, especially her son, Tigerstar, to listen. Frustrated with the younger cats who don't respect her, she decides to take matters into her own paws.
In the midst of the chaos, Moonpaw, an apprentice struggling to understand the mysterious voice in her head, thinks that she might be having visions. But the voice becomes increasingly sinister, and Moonpaw wonders if it's a sign of darkness on the horizon.

The praise[]

"A strong start to a new series in the ever-popular Warriors world: Legions of fans will purr."
-Kirkus Reviews[10]

Detailed plot description[]

In StarClan, Leafpool, Skystar, Mistystar, Runningnose, Tallstar, and Firestar agree to send the living cats a prophecy about troubles coming to the Clans. They decide to send it to an older cat, one who experienced the Great Journey.
In ShadowClan, Tawnypelt grows frustrated over the lack of respect from her Clanmates. Her peers are all younger than her, yet Tawnypelt still feels like she has many moons left to serve her Clan. Meanwhile in SkyClan, Leafstar frequently reminisces about the gorge and misses her old Clanmates and kin. Her vision is also growing worse, making it difficult to distinguish her Clanmates by sight. However, she has kept this a secret from her Clan except for the medicine cats. Leafstar names Kitescratch and Needleclaw's kits into apprentices, Robinpaw and Starlingpaw. Several of her Clanmates fall ill from poisoned prey resulting from the tainted stream, which Leafstar suspects must be from the Twoleg activity beyond their territory. Gravelnose and Nectarsong also warn their Clan leader about a badger set in their territory. She attempts to seek StarClan's advise from the Moonpool, but they are silent.
In ThunderClan, Nightheart and Sunbeam's kits become apprentices, Goldenpaw and Shinepaw. Before her own ceremony, Bayshine and Thriftear take their daughter, Moonkit, to consult with the medicine cats. They wonder if her divided face is a sign from StarClan that she should train as a medicine cat. Moonkit wants to train to be a warrior instead, and after Jayfeather and Alderheart conclude she most likely doesn't have a connection to StarClan, Squirrelstar performs her apprentice ceremony with Sunbeam as her mentor. However, Moonpaw struggles with her training due to the voice in her head; Moonpaw notices an identical ginger she-cat in her reflection, who encourages her to keep it a secret. Wanting to learn more about the source of her voice, Moonpaw decides to temporarily train as a medicine cat apprentice.
Tawnypelt patrols the border with her kin Birchfeather, who admits he's been seeing Ridgeglow, a SkyClan she-cat, in secret. When Tawnypelt encourages him to speak to his parents about this, Birchfeather announces his intentions to join SkyClan, much to Tigerstar, Dovewing, and Tawnypelt's shock. At the Gathering, Leafstar requests the other Clan leaders to permit SkyClan to hunt on their land due to the tainted stream. They refuse, but the Clan leaders agree to send a joint-Clan patrol to scout out the Twoleg activity. Leafstar also announces strange Twoleg markings near the Moonpool. Tawnypelt, Leafstar, Crowfeather, Bayshine, and Owlnose discover a large Twoleg nest being constructed, worrying Tawnypelt and Crowfeather. Leafstar establishes a plan to chase out the badger, but her Clanmates are less than convinced. However, during the battle, a second badger emerges from the den. Leafstar narrowly mistakes Starlingpaw, who had sneaked to join them, for a badger. Overwhelmed by the badgers, SkyClan retreats though Kitescratch succumbs to his wounds. She accidentally falls asleep during his vigil, and the following morning, Reedclaw summons the Clan to discuss Leafstar's abdication. The Clan votes, though enough of the Clan votes to keep Leafstar as their leader.
In ThunderClan, Jayfeather teaches Moonpaw about herbs, though Moonpaw is curious about communicating with StarClan at the Moonpool but Jayfeather refuses to let her attend the half-moon meeting. Moonpaw discovers that the voice is quiet when she concentrates on her studies. When Lionblaze and Cherryfall arrive with wounds from a fox, Moonpaw helps the medicine cats with their treatment, and Jayfeather compliments her. The voice warns Moonpaw that she is walking the wrong path. In ShadowClan, Tigerstar and Dovewing give Birchfeather a brisk farewell, and Tawnypelt walks him to the border. She reunites with Crowfeather, Owlnose, and Bayshine at the border, though this time Palesky arrives instead of Leafstar. They scout out the Twoleg activity again, though the younger cats leave when it becomes clear nothing has changed. Crowfeather and Tawnypelt continue to search, discovering Twoleg trash choking the stream. During their adventures, Tawnypelt discovers herself developing feelings for Crowfeather.
Moonpaw attends the next half-moon meeting. Hoping to communicate with her ancestors, Moonpaw is instead startled by the ginger tabby she-cat's reflection, and she falls into the Moonpool. While Moonpaw is efficient with her duties, she realizes that her voice might be right. Jayfeather realizes this, and he tells Moonpaw about Ashfur, who manipulated Shadowsight by pretending to be a trustworthy voice in his head. Moonpaw visits the Moonpool alone to speak to her voice. To prove herself as real, the voice tells Moonpaw that she will find the missing sun in a hollow tree. The next day, Flipclaw and Myrtlebloom's kits go missing, and Moonpaw finds Sunkit at a hollow tree near the old Thunderpath. Sunkit claims to have followed a cat who resembled Moonpaw to the tree, and Moonpaw realizes with horror that the orange cat was willing to hurt a kit.
Tree attempts to mediate between Leafstar and Reedclaw, though with little success. Hawkwing successfully devises a plan to defeat the badgers, prompting Leafstar to worry if her deputy is planning to overthrow her. Attempting to provide for her Clan, Leafstar hunts alone but she chases a rabbit into a ravine. Echosong warns her to not doubt herself, and Leafstar wakes up in her Clanmates' care three days later. After Leafstar recovers, Reedclaw reinitiates discussions to force her to step down, citing her recent escapade and Hawkwing's efforts to keep the Clan maintained. Only Hawkwing, Harrybrook, Rootspring, Tree, and Macgyver stand with Leafstar. At the Gathering that night, Reedclaw announces SkyClan's decision to depose Leafstar. As the Clan leaders discuss their own decision per the new warrior code, Leafstar decides to step down herself. Icestar declares that the decision now rests with StarClan.
While catching a squirrel meant for Ridgeglow and Birchfeather, Tawnypelt chases a rabbit over the border so her kin can complete his trial. Tawnypelt is punished with guard duty, and she dreams of the Great Journey and a tall Twoleg den emerging from the ground. At the sound of a cat crying for help, Tawnypelt wonders if a kit is in danger at the Twoleg building place. Together with Birchfeather, they scout out the area in the early dawn. While climbing a stack of pipes, Tawnypelt slips and falls into a large ditch. Rowanclaw, Flametail, and Dawnpelt greet her, though Bluestar provides a warning about a great peril approaching and to beware the two-faced cat with one paw in each world. She wakes up in SkyClan's medicine den, confused about the message.
Moonpaw decides to retrain as a warrior, asking Sunbeam if she can be her apprentice again. She rejoins Goldenpaw and Shinepaw for training the following morning, and Moonpaw attempts to ignore the voice while she trains. While cleaning the warriors' den, her bedding pile disappears, and she feels an eerie chill as she attempts to fall asleep. Upset, Moonpaw decides to speak to her parents about hearing a voice and seeing a cat that resembles her. Thriftear and Bayshine tell Moonpaw about her littermate, a ginger tabby she-cat who died shortly after birth. Thriftear speculates that perhaps her sister is reaching out from StarClan, but Moonpaw fears she is more malevolent than they think. Seeking out her reflection at the lake, Moonpaw encourages her sister to move on to StarClan. Instead, her sister wants to be with her, vowing if Moonpaw's won't let her, then she will make Moonpaw join her world.

Trivia[]

Interesting facts[]

  • On June 12, 2023, Cherith revealed that she suspected she would be writing this book in October 2023.[1]
  • On January 31, 2024, the Warrior Cats website teased that The Elders' Quest was currently being written.[11]
  • This is the first main series book since Twilight where all the protagonists are she-cats.[9]

Mistakes[]

A compiled list of the errors present in The Elders' Quest can be found here.
End of spoiler warning

Publication history[]

  • The Elders' Quest (EN), HarperCollins (hardcover, e-book), 7 January 2025[5]
  • The Elders' Quest (EN), HarperAudio (audiobook), 7 January 2025, narrated by Katie Anvil Rich[12]
  • The Elders' Quest (EN), HarperCollins B and Blackstone Publishing (audio cd), 7 January 2025, narrated by Katie Anvil Rich[6]
  • The Elders' Quest (EN), Thorndike Striving Reader (hardcover; large print), 23 July 2025[13]
  • The Elders' Quest (EN), HarperCollins (paperback), 3 February 2026[7]

Awards[]

Gallery[]

US covers[]

External links[]

Notes and references[]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Revealed in an Instagram livestream (backup link)
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Revealed on the inside right flap of The Elders' Quest
  3. ↑ Revealed on the copyright page of The Elders' Quest
  4. ↑ Revealed on audible.com
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Revealed on barnesandnoble.com (backup link)
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Revealed on amazon.com (backup link)
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Revealed on barnesandnoble.com
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Revealed on New York Times.com (backup link)
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Exclusive: Changing Skies book one cover, title and blurb! on the Warriors official website (backup link)
  10. ↑ Revealed on Kirkus Reviews (backup link)
  11. ↑ New Year's resolutions from the Story Team on the Warriors official website (backup link)
  12. ↑ Revealed on libro.fm
  13. ↑ Revealed on gale.com (backup link)
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