Behind the black.
"Not revenge. Justice. And not just for us and our parents, but for the whole world."
— Amy Cahill's thoughts
Storm Warning is the ninth book in the first series of The 39 Clues.
The shadow of a man in black has followed fourteen-year-old Amy Cahill and her younger brother, Dan, on their worldwide search for 39 Clues that lead to a great power. Amy and Dan know the man in black has tried to kill them. They know he's a Madrigal, the most secretive and terrifying group hunting for the Clues. And they know something else, a secret they would rather forget - their parents were Madrigals, too. Amy and Dan have run hard and fast, but they can't escape the man following them. And now, in the wake of a terrible tragedy, he's ready to step out of the darkness for their final confrontation.
Tropes:
- Action Film, Quiet Drama Scene: After an entire chase sequence where Amy, Dan and Nellie take the dragon charm from the Kabras, Amy has a solemn conversation with Natalie about their mothers.
- Big "NO!": Dan, when he tries to take back the box from the Man in Black.
- Connected All Along: The Man in Black is revealed to be Fiske Cahill, Grace's younger brother.
- Good All Along: What the seemingly murderous Madrigals are revealed to be.
- Heroic BSoD: Dan, due to Lester's death. It's so big, that it literally causes him to go into shock and spend a night in a hospital.
- Hope Spot: It appears Dan has found a way to pass on oxygen to Lester, who is rapidly sinking in quicksand during a high tide. Then a sudden wave knocks Dan back to the shore, sealing Lester's fate.
- Reconcile the Bitter Foes: The entire motivation of the Madrigals, to bring back all four branches together. Amy and Dan are horrified at this revelation.
- Sacrificial Lamb: Lester, showing that it's not only Clue hunters who suffer the consequences of the Clue hunt, but also innocent people who get involved.
- Wham Line:
- The Man in Black's identity reveal."My name is Fiske Cahill. And I would like to thank you for bringing such joy to my sister."
- Fiske also explains that the Madrigals are Good All Along, with this simple line.
- When the book code is solved with a pig-pen cipher, it reveals that the final conversation was far from the whole truth of the Cahill family.He didn't tell them everything.
- The Man in Black's identity reveal.
