Recap / Warrior Cats: Thunder

Thunder is the fourth book in the eighth Warrior Cats series, A Starless Clan. It takes place immediately after the end of the previous book, Shadow.

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The prologue is of Riverstar's POV just after the end of the previous book, as he looks down from StarClan at the injured Frostpaw with the other Clan founders. The others can't believe he's letting this happen, but he insists that her suffering is necessary for her to save her Clan.

Frostpaw wakes up in WindClan territory and is found by their medicine cat apprentice, Whistlepaw, but insists that she must be kept a secret; it's best for now for her attacker to think that she's dead. Meanwhile, Sunbeam is settling into ThunderClan - despite her mother showing up and trying to make her question Nightheart's feelings for her - while Nightheart is chosen to go with Squirrelflight and Bramblestar to the Moonpool when they go to make Squirrelflight leader.

Whistlepaw takes Frostpaw to the horseplace, where Smoky attracts the attention of a Twoleg who he says can heal her. Squirrelflight and Bramblestar report that StarClan didn't come to them at the Moonpool as a storm came up and clouds covered the moon. They get lost in the storm on the way back to camp, during which time they encounter a SkyClan patrol and suggest that SkyClan's mediator Tree help solve the situation with Tigerstar and RiverClan's lack of leadership. They decide to head back to the Moonpool and wait for the clouds to clear, and send Nightheart to report to camp. Upon his return, Sunbeam's first trial to join the Clan begins: it's a mentoring challenge, where she has to teach Spotfur's kits how to hunt and get them to catch enough to feed the elders. They're ultimately successful, though when Sunbeam finally returns to camp, Nightheart has apparently had to go back to Moonpool.

Frostpaw dreams of the RiverClan founder, Riverstar, who tells her that she'll need help from the living. She wakes up at the horseplace with her wound stitched up (and also has a new stitched wound that means, unbeknownst to her, that she's been spayed). She decides that she needs to go to the Moonpool and is frustrated to see Squirrelflight and Bramblestar waiting there, but StarClan visits her as she waits, even without touching her nose to the water. Riverstar tells her that she must make a journey to become the cat who will save her Clan, that she should head east, and that she will have a companion to travel with her. As Nightheart paces around by the Moonpool, he discovers her, and after he promises to keep her survival a secret, she convinces him to join her on her mission.

Sunbeam waits in the ThunderClan camp, and Alderheart, Squirrelflight, and Bramblestar - now Squirrelstar and Brambleclaw - return from the Moonpool, reporting the success of the transfer of leadership… and that Nightheart left while they were asleep. Squirrelstar privately tells Sunbeam that StarClan told her that Nightheart is on a mission, so that calms Sunbeam down, but she still worries about fitting in. Squirrelstar calls a special Gathering to announce her leadership, and there's some tension about the RiverClan situation since during her deputyship she'd been vocal about removing ShadowClan from their camp, but she brings up Nightheart's suggestion of getting Tree to mediate between the Clans.

Three days later, Frostpaw is still uncertain as to whether she should trust Nightheart. Riverstar tells her in a dream to follow her instincts regarding him, and advises her to follow a Thunderpath with three stripes. She's attacked by otters and Nightheart comes to her rescue, but then he's injured and she saves him, managing to get the pair of them away. Later on, they get spooked by some motorcycles and then chased by Twoleg kits and a dog, resulting in Nightheart falling into a swimming pool and needing to be rescued by Frostpaw. He's ashamed that he can't even take care of himself.

Back at the lake, the mediation is held offscreen. They note that Splashtail and Mallownose did most of the talking on behalf of RiverClan, and Tigerstar has at least agreed not to increase the number of his warriors stationed there. Ivypool thinks perhaps she can speak to Dovewing and get her to convince Tigerstar to leave RiverClan alone; she brings Sunbeam to the meeting, while Dovewing brings Sunbeam's father Sparrowtail. The meeting doesn't go well, but Sparrowtail and Sunbeam talk privately afterward. Sunbeam explains her feelings for Nightheart and how she didn't like getting involved with RiverClan anyway, and before he leaves, Sparrowtail mentions that she wouldn't have to worry about RiverClan since Berryheart has a plan.

Frostpaw and Nightheart continue their journey. Riverstar tells her in a dream to cross the river and keep going until she finds a salmon-colored tree; they do cross it, and finally find the tree in a park - it's salmon-colored due to the pink lights shining on it. Frostpaw knows they've found what they're looking for.

At the lake, it's been a quarter moon since Nightheart has left. Cats are questioning whether Sunbeam will stay if Nightheart doesn't come back, but Sunbeam just replies she knows he'll return. It's time for her second trial, and the task is to move a large rock away from the edge of the cliff above the camp so that it'll no longer be a potential danger, with the help of some ThunderClan cats. Cherryfall is difficult about it the whole time, furious that Sunbeam isn't "respecting a senior warrior" when Sunbeam disagrees with her idea, but Bayshine and Alderheart are eager to help, and ultimately they are successful in moving it safely away from the clifftop.

Upon arriving at the salmon-colored tree, Frostpaw realizes that there are cats there already. The two introduce themselves to the group after a while, and the cats there recognize Riverstar's name: they explain he lived in a nearby park before it was demolished, and returned to help drive away some rogues that were terrorizing his old parkmates. Though Riverstar returned home afterward, his parkmates found a new park to live in, which is where they're currently at. They discuss warrior life, and the topic turns to meditation, something that all the park cats do. They describe it as something that helps them learn and grow and uncover their deepest thoughts, and Frostpaw becomes convinced that this is what she's here for. She speaks to Riverstar, who tells her that that is part of the reason; the rest is that she needs to learn to trust Nightheart and the park cats, letting them take care of her and accepting their help when she needs it. Frostpaw knows she needs to uncover some things she's been afraid to face, but knows it will take time. After a quarter moon, she still hasn't figured out what she thinks she needs to; one of the park cats suggest she's not ready and can relax and enjoy herself in the meantime, and it works: she begins to feel like herself again - the cat she was before all of the suffering she's been through recently.

Finally, after another quarter moon, Frostpaw figures out who tried to kill her: it had been Splashtail. The knowledge is painful since she thought he'd loved her, when all along he'd only been using her. She appreciates what the park cats and Nightheart have done for her, making her feel like she can trust others and feel safe again, but she knows she's not ready to return home yet: she needs to figure out how to choose the next leader of RiverClan. The park cats, however, know that there's something that she's not yet been ready to face, but she's getting there, with the support and comfort of the park cats. Nightheart goes to ask Frostpaw when she thinks she'll be ready to return home, and just then she jerks out of her meditation, telling him she knows what happened to RiverClan - and that it's worse than she imagined.

In the forest, Sunbeam prepares herself for her third trial, which Ivypool has told her will require knowledge of ThunderClan's territory. Finchlight reports that with the most recent mediation meeting, Tigerstar has agreed to decrease the number of cats in RiverClan, and that the leaders have agreed to appoint an acting leader for RiverClan: the elder Duskfur, who's not likely to be overly hot-headed, with Splashtail as acting deputy to speak for the younger warriors.

It's time for the third trial: Ivypool gives Sunbeam a riddle that leads to a spot in ThunderClan territory, and there waits a Clanmate with a clue to a different location. She solves a few of them, but then Cherryfall is the next cat, who complains about how easy Sunbeam's trials have been, and tells her that her next clue is to go to where she moved the rock. Sunbeam knows Cherryfall is lying, due to the gleam in her eyes and the fact that it's an order, not a clue. She's not sure where she's supposed to go but guesses at a major landmark, the Ancient Oak, and luckily it's the right one. She is welcomed as an official member of ThunderClan. She doesn't tell anyone about Cherryfall's lie, but confronts her afterward, which finally seems to earn Cherryfall's respect.

Squirrelstar invites Sunbeam to the next mediation meeting, and Berryheart happens to be there. Berryheart asks to speak in private, they argue a bit, and Berryheart complains about Tigerstar. Sunbeam fears whatever Berryheart might be planning, and shares her worry with Squirrelstar, but they don't know enough to act on it yet.

In the park, Frostpaw discusses with Nightheart how she wants RiverClan to be like it used to be in its old days: acting in kindness, not competing, just like the park cats do, and she wants a leader that will run the Clan that way. Before deciding though, she knows that there's still something Riverstar hasn't let her know yet. She meditates one last time, seeing a vision of what has really happened to RiverClan: Splashtail killing Reedwhisker, working with none other than Frostpaw's own mother Curlfeather. They plan for Curlfeather to be leader and Splashtail to be deputy, and to use Frostpaw's gullibility to get there. Riverstar confirms that Curlfeather is in the Dark Forest, but he reminds Frostpaw that despite everything else Curlfeather had done, her last act in life was to save her daughter. The truth about her mother was hard, but now the worst is past, and Frostpaw is ready to choose a new leader and heal her Clan.

Frostpaw and Nightheart say their goodbyes to the park cats. Before they go, two of them - Waffle and Wasp - decide they want to come with Nightheart and Frostpaw back to the Clans. A half moon later, they arrive at the lake, arriving on the night of a Gathering. As they pass by WindClan's camp, they overhear cats discussing the possibility of war, so they rush to the island.

At the Gathering, Squirrelstar announces that Sunbeam has passed her trials. After Berryheart heckles Sunbeam for this, she goes up to the oak and declares that she and her friends want Tigerstar to be removed from the leadership of ShadowClan, per the new changes to the warrior code. She claims that she has the support of their Clanmates, including the medicine cat Puddleshine, but only her closest friends seem to support her, and Puddleshine reveals that he only agreed so that he could show the Clans how the new rule could be easily abused. Dovewing and Tigerstar suggest that Berryheart can leave if she's unhappy with the Clan's leadership, and she agrees to. The only cats who decide to follow her into exile are her mate Sparrowtail and son Hollowspring. Just before the Gathering disperses, Duskfur of RiverClan announces that there's something else they need to hear.

We then see Nightheart and Frostpaw's point of view; they crept onto the island during the confrontation. Duskfur continues her announcement: that RiverClan now has a medicine cat, Podlight. Podlight claims he had a vision of Riverstar claiming that RiverClan must become as formidable as it had been when he was leader - which of course Frostpaw and the park cats know is nothing like the actual Riverstar - and that Riverstar told him that Splashtail is the right cat to lead RiverClan. Splashtail makes a speech about how he never expected this but accepts the leadership position. Frostpaw panics, feeling that she's failed, and the book ends with Nightheart telling her that together they'll make things right.

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Tropes appearing in this book:

• Abdicate the Throne: Bramblestar officially steps down from his leadership role to retire as an elder, leaving the leadership to Squirrelflight.
• Audience Participation: Just after the reveal of this book, the official Instagram asked for fans to submit their pets' names for a kittypet character that would appear in this book, and noted it should sound good with the -paw suffix. They took a selection of them and turned them into a poll, and the winning name was Wafflepaw.
• Cone of Shame: Coriander warns Frostpaw not to scratch her wounds, or else she'll get a cone like Little Daisy once had.
• The Coup: Curlfeather and Splashtail attempted this: Curlfeather convinced Frostpaw she was meant to be a medicine cat, and they faked signs to make Curlfeather leader and Splashtail deputy.
• Cryptic Conversation: Riverstar's hints and guidance to Frostpaw largely consist of mysterious statements. She complains several times about StarClan not just telling her what they need.
• Dead Person Conversation: Riverstar, the founder of RiverClan, speaks to Frostpaw and guides her.
• A Dog Named "Cat": Some of the park cats are named after other creatures: Lark, Firefly, Weevil, Bee, Wasp and Rook.
• Drowning Unwanted Pets: Waffle was found as a kit in a bag in the river; he was rescued by Rook and Scruff.
• Ensemble Cast: A Starless Clan features three protagonists: Nightheart, Frostpaw, and Sunbeam.
• The Exile: Berryheart is exiled after attempting to get Tigerstar deposed as leader; only her mate and one of her sons decide to join her.
• Faking the Dead: Frostpaw begs Whistlepaw to keep her survival a secret: she thinks it's best to let her attacker think she's dead, so that she has time to decide what to do next.
• Family of Choice:
  • Sunbeam comes to ThunderClan to be mates with Nightheart, but he ends up disappearing on a secret quest the day after she arrives. He's gone for over a moon, and cats question whether Sunbeam will stay in the Clan if he doesn't return. She grows close to and is accepted by ThunderClan, and at the end when her mother confronts her at a Gathering, she confirms that she will stay even if Nightheart never comes back or if he rejects her, because ThunderClan has treated her more like kin than her actual kin.
  • At the end, Berryheart attempts to use the new addition to the code to depose Tigerstar. When it fails, she is exiled. While her mate Sparrowtail and their son Hollowspring follow her away from ShadowClan, her other son Spireclaw chooses to stay, along with his mate Fringewhisker, who left SkyClan to be with him.
• Famous Ancestor: Nightheart talks to Frostpaw about how difficult it was that everyone expected him to live up to Firestar, to the point that he was originally even named after him.
• Fainting: Nightheart and Frostpaw pass out at different points due to exhaustion/injuries.
• Good Cannot Comprehend Evil: When Frostpaw's feeling guilty about not recognizing Splashtail's lies, Nightheart points out that she's not a liar, so how could she expect to tell when someone's lying to her?
• Heal the Cutie: Frostpaw's journey with Nightheart and time at the park. The poor apprentice has seen her leader and deputy die on the same day, was thrust into responsibility at a young age due being the only cat in her Clan with a connection to StarClan and having to choose the next leader which she's seemingly failed at, her mother died right in front of her and told her to trust no one, she's realized that one of her Clanmates must have been the one to kill Reedwhisker, and now someone has attempted to murder her. By the start of this book, she's living in fear and truly doesn't trust anyone. Along the way and while at the park, the others care for her, she learns to meditate and gets time to just relax without responsibilities, comes to terms with hard truths, and learns that she can still trust others and feel safe in the world, and is ready to move forward and help her Clan.
• He Knows Too Much: Frostpaw knows that her vision of Reedwhisker getting killed, and knowing it must be one of their Clanmates, is why someone attacked her.
• Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: The books in this arc are each named after one of the Clans: River, Sky, Shadow, Thunder, Wind, Star.
• Immediate Sequel: The prologue occurs moments after the end of Frostpaw's last chapter of the previous book, and Chapter 1 is less than a day after Sunbeam's and Nightheart's final chapters.
• Intimate Hair Brushing: The park cats have their own variation of sharing tongues to comfort each other, though Nightheart thinks it looks pretty intense.
• It's All My Fault: Frostpaw wonders if her being so gullible encouraged Splashtail to manipulate her.
• Leader Wannabe: Frostpaw learns that her mother Curlfeather was plotting to try to become leader, and Splashtail seems to have gotten the support of a Clanmate to try to become leader now himself.
• Left for Dead: Frostpaw is still alive after being left for dead, though she would have eventually died - even with the assistance of a medicine cat - if she hadn't been brought to a human veterinarian.
• Legend Fades to Myth: Riverstar's story is still told among the park cats, though they view him as a possibly mythical, immortal being. Frostpaw confirms to them that he was a real cat and that, while not immortal, he did have nine lives.
• Meaningful Rename: Squirrelflight is given her leader name, Squirrelstar, while Bramblestar retires from leadership and goes back to being Brambleclaw.
• The Mutiny: Berryheart declares that ShadowClan wants Tigerstar removed as leader. Turns out that she and her closest friends are the only ones who really want it, and the medicine cat whose support they needed was lying just to show how easily the new removing-a-leader process could be abused.
• "Near and Dear" Baby Naming: Firefly is pregnant when Nightheart and Frostpaw leave the park, and she tells them before they leave that she'll name her kits Frost and Night.
• Never Found the Body: Though they never found Frostpaw's body, just blood and fur, RiverClan assumes Frostpaw to be dead since it's been over a moon since she was last seen; they just assume her body was carried off by a scavenger of some sort.
• Non-Indicative Name: Nightheart mentions to Frostpaw how his mother had named him Flamekit, despite him being as black as a crow.
• One-Word Title: Thunder.
• The Quest: Riverstar sends Frostpaw on a journey to make her stronger and give her the knowlege and experience to save her Clan. Nightheart joins her on her quest to help her out.
• Recurring Dreams: The park cat Bee mentions that he keeps having one about seeing cats along a frozen riverbank and that it seems oddly important. Nightheart wonders if Bee would have been a medicine cat if he were in the Clans, and tells Bee to pay attention to it because it might mean something.
• The Runaway: Frostpaw flees her Clan first because she believes it was one of her Clanmates who attempted to kill her, and then because Riverstar has told her she needs to make a journey to figure out how to save her Clan.
• Scatterbrained Senior: Brackenfur is noted to be getting forgetful in his old age.
• Series Continuity Error:
  • The last scene of Shadow occurs during midday; Bramblestar announces that he and Squirrelflight will go to the Moonpool that night, and then Sunbeam shows up with the intent to join ThunderClan. However, the opening of Thunder is the day after Sunbeam arrived: it mentions that Sunbeam has just spent her first night in ThunderClan, and Bramblestar and Squirrelflight are going to the Moonpool tonight.
    • Though it is possible that Sunbeam's arrival meant his going to the Moonpool had to be pushed back to deal with the new development, and this is simply not mentioned.
  • Tigerstar tells Berryheart she's known him since he was born. She's actually younger than him: he and her father Scorchfur were apprentices together.
• Slashed Throat: The book starts with Frostpaw suffering from one that she sustained at the end of the previous book. She would have died, even with the help another medicine cat, if not for a veterinarian healing her.
• Sneaky Departure: Nightheart leaves while Bramblestar, Squirrelflight, and Alderheart are asleep at the Moonpool. He doesn't want to leave without telling anyone, but Riverstar had told Frostpaw to leave before dawn, so it can't wait.
• Succession Crisis: RiverClan is still leaderless and now without a connection to StarClan since Frostpaw realized her visions weren't real and now is presumed dead. Riverstar tells Frostpaw that she needs to go on a journey to figure out how to solve it and save her Clan.
• Switching P.O.V.: Nightheart, Frostpaw, and Sunbeam.
• Teach Me How To Fight: Waffle begs Nightheart to teach him how to fight, since he enjoyed learning to hunt. Nightheart doesn't know why he wants to, since the park cats never have to fight, but agrees.
• The Three Trials: Sunbeam has to perform three trials in order to be accepted into ThunderClan. The first is to teach kits to hunt enough prey to feed the elders, the second is to lead a patrol to move a dangerous rock from the top of the cliff, and the third is to solve riddles about different parts of ThunderClan's territory.
• Unwitting Pawn: Frostpaw learns that Splashtail and her own mother Curlfeather were just using her naïveté to gain power for themselves.
• Where It All Began: Riverstar guides Frostpaw to the park cats, where he, the founder of RiverClan, originally came from.
• Young and in Charge: Splashtail, one of the youngest warriors in the Clan, often speaks on behalf of his Clanmates and is appointed acting deputy. At the end of the book, Podlight claims that he had a vision that Splashtail is meant to be leader, and several cats protest due to his age.