by Jean Little
First published 2020
Bramblestar has lost one of his nine lives, but something far worse has happened to ThunderClan's leader. The cat who returned to his body acts like Bramblestar, speaks like Bramblestar, yet behaves nothing like the leader the Clan once knew. This false Bramblestar obsesses over the warrior code, branding loyal cats as traitors and driving them into exile. Meanwhile, the real Bramblestar exists as a trapped spirit, watching helplessly as an impostor destroys everything he built. A few cats suspect the truth, but proving it seems impossible when the evidence contradicts their eyes. The impostor's paranoid crusade spreads fear through all five Clans, turning neighbor against neighbor. As tensions escalate toward open warfare, the authentic Bramblestar fights desperately to reclaim his stolen life. The fate of the warrior Clans hangs on whether the truth can emerge before the impostor's actions trigger a catastrophic war that will shatter their world forever.
Genres: fiction, mystery, fantasy, thriller
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, emotional, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family, unreliable-narrator
Setting: ThunderClan
Period: warrior-clans
289 pages · Hardcover · HarperCollins
Content warnings: violence