Fire and Ice (Hunter novel) facts for kids
First edition cover
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| Author | Erin Hunter |
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| Cover artist | Wayne McLoughlin |
| Country | United States/United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Series | Warriors (novel series) |
| Genre | Children's literature Fantasy novel |
| Publisher | Avon, HarperCollins |
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Publication date
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1 June 2003 |
| Media type | Print (hardback & paperback) |
| Pages | 317 (hardcover) 336 (paperback) |
| ISBN | 978-0-06-052559-0 |
| OCLC | 55800667 |
| Preceded by | Into the Wild |
| Followed by | Forest of Secrets |
Fire and Ice is an exciting fantasy novel for young readers. It's the second book in the popular Warriors series. The story was written by Kate Cary using the pen name Erin Hunter.
This book is all about two brave cats, Fireheart and Graystripe. They have just become full warriors in ThunderClan. ThunderClan is one of four groups of feral cats that live in the wild forest. In the story, Fireheart discovers a big secret. His best friend, Graystripe, has fallen in love with Silverstream. She is a warrior from a different group, RiverClan. This is a problem because it goes against the cats' important "warrior code."
Fire and Ice was first released on June 1, 2003, in the United States. It came out as a hardcover book. Since then, you can find it in paperback and as an e-book. It has also been translated into other languages. A main idea in the book is that what's inside a person (or cat!) is more important than how they look. The book got different reviews. Some people liked the suspense and growing tension. Others thought some characters were not very deep. They also found it hard to keep track of all the many cats!
Synopsis
Setting the Scene
Fire and Ice takes place in a make-believe forest. This forest is home to four Clans of wild cats. These Clans are ThunderClan, RiverClan, ShadowClan, and WindClan. Each Clan lives in a part of the forest that suits their special skills. The authors got their ideas for this forest from the New Forest in southern England.
Main Characters
Here are some of the important cats you'll meet in Fire and Ice:
- Fireheart is the main hero of the book. He used to be a house cat named Rusty. He left his human owners to join ThunderClan. Fireheart and Graystripe are sent to find WindClan. This Clan was chased from their home by ShadowClan. Fireheart later finds out about Graystripe's secret love. Even though he warns Graystripe, Fireheart promises to keep it quiet.
- Graystripe is Fireheart's best friend. After becoming a warrior, he helps Fireheart find WindClan. During a hunting trip, Graystripe falls into a river. He is saved by Silverstream, a RiverClan warrior. After this, Graystripe and Silverstream fall in love. They start meeting in secret, even though Fireheart tells them not to.
- Silverstream is a RiverClan warrior. She is also the daughter of RiverClan's leader, Crookedstar. She saves Graystripe from drowning. They fall in love, but the warrior code says cats from different Clans cannot be together. So, they sneak out of their camps to meet.
- Tigerclaw is a dangerous cat and a main villain. He had tried to become deputy (second-in-command) before. He even hurt his own Clanmate to do it. Only Fireheart, Graystripe, and Ravenpaw know about Tigerclaw's bad plans. They are too scared to tell anyone.
The Story Unfolds
Fire and Ice starts with Fireheart and Graystripe. They are doing a special silent watch after becoming warriors. This happens right after the events of Into the Wild. In the first few chapters, the book shows how they get used to being warriors. ThunderClan thinks Ravenpaw is gone forever. But Fireheart tells their leader, Bluestar, the truth. This happens before a Gathering, which is a meeting of all the Clans. Gatherings happen on the night of a full moon.
Their first big job as warriors is to find WindClan. WindClan cats usually live on open moors. ShadowClan had chased them away. Fireheart and Graystripe must bring them back home. They go to the empty WindClan camp to look for clues. On the way, they see RiverClan cats hunting in WindClan's territory. Graystripe finds the right scent trail. They follow it to a temporary WindClan camp. Fireheart spots a human farm nearby. They quickly leave, afraid of the dogs there.
Finally, Fireheart and Graystripe find WindClan. They are hiding under a tangle of "Thunderpaths." These are busy human roads, like a highway interchange. When Fireheart and Graystripe first find the Thunderpaths, the smells confuse them. After realizing WindClan is hiding there, they decide to wait until morning. Then they greet the Clan and lead them back home.
Soon after, Bluestar gives Fireheart a new apprentice, Cinderpaw. She is a smoky-dark gray she-cat. Graystripe gets Brackenpaw, a golden-brown tabby tom. During a hunting trip, Graystripe chases a vole onto thin ice. He falls into the river between RiverClan and ThunderClan. Silverstream, a slender, light silver-gray-and-black tabby she-cat from RiverClan, saves him. Graystripe and Silverstream fall in love. This is against the warrior code, which says warriors cannot love cats from other Clans. Fireheart finds out about their secret. He tries to get them to stop meeting, but he doesn't succeed. Graystripe finally agrees to only meet Silverstream at the full moon Gatherings. But Fireheart later realizes Graystripe is still breaking his promise. Because Graystripe is often away, Fireheart starts training Brackenpaw along with Cinderpaw.
Tigerclaw wants to become leader. He sets a trap for Bluestar near another Thunderpath. He hopes to kill her. But instead, Cinderpaw gets caught in the trap. Her leg is badly broken. When it heals, she has a permanent limp. This means she can't become a warrior. So, she begins training to be a medicine cat under Yellowfang.
At one point, Fireheart meets his sister again. Her name is Princess. She is a fluffy light brown tabby "kittypet" (house cat) living in a "Twolegplace" (human town). Princess gives Fireheart her oldest kit, Cloudkit. Cloudkit is a snowy-white young tom. Fireheart agrees to take his nephew into the Clan as a new apprentice. Most of his Clanmates don't want Cloudkit. They don't like that he has "kittypet blood," even though Fireheart does too. But Bluestar lets him stay. Brindleface, a pale gray tabby she-cat, becomes his foster mother.
Brokenstar, the former leader of ShadowClan, attacks ThunderClan. He brings several other exiled ShadowClan warriors with him. After the battle, the rogues are driven away. But Brokenstar himself is blinded by Yellowfang. He is kept as a prisoner. Fireheart suggests they kill the evil cat. Yellowfang refuses. She sadly reveals that she is Brokenstar's mother.
Later, ThunderClan gets into a big fight. RiverClan and ShadowClan team up. They try to drive WindClan out again. WindClan joins with ThunderClan to fight back. During the battle, Leopardfur, the RiverClan deputy, attacks Fireheart. Tigerclaw watches them fight. He does not try to help Fireheart. Silverstream attacks Fireheart but then lets him go. Fireheart then attacks her. But he sees Graystripe's upset face and lets her go too. Darkstripe, a dark gray tabby tom, sees this. He tells Tigerclaw about it. Because of this, Fireheart becomes sure that Tigerclaw cannot be trusted.
