Tigerpetal Press : Book Review: The War of the Ember

The Guardians of Ga’Hoole Book 15: The War of the Ember by Kathryn Lasky

I really liked it

Here it is: the final all-out war to end the struggle! I still have the Additional Tales to read, but overall, this has been an excellent saga that brought me back down memory lane.

Read: Jun. 4 – Jun. 6, 2025

Genre: Fantasy, Fable
Audience: Children, Middle-grade
Book contains: war, death, semi-graphic depictions of violence, dismemberment

Purchase a copy from Indigo.ca

The Final Clash of Good and Evil

With Nyra and the Striga now joining forces, the Guardians must face this final enemy in head-on war, lest the free world be overtaken and nachtmagen return. Can Coryn bring together all free creatures to fight this threat?

Though I can now see how the blue owl storyline fits into the series altogether, I do still think that it was a bit much. Nonetheless, it added a level of depth and suspense to this saga, and I enjoyed learning all about this new lore.

Structured like all the other books in the series, The War of the Ember was told in third person shifting omniscient, switching between characters (including the villains) as they get ready for war and the battle begins. This shifting perspective allows the reader to dive into characters’ thoughts and to be informed of all moving aspects of the plot.

I enjoyed some hot orange pekoe tea while reading this book, mainly early morning or late evening. It was a quick read; I hardly got sidetracked like I usually do.

Though the narrative follows a lot of different characters, Coryn and Soren and the Band will always be our main heroes. Coryn’s journey has come full circle as he enters this final confrontation with his mother. Nyra and the Striga show us that vanity and pride are deadly in vast amounts, and the Striga especially warns against hypocrisy. All the others were characterized well and showed different aspects of what one should or shouldn’t emulate: loyalty, nobility, mercy, duty, etc.

Coryn’s relationships have always been complicated as he struggles to shake the burden of his blood from his shoulders. He is mateless and chickless, with no ties to the world but the owls he serves as their king. Opposed to that, his uncle Soren has great family and strong bonds with all owls around him; it is like they are two sides of a coin. I found Nyra and the Striga’s pairing to be quite interesting, as they are both too selfish and power-hungry to be able to work effectively in tandem—it forecasts their downfall.

I once again have found Lasky’s writing entertaining and perfect for his audience, though parent discretion about some of the bloodier aspects of this book—like with other books before. I was disappointed to see an incorrect animal fact in which it’s stated that burrowing owls are bigger than barn owls, but it was the only discrepancy I found and it is something easily remedied, so I think it can be forgiven.

Since you already know that this book will end in the all-out war, the pacing moves quite fast towards the end. There is the usual rallying of troops and collecting of information, with a lot of moving around that prevents the reader from becoming bored with endless talking.

Though this series carried on a bit longer than I thought necessary, I still think it was an excellent read and I highly recommend it to young readers (so long as they’re forewarned about some of the heavier topics).

The Guardians of Ga’Hoole Book 15: The War of the Ember by Kathryn Lasky

The Final Clash of Good and Evil

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