collected
Fiction · Novel · Fantasy · Adventure
About 6 h 45 min · at 30 minutes a day, about 14 days
Estimated from the page count of this edition. Dense books can take longer than the estimate.
Sundew, a LeafWing dragon determined to take revenge on the HiveWings, returns to Pantala's Poison Jungle with Blue, Cricket and their companions. Her tribe has sheltered there since the war that destroyed the continent's forests, preparing to strike back. Bringing outsiders home challenges old hostilities, while carnivorous plants and venomous creatures threaten the travelers. As another war approaches, Sundew and her friends must uncover a secret hidden in the jungle.
Sundew's furious inner commentary and the companions' bickering keep the dangerous journey frequently funny. This middle-grade fantasy follows her perspective, continuing the Pantala storyline in the thirteenth Wings of Fire novel; the returning cast and ongoing conflict assume familiarity with earlier books.
Collected’s assessment, not reader ratings. Complexity runs from 1 (least demanding) to 5 (most demanding).
Yes, the returning cast and ongoing conflict assume familiarity with earlier books. This thirteenth Wings of Fire novel continues the Pantala storyline, with Sundew bringing Blue, Cricket and their companions into her tribe’s home.
The direct prose, brisk pace and linear storytelling make the writing relatively accessible. The greater challenge is following the returning characters and ongoing conflict without familiarity with earlier books.
The atmosphere is dark and tense, with revenge, approaching war, carnivorous plants and venomous creatures shaping the danger. Sundew’s furious inner commentary and her companions’ bickering frequently bring humor to that tension.
Revenge and community are central: Sundew wants to strike back at the HiveWings, while bringing outsiders home challenges her tribe’s old hostilities. Survival, morality, trauma and war also shape the story.
336 pages in the Scholastic Inc. 2021 paperback edition.
Scholastic Inc. · 2021 · paperback. ISBN 9781338214529.
About 6 hours 45 minutes at 50 pages an hour, based on the 336-page Scholastic Inc. edition. Dense books can take longer.
Tui Sutherland is a prolific children’s writer whose career ranges from adaptations and collaborative animal adventures to the epic dragon fantasy of Wings of Fire. An early career as a children’s-book editor gave her experience with commercial storytelling before she began writing full time, under her own name and several pen names. Her fiction favors direct, dialogue-driven prose, brisk adventure plots, and large invented societies made legible through the loyalties of young characters. Rather than survey a conflict from above, she commonly narrows each story to one protagonist confronting a particular corner of the world. The Dragonet Prophecy sets five captive-raised dragons against a war and a destiny assigned to them, establishing the series’ blend of group banter, danger, and political rivalry. Lost Heir shifts attention to Tsunami’s uneasy return to the SeaWing court, where family and rank complicate belonging. In Escaping Peril, a lethal gift and a violent reputation turn the same outward momentum into a close study of obedience, friendship, and earned trust. This rotating perspective lets Sutherland expand Pyrrhia while keeping its wars, courts, and magic tied to immediate choices.
