GYLFIE: Elf Owl, Micranthene whitneyi, from the desert kingdom of Kuneer; escaped from St. Aegolius Academy for Orphaned Owls; Soren’s best friend; a Guardian at the Great Ga’Hoole Tree and ryb of the navigation chaw
TWILIGHT: Great Gray Owl, Strix nebulosa, free flier, orphaned within hours of hatching; Guardian at the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
DIGGER: Burrowing Owl, Speotyto cunicularius, from the desert kingdom of Kuneer; lost in desert after attack in which his brother was killed by owls from St. Aegolius; Guardian at the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
The Leaders of the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
CORYN: Barn Owl, Tyto alba, the young king of the great tree; son of Nyra, leader of the Pure Ones
EZYLRYB: Whiskered Screech Owl, Otus trichopsis, Soren’s former mentor, the wise, much-loved, departed ryb at the great Ga’Hoole Tree
Others at the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
OTULISSA: Spotted Owl, Strix occidentalis, chief ryb and ryb of Ga’Hoolology and weather chaws; an owl of great learning and prestigious lineage
MARTIN: Northern Saw-whet Owl, Aegolius acadicus, member of the Chaw of Chaws; a Guardian at the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
RUBY: Short-eared Owl, Asio flammeus, member of the Chaw of Chaws; a Guardian at the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
EGLANTINE: Barn Owl, Tyto alba, Soren’s younger sister
MADAME PLONK: Snowy Owl, Nyctea scandiaca, the elegant singer of the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
MRS. PLITHIVER: blind snake, formerly the nest-maid for Soren’s family; now a member of the harp guild at the Great Ga’Hoole Tree
OCTAVIA: Kielian snake, nest-maid for many years for Madame Plonk and Ezylryb (also known as BRIGID)
ELYAN: Great Gray Owl, Strix nebulosa, member of the parliament unwholesomely in thrall to the Ember of Hoole
DOC FINEBEAK: Snowy Owl, Nyctea scandiaca, famed freelance tracker once in the employ of the Pure Ones
Characters from the Time of the Legends
GRANK: Spotted Owl, Strix occidentalis, the first collier; friend to young King H’rath and Queen Siv during their youth; first owl to find the ember
HOOLE: Spotted Owl, Strix occidentalis, son of H’rath; retriever of the Ember of Hoole; founder and first king of the great tree
H’RATH: Spotted Owl, Strix occidentalis, king of the N’yrthghar, the frigid region known in later times as the Northern Kingdoms; father of Hoole
SIV: Spotted Owl, Strix occidentalis, queen of H’rath of the N’yrthghar; mother of Hoole.
KREETH: Female hagsfiend with strong powers of nacht-magen; friend of Ygryk, conjures Lutta into being
Other Characters
DUNLEAVY MACHEATH: treacherous dire wolf, once leader of the MacHeath clan in Beyond the Beyond
GYLLBANE: courageous member of the MacHeath clan of dire wolves; her pup Cody was maimed by clan leader Dunleavy MacHeath
BESS: Boreal Owl, Aegolius funerus, daughter of Grimble, a guard at St. Aegolius Academy for Orphaned Owls; keeper of the Palace of Mists (also known as THE KNOWER)
BRAITHE: Whiskered Screech Owl, Otus trichopsis, owl from Ambala and a memorizer of books; flew with the Greenowls of Ambala to the great tree on Balefire Night
Blue Owls
STRIGA: Blue Snowy Owl, Nyctea scandiaca, a former dragon owl from the Middle Kingdom seeking a more meaningful life (also known as ORLANDO)
TENGSHU: Blue Long-Eared Owl, Asio otis, qui master and sage of the Middle Kingdom
A peek at
THE GUARDIANS OF GA’HOOLE Book Fifteen
The War of the Ember
“All right,” Ruby said, taking a step closer to the others. “You’ve studied the charts. You each know your individual flight plan.”
“Yes,” Fritha answered. “I am to go due east from here into the canyonlands, then circle back west and head for Beyond the Beyond, and head straight out toward the Wolf’s Fang.”
“Yes ma’am.” Wensel then repeated the details of his route.
“Excellent!” Bess replied after they had recited their individual flight plans. She accompanied them to the turret opposite the bell tower and watched them take off into the wildness of the storm. She had to wedge herself into one of the stone turret notches to keep from being swept off. The raging wind blew the cascading water of the falls in horizontal sheets across the night. Trees shuddered, the noise of their branches a drumbeat beneath the wind. Flashes of lightning illuminated the undersides of rolling clouds, giving them a harsh metallic glow, and always that odd whining that sliced through the wind’s roar, splitting it like a talon through tender flesh.
But the three owls were amazing fliers. Bess watched as they lifted off into the teeth of the storm. Catching every favorable draft, they manipulated their wings constantly to adjust to the confusing air currents. There were alarming shifts and abrupt shears where a wind could accelerate or decelerate dramatically, change its direction completely, pocking the air with deadfalls and suck-down vents, which could spell disaster for the average flier. But these were no average fliers. “Glaux speed,” she murmured softly as she saw them dissolve into a thick dark cloud bank. “Glaux speed!”
The Guardians of Ga’Hoole series
Book One: The Capture
Book Two: The Journey
Book Three: The Rescue
Book Four: The Siege
Book Five: The Shattering
Book Six: The Burning
Book Seven: The Hatchling
Book Eight: The Outcast
Book Nine: The First Collier
Book Ten: The Coming of Hoole
Book Eleven: To Be a King
Book Twelve: The Golden Tree
Book Thirteen: The River of Wind
Book Fourteen: Exile
Book Fifteen: The War of the Ember
A Guide Book to the Great Tree
Lost Tales of Ga’Hoole
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eISBN: 978-0-545-28345-8
Text copyright © 2008 by Kathryn Lasky.
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Artwork by Richard Cowdrey Design by Steve Scott
Cover art by Richard Cowdrey
Cover design by Steve Scott