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Guardians of Ga'Hoole #13
The River of Wind
Coryn, Soren and the Chaw of Chaws ride a river of wind to discover a realm of endless wonders where dwells a society of mysterious owls, the like of which has never before been seen.
Meanwhile, journeying in the known kingdoms, Primrose and Eglantine stumble upon a plot by Nyra to kill the young king and his companions in a distant snowy land. Too late to get help from the tree, the young Guardians must find the strange new realm on their own to warm Coryn and the others. Even if they make it in time, will a handful of Guardians and peace-loving monks be a match for Pure Ones bent on murder?
Meanwhile, journeying in the known kingdoms, Primrose and Eglantine stumble upon a plot by Nyra to kill the young king and his companions in a distant snowy land. Too late to get help from the tree, the young Guardians must find the strange new realm on their own to warm Coryn and the others. Even if they make it in time, will a handful of Guardians and peace-loving monks be a match for Pure Ones bent on murder?
202 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2007
127 people are currently reading
3388 people want to read
About the author
Kathryn Lasky
266 books2,281 followersKathryn Lasky, also known as Kathryn Lasky Knight and E. L. Swann, is an award-winning American author of over one hundred books for children and adults. Best known for the Guardians of Ga’Hoole series, her work has been translated into 19 languages and includes historical fiction, fantasy, and nonfiction.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 109 reviews
April 17, 2021
REVIEW: The River of Wind (Guardians of Ga'Hoole, #13), Kathryn Lasky
RATING: 3.5/5 stars
I know that this series is technically supposed to be dystopian with elements of fantasy in nature, but this book took that notion much farther than any of the others up until this point. Most of the time, you have a bunch of owls engaging in various battles of good and evil, etc. In this book, you casually have 300-year-old owls and something akin to time warps...I know that Lasky was trying to describe time zones, but she should have either picked owl longevity or expansion to other parts of the world. It is fairly confusing, and I'm an adult. That's not to say that I didn't think it was interesting or that I didn't catch on, I just think that this book might be a bit much for her target audience.
The narrative was pretty good, which is why I have rated this book as high as I did. As I have read these books, this has been a huge measure of their success. Some of the Ga'Hoole books jump around a TON, to say the least. This one was decently consistent, as it balanced Eglantine and Primrose's search mission with Bell's kidnapping and then the Band's antics in tow. Coryn felt absolutely absent, though, which is kind of amusing. I kept forgetting he was there. At the end, there's a huge battle with the newly-returned Pure Ones and they mention him out of nowhere as being a target. "Oh yeah," I thought to myself. "I guess he's in this book and combat against his mother might be important."
I can't ignore the attempt at Asian owls in this book. I'm glad to see representation, and I certainly was not expecting it considering that the fantasy lore has been so heavily Eurocentric overall. Most fantasy tends to be. But some of the stuff felt...weird, and possibly offensive. It did rely heavily on stereotypes like monasteries, mountains, and martial arts. As indicated before, the time warp element was also an "othering" factor that alienated these blue owls. In fact, now that I think about it, they were almost constantly defined and regarded by the color of their feathers in a way that wasn't really social commentary on race. It seemed more intentional to make them seem exotic, which is uncool to say the least. There wasn't really a lesson on togetherness or why this is harmful, I guess, which is what you have to do to make a novel like this stand out. I think that if these owls were portrayed as smarter without an evil past, the book would have been more successful. But instead, most are described as dumb servants that descend from evil. I know that the overlying villain is Nyra, but the implementation of modern hagsfiends as these owls from another hemisphere seems super iffy to me.
I have enjoyed this series, but I am glad to be nearly done. A lot of the same tropes have repeated themselves over and over again. Now that Bell is apart of the cycles of familial violence, there is just room for the same battles again and again. I am intrigued, to say the least, to see just where Lasky carries the series next. I should have it finished by the end of May.
RATING: 3.5/5 stars
I know that this series is technically supposed to be dystopian with elements of fantasy in nature, but this book took that notion much farther than any of the others up until this point. Most of the time, you have a bunch of owls engaging in various battles of good and evil, etc. In this book, you casually have 300-year-old owls and something akin to time warps...I know that Lasky was trying to describe time zones, but she should have either picked owl longevity or expansion to other parts of the world. It is fairly confusing, and I'm an adult. That's not to say that I didn't think it was interesting or that I didn't catch on, I just think that this book might be a bit much for her target audience.
The narrative was pretty good, which is why I have rated this book as high as I did. As I have read these books, this has been a huge measure of their success. Some of the Ga'Hoole books jump around a TON, to say the least. This one was decently consistent, as it balanced Eglantine and Primrose's search mission with Bell's kidnapping and then the Band's antics in tow. Coryn felt absolutely absent, though, which is kind of amusing. I kept forgetting he was there. At the end, there's a huge battle with the newly-returned Pure Ones and they mention him out of nowhere as being a target. "Oh yeah," I thought to myself. "I guess he's in this book and combat against his mother might be important."
I can't ignore the attempt at Asian owls in this book. I'm glad to see representation, and I certainly was not expecting it considering that the fantasy lore has been so heavily Eurocentric overall. Most fantasy tends to be. But some of the stuff felt...weird, and possibly offensive. It did rely heavily on stereotypes like monasteries, mountains, and martial arts. As indicated before, the time warp element was also an "othering" factor that alienated these blue owls. In fact, now that I think about it, they were almost constantly defined and regarded by the color of their feathers in a way that wasn't really social commentary on race. It seemed more intentional to make them seem exotic, which is uncool to say the least. There wasn't really a lesson on togetherness or why this is harmful, I guess, which is what you have to do to make a novel like this stand out. I think that if these owls were portrayed as smarter without an evil past, the book would have been more successful. But instead, most are described as dumb servants that descend from evil. I know that the overlying villain is Nyra, but the implementation of modern hagsfiends as these owls from another hemisphere seems super iffy to me.
I have enjoyed this series, but I am glad to be nearly done. A lot of the same tropes have repeated themselves over and over again. Now that Bell is apart of the cycles of familial violence, there is just room for the same battles again and again. I am intrigued, to say the least, to see just where Lasky carries the series next. I should have it finished by the end of May.
December 21, 2022
Looks like the author wanted to play 'human' with this owl-world in this installment.
I say this because what I get from this is that a bunch of owls living in their world (presumably read America in human parlance) discover that there exists a world out over the unnamed sea (presumably The Pacific). And when they do reach it, the owls are similar to their species yet different in colour, i.e. blue. They don't have weapons but practice some form of martial arts, which in addition to the type of language suggested to be used by these blue owls, and their longevity, and monk-like existence hint towards an east Asian country, maybe Japan, maybe China. There is some mix-up of timelines, and it gets confusing-even from an adult's point of view.
Oh my! Whatever she is trying to do to the plot.
The thrill of the previous books is somewhat lacking now, and am just hoping it gets better.
I say this because what I get from this is that a bunch of owls living in their world (presumably read America in human parlance) discover that there exists a world out over the unnamed sea (presumably The Pacific). And when they do reach it, the owls are similar to their species yet different in colour, i.e. blue. They don't have weapons but practice some form of martial arts, which in addition to the type of language suggested to be used by these blue owls, and their longevity, and monk-like existence hint towards an east Asian country, maybe Japan, maybe China. There is some mix-up of timelines, and it gets confusing-even from an adult's point of view.
Oh my! Whatever she is trying to do to the plot.
The thrill of the previous books is somewhat lacking now, and am just hoping it gets better.
July 29, 2023
Whaaaaaaaaat in the great Glaux just happened. Listen. I know they are owls and have no race but Kathryn Lasky has created an Asian coded “Middle Kingdom” of blue owls to stand as others to our Euro-coded “normal” owls (unfortunately this comparison is made many times) and I am loathe to say we have veered from simply silly and bad to potentially offensive.
Oooooh that’s a tough one to recover from only 2 books away from your fantastic concl-owl-sion.
Hoot? Hoot? 🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉
Oooooh that’s a tough one to recover from only 2 books away from your fantastic concl-owl-sion.
Hoot? Hoot? 🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉
August 28, 2025
laughed out loud how stupid some of this book is
May 26, 2022
Ga'Hoole is a childhood favorite so I've read the earlier books at least two times each but this was the first time I've read this one since I've been putting off finishing the series for about 2 years already.
I think it's interesting to introduce a 'hidden world' in a franchise, especially when all the characters have already explored or discovered all available areas of the world's map. I'm starting to think that introducing another world is a sign of the end of a series - think of HTTYD's third and final installment.
This one was so-so in terms of execution. I like the concept of another world but the inspiration for the culture and visuals were a little off for me. I'm all for realism but clearly
Anyways, I'm on to read the last book in the series because I somehow don't have book 14 with me. Whoops!
I think it's interesting to introduce a 'hidden world' in a franchise, especially when all the characters have already explored or discovered all available areas of the world's map. I'm starting to think that introducing another world is a sign of the end of a series - think of HTTYD's third and final installment.
This one was so-so in terms of execution. I like the concept of another world but the inspiration for the culture and visuals were a little off for me. I'm all for realism but clearly
Anyways, I'm on to read the last book in the series because I somehow don't have book 14 with me. Whoops!
March 3, 2017
I thought the book was a masterpiece it showed how any living thing can have a amazing story when it comes to imagination. It had an effective plot it all made sense. I do think there were words that could have not been so difficult to spell but i was able to somewhat do it with ease. I have already read the entire series i am just going back and writing about my experience from reading the book. I can tell that if your are looking for adventurous types of stories then this book is for you. Katheryn Lasky did a job well done writing this series and she has written many other great books.
October 25, 2018
I uh...I’m legitimately not sure if I should be bothered by the portrayal of the Asian owls or not lmfao
like...I am glad that Lasky remembered that places other than England and Scotland exist??? because so much classic kids’ fantasy is so very Eurocentric. But like I am a little wary of like “they are Asian and they are monks and they practice martial arts” like uh ok
SHRUG no one cares but me it’s fine
like...I am glad that Lasky remembered that places other than England and Scotland exist??? because so much classic kids’ fantasy is so very Eurocentric. But like I am a little wary of like “they are Asian and they are monks and they practice martial arts” like uh ok
SHRUG no one cares but me it’s fine
November 25, 2019
This book was even more incredible than the previous. I added lot's to the plot and introduced an entire new kingdom and characters. The new kingdom was very interesting and constantly made me want to read more. this series is great and I would definitely recommend reading it if you don't mind reading long series.
January 16, 2024
The river of wind has some good concepts and characters, but ultimately packs in far too much, adding countless new terms, characters, and fragmented plot lines (none of which, I suspect, are going to be referenced again) before a hasty ending with a villain who escapes yet again. And speaking of Nyra, the prior book had her vanish due to Coryn's Magic, only to apparently reappear in this book with no explanation of where she went. It seemed like she simply got teleported away, and continued on with her villain plans without any repercussions. Now, in this one, she seemingly vanished again by natural means, or possibly Magic, I guess? Because it wasnt explained at all, it kinda felt like a cop out instead of dealing with an actual confrontation.
July 6, 2024
i was almost willing to accept that there were 400yo blue owls until kathryn lasky pulled out the orientalism
August 2, 2025
Es gibt hier leider ein paar ungute Darstellungen der asiatischen Kultur
January 2, 2026
This one was really fucking bad I don't know how it has four stars
It's literally the kung fu episode. They make the owls learn kung fu.
It's literally the kung fu episode. They make the owls learn kung fu.
January 27, 2011
Book 13, The River of Wind, finally the series i almost coming to an end.
The owl Bess has been studying The Others for sometime. They have had strange markings, maps, and the special "winged ones" all clues that suggest that the owls aren't alone or weren't, at one point. But in the scraps of strange objects, lies a map of a strange sixth kingdom.
Bess calls Soren and the entire Chaw of chaws to investigate and see where this sixth kingdom lies. To find this place they must go on an air current The Others called "The River of Wind."
Traveling they find blue Dragon Owls, with almost Buddhist-like values, who live in the mountains. But Nyra, Soren's sister-in-law, is back with the cult of The Pure Ones who know of the sixth kingdom and spreads the demon's magic over the monastery.
What I love is how Lasky adds yet another fascinating culture based on real life, this makes the story just as interesting.
In the story we see how peace is easily disturbed by violence. The story takes a dark twist when even some of the blue owls practice black magic on the new eggs, making them possessed with hagsfiend magic and when they keep a large bird as the king, though he isn't very humble, being filled with jewels and materials things get worse. Nyra's strange demonic religion is spreading dangerously as her very feathers turn dark with all the evil that possesses her and Soren becomes worried that Coryn is concerned about his destiny, his mother, and the idea he might be what she is consumed in.
And the biggest secret of the blue owls in their evil past is revealed.
The owl Bess has been studying The Others for sometime. They have had strange markings, maps, and the special "winged ones" all clues that suggest that the owls aren't alone or weren't, at one point. But in the scraps of strange objects, lies a map of a strange sixth kingdom.
Bess calls Soren and the entire Chaw of chaws to investigate and see where this sixth kingdom lies. To find this place they must go on an air current The Others called "The River of Wind."
Traveling they find blue Dragon Owls, with almost Buddhist-like values, who live in the mountains. But Nyra, Soren's sister-in-law, is back with the cult of The Pure Ones who know of the sixth kingdom and spreads the demon's magic over the monastery.
What I love is how Lasky adds yet another fascinating culture based on real life, this makes the story just as interesting.
In the story we see how peace is easily disturbed by violence. The story takes a dark twist when even some of the blue owls practice black magic on the new eggs, making them possessed with hagsfiend magic and when they keep a large bird as the king, though he isn't very humble, being filled with jewels and materials things get worse. Nyra's strange demonic religion is spreading dangerously as her very feathers turn dark with all the evil that possesses her and Soren becomes worried that Coryn is concerned about his destiny, his mother, and the idea he might be what she is consumed in.
And the biggest secret of the blue owls in their evil past is revealed.
May 27, 2015
Soren wanted to travel to the newly discovered 6th kingdom of owls with his friends from the Ga,hoole tree. But then Elentine, Sorens Sister, found out that the evil Nyra followed them with her group of soldiers to assassinate Soren and Coyron. So Elentine traveled to the new kingdom to warn Soren. Then in am epic battle the fate of Coyron and Soren is decided. The River Of Wind is about courage, curiosity, and exploration.
May 26, 2025
Overall Rating : B-
"Despite her resolve to stay calm, her gizzard was seized by a sudden swirling agitation at the very thought of a new kingdom—a new world!"
"Despite her resolve to stay calm, her gizzard was seized by a sudden swirling agitation at the very thought of a new kingdom—a new world!"
June 6, 2021
FR
Je m'approche grandement de la fin, et je commence à me "lasser" de plus en plus.
J'ai un peu plus aimé ce volume parce que Coryn était presque invisible tout du long, et ça m'a convenu tout à fait.
Par contre.. En ce qui concerne le nouveau "plot", ça m'a mise assez mal à l'aise.. J'avais une impression de "racisme" (je ne suis pas sure que ça soit le terme exact cette fois), beaucoup de stéréotypes sur la culture asiatique.. Je ne sais pas trop quoi en penser en toute honnêteté...
Plus que deux volumes et ça y est, j'ai officiellement fini !
ENG
I'm getting very close to the end, and I'm starting to get more and more "bored".
I liked this volume a little more because Coryn was almost invisible the whole way, and that suited me perfectly.
On the other hand... Regarding the new "plot", it made me quite uncomfortable... I had an impression of "racism" (I'm not sure that is the exact term this time), a lot of stereotypes about Asian culture... I'm not sure what to think in all honesty...
Only two more volumes and that's it, I'm officially done !
Je m'approche grandement de la fin, et je commence à me "lasser" de plus en plus.
J'ai un peu plus aimé ce volume parce que Coryn était presque invisible tout du long, et ça m'a convenu tout à fait.
Par contre.. En ce qui concerne le nouveau "plot", ça m'a mise assez mal à l'aise.. J'avais une impression de "racisme" (je ne suis pas sure que ça soit le terme exact cette fois), beaucoup de stéréotypes sur la culture asiatique.. Je ne sais pas trop quoi en penser en toute honnêteté...
Plus que deux volumes et ça y est, j'ai officiellement fini !
ENG
I'm getting very close to the end, and I'm starting to get more and more "bored".
I liked this volume a little more because Coryn was almost invisible the whole way, and that suited me perfectly.
On the other hand... Regarding the new "plot", it made me quite uncomfortable... I had an impression of "racism" (I'm not sure that is the exact term this time), a lot of stereotypes about Asian culture... I'm not sure what to think in all honesty...
Only two more volumes and that's it, I'm officially done !
May 23, 2019
This is a good addition to the Guardians of Ga'Hoole series. We get new owls and new dangers in this book. There are new blue owls who live across the ocean that the owls have always thought was impassible. But with the help of Bess, they are able to learn of a means of crossing this vast ocean. Danger looms back at home with Nyra working remass her forces. She has a deadly plan. Assassinate the King and his Uncle and all else will fall apart. With a rogue blue owl from the Middle Kingdom flying around both good and bad will come of his presence.
This is an engaging story from start to finish. It continues the story of the owls of Ga'Hoole with them learning about themselves and others. I like the twists and the turns that the author writes into the story.
I am rating this book 5 out of 5 stars.
This is an engaging story from start to finish. It continues the story of the owls of Ga'Hoole with them learning about themselves and others. I like the twists and the turns that the author writes into the story.
I am rating this book 5 out of 5 stars.
May 21, 2018
My favorite part was when Bell was safe back at the GaHoole tree, and the Chaw of Chaws and Soren and the Striga got home again after journeying to the middle kingdom and being attacked by the Pure Ones once again. My least favorite part was when the Pure Ones caught Bell and the Striga and took them prisoner in the Desert of Kuneer. I find the ways of the middle kingdom familiar, but confusing at the same time for some reason. When they first mentioned the long feathers of the dragon owls and how they were supposed to be vain, it reminded me of peacocks, even though they were actually owls, and reminded veryone in the book more of hgsfiends.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 30, 2022
3.5⭐
I liked the book for the most part, but even though this is a fantasy series this volume seemed too farfetched. The idea of making the 'other kingdom' this advanced & peaceful Asian society was sort of an overused & boring trope, making them blue & 300+yrs old was also a bit much..
I was hoping the other world would've been more European I guess, I was hoping they'd know more about the "Others" & maybe studied their culture, literature & their disappearance. Perhaps their study of them would've been the reason for their higher knowledge..maybe
I enjoyed the idea of modern Hagsfiends, but I think it could've been done in a better way.
All in all it was worth the read.
I liked the book for the most part, but even though this is a fantasy series this volume seemed too farfetched. The idea of making the 'other kingdom' this advanced & peaceful Asian society was sort of an overused & boring trope, making them blue & 300+yrs old was also a bit much..
I was hoping the other world would've been more European I guess, I was hoping they'd know more about the "Others" & maybe studied their culture, literature & their disappearance. Perhaps their study of them would've been the reason for their higher knowledge..maybe
I enjoyed the idea of modern Hagsfiends, but I think it could've been done in a better way.
All in all it was worth the read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 16, 2020
What an adventure!
The Owls from the Chaw of Chaws find out what happened to Theo after he left when the war ended.
They meet some interesting new owls.
*Spoilers*
There's BLUE owls in another kingdom? That's so cool! I do hope these new owls don't become hagsfiends, it seems like they were turned into good owls after Theo gave them new purpose. I like these owls of the 6th Kingdom. But Orlando might be in trouble later... he seems like a bad influence.I guess we'll find out in the next book...
Nyra escaped again! I can't believe it, she has like 9 lives...
The Owls from the Chaw of Chaws find out what happened to Theo after he left when the war ended.
They meet some interesting new owls.
*Spoilers*
There's BLUE owls in another kingdom? That's so cool! I do hope these new owls don't become hagsfiends, it seems like they were turned into good owls after Theo gave them new purpose. I like these owls of the 6th Kingdom. But Orlando might be in trouble later... he seems like a bad influence.I guess we'll find out in the next book...
Nyra escaped again! I can't believe it, she has like 9 lives...
April 13, 2023
I’m going to finish this series just because of how far in I am. I really think she should not have made a continuation of these books after the first “series.” It has kind of lost sight of itself. I think it’s very late in the game to introduce a whole other continent, and the way the “Middle Kingdom” owls were written feels almost vaguely racist, or at the very least appropriative. It was still a very fun book to read, but at the same time there was so much that gave me a sour taste that it brought the number of stars way down.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 24, 2021
I don't know how to feel about this one. It's such a departure from the first 7 or so books in the series. I didn't dislike it necessarily but it wasn't as good/enjoyable as many of the prior books. Spoilers below.
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300 + year old BLUE owls, some of which might be reincarnated hagsfiends??? I know this is a fantasy series and all but it really disrupted the immersion for me. Especially the longevity part.
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300 + year old BLUE owls, some of which might be reincarnated hagsfiends??? I know this is a fantasy series and all but it really disrupted the immersion for me. Especially the longevity part.
January 31, 2024
What?! Okay this was pretty crazy. There were a lot of words I did not understand and it’s not like you can look it up in the dictionary since they are made up words from A WHOLE NEW FREAKING KINGDOM! To make matters worse, these blue owls (which I still see them as peacocks because that is how they described) don’t have a “Hoolian” (English) meaning for these words. Don’t get me started on pronunciation.
Dare I say this series is getting too long? I just didn’t like this story.
Dare I say this series is getting too long? I just didn’t like this story.
April 6, 2022
My son loved these! He read them in about 3rd grade. I didn't share his love, but then I'm an adult and I experienced the story from a totally different point of view (I mean, fighting owls??! It was hard for me to get into.) I was willing to let him read whatever it took to get him to reading fluently and I was just happy to see him immersed in a book.
December 15, 2017
This is definitely my one of my favorite books of this series! I especially liked the blue owls from the Middle Kingdom, I feel like they were introduced really well, and I liked that they were based off kinda...Chinese Beliefs.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 13, 2019
The new owls are v cool and I like that they’re blue. Also, their introduction was a nice way of integrating non-Western ideas into a universe that has been coded as such for most of the series. It’s always cool to see a variety of influences in fictional universes.
3.5/5 stars
3.5/5 stars
July 10, 2021
To be honest I think this story is being dragged out for too long now. Things are beginning to repeat and the narration is becoming monotonous. I think Rene series should have been ended around book 3.
December 31, 2021
There is a sixth kingdom!!!! In the sixth kingdom the owls are blue! The Chaw of Chaws goes to the new kingdom. These owls don't believe in war. I think they are calm and gentle. Over all, I loved this book.
March 3, 2023
Ich muss zugeben, dass ich an den letzten Büchern nicht mehr so viel Gefallen gefunden habe aber das Nebelschloss hat mich wieder in seinen Bann gezogen. Es war spannend, es gab immer wieder Perspektivwechsel und am wichtigsten - ein neues Eulenkönigreich.
November 12, 2024
AMAZING! Amazing cover, amazing storyline, and they finally introduced something new! Which is the Middle Kingdom! And blue is my favorite color, so I was really happy to see that there were now blue owls and even Dragon owls. Definitely my most favorite book out of the whole series!! A MUST READ!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 109 reviews