Hero: A Wings of Fire Story

by Tui T. Sutherland

Wings of Fire returns with this brand new short story featuring a fan favorite character, plus a sneak-peek at Wings of Fire #16: The Hybrid Prince!Travel back to the Sky Kindgom and follow the tale of young Prince Cliff in this brand new Wings of Fire short story!

Genres: Dragons

60 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 3, 2026

About the author

Okay, I know what you’re thinking. Tui? What kind of name is that? Is it short for something?

Nope. Among the many great things to come out of New Zealand (the Lord of the Rings movies, cats that paint, my mom) is a bird called the tui—not as well known as the kiwi, but a heck of a lot noisier!

I was born July 31 (same birthday as Harry Potter!) in Caracas, Venezuela, and lived in Asuncion, Paraguay; Miami, Florida; and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, before moving to New Jersey in high school, where I started doing theatre—mostly backstage work, because (a) it was fun, and (b) you got to hang out in the dark with cute boys. (Er, I mean . . . because it was artistically fulfilling, yes.)

I graduated from Williams College in ’98 and I currently live in Boston with my husband, my perfect new baby, and my adorable yoodle Sunshine (what’s a yoodle? A puppy that’s three-quarters poodle and one-quarter Yorkshire terrier, of course!).

Much to my parents’ relief, I abandoned my theatrical aspirations after college for the far more stable and lucrative career of fiction writing.

My first two official books were beginning readers, part of Grosset & Dunlap’s “First Friends” series for kids learning to read. MEET MO AND ELLA is tough to find now, but FUN WITH MO AND ELLA should still be out there somewhere.

My first novel for teenagers was THIS MUST BE LOVE, which retells Shakespeare’s play A Midsummer Night’s Dream in a modern-day high school, from the POV of the two heroines, Hermia and Helena.

And now I'm writing in a new project called SEEKERS! It's a children's book series that I'm writing with Erin Hunter. Check out my blog to find out more!

Reviews

[Tahina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing winglet probably one of the best definitely wont forget how cute Cliff was here hes SO ADORABLE "MOMMMY MOM MOMMY" -Cliff

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awww short and sweet! There’s like three segments to this one: Jasper, Ruby, and Cliff. All three of them have their strengths. To start, I think Jasper’s was new and fresh. As far as I’m aware, we didn’t know much (if anything) about him before this. However, I was quickly endeared to him and rooting for him. Also, him wanting to be a dad so bad was adorable and, are you KIDDING ME, he KNEW that Ruby was Tourmaline? This book really sold me on this family. As for Ruby, I think hers was the least interesting. Still, I GOTTA admire Ruby because she is just an AMAZING mom. She will do whatever for Cliff and her willing to sacrifice herself without even meeting him is really a testament to her character. Lastly, Cliff… I love Cliff, don’t get me wrong, but the writing could be a bit much. I didn’t love the style. That being said, it was really funny at points and Cliff is so sweet (hope he makes some part in Hybrid Prince!). All in all, this book was good. Nothing EXTRAORDINARY, but sweet and it made me laugh.

(Side note, bringing up Carnelian was a PUNCH TO THE GUT. Too soon…)

[Alex T. · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's not bad but man I wish the Cliff-POV sections weren't narrated like that. Pro tip: Please do not ever make the narrator of your story obnoxious. I don't care that Cliff is a dragonet, if you are gonna have him narrate this story it's your job as author to make these chapters bearable to read while still keeping a juvenile tone. Cliff's way of speaking suits a side character just fine, but NOT the main POV telling us the story.

The sections that were told from Jasper's/Ruby's POV were much better and more bearable. Overall I don't hate this book and do like the extra context it provides surrounding the events in the Sky Kingdom before/during the first book, but man, I don't think you should ever make your narrator annoying. Really shooting yourself in the foot there and it's such an easily avoidable problem, too.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a fun way to dive back into this dragon universe right before the next full series book comes out! Prince Cliff was always a standout character, and giving him his own short story was a PERFECT choice, though I still have my fingers crossed for that Kinkajou winglet someday… 🤞🏻

[Arden :) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story was so cute
I love Cliff so much and he’s such a cute character (I even have a painting of him!!!)
I adore the family dynamic and it was such a good winglet
Please write more winglets Tui I beg 💔💔💔

[Zoe Anastasia]

EEEEEEE it’s been TEN YEARS since we’ve gotten a Winglets!!! I’m so hyped

[!Leon 🦈 · Rating 5 out of 5]

mega przeslodkie to bylo!!! chyba moje ulubione z tych pieciu czesci

[Martha Bowen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super funny

Awesome and funny. Cliff is so adorable and cute in this book! I love how it is first person perspective.

[Stephen Paul Chase, Jr. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love reading and listening.

[water4life · Rating 4 out of 5]

why was it so short 😭😭 omg was it really that hard to skip ahead to bit after escaping peril