Windborn

The Guardian Herd #4

by Jennifer Lynn Alvarez, David McClellan (Illustrator)

It has been many moons since Star received his powers, and in that time, Star and his friends have been through constant struggle.

Now, Star truly has his toughest, most deadly challenge yet. Nightwing the Destroyer has captured all pegasi of Anok, including Star’s friends. And when Star learns of Nightwing’s deadly plan for the captured herd, he knows the time has come to fight.

With no one to turn to but his enemy Frostfire, both pegasi search all of Anok to track down Nightwing. And as a violent storm approaches, Star and Nightwing face off amidst quaking lands, dangerous winds, and blazing fires, in a battle to end all battles—and one that will determine the fate of all the pegasi in Anok.

In this thrilling continuation of Star’s story, Jennifer Lynn Alvarez combines page-turning action and high emotional stakes to give readers the final epic confrontation that fans have been waiting for.

Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Horses, Animals, Magic, Adventure, Childrens

368 pages, Hardcover

First published September 20, 2016

About the author

I am the author of two thrillers, FRIENDS LIKE THESE and LIES LIKE WILDFIRE from Delacorte Press. I also write middle-grade fantasy stories, THE GUARDIAN HERD and RIDERS OF THE REALM from HarperCollins Children's Books. THE PET WASHER is my indie novel.

Praise for LIES LIKE WILDFIRE

"Consider this a must-have thriller." School Library Journal

"Five Fiery Stars for this bingeable, edge-of-your-seat, twisty thriller." NATASHA PRESTON, New York Times bestselling author of The Lake

"Twisty and fast-paced and visceral. I couldn't put this one down." KATIE COTUGNO, New York Timesbestselling author of 99 Days

"A twisty, fast-paced thriller about accountability, guilt, jealousy, and survival." Kirkus

Praise for The Guardian Herd Series
“Chock-full of adventure and twists, making it difficult to put down.” School Library Journal

“Filled with fantastical action, and rich with description. A well-paced and engrossing story. Alvarez has created a series that will be beloved by readers.” Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

"Alvarez's world is lush with description and atmosphere, and her premise has much to offer." Publishers Weekly

"The clever resolution will get kids psyched for more tales from the Guardian Herd." Booklist

"This epic adventure is richly developed. Compelling." Kirkus Reviews

“From page one, Jennifer Lynn Alvarez weaves an epic tale of a doomed black Pegasus foal named Star, whose race against time will lift the reader on the wings of destiny and danger, magic and hope. It’s a world I did not want to leave, and neither will you.” (Peter Lerangis, New York Times bestselling author in the 39 Clues series and of the Seven Wonders series)

Reviews

[Jennifer Lynn Alvarez]

I can rave about the cover since I didn't draw it. Wow! I love it! The first set of Guardian Herd adventures is complete. Begin at the beginning with STARFIRE.

#1 STARFIRE
#2 STORMBOUND
#3 LANDFALL
#4 WINDBORN

[Sarah B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well after putting off reading this for over a month due to the awful bullying that had been in the previous books, I finally have finished this! And thankfully the bullying was not present. Maybe in part because Nightwing had pretty much taken over the herd and had forced them to travel to this other distant area. So basically there was no one left to actually bully Star!

But Star was still very determined to save them all. Because that is how Star is. He just doesn't quit. And he has to destroy Nightwing too.

But how?

Truthfully while reading this I had no idea at all how he would destroy Nightwing. Because the two have pretty much the same powers. But I must admit the author did come up with a very clever idea! It was simple and very effective - I just never thought of it.

And the weird thing is, after avoiding this book for so long I actually read it very quickly! And I think I enjoyed it too. It's not perfect but the story keeps moving and there was all sorts of plot twists and danger. Plenty to keep one entertained. And like in the previous books there is death. A lot of it. I mean it is Nightwing! Death follows where he goes...

But this book didn't have that gloomy feeling. Because the other pegasus were not constantly saying hateful things to Star. And that is what had really gotten to me in the previous books.

Glad I finally read this and finished the series.

[Liahona Whittle · Rating 5 out of 5]

awesome hiding out in some sort of water cave Star does Bumblewing a favor in stead of Nightwing by hiding Bumblewing's body inside his thingumajig

[Rissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

So, I finally finished this book after not reading this series for quite awhile. I was pleasantly surprised that this book exceeded my expectations and this is why:

1. Okay, coming back to these characters after my massive break was actually really fun! I forgot how much I enjoy Star and his friend group. They all have their own personalities and are each memorable, especially the newer friends that haven't been great in the past. Star and the herd never give up hope and it was wonderful to see how that pays off in the end.

2. The plot was never dragging and it was always doing something. That is really cool for a children's book because they sometimes tend to drag on with incredibly boring scenes. This book immediately starts with action and doesn't lay off of it until the end.

3. I did think the end way to beat Nightwing was pretty clever and made great use of Star's powers. I was wondering how he could possibly beat Nightwing and the author found a creative way to utilize his power.

My one critique would be:

1. I wish the end fight went on longer than it did. I would have loved just a little bit more to end this series.

[Jessica (jpbooklife) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this whole series. This was one that my whole family enjoyed together. We listened to the audiobooks for all of these and Andrew Eiden did a fantastic job. There were tears, there was laughs, we cheered and we gasped.
A great family read.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome!

I love this book because it touches you with sadness, and when it's happy, overflows you with joy. This is the best book series I've ever read, and absolutely love it! I chose this rating because it is the perfect amount of hope, loyalty, and joy. I am in love with this series!

[rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic finish, but disappointed with Nightwing? He felt like an off-brand Darkstalker from WoF: less rounded, very little backstory, very little focus on his goals or wants? Like duh, it was stated he wanted Anok, but it felt so loose. I feel like I know him but at the same time I know nothing about him. Needs a prequel? But this is 2023 and this series ended in 2016 LOL.

Satisfying ending, but I was getting stressed having like 10 pages left and Starfire hadn’t even fought Nightwing. This book also needed an epilogue. Nightwing was killed and then they’re chatting for a few lines before boom, acknowledgements.

I had never actually finished this back in 2016 but finally did today. Great series, ngl. First book really kicked it off with the violence and bullying, but it kinda tapered out later on. Solid like 4.7/5 but it gets a 5 anyways.

[Lily Lusk · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me feel so many emotions, anger, fear, sadness, every emotion that the main character was feeling I felt along with him. Chapter after chapter I was on the edge of my seat, wondering what would happen next. The ending was amazing, and I felt some of the relief that the pegasi were feeling at the end. If you have not read this book, go and read it, you will fall in love with the characters, feel what they feel, and at the end you will be so happy that you got to be apart of a journey through this young black foals life :).

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book and I really enjoyed the whole premise of the pegasi herds. I haven't read the other books in the series but I still was able to follow and enjoy the book. I do need to go back and read the previous books in the series to get a better understanding of the relationships of the pegasi the different herds. This was a free Goodreads book.

[Shelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

A satisfying conclusion to a four-part story. I really liked to addition of the stone monument to the plot, a symbol that the protagonists were able to transform from one meaning to their own. I look forward to the next book in this series and the new direction is goes.

[Whirlawayka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Windborn by Jennifer Lynn Alvarez was the long awaited fourth book to the most interesting Pegasus story about herds that I have ever read. It even trumps The Escape (Horses of the Dawn #1) by Kathryn Lasky. Which is a story simular to it.

[Liana Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book. I love the Guardian Herd series! :) Hoping for another book from this series!

[Trisha Swan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Nika Chapin · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 ⭐️

[Tricia D · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love 'The Guardian Herd' series, and I was so excited for this book because of 'Landfall's ending. The thing I love about this book is the relationship Frostfire and Star begin to build. I found it sweet that after everything that had happened between them, they still remembered their blood relation. That is, until Frostfire totally denied Star and said all he cared about was Larksong and Starfrost. It just seemed to me like a lot of things went wrong in this book. I wasn't satisfied with the ending, and that's hard to say considering I am a die-hard Guardian Herd fan. But I suppose it's the ending it needed, where the hero, "triumphantly defeated," walks off into the sunset with his best friends beside him . . . or what's left of them.

[Allie Reese · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nightwing took all of the pegasi from the trap while Star was busey healing larksong after Frostfire's mother hurt Larksong to distract Star so that they could get all the pegasi. when Star got back he immediately knew it was the work of Nightwing because there was burnt grass from the silver starfire that Nightwing uses. after looking around to see if there were any pagasi left he bumped into Frostfire and ended up making a deal with him that they would together look for both Star's friends and Frostfire's mate Larksong. overall the book is very good and I don't want to give away the rest of the ending because I want you to enjoy reading the book.

[Rainflight · Rating 5 out of 5]

The final book in this series is nearly indescribable. The few words that can even come close to telling how great it is are these.
Tragic (in a good way). Adventurous. Exciting. Exhilarating. Dramatic (again, in a good way). Irresistible. Incredible. Remarkable. Beautiful. Emotional. Awesome. Breath-taking. Awe-inspiring. Magnificent. Stunning. Impressive. Marvelous. Jaw-dropping. Mind-blowing.

Unforgettable.

I guess that wasn't really a 'few' words. My point is, it's really great and you should read it.
(But of course start at the beginning of the series with Starfire.)

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this one almost deserves 5 stars. Almost. I did really like it a lot, but it's not quite on the same level as other books I've rated 5 stars. Still it ended the series amazingly well, tying things together and keeping characters true to, well, character (even Frostfire, the little potato brain. He really grew on me; why couldn't he just accept Star? Ah, well; like I said, staying true to character, even with developments). Anyway, it is very well-written, definitely worth reading, maybe even more than once.

[Chaos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not how I expected everything to end. It seems crazy that Star lost everything, but gained something better. I adore Morningleaf. She's the true ride or die. And she, along with Silverlake, kept Star from turning into someone like Nightwing. Because of their faithfulness, loyalty, and kindness Star always tried to do the right thing. Nightwing and Star are two sides of the same coin. Both feared, both loved, but only one had acceptance. Morning leaf to me is the true hero of this series. She stood by Star. I love this series!

[Sydney Scrogham · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a big fan of The Guardian Herd series. The characters will linger with me long after I've finished reading. However, this fourth book was very different for me compared to the other three. The plot wasn't as sharp, and I felt like I was reading just for the final few chapters, which were amazing and tied up the loose ends from book #3. You'll still want to read this one to find out what happens to Star and his friends.

[Mya Foster · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great book but the ending tore my heart. It was such a cliff hanger and there weren’t any books after it accept the spin off. The spin off ( riders of the realm I believe) has nothing to do with these books and have a completely different theme, one minute they were wild and the next their the humans pets. I would have liked to see more books from this series but these books were made years ago so I suppose it not going to happen. I was very disappointed with the ending.

[Twyla · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favourite part was when Nightwing was defeated by Star, and all of the pegasi trapped in the beyond were free to go to the golden meadow. My least favourite part was when Bumblewind died, and when Frostfire betrayed Star, because I actually thought that Frostfire had turned good. It was also sad when Silverlake died, and Star lost his magic powers.

[Sharon Moade · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book two star

Yes I liked this book. I recommend it to everyone. It kept my interest. It was very moving. It wasn’t gushy. I felt this story took me in and brought me where they went. I enjoyed this book and the first book.

[Gillie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't believe that I didn't know that this book was the last in a fantastic series! Otherwise,I wouldn't have read it first!

[Kaila · Rating 4 out of 5]

I havent read the others but I won this one and i loved it.. i will also let my kids read it as well which is a plus especially since most the books i read they cant read with me lol i loved it :D

[maysri??? · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing adventure filled story!

[S Reeb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great ending to a great series

[Wynee Igel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is book #4 in the Guardian Herd series, the last book. The author has kept up with the twists and turns in the plotline. No disappointments here.

[Adrian · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the best way the author could've wrapped up the series. This book had so many surprises in it that it was amazing. You wouldn't want to put down the book while in the middle of reading it.

[Gerri Leen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A satisfying ending to the saga.