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Animorphs #26
The Attack
The Ellimist has helped the Animorphs many times. He is all-powerful and has only one enemy, the Crayak. In a cosmic showdown, the two enemies choose champions to represent them in a battle to end all battles. The Crayak chooses the dreaded Howlers. The Ellimist chooses the Animorphs.
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First published February 1, 1999
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K.A. Applegate
251 books489 followersalso published under the name Katherine Applegate
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 227 reviews
May 11, 2015
KAA temporarily interrupts what is going to become a streak of 5 more ghostwritten books in order to write The Attack, which is awesome awesome AWESOME and always lodged itself in my memory, because of a) the Howlers, which are some of the most amazing, frightening antagonistic aliens, and b) the Animorphs' crazy adventures off-world, on another alien planet, in a zany Dr Seuss setting. Any romp featuring the Ellimist is guaranteed to be pretty mind-boggling and thought-provoking and fascinating, and I love the creative ways KAA is able to bring them to new settings away from Earth, and this is the first time the Crayak is properly introduced and explained, a whole twenty books (!) after his first appearance. The book also harkens back to Jake's nightmares and trauma from being been infested as a Controller, which is another great example of this series' continuity and not conveniently forgetting about past experiences that leave a lasting imprint on them.
PLUS, they get to go on an adventure with Erek, and he is another one of my favourite minor characters <3333
The worldbuilding in this one is just so ceaselessly creative; I loved every last piece of information about the Iskoort (their various guilds!!) and the Howlers. The secret behind the Iskoort, and the real reason for the Ellimist & Crayak staging their battle on this ground, is a deeply compelling one with hints of long-standing, future-set repercussions (long after the Animorphs' time).
Sigh. This book is so fantastic.
EDIT: OH MY GOD. I FORGOT TO MENTION ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS. JAKE AND CASSIE KISS!!!! CAKE, AT LAST. And it's a 'running full-tilt at each other, leaping into each others' arms, thank god you're alive, I thought you were dead' instinctive kiss and the others are awkward about it until Marco cracks a joke and they all laugh and it is just the cutest thing, okay. Romance is not a big part of these books at all, but the few times you see it, I'm so invested because I adore these characters, and they've taken literally like 28 books (counting Megamorphs) to get to this point. The definition of slow-burn, y'all. Hell, maybe Animorphs was the origin of my love for slow-burn organic ships in fiction.
PLUS, they get to go on an adventure with Erek, and he is another one of my favourite minor characters <3333
The worldbuilding in this one is just so ceaselessly creative; I loved every last piece of information about the Iskoort (their various guilds!!) and the Howlers. The secret behind the Iskoort, and the real reason for the Ellimist & Crayak staging their battle on this ground, is a deeply compelling one with hints of long-standing, future-set repercussions (long after the Animorphs' time).
Sigh. This book is so fantastic.
EDIT: OH MY GOD. I FORGOT TO MENTION ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS. JAKE AND CASSIE KISS!!!! CAKE, AT LAST. And it's a 'running full-tilt at each other, leaping into each others' arms, thank god you're alive, I thought you were dead' instinctive kiss and the others are awkward about it until Marco cracks a joke and they all laugh and it is just the cutest thing, okay. Romance is not a big part of these books at all, but the few times you see it, I'm so invested because I adore these characters, and they've taken literally like 28 books (counting Megamorphs) to get to this point. The definition of slow-burn, y'all. Hell, maybe Animorphs was the origin of my love for slow-burn organic ships in fiction.
July 25, 2022
The Animorphs are pawns in a chess game going on way above their heads, between the almighty Ellimist and his nemesis the Crayak. While this feels like another filler episode in the grand scheme of things, we are granted with some progress in the form of character development and some strong world building in an overall pretty solid story.
April 6, 2016
The Animorphs save everyone with the Power of Love™, and it would be disgusting if they didn’t need this win so very much.
The Attack is notoriously the last Animorphs book written exclusively by K.A. Applegate for a very long stretch. As such it is regarded (accurately) as an island of quality among otherwise mediocre, or at least uneven, books. Indeed, this is a great book—not quite five stars, because it didn’t really move me the way some of the previous books have, but as far as the story goes, it successfully combines high stakes with a plot that makes sense. The whole thing practically gives one chills, reading it.
We’ve seen the Ellimist before, so when he shows up again proposing that the Animorphs help him in some big interstellar game of chess, they naturally hesitate. Except that the Ellimist’s opponent is Crayak—the weird, semi-mechanical, force-of-pure-evil being that Jake first glimpsed when his Yeerk died at the end of #6: The Capture. So they agree to participate (duh), and along with Erek, get sent to a world “millions of light-years” from Earth, to save the indigenous Iskoort species from Crayak’s seven representatives—deadly, never-defeated Howlers.
(Minor science nitpick: Applegate, earlier in the book, implies that the Ellimist and Crayak are limited to this galaxy, because a “more powerful” force ejected Crayak from another galaxy. A distance of millions of light-years would put the Iskoort planet well outside our galaxy, which is an order of magnitude smaller.)
There’s a lot to like about The Attack, particularly if you like Jake as the narrator. Never has he been so clearly the leader of the Animorphs as now, when they undertake one of their most dangerous missions ever. The others all look to him automatically, and he exercises his authority much more explicitly here—for example, he orders Ax to stop moping about running from the Howlers, invoking his reluctant role as Ax’s “prince”. Jake has to struggle to conceal his fear, particularly given that much of it comes from the indirect involvement of Crayak, who continues to plague him in nightmares.
As usual, Applegate also raises moral issues surrounding war and conflict. The Howlers are deadly. They killed the Pemalites, slaughtered countless other species in cold blood … but they are also just children. Like WTF? Is it ethical to kill them? Indeed, you’ll notice that the Animorphs’ chosen resolution—Jake’s idea—very deliberately side-steps that issue. They don’t kill the Howlers; Crayak does. They are indirectly responsible, of course. But their hands are technically clean. I wonder how they feel about that. It’s interesting that Erek managed to work it around his pacifist programming.
We also get treated to a brand new, amazing alien species. The Iskoort are a delight. In a few sentences Applegate implies entire social strata. Consummate salespeople, the Iskoort society is organized around the exchange of goods and services. They buy and sell everything—including memories, and there are entire parts of their society dedicated to buying what factories produce; it’s a kind of satirical look at capitalism for kids, I suppose. This might be one of the first books that, while reading it as a kid, made me realize I just don’t visualize when I read. I had no real image in my head of what an Iskoort looked like. I still don’t. I paid very close attention to Applegate’s meticulous description of their strange bodies, but it didn’t provoke anything in my mind’s eye. Maybe I need imaginary glasses?
And then there is the carrot Applegate dangles in front of us, the resolution to the Yeerk problem. One of the longer-term issues in this series has been the kind of endgame we might expect—even if the Animorphs and Andalites defeat the Yeerks, what will they do with them? Genocide seems a bit extreme. Confine them to Yeerk pools to live out a very restricted existence? Or maybe there’s a third option…. This is what I love about Applegate and this series: she reminds us that there are always possibilities, that there is always hope. And part of being a hero or being “the good guy” is being able to see that bigger picture, to look at battles from a different perspective, instead of persisting in an us-or-them mentality.
Next time, the Animorphs have to dive deeply to get to another alien shipwreck. James Cameron, eat your heart out.
My reviews of Animorphs:
← #25: The Extreme | #27: The Exposed →
The Attack is notoriously the last Animorphs book written exclusively by K.A. Applegate for a very long stretch. As such it is regarded (accurately) as an island of quality among otherwise mediocre, or at least uneven, books. Indeed, this is a great book—not quite five stars, because it didn’t really move me the way some of the previous books have, but as far as the story goes, it successfully combines high stakes with a plot that makes sense. The whole thing practically gives one chills, reading it.
We’ve seen the Ellimist before, so when he shows up again proposing that the Animorphs help him in some big interstellar game of chess, they naturally hesitate. Except that the Ellimist’s opponent is Crayak—the weird, semi-mechanical, force-of-pure-evil being that Jake first glimpsed when his Yeerk died at the end of #6: The Capture. So they agree to participate (duh), and along with Erek, get sent to a world “millions of light-years” from Earth, to save the indigenous Iskoort species from Crayak’s seven representatives—deadly, never-defeated Howlers.
(Minor science nitpick: Applegate, earlier in the book, implies that the Ellimist and Crayak are limited to this galaxy, because a “more powerful” force ejected Crayak from another galaxy. A distance of millions of light-years would put the Iskoort planet well outside our galaxy, which is an order of magnitude smaller.)
There’s a lot to like about The Attack, particularly if you like Jake as the narrator. Never has he been so clearly the leader of the Animorphs as now, when they undertake one of their most dangerous missions ever. The others all look to him automatically, and he exercises his authority much more explicitly here—for example, he orders Ax to stop moping about running from the Howlers, invoking his reluctant role as Ax’s “prince”. Jake has to struggle to conceal his fear, particularly given that much of it comes from the indirect involvement of Crayak, who continues to plague him in nightmares.
As usual, Applegate also raises moral issues surrounding war and conflict. The Howlers are deadly. They killed the Pemalites, slaughtered countless other species in cold blood … but they are also just children. Like WTF? Is it ethical to kill them? Indeed, you’ll notice that the Animorphs’ chosen resolution—Jake’s idea—very deliberately side-steps that issue. They don’t kill the Howlers; Crayak does. They are indirectly responsible, of course. But their hands are technically clean. I wonder how they feel about that. It’s interesting that Erek managed to work it around his pacifist programming.
We also get treated to a brand new, amazing alien species. The Iskoort are a delight. In a few sentences Applegate implies entire social strata. Consummate salespeople, the Iskoort society is organized around the exchange of goods and services. They buy and sell everything—including memories, and there are entire parts of their society dedicated to buying what factories produce; it’s a kind of satirical look at capitalism for kids, I suppose. This might be one of the first books that, while reading it as a kid, made me realize I just don’t visualize when I read. I had no real image in my head of what an Iskoort looked like. I still don’t. I paid very close attention to Applegate’s meticulous description of their strange bodies, but it didn’t provoke anything in my mind’s eye. Maybe I need imaginary glasses?
And then there is the carrot Applegate dangles in front of us, the resolution to the Yeerk problem. One of the longer-term issues in this series has been the kind of endgame we might expect—even if the Animorphs and Andalites defeat the Yeerks, what will they do with them? Genocide seems a bit extreme. Confine them to Yeerk pools to live out a very restricted existence? Or maybe there’s a third option…. This is what I love about Applegate and this series: she reminds us that there are always possibilities, that there is always hope. And part of being a hero or being “the good guy” is being able to see that bigger picture, to look at battles from a different perspective, instead of persisting in an us-or-them mentality.
Next time, the Animorphs have to dive deeply to get to another alien shipwreck. James Cameron, eat your heart out.
My reviews of Animorphs:
← #25: The Extreme | #27: The Exposed →
August 6, 2014
Oh, you thought this battle was already epic? How about when the Animorphs get pulled in as the players in a grand-scale gambling game, fighting for a nigh-omnipotent creature named the Ellimist?
26 was awesome. The Animorphs (fighting for the Ellimist) have to fight the Howlers (who are on Crayak's side). In a completely unfamiliar environment. Without understanding of their motivation. Gosh, like they don't already have enough to worry about.
Notable moments and inconsistencies:
This book opens with a prologue--not the usual fare for Animorphs--and makes reference to the events of a previous book, when Jake was infested with a Yeerk. He remembers that after the Yeerk died, he saw a vision of a creature with a red eye that could see him. Way back when that happened, readers had no context to understand who/what was looking at him, but in this book we finally get to find out what that was all about.
The Iskoort race is introduced in this book. They communicate through thought-speak like the Andalites, but have a honking/wheezing ability for vocalizing, which comes from their stomachs. They are very pushy, like alien salespeople, wanting to sell or receive services without a care for whether the targeted party is interested.
Not that it's impossible, of course, but it's odd that of all the people to lose balance and be knocked off a platform, it'd be Rachel, who's a gymnast and has experience balancing on various gymnastic equipment.
The Howlers are introduced part-way through the book; though they've been mentioned before as the executioners of the Pemalite race, they've never been described until this book. The narration describes them as being on the large side of man-sized, formed out of a black lava-looking substance with red cracks, having blue eyes, and having a rotating mid-section and human-like hands with a set of wrist claws above them. They regenerate limbs and have a powerful howl that can paralyze victims. They also carry a lot of weapons, and--unbeknownst to most--have an extremely carefree, happy disposition, not entirely unlike the Pemalites. Making war is a game to them, and they're all children.
Cassie is unusually cynical and pessimistic in this book, though she's still very caring and empathetic. Jake's narration comments on how unusual this is several times.
This is also the book in which Jake and Cassie have their first kiss. Rachel's response is, "It's about time."
A thought-speak tag failed to close during a conversation shortly after Jake morphed a Howler.
The other races that the Howlers had destroyed up to that point besides the Pemalites were called Graffen's Children, Mashtimee, Pon, and Nostnavay. They will also be attacking the Sharf Den in the future.
26 was awesome. The Animorphs (fighting for the Ellimist) have to fight the Howlers (who are on Crayak's side). In a completely unfamiliar environment. Without understanding of their motivation. Gosh, like they don't already have enough to worry about.
Notable moments and inconsistencies:
This book opens with a prologue--not the usual fare for Animorphs--and makes reference to the events of a previous book, when Jake was infested with a Yeerk. He remembers that after the Yeerk died, he saw a vision of a creature with a red eye that could see him. Way back when that happened, readers had no context to understand who/what was looking at him, but in this book we finally get to find out what that was all about.
The Iskoort race is introduced in this book. They communicate through thought-speak like the Andalites, but have a honking/wheezing ability for vocalizing, which comes from their stomachs. They are very pushy, like alien salespeople, wanting to sell or receive services without a care for whether the targeted party is interested.
Not that it's impossible, of course, but it's odd that of all the people to lose balance and be knocked off a platform, it'd be Rachel, who's a gymnast and has experience balancing on various gymnastic equipment.
The Howlers are introduced part-way through the book; though they've been mentioned before as the executioners of the Pemalite race, they've never been described until this book. The narration describes them as being on the large side of man-sized, formed out of a black lava-looking substance with red cracks, having blue eyes, and having a rotating mid-section and human-like hands with a set of wrist claws above them. They regenerate limbs and have a powerful howl that can paralyze victims. They also carry a lot of weapons, and--unbeknownst to most--have an extremely carefree, happy disposition, not entirely unlike the Pemalites. Making war is a game to them, and they're all children.
Cassie is unusually cynical and pessimistic in this book, though she's still very caring and empathetic. Jake's narration comments on how unusual this is several times.
This is also the book in which Jake and Cassie have their first kiss. Rachel's response is, "It's about time."
A thought-speak tag failed to close during a conversation shortly after Jake morphed a Howler.
The other races that the Howlers had destroyed up to that point besides the Pemalites were called Graffen's Children, Mashtimee, Pon, and Nostnavay. They will also be attacking the Sharf Den in the future.
May 30, 2018
(Full review here at the thelibraryladies.com.)
Narrator: Jake
Plot: I remembered exactly three things about this book:
Crayak shows up
The Howlers have lava skin
JAKE AND CASSIE FINALLY KISS
Rachel literally says “it’s about time” after it happens. Preach it. (source)
Ever since becoming Controlled way back when and seeing a monstrous eye creature, Jake’s been having recurring dreams with this same eye-force-of-evil that keeps saying “Soon.” Now the answers have came in the form of the always-dreaded Ellimist who shows up at one of their school meetings, freezes times, and tells the Animorphs that he needs their help.
He gives them a brief overview of the state of things. Crayak is a similarly almost all-powerful being with whom the Ellimist has been warring with for forever. Once, they actually had a full on brawl, but after realizing that they took out huge swathes of the galaxy, they both agreed that their conflict needed to be continued in a different way (the Ellimist was upset by the general loss of life, Crayak at the loss of opportunities for continued dominion). Since then, they have been involved in an intergalactic game of chess, essentially. But they’ve come to an impasse. There is one alien species they cannot comprise my on. Crayak wants to destroy this species, the Ellimist can’t allow this to happen. To solve their problem, they’ve decided to host a cage fight, each putting up their seven bets fighters. Winner’s team takes all. The Animorphs are surprised and horrified to learn that the Ellimist has chosen them, plus Erek. Crayak has chosen his Howlers, the alien species that wiped out the Chees’ creators, the Pemalites, so long ago.
The Animorphs debate their options. They all wonder at the Ellimist’s choice: how could they be his best fighters? Knowing him and the tricks he’s pulled in the past, they are suspicious that there is more to the story. On the other hand, the fate of an entire species is on the line, so ultimately, they agree.
In a second’s time, they find themselves smacked down in the middle of an alien city on another planet. The city is made up of a series of buildings, bridges, and stairways all towering miles above the planets surface. It is populate by an alien species that do their best to give the Helmacrons a run for their money as most obnoxious alien species. The Iskyoort are all obsessed with buying and selling random things, up to and including body parts and memories, and continuously badger the Animorphs until they finally decide to sell some of Rachel’s hair to hire a guide…who calls himself Guide.
As they wander, they run into their first Howler. Even with six against one (Erek cannot fight, given his peaceful programming), the battle does not go well. Not only is the Howler vicious and powerful, but he uses his namesake ability to devastating affect, emitting a head piercing howl that cripples most of the Animorphs. Ax, the only one not in morphs, suffers the most and briefly runs away from the battle. He does return, but they all suffer horrific wounds. Tiger!Jake gets stabbed in the neck and passes out. He wakes up in a room somewhere and is informed that they all barely escaped, and only survived by listening closely to Erek’s directions when one of them was about to be attacked. Ax is clearly not dealing well with the fact that he ran away, and is hiding in a corner.
The Animorphs realize there’s no way they will be able to outfight the Howlers, they will have to out think. They ask Guide whether the Iskyoort have any memories purchased from the Howlers that they can review. He says yes, and Erek downloads them all into his memory bank and shows one horrifying scene to the Animorphs, a group of Howlers systematically eliminating a peaceful group of aliens who don’t understand why they’re being attacked. The scene is hard for them all to see. The realize that the Howlers simply kill for the pleasure of killing, something that Cassie is quick to point out doesn’t make any biological sense. Erek reveals that it is becomes Crayak himself created the Howlers with only this purpose in mind.
They sleep in shifts, but are soon attacked again. Jake orders them all to morph small, hoping to outrun the Howlers. Erek manages to block the doorway with his own body to allow them more time to complete their morphs to fly. After they escape, they have Erek find Guide and hide him in his hologram so the Howlers can’t simply follow him to the Animorphs. The others also demorph and hide in the hologram as well. They realize that the rules of the game prohibit the Howlers from attacking the Iskyoorts themselves. Guide leads them to a place he calls the “Servant Guild” where he says they will be taken care of. He then informs them that he needs to leave them for a bit as the Iskyoort are a symbiotic species, and one part, the Yoort, needs to feed every three days in a Yoort pool.
Reality hits: the Iskyoorts are a variation of Yeerks. They force Guide to explain and explain fast. Guide explains that they are not like the Yeerks the Animorphs know. Far, far back in their own history, the Yoorts created the Isk. And to make them true symbiotes, the Isk NEED the Yoorts to live, but the Yoorts also NEED the Isk to live. One cannot survive without the other, thus creating a unified being. Slowly the reality of this sinks in, and with their understanding of the species, they see why this fight is so important to the Ellimist. If the other Yeerks could see this, learn of this alternative, some of them might also see this as a better way of living. If they Iskyoorts are wiped out, however, the Yeerks may continue as they are now forever.
They are then attacked once again by the Howlers, this time they push an airborne poison into the air system, prohibiting the Animorphs from re-using their bug strategy. Jake has Erek project an image of birds flying out one window, drawing the Howlers’ fire, as the rest escape as actual birds through a back window. One Howler, however, spots them and takes off after them, shooting at them with a Dracon beam. Rachel and Cassie both quickly get hit, and Marco a bit later. Jake shouts at the others to use the Iskyoorts as cover. He tries to dive after Cassie, who is stunned on the ground, but realizes that he is simply leading the Howler to her. He is forced to leave her behind.
Jake manages to trick a Howler into chasing him through a hedge that leads to a drop off from one of the bridges. The Howler has miles to fall to his death. Jake manages to drop after him, demorph to human, acquire the Howler, and make it back to peregrine falcon before hitting the ground. On the flight back up, he meets up with Tobias who leads him to the entire group. Everyone is there, including Cassie. THEY KISS. Rachel says “Finally” and all readers agree.
Throughout this all, Jake’s had a series of revelations. First, he realizes that Crayak must have a way of controlling the Howlers, so he can direct them as he chooses. Second, Erek had mentioned that when he downloaded the memories of the Howler, it was ALL of the memories, reaching back millions of years. From this, Jake theorizes that the Howlers have some type of collective memory, and in this collective memory the Howlers have never lost.
Jake then asks for a volunteer to pose as bait to lure the Howlers in. Ax volunteers, and they move to a more populated area, full of Iskyoorts and put the plan in action. Ax wanders out, gets the attention of the Howlers, and then runs, using the crowds of Iskyoorts to prevent them from getting a clear shot at him. Meanwhile, with grizzly!Rachel and gorilla!Marco standing nearby to take him out should things go badly, Jake morphs the Howler. Once morphed, he is bombarded by the same collective memories that Erek saw. Worse, he realizes that the Howlers are children, with lifespans of only three years. To them, they don’t understand anything about killing other than it being a fun game. There are no adult Howlers, and they are all simply created by Crayak, with no reproductive system of their own. Jake is horrified to realize this, but there is still no other choice, so the plan proceeds.
A bleedy Ax barges into the room, followed by the Howlers. The Animorphs grab one, and using the Iskyoort memory device (a headset and a transmitter), Howler!Jake begins to download his own memories into the collective. All of the Howlers pause. Then suddenly they disappear. Seconds later, the Animorphs, too, disappear and find themselves in the presence of Crayak himself. Crayak isn’t pleased, but the Ellimist shows up and confirms that they Animorphs one, the Iskyoort will live. Jake searches his Howler memories. As they planned, Crayak had to kill his own Howlers to prevent Jake’s memories from polluting the entire species, not allowing the childlike Howlers to ever realize that this was more than a game, that their kills were actual beings. But Jake spots one memory that slipped through: his kiss with Cassie.
The Ellimist confirms that this will be problematic for Crayak, as in a future battle, he’s seen the Howlers attempting to kiss the species they were sent to kill. He also confirms that the big win of this entire ordeal was that the odds have now been somewhat increased that 300 years in the future, the Yeerks will meet the Iskyoort and realize that there is another way. The Animorphs are all a bit put out that this is all they will have to show for their work. Jake goes home, and his dreams of Crayak are gone.
Our Fearless Leader: It’s great to finally get the tie-in to Jake’s book #6 when he was a Controller and first saw the super scary red eye. From the very beginning, it’s clear that Jake feels a sense of relief knowing what this is really about, and also understands to a greater degree than the others the power and awfulness of this creature.
As I discuss in the “plans” section below, this book does a lot to highlight Jake’s quick thinking and ability to put together a complex plan using only pieces of knowledge. He also is able to anticipate the needs and actions of his group. He comments early that he’s grown to respect Marco’s suspicions and give them extra weight. He effectively uses Ax’s adherence to military order to force him not to sacrifice himself when the Howlers attack, saying that he has to follow his Prince’s orders. He anticipates that Rachel will volunteer for the mission to pose as bait and is able to subtly warn her off, allowing Ax to volunteer. When Cassie goes down as a bird, he accepts that he has to leave her behind in order to draw away the Howler to save the entire group, even though this decision tears him apart.
It’s really great stuff all around. And particularly the end, when he has to confront the reality of the Howlers as children, we see the weight these decisions place on Jake and how he leans on his friends to help support him in making these choices.
Xena, Warrior Princess: There are a specific kind of Iskyoort whose who point is to shop (Guide explains that there must be people to buy all of the things they want to sell!). She claims that she has found her people: a species dedicated to shopping. Also, when Jake asks for volunteers for the dangerous mission to lure the Howlers to them, he has to quickly catch Rachel’s eye and subtly shake his head. She already has her mouth open to volunteer, when he spots her, but she quickly understands what he’s doing by giving Ax an opportunity to feel better about himself after running.
A Hawk’s Life: Tobias doesn’t have much in this book. He’s the most comfortable traveling around the city though, given his ability to fly. The others are quite perturbed by the heights and lack of railings that make up the world.
Peace, Love, and Animals: Besides the BIG KISS, Cassie provides further insights into violence and how out of whack with evolution and biology the Howlers are with their baseless violence. She is also an early “yes” vote in the discussion of whether or not to play the Ellimist’s game, as she sees the potential loss of an entire species as a nonnegotiable factor.
The Comic Relief: Marco suffers quite a bit of damage in this book. He gets hit badly in the first fight, gets a wing blown off in the second, and gets stabbed in the third. Other than that, the struggles to not be bitter and angry about the limitations of Erek’s programming that prohibits him from fighting.
E.T./Ax Phone Home: Ax has a pretty distinct arc in this book, dealing with the fact that he is forced to run away when they are first attacked by the Howlers. He completely retreats into himself, and when the Howlers attack again, looks to want to go on a suicide mission to attack them, to prove to himself that he is now a coward. For the first time ever, Jake has to pull the “Prince” card out.
Later we see how savvy Jake is when he “offers” the opportunity for someone to take on a super special, super risky mission to serve as bait. Jake also takes the time to have a one-on-one conversation to Ax, telling him to snap out of it and cut himself some slack. The other Animorphs were all in morph and they know that the Howlers’ “howl” is meant to take out sentient species. That being the case, Ax, as the only one in his true form, was the only one hit with the full force of the howl. And given how much it messed up the others, even with their morphs shielding them somewhat, Ax running away was by no means a show of cowardice. Ax is skeptical, but it’s clear that some of this gets through to him, and with the opportunity to lure the Howlers in, by the end of the story, it looks like he makes it through this internal crisis OK.
Best (?) Body Horror Moment: The gore of the fights with the Howlers was pretty bad. In the first fight, Jake describes gorilla!Marco getting hit by a flechette that pretty punched a hole the size of a pop can through him. Also when Jake is morphing the Howler, there are some lovely descriptions of his being able to see his own spine. Really, the Andalites need to work on this technology a bit more. It seems that morphers have an up-close view of their body without skin WAY too often in the process.
Couples Watch!: Um, obviously the kiss! I do like that the kiss itself played an important role in the story, as the one memory out of millions that slipped through into the Howlers’ group consciousness. This fact did help alleviate the problem that it really did feel like a “Finally!” moment in the the worst way. As I mentioned in a few reviews leading up to this, especially when laid parallel to the pacing and arc of the Tobias/Rachel romance, Jake and Cassie’s relationship has felt oddly lacking. It almost didn’t feel believable that they would have still been caught up in the teenage shyness and silliness after living the very traumatic and adult lives they’ve had to with this war. But, again, by tying the kiss into the actual over-arching theme of the book, Applegate does a good job of justifying the delay. It is implied that Cassie and Jake’s love is the firs step to the ultimate ruin of the Howlers.
If Only Visser Three had Mustache to Twirl: I don’t think I made either of these connections as a kid, but re-reading this book now, it was really hard to picture both of the big bads in this without referencing other, similar villains. Crayak might as well BE Sauron for all his descriptions sound exactly the same: big read eye that is on fire. Yep! The Howlers also are very similar to Predator, not so much in how they look (which I still think is super cool, with their dark lava-like skin), but in their general being that is focused on being the most efficient killers in the universe.
I also really loved the late-game reveal about the Howlers being children. For one, they were already awesome villains and were handily beating our heroes throughout most of the book in a way that we’ve never seen before. But then to realize that they are pretty much ignorant of what they’re truly doing? It’s like they think they’re in a very elaborate video game or something. And that they have no life outside of this game and are only kids, just like the Animorphs, but more sad, in that their lives are only 3 years long and they are just tools of this greater evil. It does a lot to “humanize,” as it were, the Howlers, making them not just mindless killing machines, but truly pitiable and almost tragic beings.
Adult Ugly Crying at a Middle Grade Book: Appelgate doesn’t shy away from the reveal around the Howlers being children. Several pages are given to Jake fully coming to grips with what this means, and to Cassie’s horror. And to the fact that they still have no choice but to go through with a plan that’s success lies on Crayak destroying the remaining six Howlers. The very last bit of the book is what really got me though:
Instead I dreamed about Cassie. But in my dreams I also saw that Howler, falling and falling beside me. Falling still, as I spread my wings and split my fate from his.
Marco’s always saying you choose how to see the world. That you can look at what’s funny and cool, or you can focus on all the things that aren’t.
So I tried to follow Marco’s advice. I tried to turn my dreams to Cassie. But even looking into her eyes, I still saw that doomed Howler falling.
What a Terrible Plan, Guys!: All of their plans are pretty good here! Jake adeptly pivots and shifts as he gains experience with the Howlers’ methods. He quickly understands that simple survival is the key until they work out a better plan of action, coming up with first the fly morph to escape, and then the bait-and-switch with Erek’s hologram as they escape as birds. He also puts quite a few moving pieces together to form the final plan where they essentially hijack the Howler group mind.
Favorite Quote:
Throughout the story, there’s a lot of descriptions of precarious traveling from one level to another level using railing-less stairways miles in the sky, so Marco is a bit upset to learn:
Guide led us to a different level. This time we went up. And this time
we took an elevator.
“Elevators! You have elevators?” Marco raged. “We’re traipsing up and
down stairs and you have elevators?”
less scenic,> Guide said.
Scorecard: Yeerks 6, Animorphs 12
A bit point to the Animorphs! Obviously they weren’t up against the Yeerks themselves, but in 300 years…But seriously, the Howlers were probably the toughest guys they gone up against yet, and the Animorphs were quite smart about putting together the one plan that would work to come out with a win.
Rating: I didn’t notice as much as a kid, but man, reading these again as an adult, it is so, so clear when you go from one of the ghost-written books back to one written by Applegate herself. Not only is the plot of this story so much more focused and clear, but the characterization is much more solid, and the series gets back to its roots of tackling the bigger moral and philosophical aspects of their ongoing battle. It’s such a breath of fresh air after the last few books.
Beyond that, this book is a solid installation into the series. We finally get an explanation for the red eye that Jake saw so long ago. The Ellimist shows up again, and we get a better idea of the sheer scale of his ongoing battle with Crayak. AndJake and Cassie finally kiss. FINALLY.
Narrator: Jake
Plot: I remembered exactly three things about this book:
Crayak shows up
The Howlers have lava skin
JAKE AND CASSIE FINALLY KISS
Rachel literally says “it’s about time” after it happens. Preach it. (source)
Ever since becoming Controlled way back when and seeing a monstrous eye creature, Jake’s been having recurring dreams with this same eye-force-of-evil that keeps saying “Soon.” Now the answers have came in the form of the always-dreaded Ellimist who shows up at one of their school meetings, freezes times, and tells the Animorphs that he needs their help.
He gives them a brief overview of the state of things. Crayak is a similarly almost all-powerful being with whom the Ellimist has been warring with for forever. Once, they actually had a full on brawl, but after realizing that they took out huge swathes of the galaxy, they both agreed that their conflict needed to be continued in a different way (the Ellimist was upset by the general loss of life, Crayak at the loss of opportunities for continued dominion). Since then, they have been involved in an intergalactic game of chess, essentially. But they’ve come to an impasse. There is one alien species they cannot comprise my on. Crayak wants to destroy this species, the Ellimist can’t allow this to happen. To solve their problem, they’ve decided to host a cage fight, each putting up their seven bets fighters. Winner’s team takes all. The Animorphs are surprised and horrified to learn that the Ellimist has chosen them, plus Erek. Crayak has chosen his Howlers, the alien species that wiped out the Chees’ creators, the Pemalites, so long ago.
The Animorphs debate their options. They all wonder at the Ellimist’s choice: how could they be his best fighters? Knowing him and the tricks he’s pulled in the past, they are suspicious that there is more to the story. On the other hand, the fate of an entire species is on the line, so ultimately, they agree.
In a second’s time, they find themselves smacked down in the middle of an alien city on another planet. The city is made up of a series of buildings, bridges, and stairways all towering miles above the planets surface. It is populate by an alien species that do their best to give the Helmacrons a run for their money as most obnoxious alien species. The Iskyoort are all obsessed with buying and selling random things, up to and including body parts and memories, and continuously badger the Animorphs until they finally decide to sell some of Rachel’s hair to hire a guide…who calls himself Guide.
As they wander, they run into their first Howler. Even with six against one (Erek cannot fight, given his peaceful programming), the battle does not go well. Not only is the Howler vicious and powerful, but he uses his namesake ability to devastating affect, emitting a head piercing howl that cripples most of the Animorphs. Ax, the only one not in morphs, suffers the most and briefly runs away from the battle. He does return, but they all suffer horrific wounds. Tiger!Jake gets stabbed in the neck and passes out. He wakes up in a room somewhere and is informed that they all barely escaped, and only survived by listening closely to Erek’s directions when one of them was about to be attacked. Ax is clearly not dealing well with the fact that he ran away, and is hiding in a corner.
The Animorphs realize there’s no way they will be able to outfight the Howlers, they will have to out think. They ask Guide whether the Iskyoort have any memories purchased from the Howlers that they can review. He says yes, and Erek downloads them all into his memory bank and shows one horrifying scene to the Animorphs, a group of Howlers systematically eliminating a peaceful group of aliens who don’t understand why they’re being attacked. The scene is hard for them all to see. The realize that the Howlers simply kill for the pleasure of killing, something that Cassie is quick to point out doesn’t make any biological sense. Erek reveals that it is becomes Crayak himself created the Howlers with only this purpose in mind.
They sleep in shifts, but are soon attacked again. Jake orders them all to morph small, hoping to outrun the Howlers. Erek manages to block the doorway with his own body to allow them more time to complete their morphs to fly. After they escape, they have Erek find Guide and hide him in his hologram so the Howlers can’t simply follow him to the Animorphs. The others also demorph and hide in the hologram as well. They realize that the rules of the game prohibit the Howlers from attacking the Iskyoorts themselves. Guide leads them to a place he calls the “Servant Guild” where he says they will be taken care of. He then informs them that he needs to leave them for a bit as the Iskyoort are a symbiotic species, and one part, the Yoort, needs to feed every three days in a Yoort pool.
Reality hits: the Iskyoorts are a variation of Yeerks. They force Guide to explain and explain fast. Guide explains that they are not like the Yeerks the Animorphs know. Far, far back in their own history, the Yoorts created the Isk. And to make them true symbiotes, the Isk NEED the Yoorts to live, but the Yoorts also NEED the Isk to live. One cannot survive without the other, thus creating a unified being. Slowly the reality of this sinks in, and with their understanding of the species, they see why this fight is so important to the Ellimist. If the other Yeerks could see this, learn of this alternative, some of them might also see this as a better way of living. If they Iskyoorts are wiped out, however, the Yeerks may continue as they are now forever.
They are then attacked once again by the Howlers, this time they push an airborne poison into the air system, prohibiting the Animorphs from re-using their bug strategy. Jake has Erek project an image of birds flying out one window, drawing the Howlers’ fire, as the rest escape as actual birds through a back window. One Howler, however, spots them and takes off after them, shooting at them with a Dracon beam. Rachel and Cassie both quickly get hit, and Marco a bit later. Jake shouts at the others to use the Iskyoorts as cover. He tries to dive after Cassie, who is stunned on the ground, but realizes that he is simply leading the Howler to her. He is forced to leave her behind.
Jake manages to trick a Howler into chasing him through a hedge that leads to a drop off from one of the bridges. The Howler has miles to fall to his death. Jake manages to drop after him, demorph to human, acquire the Howler, and make it back to peregrine falcon before hitting the ground. On the flight back up, he meets up with Tobias who leads him to the entire group. Everyone is there, including Cassie. THEY KISS. Rachel says “Finally” and all readers agree.
Throughout this all, Jake’s had a series of revelations. First, he realizes that Crayak must have a way of controlling the Howlers, so he can direct them as he chooses. Second, Erek had mentioned that when he downloaded the memories of the Howler, it was ALL of the memories, reaching back millions of years. From this, Jake theorizes that the Howlers have some type of collective memory, and in this collective memory the Howlers have never lost.
Jake then asks for a volunteer to pose as bait to lure the Howlers in. Ax volunteers, and they move to a more populated area, full of Iskyoorts and put the plan in action. Ax wanders out, gets the attention of the Howlers, and then runs, using the crowds of Iskyoorts to prevent them from getting a clear shot at him. Meanwhile, with grizzly!Rachel and gorilla!Marco standing nearby to take him out should things go badly, Jake morphs the Howler. Once morphed, he is bombarded by the same collective memories that Erek saw. Worse, he realizes that the Howlers are children, with lifespans of only three years. To them, they don’t understand anything about killing other than it being a fun game. There are no adult Howlers, and they are all simply created by Crayak, with no reproductive system of their own. Jake is horrified to realize this, but there is still no other choice, so the plan proceeds.
A bleedy Ax barges into the room, followed by the Howlers. The Animorphs grab one, and using the Iskyoort memory device (a headset and a transmitter), Howler!Jake begins to download his own memories into the collective. All of the Howlers pause. Then suddenly they disappear. Seconds later, the Animorphs, too, disappear and find themselves in the presence of Crayak himself. Crayak isn’t pleased, but the Ellimist shows up and confirms that they Animorphs one, the Iskyoort will live. Jake searches his Howler memories. As they planned, Crayak had to kill his own Howlers to prevent Jake’s memories from polluting the entire species, not allowing the childlike Howlers to ever realize that this was more than a game, that their kills were actual beings. But Jake spots one memory that slipped through: his kiss with Cassie.
The Ellimist confirms that this will be problematic for Crayak, as in a future battle, he’s seen the Howlers attempting to kiss the species they were sent to kill. He also confirms that the big win of this entire ordeal was that the odds have now been somewhat increased that 300 years in the future, the Yeerks will meet the Iskyoort and realize that there is another way. The Animorphs are all a bit put out that this is all they will have to show for their work. Jake goes home, and his dreams of Crayak are gone.
Our Fearless Leader: It’s great to finally get the tie-in to Jake’s book #6 when he was a Controller and first saw the super scary red eye. From the very beginning, it’s clear that Jake feels a sense of relief knowing what this is really about, and also understands to a greater degree than the others the power and awfulness of this creature.
As I discuss in the “plans” section below, this book does a lot to highlight Jake’s quick thinking and ability to put together a complex plan using only pieces of knowledge. He also is able to anticipate the needs and actions of his group. He comments early that he’s grown to respect Marco’s suspicions and give them extra weight. He effectively uses Ax’s adherence to military order to force him not to sacrifice himself when the Howlers attack, saying that he has to follow his Prince’s orders. He anticipates that Rachel will volunteer for the mission to pose as bait and is able to subtly warn her off, allowing Ax to volunteer. When Cassie goes down as a bird, he accepts that he has to leave her behind in order to draw away the Howler to save the entire group, even though this decision tears him apart.
It’s really great stuff all around. And particularly the end, when he has to confront the reality of the Howlers as children, we see the weight these decisions place on Jake and how he leans on his friends to help support him in making these choices.
Xena, Warrior Princess: There are a specific kind of Iskyoort whose who point is to shop (Guide explains that there must be people to buy all of the things they want to sell!). She claims that she has found her people: a species dedicated to shopping. Also, when Jake asks for volunteers for the dangerous mission to lure the Howlers to them, he has to quickly catch Rachel’s eye and subtly shake his head. She already has her mouth open to volunteer, when he spots her, but she quickly understands what he’s doing by giving Ax an opportunity to feel better about himself after running.
A Hawk’s Life: Tobias doesn’t have much in this book. He’s the most comfortable traveling around the city though, given his ability to fly. The others are quite perturbed by the heights and lack of railings that make up the world.
Peace, Love, and Animals: Besides the BIG KISS, Cassie provides further insights into violence and how out of whack with evolution and biology the Howlers are with their baseless violence. She is also an early “yes” vote in the discussion of whether or not to play the Ellimist’s game, as she sees the potential loss of an entire species as a nonnegotiable factor.
The Comic Relief: Marco suffers quite a bit of damage in this book. He gets hit badly in the first fight, gets a wing blown off in the second, and gets stabbed in the third. Other than that, the struggles to not be bitter and angry about the limitations of Erek’s programming that prohibits him from fighting.
E.T./Ax Phone Home: Ax has a pretty distinct arc in this book, dealing with the fact that he is forced to run away when they are first attacked by the Howlers. He completely retreats into himself, and when the Howlers attack again, looks to want to go on a suicide mission to attack them, to prove to himself that he is now a coward. For the first time ever, Jake has to pull the “Prince” card out.
Later we see how savvy Jake is when he “offers” the opportunity for someone to take on a super special, super risky mission to serve as bait. Jake also takes the time to have a one-on-one conversation to Ax, telling him to snap out of it and cut himself some slack. The other Animorphs were all in morph and they know that the Howlers’ “howl” is meant to take out sentient species. That being the case, Ax, as the only one in his true form, was the only one hit with the full force of the howl. And given how much it messed up the others, even with their morphs shielding them somewhat, Ax running away was by no means a show of cowardice. Ax is skeptical, but it’s clear that some of this gets through to him, and with the opportunity to lure the Howlers in, by the end of the story, it looks like he makes it through this internal crisis OK.
Best (?) Body Horror Moment: The gore of the fights with the Howlers was pretty bad. In the first fight, Jake describes gorilla!Marco getting hit by a flechette that pretty punched a hole the size of a pop can through him. Also when Jake is morphing the Howler, there are some lovely descriptions of his being able to see his own spine. Really, the Andalites need to work on this technology a bit more. It seems that morphers have an up-close view of their body without skin WAY too often in the process.
Couples Watch!: Um, obviously the kiss! I do like that the kiss itself played an important role in the story, as the one memory out of millions that slipped through into the Howlers’ group consciousness. This fact did help alleviate the problem that it really did feel like a “Finally!” moment in the the worst way. As I mentioned in a few reviews leading up to this, especially when laid parallel to the pacing and arc of the Tobias/Rachel romance, Jake and Cassie’s relationship has felt oddly lacking. It almost didn’t feel believable that they would have still been caught up in the teenage shyness and silliness after living the very traumatic and adult lives they’ve had to with this war. But, again, by tying the kiss into the actual over-arching theme of the book, Applegate does a good job of justifying the delay. It is implied that Cassie and Jake’s love is the firs step to the ultimate ruin of the Howlers.
If Only Visser Three had Mustache to Twirl: I don’t think I made either of these connections as a kid, but re-reading this book now, it was really hard to picture both of the big bads in this without referencing other, similar villains. Crayak might as well BE Sauron for all his descriptions sound exactly the same: big read eye that is on fire. Yep! The Howlers also are very similar to Predator, not so much in how they look (which I still think is super cool, with their dark lava-like skin), but in their general being that is focused on being the most efficient killers in the universe.
I also really loved the late-game reveal about the Howlers being children. For one, they were already awesome villains and were handily beating our heroes throughout most of the book in a way that we’ve never seen before. But then to realize that they are pretty much ignorant of what they’re truly doing? It’s like they think they’re in a very elaborate video game or something. And that they have no life outside of this game and are only kids, just like the Animorphs, but more sad, in that their lives are only 3 years long and they are just tools of this greater evil. It does a lot to “humanize,” as it were, the Howlers, making them not just mindless killing machines, but truly pitiable and almost tragic beings.
Adult Ugly Crying at a Middle Grade Book: Appelgate doesn’t shy away from the reveal around the Howlers being children. Several pages are given to Jake fully coming to grips with what this means, and to Cassie’s horror. And to the fact that they still have no choice but to go through with a plan that’s success lies on Crayak destroying the remaining six Howlers. The very last bit of the book is what really got me though:
Instead I dreamed about Cassie. But in my dreams I also saw that Howler, falling and falling beside me. Falling still, as I spread my wings and split my fate from his.
Marco’s always saying you choose how to see the world. That you can look at what’s funny and cool, or you can focus on all the things that aren’t.
So I tried to follow Marco’s advice. I tried to turn my dreams to Cassie. But even looking into her eyes, I still saw that doomed Howler falling.
What a Terrible Plan, Guys!: All of their plans are pretty good here! Jake adeptly pivots and shifts as he gains experience with the Howlers’ methods. He quickly understands that simple survival is the key until they work out a better plan of action, coming up with first the fly morph to escape, and then the bait-and-switch with Erek’s hologram as they escape as birds. He also puts quite a few moving pieces together to form the final plan where they essentially hijack the Howler group mind.
Favorite Quote:
Throughout the story, there’s a lot of descriptions of precarious traveling from one level to another level using railing-less stairways miles in the sky, so Marco is a bit upset to learn:
Guide led us to a different level. This time we went up. And this time
we took an elevator.
“Elevators! You have elevators?” Marco raged. “We’re traipsing up and
down stairs and you have elevators?”
less scenic,> Guide said.
Scorecard: Yeerks 6, Animorphs 12
A bit point to the Animorphs! Obviously they weren’t up against the Yeerks themselves, but in 300 years…But seriously, the Howlers were probably the toughest guys they gone up against yet, and the Animorphs were quite smart about putting together the one plan that would work to come out with a win.
Rating: I didn’t notice as much as a kid, but man, reading these again as an adult, it is so, so clear when you go from one of the ghost-written books back to one written by Applegate herself. Not only is the plot of this story so much more focused and clear, but the characterization is much more solid, and the series gets back to its roots of tackling the bigger moral and philosophical aspects of their ongoing battle. It’s such a breath of fresh air after the last few books.
Beyond that, this book is a solid installation into the series. We finally get an explanation for the red eye that Jake saw so long ago. The Ellimist shows up again, and we get a better idea of the sheer scale of his ongoing battle with Crayak. AndJake and Cassie finally kiss. FINALLY.
January 22, 2022
Come check out my 4 hour 35 minute deep dive into reading every single Animorphs book for the first time on YouTube. I recap and review all of the books from the main series: https://youtu.be/H8kUM2q3CIU
February 20, 2019
Disclaimer: I'm reading this series for the first time as an adult. (Unfortunately) I have no fond memories coloring my reading.
I think I got the Animorphs author situation figured out. While it may not be fair of me to think this, I think the good, non-ghostwritten books are written by Michael Grant (her husband). He has said he co-wrote the series, but his name isn't on a single book, not even as a ghostwriter. His other book series are amazing, and the amazing "Applegate-written" books really stand out from the others.
This book was just completely different than the rest of the series. It was on the same level as that one where we learned the evil brain slug aliens weren't all evil. If all the "Applegate-written" books were by her, why would some be so different in quality than the others?
Like the book where we found out all the bad guy aliens weren't evil, this book too dealt in wonderful, wonderful shades of grey.
How do you fight an enemy who has no choice about fighting? An enemy who is basically a child, who has been created and designed to not just fight, but to not know what they're doing. The enemy (literally a child, they have no mature stage, they do not reproduce, they're grown in a lab and live only three years) is not just a deadly fighter, they think the people they're killing are having fun.
Children who have no choice but to fight. Children who kill without realizing they're hurting people.
How do you fight an army of them? That is what the Animorphs had to deal with in this book.
If every book in the series were like this one, Animorphs would be the most amazing series ever.
I think I got the Animorphs author situation figured out. While it may not be fair of me to think this, I think the good, non-ghostwritten books are written by Michael Grant (her husband). He has said he co-wrote the series, but his name isn't on a single book, not even as a ghostwriter. His other book series are amazing, and the amazing "Applegate-written" books really stand out from the others.
This book was just completely different than the rest of the series. It was on the same level as that one where we learned the evil brain slug aliens weren't all evil. If all the "Applegate-written" books were by her, why would some be so different in quality than the others?
Like the book where we found out all the bad guy aliens weren't evil, this book too dealt in wonderful, wonderful shades of grey.
How do you fight an enemy who has no choice about fighting? An enemy who is basically a child, who has been created and designed to not just fight, but to not know what they're doing. The enemy (literally a child, they have no mature stage, they do not reproduce, they're grown in a lab and live only three years) is not just a deadly fighter, they think the people they're killing are having fun.
Children who have no choice but to fight. Children who kill without realizing they're hurting people.
How do you fight an army of them? That is what the Animorphs had to deal with in this book.
If every book in the series were like this one, Animorphs would be the most amazing series ever.
May 14, 2017
"Me, I like quiet and still. Didn't used too. But now I guess any time I get to sit quietly, no running, no morphing, no terror, no screams, no horrible decisions and horrible aftermath..."
That sums up this book pretty well. Jake is haunted by what he as done, and by Crayak. The Howlers were a really well written antagonist. Jake wanting to save them because he saw they were all children was really deep.
Jake and Cassie! Yes, after so long! Yes!
Gosh, I love this series more with each book.
That sums up this book pretty well. Jake is haunted by what he as done, and by Crayak. The Howlers were a really well written antagonist. Jake wanting to save them because he saw they were all children was really deep.
Jake and Cassie! Yes, after so long! Yes!
Gosh, I love this series more with each book.
March 24, 2024
Oh great now we have cosmic Hitler
Take notes Chloe Gong, this is how you actually write an assassin killing game in a city
Take notes Chloe Gong, this is how you actually write an assassin killing game in a city
October 13, 2008
I loved this book. Probably the best one of the regular books, until the final three. An epic battle between our heros and a second race of super predators. Lots of mythical history of the galaxy, but also the inclusion of the idea that a solution to a conflict can be found in different ways than violence. This is the reason we read these books.
March 23, 2020
Original review at Jaunts & Haunts
5/5
I gave this book five Howler stars!
This time around we are in Jake's POV, which is always a very level-headed perspective.
Jake and the others are at school in the gym when suddenly time stops. The Ellimist appears and has a mission for them. A mission that they may not come back from. A mission that will test their will and their wits.
Not having a ton of info at their disposal, the Animorphs decide to accept the challenge and are whisked away to a strange world. Can they survive their oppressors in this new landscape, or will they crumble under their might?
This book had it all. The action, the mystery, a little bit of humor and romance.
Jake as always is a natural-born leader, and with exquisite wit, he is able to lead the others through this tough battle. There's pretty much equal time between characters, so it was very balanced. And we get a nice little development between him and Cassie in the process. Jake did a stellar job of gauging the situation from event to event and making an educated (or uneducated) decision, something a lot of us adults can't seem to do. Bravo, Jake!
The plot was really great. You know the Ellimist is going to ask the world out of them, and this book is no different. The Howlers are some jacked-up enemies almost impossible to battle, and the stakes surrounding this battle are super high. Also, the bizarre world they are transported to was very unique and colorful as well.
The only thing I can think to nitpick is the Ellimist. He's basically using the Animorphs and not really giving them anything in return, which is ridiculous, but that is his nature, so I can't really knock any star pointage for him sticking to what he always does.
The Animorphs are fierce, witty, and resilient in this novel, and I can't wait to read more!
5/5
I gave this book five Howler stars!
This time around we are in Jake's POV, which is always a very level-headed perspective.
Jake and the others are at school in the gym when suddenly time stops. The Ellimist appears and has a mission for them. A mission that they may not come back from. A mission that will test their will and their wits.
Not having a ton of info at their disposal, the Animorphs decide to accept the challenge and are whisked away to a strange world. Can they survive their oppressors in this new landscape, or will they crumble under their might?
This book had it all. The action, the mystery, a little bit of humor and romance.
Jake as always is a natural-born leader, and with exquisite wit, he is able to lead the others through this tough battle. There's pretty much equal time between characters, so it was very balanced. And we get a nice little development between him and Cassie in the process. Jake did a stellar job of gauging the situation from event to event and making an educated (or uneducated) decision, something a lot of us adults can't seem to do. Bravo, Jake!
The plot was really great. You know the Ellimist is going to ask the world out of them, and this book is no different. The Howlers are some jacked-up enemies almost impossible to battle, and the stakes surrounding this battle are super high. Also, the bizarre world they are transported to was very unique and colorful as well.
The only thing I can think to nitpick is the Ellimist. He's basically using the Animorphs and not really giving them anything in return, which is ridiculous, but that is his nature, so I can't really knock any star pointage for him sticking to what he always does.
The Animorphs are fierce, witty, and resilient in this novel, and I can't wait to read more!
April 8, 2022
We begin with Jake’s nightmares and memories from his short-lived time under Yeerk control. And it’s painful. Brutal, even.
Then, we immediately are confronted with a visit from a particular breed of god-like alien that I despise.
”I will tell you a story. You will tell me the ending.”
In a horrific telling of past events, we learn of an individual that craves a total cleanse of all life in the universe in order to make away for one “perfect” species to exist and no other. We learn of an epic game of chess between two immortal and all-powerful beings, with all that exists in the universe functioning as pawns playthings- earth and humanity most definitely included.
Filled with dread and mind games on a scale for too big to justify using these main children to decide the fate of entire species, the story follows the Iskoort, the Howlers, and Crayak.
The journey is anxiety-inducing and maintains an air of hopelessness when we understand the greater powers at play here. We also are met with a shocking new alternative for how the war can play out, but with presented with too many variables to guarantee it’s success in the long run.
Jake’s empathy and strategic-thinking is put to the test in a way that’s just gut-wrenching.
I’m hesitant to be hopeful.
CW: war, slavery, violence, genocide, death, brief references to Nazi party, brief references to white supremacy
Then, we immediately are confronted with a visit from a particular breed of god-like alien that I despise.
”I will tell you a story. You will tell me the ending.”
In a horrific telling of past events, we learn of an individual that craves a total cleanse of all life in the universe in order to make away for one “perfect” species to exist and no other. We learn of an epic game of chess between two immortal and all-powerful beings, with all that exists in the universe functioning as pawns playthings- earth and humanity most definitely included.
Filled with dread and mind games on a scale for too big to justify using these main children to decide the fate of entire species, the story follows the Iskoort, the Howlers, and Crayak.
The journey is anxiety-inducing and maintains an air of hopelessness when we understand the greater powers at play here. We also are met with a shocking new alternative for how the war can play out, but with presented with too many variables to guarantee it’s success in the long run.
Jake’s empathy and strategic-thinking is put to the test in a way that’s just gut-wrenching.
I’m hesitant to be hopeful.
CW: war, slavery, violence, genocide, death, brief references to Nazi party, brief references to white supremacy
November 4, 2025
I didn’t really like this when I first started reading it but I really enjoyed it by the end. 4.2 stars
August 2, 2024
*** 4 ***
Jake's POV. We finally meet the Big Bad of the Universe, Crayak and some of his creations, The Howlers. Also, we get a 💋😀👍
Jake's POV. We finally meet the Big Bad of the Universe, Crayak and some of his creations, The Howlers. Also, we get a 💋😀👍
September 1, 2017
Edit* Solid 5 stars, not merely 4. This was a welcome book after the dread that was #25. And guess what. Applegate wrote #26! This book had it all! Love and hate, morality lessons, you name it. It was a stupendous book.
Spoilers ahead:
Omg, Jake and Cassie kissed! Shit just got real! You know, as if Howlers engineered to slaughter sentient beings, by some super-god-like-being at war with the Ellimist... weren't enough. Oh and add to that the fact the Howlers are children with no adult stage who rejoice in the splendid activity of sentient slaughter. Wee, just like dolphins, fun fun happy slaughter time. It's late. Im over caffeinated, working 15 hours overnight... :)
This was a neat book and it was the last one I read many years ago! I actually vaguely remembered it as I was reading but that never detracts from the entertainment. at first I thought Guide and the other Iskoort we're just stupid annoying aliens. But through the character Guide I became amused by them and also fascinated by the fact that they are a different type of Yeerk, a good Yeerk, a symbiotic Yeerk neither Isk nor Yoort, able to live on their own. This dependency upon one another eliminates the parasitic need to infest other races and thus we find out that apparently in 300 years when they meet the Yeerks they will finally realize that there is another way other than dominating species and xenocide, through engineered symbiosis.
nother amusing aspect of this book in and amongst all the darkness and horror was the fact that they managed to implant the idea of love in the Howlers, before Crayak was able to annihilate the Howlers who had lost. Because as it turns out the reason there is no memory of the hollers ever losing is because those that lose our swiftly killed so as not to ruin and contaminate the collective memory. But alas Jake and Cassie with their kiss in there show of affection and love have infected the howlers and thus made them no longer useful as a shock troop and deadly weapon of Crayak.
Speaking of darkness and horror KA Applegate does a remarkably decent job at having the reader comprehend the pure terror the Animorphs are feeling when confronted with such a horrifying enemy as the Howlers. It is this mix of humor and terror that particularly intrigued me about this book. one thing I have noticed with books, movies and shows is that no matter how dark something gets, the addition of humor at the right moment can drastically increase the likeability of something. For instance the television series Stargate SG-1 was remarkably good at incorporating humor and thus made the series much more entertaining as a result. Hence Marco in Animorphs, and the cheesy jokes abounding.
Over all this book was a drastically impressive improvement from the previous ghostwritten book. I am very glad that people on Goodreads recommended I continue with the series because having read this book I now know that there are yet more great stories to be told.
Spoilers ahead:
Omg, Jake and Cassie kissed! Shit just got real! You know, as if Howlers engineered to slaughter sentient beings, by some super-god-like-being at war with the Ellimist... weren't enough. Oh and add to that the fact the Howlers are children with no adult stage who rejoice in the splendid activity of sentient slaughter. Wee, just like dolphins, fun fun happy slaughter time. It's late. Im over caffeinated, working 15 hours overnight... :)
This was a neat book and it was the last one I read many years ago! I actually vaguely remembered it as I was reading but that never detracts from the entertainment. at first I thought Guide and the other Iskoort we're just stupid annoying aliens. But through the character Guide I became amused by them and also fascinated by the fact that they are a different type of Yeerk, a good Yeerk, a symbiotic Yeerk neither Isk nor Yoort, able to live on their own. This dependency upon one another eliminates the parasitic need to infest other races and thus we find out that apparently in 300 years when they meet the Yeerks they will finally realize that there is another way other than dominating species and xenocide, through engineered symbiosis.
nother amusing aspect of this book in and amongst all the darkness and horror was the fact that they managed to implant the idea of love in the Howlers, before Crayak was able to annihilate the Howlers who had lost. Because as it turns out the reason there is no memory of the hollers ever losing is because those that lose our swiftly killed so as not to ruin and contaminate the collective memory. But alas Jake and Cassie with their kiss in there show of affection and love have infected the howlers and thus made them no longer useful as a shock troop and deadly weapon of Crayak.
Speaking of darkness and horror KA Applegate does a remarkably decent job at having the reader comprehend the pure terror the Animorphs are feeling when confronted with such a horrifying enemy as the Howlers. It is this mix of humor and terror that particularly intrigued me about this book. one thing I have noticed with books, movies and shows is that no matter how dark something gets, the addition of humor at the right moment can drastically increase the likeability of something. For instance the television series Stargate SG-1 was remarkably good at incorporating humor and thus made the series much more entertaining as a result. Hence Marco in Animorphs, and the cheesy jokes abounding.
Over all this book was a drastically impressive improvement from the previous ghostwritten book. I am very glad that people on Goodreads recommended I continue with the series because having read this book I now know that there are yet more great stories to be told.
January 18, 2015
"Liking this Ellimist book was a piece of cake"
Normally, I think the Ellimist books are weird, and Erek comes off as mainly an exposition machine. However, I found a lot to like about this one.
I liked the Iskoort world and people even before it was revealed what the species was really all about. The reminds me of how I liked Leera and the Leerans from #18 The Decision. I understand how the Animorphs were initially suspicious of the Iskoort's story, though they eventually figured it out.
The terms for the Ellimist-Crayak fight are a good example of rules of war as a quid pro quo to control the carnage. It is indeed very important for both sides to stick to that in order for it to work. Likewise, the Chee are a good sci-fi and exaggerated spin on the ethics of pacifism.
The high emotions of them escaping danger again make sense as prompting the romantic development. Marco and Rachel riffing off each other about it also makes sense.
The shopping culture makes a point about how capitalism needs to hustle its excess. Are jokes about mallrat Rachel the sugarcoating on that?
The ending seems to say that although Jake and the other Animorphs are trying to focus on the good things, the bad things have still taken ahold of them.
February 10, 2023
This, out of all 52 books I read as a kid, is the one that stuck with me the most. There is so much packed into this tiny little volume, I could write an essay picking apart every detail. It helps that the Howlers are my favorite creatures in the series--they still haunt my nightmares 20 years after my first read--and the writing of the power dynamics at play in these wars is so universal and real that I could cry. 10/10. Also Jake and Cassie ❤️
January 10, 2021
In this episode of Animorphs, get ready to grapple once again with life, death, and the morality of war as it relates to all of humanity. Also they morph flies again at some point. Jake finally shines as the leader of the group. And the plot is exciting and exactly how I was hoping it would be.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 26, 2016
The kiss. Finally.
February 5, 2023
Children go to Lego Land and murder other children. Gods laugh at their pain.
November 30, 2023
I'm screaming and crying about fictional middle schoolers.
Read
March 13, 2024"for a horrible moment i could actually see the white bone of my human spine" [lip bite emoji] tell me more, katherine applegate
January 11, 2026
4.25 / 5
August 31, 2024
This one should have been so fun and interesting-- it introduces a lot of interesting elements, but does very little with them, making them feel like throwing spaghetti at a ceiling fan. I loved the Iskoort reveal and what they could mean for the future of the series and the Howlers have so much potential with their unique mental state, but it doesn't come together.
June 13, 2013
Brought to you by The Moonlight Library!
The Ellimist is playing a game with Crayak, so it’s high time he meddled in the affairs of lesser mortals, right? Now it’s up to Jake and the Animorphs, plus Erek the android Chee, to fight the most dangerous alien warriors in existence and save another really annoying alien species from total annihilation.
The Attack is a fan-loved favourite, but I can’t really tell why. It’s one of those novels that could very easily be skipped and not miss anything important in the overall story arc – except that Jake and Cassie finally get it on… and by ‘get it on’ I mean KISS because for god’s sake this is a children’s book series, get your mind out of the gutter.
But overall the story is set on another planet and basically the Animorphs have to fight the Howlers to the death, except that the Howlers are literally made to kill other sentient species and are completely undefeated. Except that the Animorphs are intelligent, yo, and the Howlers do have one or two weaknesses: a collective memory, and they are all children and think killing other species is a game. So when Jake and the Animorphs upload their own memories into one howler, and Crayak is forced to wipe them out to preserve the entire race, the Animorphs win and one memory gets through: Jake and Cassie’s kiss.
That’s basically it. The Animorphs spend most of their time on the move and attempting to fight the howlers, who seem undefeatable. The Howlers are going to attempt to kiss every planet they invade. It’s not particularly short in comparison to the other novels, but it’s also not as exciting as everyone seems to think it is. I also think that Ax doesn’t get a very good portrayal in this book but that’s just me.
Overall, unless you want to see the famous kiss, then it’s okay to skip this one. You won’t miss much.
January 1, 2026
This was a fan favorite, but I'm not quite sure why. It wasn't awful, but really not necessary it seemed in the bigger picture. The Ellimist needs the Animorphs help in taking down the Crayak, and to do so they must defeat 7 Howlers, creatures that eliminated the Permalites. Erak makes a comeback in this one and there is again the Animorphs trying to peacefully win this huge battle. This book is famously the last K.Applegate written adventure for a long string but it was really disappointing. Not really big into the Yeerk battle in this one, it does have the famous Cassie/Jake kiss...and not much else that impressed me. The world was neat, the Iskaroot were kinda cool. And the morals sorta kinda winning was predictable. It sorta kinda dealt with that awkward gray area of "good" again, but it didn't have as much of an impact as it has in previous novels. So, though not terrible, a confusing fan-favorite in this one.
February 24, 2019
The humor in anything this series can be too much for me, but the way it work here, a vivid bizarro world in contrast to dire survival, is fantastic and memorable. The ending is trite, but the path there has rewarding logic. But the true highlight of this book is Jake. I love the ambiguity of his leadership, the ruthless logic of his manipulations contrasted with the vulnerability and uncertainly we see only in his PoV. I love the tension between his position as leader and his position as friend and romantic partner, and the utterly predictable but still satisfying first kiss. It's the surprisingly strong characterization which is keeping me engaged now that I've passed the series's halfpoint.
January 23, 2022
Yay the audiobooks are back!
This was a really good installment, with plenty of exciting alien world building, as well as a peak into a much larger battle than, you know, the whole earth invasion. I always assumed there would be more visits to alien worlds as the series continued, and I'm very glad to see I was right. Plus, I like Erik's presence in this book, I like the vibe his character brings to the group.
Also, I'm happy to see the, ah, development of a certain relationship.
This was a really good installment, with plenty of exciting alien world building, as well as a peak into a much larger battle than, you know, the whole earth invasion. I always assumed there would be more visits to alien worlds as the series continued, and I'm very glad to see I was right. Plus, I like Erik's presence in this book, I like the vibe his character brings to the group.
Also, I'm happy to see the, ah, development of a certain relationship.
November 12, 2019
JAKE!!! CHESS METAPHORS!!! COMPLEX POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS!!! LOVE!!!
November 21, 2019
It wasn't awful, but wasn't really necessary to the bigger picture.
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