The Venom Spreads

Bravelands: Curse of the Sandtongue #2

by Erin Hunter

Friends and family are split as longtime allies turn on each other, and born foes form unlikely bonds. The very threat that led Bramble to leave the place he called home has ensnared the creatures who live on the mountain.

As the mysterious poison begins to affect more and more animals, Chase struggles to determine where her loyalties should lie. And down on the plains, Prance prays that the Great Spirit will send Thorn a solution to the shadowy menace.

But even the Great Father may not be able to save them this time.

Genres: Animals, Middle Grade, Fantasy, Childrens, Juvenile, Fiction

286 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 1, 2022

About the author

Erin Hunter is the pseudonym of five people: Kate Cary, Cherith Baldry, Tui T. Sutherland, Gillian Philip, and Inbali Iserles, as well as editor Victoria Holmes. Together, they write the Warriors series as well as the Seekers and Survivors series. Erin Hunter is working on a new series now called Bravelands.

Erin Hunter is inspired by a love of cats and a fascination with the ferocity of the natural world. As well as having a great respect for nature in all its forms, Erin enjoys creating rich mythical explanations for animal behavior, shaped by her interest in astronomy and standing stones.

Reviews

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with any Bravelands book, it’s a page-turner. Every chapter seems to end in a cliff-hanger, and it keeps you reading.

I do have to say, (and maybe I just misread or misinterpreted something) I’m a little confused by the ending. I can’t tell if Prance has received the Great Spirit because she’s the true Great Mother, or if she’s just “holding it” for the next Great Parent. It seems ambiguous (maybe intentionally) to end Prance’s final chapter with, “The Great Spirit was with her.” Then in the Epilogue, Windrider explains, “The Great Spirit is moving. It will find its next host.” Is this just a case where Windrider doesn’t yet know that Prance has been chosen by the Great Spirit, or is Prance really just holding the Great Spirit for the next rightful leader?

This book does have some twists and emotional tugs.
I was crying when Seek was bitten and on the verge of death, and I was in utter shock when Range was eaten. The Chase plot pulls at my heartstrings - probably because I’m a mother myself.

I was (at times) skimming the Bramble and Moonflower plot. It just didn’t interest me after a certain point for some reason- which wasn’t the case at all with the first book.

Overall though, I liked the book enough to look up the release date of the 3rd installment… Possibly October 4th? I’ll be ready!

[MistyWish · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.75
Something about this spin-off series is just off-putting like it's missing an original element and it's not enticing enough, it's mediocre! I'm almost slumping through the series so far even tho I'm somewhat interested in how the series will wrap up and I truly do enjoy the easter eggs from the first BL series.
Might DNF if the 3rd book doesn't get more than 3 stars.

[eve.lyn._.reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

🐆🐍💛💚BRAVELANDS: THE VENOM 💚💛🐍🐆
Bramble and Moonflower must find the Great Father, and escape the gorillas. Chase must find somewhere safe with Seek, while also saving Shadow. Prance must balance out the new destiny she has ahead of her. Divided there will be no hope of saving Bravelands, but together they might stand a chance.

𝐁𝐫𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐦 𝐬𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐬 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐟𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟐 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭. In a way, certain aspects just didn't lead up to my expectations. And in another way, certain things did happen that I wanted to happen. So now is the big question: What went wrong and what went right?
What I liked: I liked how Chase matured a lot compared to book one. We got to see several characters from the first arc, and Chase and Shadow had many moments. I like how things are turning out between Chase and Shadow, and it's great. I also liked how Prance got to do more than just complain about the Us leaving her.
What I didn't: Bramble and Prance, spent a lot of the book just traveling. The plot twist was predictable and uncannily similar to a plot twist in Wings Of Fire. The plot twist was very predictable to the reader, but took quite some time for the characters to realize it. Also, some characters ended back right where they started *the ending had many parallels to book one.*

For example: *Wings of Fire and Bravelands spoiler beware
In Wings of Fire the antagonist comes from underground 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐥𝐬 just like in Bravelands. In Wings of Fire the characters are being 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 similar in Bravelands (though they are more like altered and don't really have a choice but aren't controlled). In Wings of Fire the venom spreads to them by its g𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝 just like in Bravelands.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐝. I do understand that this is only book two, but in the first arc, we had such rich and emotional protagonists. Fearless had a very strong moral compass, desire, and motivation and idea he wanted to achieve. His character growth was so amazing and one of the best I have ever seen. Then there is Thorn, his life was so tragic and yet he was so good. Sky was okay, but she wasn't as amazing as the other two. Bramble, Prance, and Chase are good I want to see more dimension, motivation, and a certain goal they want to achieve. I want to see a deeper dive into these characters. I do like the direction Chase and Bramble are going to right now and hope to see more from them.
✅PLOT
🆗PLOT TWIST
🆗CHARACTERS

🐆🐍💛💚CHARACTER 💚💛🐍🐆
✅CHASE
🆗BRAMBLE
🆗PRANCE

🐆🐍💛💚CONCLUSION 💚💛🐍🐆
I am excited for book three to come out!

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

SPOILERS

I read the book in two days and it was sort of underwhelming. I think that it is more engaging than the first series because it has a more diverse range of animals included in it, but it isn't the best out of Erin Hunter's book. (However, I do rate it above the 2nd Survivors arc and the Bamboo Kingdom series.) I like the characters in this book more than the other main protagonists in the first book. In the first book I liked Fearless the most...until his sudden personality shift where he suddenly sided with Stinger and became obsessed with killing Titan. That was an uncharacteristic shift on his part. I was bored by Sky and only disliked Thorn's story because the other baboons he had to put up with for the majority of the series were such jerks to him and his friend. In this series there is a new set of protagonists. It kind of follows the same pattern as the first but it has more interesting dynamics. I find Prance more interesting than Sky because of his conflicting feelings with being part of his group vs. following his own instincts. Chase is in the role of a protector/mother for her little brother. Bramble is ostracized from his family with his little sister because of their rejection of the new villain's rule. What's not to love about this book? I only dislike a few things. One is that the book has so much filler. This is because they want to extend the series as much as possible and make more money out of it than if they made it one big book, or even just a trilogy. Usually Erin likes to extend her book series into 6 books. i find this unnecessary because I feel it detracts from the story and makes it dull and boring at some parts because they need to reach their page length quota of 200+ pages. I also feel that there were some things that could've been built on but were written off. One example is Range. I think that more could've been explored with him as a character. He seemed to be pretty complex. Maybe there could've been a backstory on him and why he loved Chase. Maybe in future books it could've dove into some sort of inner warfare going on inside him. To either side with the villain or to help Chase? I felt there could've been some good in him and also have a more in depth explanation on his motivations as a character. He was one of the characters that piqued my interest the most. Then he got killed off and eaten by a giant snake at the end. Well that was pretty unfortunate for his character. Besides the killing off of Range, I disliked how they made the characters change a little from the first book. Mud doesn't seem like the same character he was in the first arc. Now he's outspoken and superstitious. In the first arc he was a shy and quiet character. But maybe characters can change with age. Menace's character also changed. She didn't really seem to be that cunning in the first series. In fact, she seemed pretty stupid at some times like making feeble attempts to take on a far bigger opponent than her, charging heedlessly into dangerous situations, and mouthing off to dangerous enemies who would've killed her. (If Fearless didn't step in) But she was a cub than so maybe she matured? Now she seems like a lion version of Azula (from Avatar: the Last Airbender) except without the ambition. I'd think she'd not be satisfied with the current state her pride is in and attempt to attack Gallantpride relentlessly or at least tactically steal from them. Or maybe later in the series she will do that. I just think that having her there will just make her an annoyance in the series as it goes on than an actual real threat. (You know, like a Team Rocket kind of situation. The villain causes mayhem or trouble but never causes any actual damage or harm toward the protagonist. Just a pestilence.) Then again, I could be wrong. Maybe she'll become a real threat when she allies with the main villain and then will get most likely get betrayed and killed off when she's outlived her usefuless. (Gasp! That will be such a shocker!) We'll see after several more months until the next installment. Hopefully I won't forget all the events of the book by the time the next book comes out. Such a long time to wait!

[Good Manticore · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars.
The stakes have risen! My biggest complaint with this book is the complete disconnect of the leopard, Chase, from the other POV characters' plots, and the way her chapters meandered. Her final few chapters were probably the best part though. I'm excited to see where she ends up in the next book!

Bramble's chapters were fine. They moved the story along, brought back Spider (whom I love), and were typical middle-book chapters.

Prance, once again, had the most interesting plot between her joining Thorn's posse, meeting Menace who is somehow still alive (how does time work in Bravelands?), and her new ability of separating from her body into her "shadow self." I may have teared up a bit when Thorn died and passed the Great Spirit on to her. He was the best part of the previous series.

I had thought that Prance's last chapter would be the best stopping point for the book, and had considered giving it a 4-star rating for that, but the final chapter was AMAZING. Terrifying and gruesome and anxiety-inducing. I seriously did NOT expect Range to die, especially in such a nasty manner. Swallowed whole (and alive) by a snake! Heebie-jeebies galore! So I give it a bonus half-star. But I'm rounding down due to the amount of meandering in Chase and Bramble's chapters during the first half since Goodreads still doesn't allow half-star ratings.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

What is arguably Erin Hunter's most intense series yet gets even darker in its second installment. Bramble the gorilla, Prance the gazelle and Chase the leopard continue on their journeys. And unfortunately, Thorn, the baboon from the original Bravelands series, and reigning Great Father, dies. If you'll recall from the final book in the first Bravelands arc, that saw the death of Fearless the lion. So, if you're keeping score, Sky the elephant is the only member of original Bravelands trio still alive. But now. after Thorn's death, I have fears that she won't survive until the end of the Curse of the Sandtongue series. Still, this was a good book.

[MacKenzie · Rating 3 out of 5]

🌟3.5🌟

Damn this book was definitely slower then the first one. also I didn't like how Range was killed off. He was so interesting and had lots of potential and while I do think a death by the snake grandmother was needed to cause fear, it didn't have to be Range who died.
Overall I enjoyed it, and I liked how Menace returned.

[Critter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m interested to see where this series will continue. I do hate that reptiles are being portrayed as villains, but I do enjoy all of the main characters, even if they are pretty basic good characters.

[Aubrey_F · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was great, but honestly I only read the leopard chapters. I don’t know why but I did. I would recommend it Ou are ok with just a little blood and violence and love the animal POV’s.

Thanks!

[Worm of the Book · Rating 5 out of 5]

I could not stop reading this my mouth was agape the whole time.

[Danny Mcalister · Rating 5 out of 5]

another fanstinsc novel from erin hunter love the braveland seris this book is the best one in the seris so her books keep getting better and better

[Taco · Rating 5 out of 5]

I told y'all that Prance would become the Great Mother.

Also, thanks for the vore scene with Range and his Mistress 😭🐆🐍

FEARLESS X KEEN FOREVER! 🦁❤🦁

[Tommy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this story!

[geena · Rating 5 out of 5]

ofc an erin hunter book is 5 stars muah

[Tammy · Rating 3 out of 5]

So much going on in this book, it’s a lot to take in.

[Krys · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

[Aleia · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was good, I'm looking forward to the next book in the series which I will start shortly.

[cockatiel forger · Rating 5 out of 5]

HOLY FUCK I WAS NOT EXPECTING THAT TO BE SO GOOD

[C Lyon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Monkeys get high on snakes. Antelope makes friends with old man. Leopard meets the Basilisk under the chamber of secrets.

[Skylee Fox · Rating 4 out of 5]

I could not put this book. The plot twists and storyline are immaculate!!!

[Livia Paikos · Rating 5 out of 5]

FEARLESSXKEEN CONFIRMED better late than never I guess

[Alex T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual rating 3.5 stars

Guess we're doing reptile cults now? Okay. Still very lacking in the character department though.

Full review at: https://skybookcorner.blogspot.com/20...

[Me_the_reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very high on my excited-to-read list! I really really liked the first series. The second series though is very similar to the first with similar characters and twists. Prance is kinda a filler character, she doesn't do much and she spent a good chunk of the book traveling around. Bramble...same thing, he spent a long time travelling. Moonflower is also just ok. Chase has the most interesting life by far. Seek's transformation into evil was sudden... I did like reading about Thorn and Sky again. One thing...was Mud always that grumpy? The snake thing is cool though - I like that.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Somewhere around 3.5 stars. I liked it, but it didn't really draw me in the way a lot of Erin Hunter books do. Still, there were some fun twists and the plot is interesting, so I'm looking forward to the next one.