The Last Firehawk: The Ember Stone (#1) by Katrina Charman

Tag is a small owl who wants to be an Owl of Valor, soldiers who protect the woods against Thorn, an old powerful vulture who would stop at nothing to destroy Valor Wood.

While playing a game with his friend Skyler the squirrel, Tag discovers a glowing, golden egg. Tag and Skyla rescue the egg from tiger bats, spies of Thorn. The egg hatches and inside is a firehawk, a magical bird that no one has seen for years.

Grey, the wise old owl who is the leader of the Owls of Valor, tells Tag and Skyla that they must take the firehawk and travel to find the Ember Stone. The Ember Stone is the only chance the Owls of Valor have of defeating Thorn.

After befriending a tortoise name Thaddeus, the trio make their way to Fire Island. They search for the Ember Stone and come up empty-handed. The only place they haven’t searched is inside the volcano at the top of the island. The firehawk, who they have named Blaze, flies into the volcano and comes out with the Ember Stone. When they take a good look at it, they realize it is only part of the Ember Stone and must go on a journey to find the rest of the pieces. As the book concludes, they are heading next to Crystal Caverns.

This is the first book in the series “The Last Firehawk” and it is like Lord of the Rings meets forest creatures. If books about magic are ones you avoid, then you will want to avoid this series. If you are okay with magic, there are some good qualities about this book. Tag definitely wants to show his bravery and do what is right. It’s very clearly a battle between good and evil, as in Lord of the Rings.

I don’t love how Tag is told not to go somewhere because it’s dangerous and he does the exact opposite to show his bravery. I know these are common themes in war and quest novels, but hopefully later in the series they will address what true bravery actually is. Although the reading level is second grade, when I spoke to my librarian, she said that kids ages 9 to 12 were reading the series. No language issues in this specific book. It may be worth checking out if you’re okay with heavy magic themes and your child enjoys quest type novels.

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This series include questions and activities on the last page of the book!