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The Wind on Fire Trilogy #1-3
The Wind on Fire Trilogy: Books 1-3
It is the time of cruelty. The Manth people have left the ruined Mastery to seek their homeland, in the face of starvation, blizzards and the evil of the Morah. Only Ira Hath can lead them there. She grows weak... Kestrel dreads reaching the homeland. She is afraid of what it will mean for her mother--and of something else. Why does she feel so alone? Bowman eagerly awaits the summons from Sirene. He prepares to makes the final sacrifice for his people, his family. But first he must be trained by the great Albard. And all the while, the wind is rising...
1027 pages, Hardcover
First published August 1, 2002
24 people are currently reading
745 people want to read
About the author
William Nicholson
213 books480 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
William Nicholson was born in 1948, and grew up in Sussex and Gloucestershire. His plays for television include Shadowlands and Life Story , both of which won the BAFTA Best Television Drama award in their year; other award-winners were Sweet As You Are and The March . In 1988 he received the Royal Television Society's Writer's Award. His first play, an adaptation of Shadowlands for the stage, was Evening Standard Best Play of 1990, and went on to a Tony Award winning run on Broadway. He was nominated for an Oscar for the screenplay of the film version, which was directed by Richard Attenborough and starred Anthony Hopkins and Debra Winger.
Since then he has written more films - Sarafina, Nell, First Knight, Grey Owl , and Gladiator (as co-writer), for which he received a second Oscar nomination. He has written and directed his own film, Firelight ; and three further stage plays, Map of the Heart , Katherine Howard and The Retreat from Moscow , which ran for five months on Broadway and received three Tony Award nominations.
His novel for older children, The Wind Singer, won the Smarties Prize Gold Award on publication in 2000, and the Blue Peter Book of the Year Award in 2001. Its sequel, Slaves of the Mastery , was published in May 2001, and the final volume in the trilogy, Firesong , in May 2002. The trilogy has been sold in every major foreign market, from the US to China.
He is now at work on a new sequence of novels for older children, called The Noble Warriors . The first book, Seeker , was published in the UK in September 2005.The second book, Jango, in 2006 and the third book NOMAN, will be published in September 2007.
His novels for adults are The Society of Others (April 2004) and The Trial of True Love (April 2005).
He lives in Sussex with his wife Virginia and their three children.
from williamnicholson.co.uk
William Nicholson was born in 1948, and grew up in Sussex and Gloucestershire. His plays for television include Shadowlands and Life Story , both of which won the BAFTA Best Television Drama award in their year; other award-winners were Sweet As You Are and The March . In 1988 he received the Royal Television Society's Writer's Award. His first play, an adaptation of Shadowlands for the stage, was Evening Standard Best Play of 1990, and went on to a Tony Award winning run on Broadway. He was nominated for an Oscar for the screenplay of the film version, which was directed by Richard Attenborough and starred Anthony Hopkins and Debra Winger.
Since then he has written more films - Sarafina, Nell, First Knight, Grey Owl , and Gladiator (as co-writer), for which he received a second Oscar nomination. He has written and directed his own film, Firelight ; and three further stage plays, Map of the Heart , Katherine Howard and The Retreat from Moscow , which ran for five months on Broadway and received three Tony Award nominations.
His novel for older children, The Wind Singer, won the Smarties Prize Gold Award on publication in 2000, and the Blue Peter Book of the Year Award in 2001. Its sequel, Slaves of the Mastery , was published in May 2001, and the final volume in the trilogy, Firesong , in May 2002. The trilogy has been sold in every major foreign market, from the US to China.
He is now at work on a new sequence of novels for older children, called The Noble Warriors . The first book, Seeker , was published in the UK in September 2005.The second book, Jango, in 2006 and the third book NOMAN, will be published in September 2007.
His novels for adults are The Society of Others (April 2004) and The Trial of True Love (April 2005).
He lives in Sussex with his wife Virginia and their three children.
from williamnicholson.co.uk
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
February 24, 2011
Review:
William Nicholson is a master at fine the art of writing fantasy. He tells his compelling and very belivable story with simple language, but deeply true ideas. Although the book takes place in an imagined setting, with ficticious characters and times, the story of Manth is very real to us all, with true-to-earth people and enchantingly true personalities. However, the idea of "all will be well in the end" is rather overdone, and the importance of the Singer people is rather overly stressed. With twists, flying cats, and true love, Nicholson has outdone himself.
My personal thoughts:
I hated it. I hated every single letter of this series. Oh, sure, there are these wonderful, magical people who have special mind powers! Hooray! And they're so special, yes they are, because they will save the world. Everyone else has his or her little insignificant part to play, but it's not really worth anything because the Singer people are so special! You can't be a Singer if you want, because you must be the child of a prophet. You have no choice. Your destiny is already decided for you, so hahaha! Wanna save the world? Too lazy to help? Too bad! Mr. Destiny already chose for you. Haha. He send out some prophets to tell the future, so now you know your horrible fate! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ah, so funny, to see you people helpless against the magical greater order of things.
The language is too simple, and too uninvolving. I don't care that Ms.Chirish is fat. Great. Be fat, if you want, but I don't care. Stop bothering me. In addition, there's always this unanimous agreement between the Manth people. They somehow all just know things without rhyme or reason, and it seems somehow pointless. There's action, but over it, there is a filmy layer of boredom. He goes to the Morah. She gets the voice. Yeah. Okay. And it just so happens to be that she figures out how to use it. Good. The end.
I disliked the characters. I don't know why, but I tend to hate everyone. In some books, the author forces me to dislike the protagonists and instead like the antagonists. In this book, however, I hated everyone. Stupid Kestrel. Stupid Bowman. Stupid magical twin powers. Stupid book. Hmmph. It felt totally fake, like a masked but already masked marionette. I cannot explain. I am sorry. No, really, I am.
I do have a few good things to say about this series, however. I liked the ending, when Kestrel goes off instead of Bowman. It was a little ha-ha to him, but not really, because the were together forever! Yay! Lalalalalaaaa, happy happiness.
Anyway, the other thing I liked about it was...I forgot. Oh, well.
I still liked the actual reading of it. High-five!
William Nicholson is a master at fine the art of writing fantasy. He tells his compelling and very belivable story with simple language, but deeply true ideas. Although the book takes place in an imagined setting, with ficticious characters and times, the story of Manth is very real to us all, with true-to-earth people and enchantingly true personalities. However, the idea of "all will be well in the end" is rather overdone, and the importance of the Singer people is rather overly stressed. With twists, flying cats, and true love, Nicholson has outdone himself.
My personal thoughts:
I hated it. I hated every single letter of this series. Oh, sure, there are these wonderful, magical people who have special mind powers! Hooray! And they're so special, yes they are, because they will save the world. Everyone else has his or her little insignificant part to play, but it's not really worth anything because the Singer people are so special! You can't be a Singer if you want, because you must be the child of a prophet. You have no choice. Your destiny is already decided for you, so hahaha! Wanna save the world? Too lazy to help? Too bad! Mr. Destiny already chose for you. Haha. He send out some prophets to tell the future, so now you know your horrible fate! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ah, so funny, to see you people helpless against the magical greater order of things.
The language is too simple, and too uninvolving. I don't care that Ms.Chirish is fat. Great. Be fat, if you want, but I don't care. Stop bothering me. In addition, there's always this unanimous agreement between the Manth people. They somehow all just know things without rhyme or reason, and it seems somehow pointless. There's action, but over it, there is a filmy layer of boredom. He goes to the Morah. She gets the voice. Yeah. Okay. And it just so happens to be that she figures out how to use it. Good. The end.
I disliked the characters. I don't know why, but I tend to hate everyone. In some books, the author forces me to dislike the protagonists and instead like the antagonists. In this book, however, I hated everyone. Stupid Kestrel. Stupid Bowman. Stupid magical twin powers. Stupid book. Hmmph. It felt totally fake, like a masked but already masked marionette. I cannot explain. I am sorry. No, really, I am.
I do have a few good things to say about this series, however. I liked the ending, when Kestrel goes off instead of Bowman. It was a little ha-ha to him, but not really, because the were together forever! Yay! Lalalalalaaaa, happy happiness.
Anyway, the other thing I liked about it was...I forgot. Oh, well.
I still liked the actual reading of it. High-five!
October 17, 2017
One of my favourites as a kid!
December 31, 2016
Just read them! Please. You'll love them, I bet.
December 7, 2017
I enjoyed the first novel well enough, but the second and third were not only disappointing, but eroded my liking of the first. The Windsinger starts with an oppressive society, and a family set on disrupting it, each in their own way. Parts of the journey were cliched and some of the characterisation was not very complete, but the novel was saved by some well-written pieces of resistance and some imaginative motifs: It was also essentially about a dysfunctional society and the ways it might be liberated.
The plot holes widened in the second two novels, the writing became more tired and the characterisation even weaker. Worst of all, the overarching narrative became morally repugnant. In the end it feels like the second two books tried to make some of the ideas in the first book into an overarching "destiny" narrative which was not very compelling in itself. In the process, the books begin to make rather amoral points, ruining the liberatory potential of the windsinger story. Kestrel had the potential to be an interesting character but this is never really realised.
The plot holes widened in the second two novels, the writing became more tired and the characterisation even weaker. Worst of all, the overarching narrative became morally repugnant. In the end it feels like the second two books tried to make some of the ideas in the first book into an overarching "destiny" narrative which was not very compelling in itself. In the process, the books begin to make rather amoral points, ruining the liberatory potential of the windsinger story. Kestrel had the potential to be an interesting character but this is never really realised.
October 12, 2011
Nicholson has a great imagination. The writing and the believability of this trilogy are a bit lacking, however. And a lot of his more interesting ideas & cultures are barely even touched upon.
Book 1: I recognize it is a fantasy trilogy and suspension of disbelief is called for to a certain extent but 8 year old twins set off on a journey of months and manage to not starve to death, or get violently murdered, and overcome ultimate evil? Not to mention, they still somehow know how to sail ships despite growing up in an uber-insular land-locked world. It's a fun jaunt, just don't look too closely.
Book 2: The twins thankfully grow up a little & spend some time apart and are both better off for it. Slavery is a big part of this second book and it's kind of the social issues there that most irk me about the second book.
Book 3 was going fine until the brother decided he was Jesus. Oh, surprise ending, it's the sister who gets to die for them all! Nevermind, that was apparent from early on so we just get to deal with a lot of long-suffering, I'm holier-than-thou-ing.
My recommendation: PASS.
Book 1: I recognize it is a fantasy trilogy and suspension of disbelief is called for to a certain extent but 8 year old twins set off on a journey of months and manage to not starve to death, or get violently murdered, and overcome ultimate evil? Not to mention, they still somehow know how to sail ships despite growing up in an uber-insular land-locked world. It's a fun jaunt, just don't look too closely.
Book 2: The twins thankfully grow up a little & spend some time apart and are both better off for it. Slavery is a big part of this second book and it's kind of the social issues there that most irk me about the second book.
Book 3 was going fine until the brother decided he was Jesus. Oh, surprise ending, it's the sister who gets to die for them all! Nevermind, that was apparent from early on so we just get to deal with a lot of long-suffering, I'm holier-than-thou-ing.
My recommendation: PASS.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 1, 2017
I read The Wind Singer practically in one sitting - stayed up half the night to finish it, that's how much I got into it. Great story, interesting characters. Now I have to try to find the other two books in the trilogy!
Slaves of the Mastery was really good too. Now waiting for book 3 to arrive!
It's here!
Firesong didn't grab me anywhere near as quickly as the other two did. Maybe because the whining of the various people on the trek got a little tiresome. It was still fascinating, even though I got a little confused before the end. Still a good read, but probably won't be reread for a while.
Slaves of the Mastery was really good too. Now waiting for book 3 to arrive!
It's here!
Firesong didn't grab me anywhere near as quickly as the other two did. Maybe because the whining of the various people on the trek got a little tiresome. It was still fascinating, even though I got a little confused before the end. Still a good read, but probably won't be reread for a while.
February 20, 2008
The first book is fairly shit, but if you stick with it and read the whole trilogy, it becomes interesting. It's a good concept overall.
September 22, 2017
I really liked the first one of the trilogy, but the second book was less exciting, and the third one positively dragged- for me at least.
February 2, 2018
Reread of this trilogy. It's so fantastic, better than my memory!
July 24, 2023
the moment Willum called his wife or what ever “sugar plump “ i wanted to burn the book
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 5, 2019
William Nicholson is a master at world-building. He captured me from the very first page, transporting me into his world and gasping at every twist and turn. Adventure, danger, a sweet love story and plenty of action, it remains to be one of my favourite trilogies. Must read.
June 10, 2018
It is such a pleasant easy read. Loved it :)
September 13, 2018
Great fantasy novel showing the confines and structures of society. Introduces history of people and also the hate crimes people endure.
July 28, 2020
Definitely keeps reader captivated. It makes you think and takes you on a journey to places so out of imagination it will leave you breathless.
November 20, 2020
Unique and awesome!
January 10, 2021
My absolute favourite book series, it is so unique and I haven't read anything like it since.
January 20, 2021
Was my favourite book series for years when I was younger. I’ve read it so many times, it was the only book series other than Harry Potter that I reread when I was younger.
July 19, 2021
Epic Ending.
October 24, 2021
My first ever series I read as a kid and I loved every single bit of it! The rating could be completely biased as it was my first fantasy series so I will have to reread soon and rate again.
February 12, 2022
I read this in primary school. I loved the trilogy so much I "borrowed" the books from the school library and forgot to return them. Well written.
March 7, 2023
Mesmerizing, an imaginative adventure so many places
And character with whom you can relate
And character with whom you can relate
March 20, 2023
A must read
My soul burns and I regularly travel back to the land of Aramanth just to see the story unfold again and again
My soul burns and I regularly travel back to the land of Aramanth just to see the story unfold again and again
June 15, 2024
My favourite series as a tween!
July 24, 2024
Favourite books as a kid, can't wait to introduce my children to them!
January 12, 2021
An interesting trilogy to give to young teenagers. The Wind On Fire series tells the story of family, bond, and with a good journey.
April 27, 2022
THE WIND SINGER REVIEW
This series is begun in a similar style to The Giver in that it is set in a secular society but here, your colour of clothes determines how important you are in society. I love books with a premise like this so I picked it up and read the first couple of chapters before I was out of the store.
I love the main characters; they’re twins and they have a connection, a mental connection. This is fascinating and makes the book more interesting to read.
I wasn’t amazed by this book but it is still good and full of adventure and excitement. It’s a good start to a vividly beautiful trilogy.
SLAVES OF THE MASTERY REVIEW
I definitely preferred the second book to the first. It was just so much more exciting; introducing new and fantastic characters plus new destinations in Nicholson’s world which have the most beautiful settings.
It is a horrific story in places where it is written realistically but this only made me want to read on.
I thought this was a wonderful sequel to The Wind Singer as it focused on a wider amount of characters who were written in with no holes to their characterisations.
Absolutely brilliant!
FIRESONG REVIEW
A brilliant finale to a wonderful trilogy. This novel had me on the edge of my chair, waiting for the next unfortunate event to take hold and see how the characters cope and continue.
I had tears in my eyes at the end of it; it’s just so damn emotional! It was a difficult recovery for me…
This trilogy will stand on my shelves amongst many other books and proudly proclaim that they are one of my all-time favourites.
This series is begun in a similar style to The Giver in that it is set in a secular society but here, your colour of clothes determines how important you are in society. I love books with a premise like this so I picked it up and read the first couple of chapters before I was out of the store.
I love the main characters; they’re twins and they have a connection, a mental connection. This is fascinating and makes the book more interesting to read.
I wasn’t amazed by this book but it is still good and full of adventure and excitement. It’s a good start to a vividly beautiful trilogy.
SLAVES OF THE MASTERY REVIEW
I definitely preferred the second book to the first. It was just so much more exciting; introducing new and fantastic characters plus new destinations in Nicholson’s world which have the most beautiful settings.
It is a horrific story in places where it is written realistically but this only made me want to read on.
I thought this was a wonderful sequel to The Wind Singer as it focused on a wider amount of characters who were written in with no holes to their characterisations.
Absolutely brilliant!
FIRESONG REVIEW
A brilliant finale to a wonderful trilogy. This novel had me on the edge of my chair, waiting for the next unfortunate event to take hold and see how the characters cope and continue.
I had tears in my eyes at the end of it; it’s just so damn emotional! It was a difficult recovery for me…
This trilogy will stand on my shelves amongst many other books and proudly proclaim that they are one of my all-time favourites.
March 8, 2011
I LOVE these books. they are all about one family called the Hath's. The family go through ups and downs.
The plot of the main book is all about kestrel who hates the tests that they contiunously do. No one knows why but some but some say it is because the zars stole the heart of the wind singer. Kestrel, he r brother bow and a weird boy set out on a terrifing adventure to bring back the wind sing to where it belongs.
In the second book the town where the Haths live is caaptured by evil magicians. Everyone is taken apart from Kestrel who hides in the wind sing tower. once the magicians have gone the town is burnt and falling to peices. Kestrel makes it her duty to rescue her people and free them from the cultches of the magicians.
The tird book is when the family are travelling to there true hometown. Ira Haths knows they way but she is slowly dying from the terrible cold that surrounds them. will they make it in time or will they be stranded.
If you want to know the answer. READ THIS BOOK!
The plot of the main book is all about kestrel who hates the tests that they contiunously do. No one knows why but some but some say it is because the zars stole the heart of the wind singer. Kestrel, he r brother bow and a weird boy set out on a terrifing adventure to bring back the wind sing to where it belongs.
In the second book the town where the Haths live is caaptured by evil magicians. Everyone is taken apart from Kestrel who hides in the wind sing tower. once the magicians have gone the town is burnt and falling to peices. Kestrel makes it her duty to rescue her people and free them from the cultches of the magicians.
The tird book is when the family are travelling to there true hometown. Ira Haths knows they way but she is slowly dying from the terrible cold that surrounds them. will they make it in time or will they be stranded.
If you want to know the answer. READ THIS BOOK!
July 28, 2013
I still find these books incredible, and I can't believe how much I remembered, even though I think this is only the second time I've read them, and I think the first time was around 2002. Excellent story line and characters. I do love the Manth people. The first time I read this series, I read it backwards. I started with Firesong, because I didn't realize it was the third in a series, and I loved it, and was excited when I found out that there were more. So then I was left with the decision, should I read it 3-1-2, or 3-2-1? So I read it backwards :) Let me tell you, I was totally surprised by
And I do love all the cursewords in this series.
And I do love all the cursewords in this series.
July 12, 2016
I love these books. It does help that they're very much written like a film and so very easy to follow. But despite all my childhood desperation for this trilogy to be made into a film, I don't think anyone could do it justice. The first story is wonderful and imaginative as you follow three desperate children on an adventure to save their city from a mysterious and malign force. Then the children grow up to young adults as you follow them through further trials and tribulations as their entire city is enslaved. And finally their adult maturity and deeper understanding of the world as they search for their homeland. I found the ending very predictable when I read it for the first time as a child but I like the themes and it does round off the story perfectly.
There are some unanswered questions and doubts in my mind about how some of the magic works and that does irritate me so don't expect it to be the most well thought through fantasy universe.
There are some unanswered questions and doubts in my mind about how some of the magic works and that does irritate me so don't expect it to be the most well thought through fantasy universe.
May 13, 2013
I am reading the third book, Firesong, of The Wind on Fire Trilogy. In this book Bowman and Kestrel have their third and final journey. They are joined by their friend Mumpo, their parents and the rest of the Manth people. The Manth people are now looking for their homeland. Their original home was taken over and burned down by bandits, and they were forced to leave. Now they're on a trecherous journey across the land and over the mountains to find the place where they belong. They don't even have a map they have Ira Hath (Bowman and Kestrels mother) who is a decendant of a sourt of fortune teller and every time she is asked if they are close she can't give an exact answer. Many of their people have been killed and they are the only ones left of their people. They have already faced so much danger what else will they run into.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews