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Urchin of the Riding Stars

(The Mistmantle Chronicles #1)

M.I. McAllister,

Omar Rayyan (Illustrator)

4.03 · Rating details · 5,207 ratings · 282 reviews

The start of an exciting new trilogy, Urchin of the Riding Stars is an epic, Shakespearian story of murder, treachery and revenge set on the island of Mistmantle, a world of squirrels, otters, and moles.

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Hardcover, 282 pages

Published September 1st 2005 by Miramax Books (first published January 1st 2005)

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4.03 ·

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· 5,207 ratings · 282 reviews

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Nov 08, 2013 Rick Riordan rated it really liked it

The publisher described this to me as "Shakespeare with squirrels," and that's about right. It has elements of Hamlet and Macbeth with the same kind of fantasy world that made Redwall popular. I enjoyed it very much. The book worked so well as a standalone it will be interesting to see what the author does for the next book in the series.

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Apr 11, 2012 Gillian Bronte Adams rated it it was amazing

Shelves: reviews

As someone who grew up devouring the Redwall books, I was super excited to discover the Mistmantle Chronicles. However, this series is not just a Redwall knock off. The author has her own unique voice and presentation style and deserves full credit in her own right for an imaginative story.

Urchin is a young squirrel discovered orphaned on the seashore during the night of the "Riding Stars" - basically a meteor shower. He is rescued and eventually taken under the wing of Crispin (another squirrel ...more

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Oct 19, 2016 Allison Tebo rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, fantasy, own, fsc, sibling-relationships

Mini Review.

The Mistmantle Chronicles is more than just a "animals with swords book" it is SO MUCH MORE. A beautiful, swirling adventure that sweeps the reader away into a magical and amazing place, this book also paints deep spiritual truths that touched me to the core. From dizzying heights of joy and giddiness to sorrow so deep I actually cried over more than one book - the Mistmantle Chronicles is not "just a children book" - it is a treasure, a classic, a joy. These are my go-to books when ...more

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Dec 13, 2012 Josh rated it it was amazing

Urchin the squirrel was born on a night of riding stars. It was the same night he arrived on the island of Mistmantle, and the same night that his mother died and was washed back out to sea. Discovered by Crispin the squirrel and Brother Fir, Urchin was sent home with kindly but simple Apple to be raised by the community in Anemone Wood. Once Urchin was old enough to enter the island's work parties, he is asked to become Captain Crispin's page, a dream come true. But his dreams turn to nightmare Urchin the squirrel was born on a night of riding stars. It was the same night he arrived on the island of Mistmantle, and the same night that his mother died and was washed back out to sea. Discovered by Crispin the squirrel and Brother Fir, Urchin was sent home with kindly but simple Apple to be raised by the community in Anemone Wood. Once Urchin was old enough to enter the island's work parties, he is asked to become Captain Crispin's page, a dream come true. But his dreams turn to nightmares when the King's only son is murdered and the blame falls on Crispin. Tragedy and adventure walk hand-in-hand with Urchin as he tries to protect his captain, himself, and his whole community from a creeping evil that has come into the kingdom.

I knew nothing about this book when I picked it up from the shelf, but it didn't take long before I fell in love with it. There are five things that stood out to me about McAllister's writing that puts it above most other children's books.

- The author isn't afraid of a body count. The book opens with the death of the main character's mother. In the first chapter, the animals are discussing the new and horrible practice of culling (killing off the weak and misformed) that is now practiced in the kingdom. By chapter three, the prince is dead. Death happens and I respect an author who isn't afraid to show how it affects characters differently. Urchin's mother was willing to die in order to rescue her unborn baby. The king is willing to kill because the of the grief of losing his son. Children are just as much affected by the death of loved ones as we are and McAllister gives us a reference to be able to talk to kids about how to feel and how to act.

- The evil is EVIL. When bad things happen in the book, they are very bad. The bad characters are not just mean, but manipulative, sneaky, and murderous. The author helps us hate the evil that exists in the story, and gives us something to root against. Urchin has so much to overcome that when the evil is dealt with, we are not just pleased but elated.

- The good is not without flaws. Urchin is likeable because he is flawed. He cares deeply about the people around him, but he cares just as much about what they think of him. I can relate to this because I know that I am a people pleaser. If put in a situation between doing what is right and doing whatever will make me liked, I have a dilemma. By giving Urchin a flaw, he is relateable. We root for him all the more because he is like us.

- Suspense, foreshadowing, and misdirection are skillfully applied. By having a dire evil to overcome and showing that she isn't afraid to kill off a character or two, McAllister creates real suspense for the story. And she weaves in enough details that when we finally figure out what is happening, we hit ourselves for not seeing it sooner. I love it when an author surprises me with a twist.

- The tension escalates throughout. Like all good fiction, the main character finds himself in increasingly horrible predicaments. Just when you think, "well, at least it can't get worse," you find out that you are wrong.

Like I said, I loved this book. In fact, the whole series is great. I can't wait until my kids are old enough for me to read it to them. I'd start now, but my oldest doesn't have the attention span for chapter books yet and I'd end up just reading it out loud to myself. Then again, it was such a good story that I may just read it anyway. I can always read it again to them later. ...more

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Oct 04, 2011 Friend of Pixie (F.O.P.) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: hero-adventure, speculative-fiction, animal-but-not-cat, own

I don't think Logan is ready for the Redwall books (too intense), but this was a good in-between series. And what kid-who-adores-Reepicheep could resist a swashbuckling squirrel? (He laughs with delight when I even say the phrase "swashbuckling squirrel.") There were a couple of things that were a bit difficult. The first scene is Urchin's mother giving birth to him and dying alone on the beach, which wasn't glossed over quickly enough for me. And the main evil character, who is crazy, has a rec ...more

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Jan 26, 2015 Sarah Amelia rated it it was amazing

I read this book along time ago and it was one if my favorites!

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Nov 16, 2014 Leslie rated it really liked it

Shelves: library-book, children-s-lit, preview-for-the-boy

Brilliant! Absolutely lovely. Everything a book ought to be. Proper review to come; I MUST dive right in to the next one.

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Nov 27, 2017 Michael Fitzgerald rated it really liked it

This is mostly a good book - there's not so much wrong with it, apart from the infanticide/euthanasia fixation, which seems an odd thing to include in a book written for children.

The most obvious parallel is to the Redwall series. Both are vaguely medieval with coalitions of furry animals gathered in a castle/abbey. At least the world of this book has a kind of deity. Seems like the author just did a search and replace, inserting "the Heart" in place of the word "God". Historical tapestries are This is mostly a good book - there's not so much wrong with it, apart from the infanticide/euthanasia fixation, which seems an odd thing to include in a book written for children.

The most obvious parallel is to the Redwall series. Both are vaguely medieval with coalitions of furry animals gathered in a castle/abbey. At least the world of this book has a kind of deity. Seems like the author just did a search and replace, inserting "the Heart" in place of the word "God". Historical tapestries are important to both books. The protagonists of both the first Redwall book and this book are young greenhorns. But Redwall isn't even the originator of some things - C.S. Lewis had the sword-wielding Reepicheep and other animals in Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia.

The plot is full of intrigue and treachery and it's enjoyable. Though Urchin is our primary focus, at times we diverge into several different viewpoints. I was a bit let down with the very end.

The main issue I have is that the book is just so derivative. There is a good deal of Shakespeare (Macbeth) in the plot, but I can almost excuse that. We have a baby with a prophesy (see Jesus Christ). "If the king had heard that, he would surely have the baby killed." (see Herod). Oh - and stars are important to the prophecy and birth (see the Magi). We have a baby rescued from water (see Moses in the bullrushes). We have a king being kept drugged (see Theoden in The Lord of the Rings). Oh, that king is also grieving the death of his son (see Denethor in The Lord of the Rings). The villain suffers from obsessive dreams of the hero (see Cluny the Scourge in Redwall). Large birds play a role in changing the tide of things (see the eagles in The Hobbit).

Without knowing all those antecedents, the book would seem much better - more original, of course. But does one really want young readers to encounter the real sources after reading this and therefore think less of them? It's kind of backwards.

Is this essential children's fiction? No, I don't think so. Certainly others in the same vein from even more recent years (The Green Ember) are not. However, I might say the first Redwall book is (I've not read any of the others, but I understand that at some point they get formulaic). I imagine kids who like this kind of thing - who have already devoured 22 Redwall books and are still clamoring for more - will find much to like about this and probably the rest of the Mistmantle series.

I did listen to much of this in the audiobook version narrated by Andrew Sachs, and the performance was excellent. It's a real shame that they weren't able to get him to do the rest of the series before his death. However, one big attraction of the print book is the illustrations by Omar Rayyan, which are superb. ...more

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Dec 05, 2018 Rosa rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: 10 years and up

Shelves: finished-in-2018

My purpose in reading this book was to "proof read" it before giving it as a gift. I was totally taken in by the story and greatly enjoyed it! It was well written and intriguing. I felt that the story had some nice twists in the plot and flowed nicely. There are some tense moments and mild violence in the story which may be disturbing to younger children. There are only animals in the story (no humans) but it is not a "cute" animal story. There are battles, adventures, treacheries, and even deat ...more

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Jul 16, 2017 Meredith rated it it was amazing

Shelves: audiobook, childrens, fantasty-science-fiction, older-kids

Going into this book I knew nothing about it. I thought it was going to be some cutesy tale about animals on an adventure or something. Instead what I got was a wholly engrossing tale of intrigue, deception, valour, friendship and more. I really recommend this book. I listened to the audio version and the narrator was amazing! Definitely worth the read, or listen.

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Oct 21, 2014 Leah Beecher rated it it was amazing

Shelves: bed-time-chapter-book-to-read-alou

So, this bed time chapter book I read to my 3rd grader and Kindergartener took over three months to finish. This had more to do with my starting dinner shamefully late and therefore bedtime was horribly late, than anything else. However, I will say, it is a longer read, with long chapters. {When the scene switches within a chapter there is a little * at the top of the paragraph, making it convenient to stop and remember where you were left off mid-chapter, which is kinda helpful and special}. My So, this bed time chapter book I read to my 3rd grader and Kindergartener took over three months to finish. This had more to do with my starting dinner shamefully late and therefore bedtime was horribly late, than anything else. However, I will say, it is a longer read, with long chapters. {When the scene switches within a chapter there is a little * at the top of the paragraph, making it convenient to stop and remember where you were left off mid-chapter, which is kinda helpful and special}. My third grader loved it. My kinder became easily distracted, but liked the story and followed along nonetheless. A lot of descriptive writing and many, many characters that makes the book richer for older readers and their parents/teachers. I suggest crayons and paper or stickers for any children under, let's say seven years old, if you read to a couple or a group of kids. This book in interesting in that while it involved talking squirrels, otters, porcupines and moles, it could be read alone by much older children. As high a middle school, if you are blessed to have middle aged children who are still imaginative. Boys especially would like the chivalry and swords and murder. Some elements are sinister and scary. Murdering of the child prince in the first chapters for instance {though no gore descriptions}. So if your child is over sensitive, maybe you should skip this one. Mine are born brutes and kinda like violence, so no problem there. I was surprised to find subtle references to God, {referred to as "The Heart"} in the beginning of the story. Then as the story goes on, and the "bad" guys are shown as truly evil from dark spiritual influences the presence of "the Heart" and the need for prayer, lighting of candles, and especially the vital role of Brother Fir as the priest who intercedes on behalf of The Heart slowly comes out more and more. A spiritual book of good over evil without being overtly religious in nature. Over all, very exciting, well plotted, with memorable, developed characters. Much more than I expected from a book about talking rodents with swords. Highly suggested as a bed time chapter book. Just get dinner on at a decent time. ...more

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Aug 18, 2014 Loren rated it it was amazing

Shelves: auroras-books

My 10-year-old loved this series so much that she read it twice, then asked me to read it to her at bedtime. It's got old-fashioned heroes and a truly evil villain, but she was so caught up in the story that she started naming her stuffed animals after the characters in the book. I have to admit: it's pretty darn good for a book about talking squirrels and otters.

That said, the villainy will be too intense for younger children. As it was, I had to explain what culling is -- it's being used by th ...more

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Jul 18, 2010 Margaryta rated it it was amazing

Shelves: animals, favourite-books, great-fantasy-books, chapter-books, classics

Oh, My. Gosh. I had a cuteness overload after reading this book and I'm not the kind of person to normally feel that way.

Got this book from my parents at a bargain book sale for only a few dollars. After reading this I felt really happy I got it for so cheap and yet angry at the sellers because they were not only selling such an amazing book but also at such a low price like it was a terrible book.

The illustrations play a great part in the story. There just serve as eye candy in the whole book a ...more

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Sep 20, 2015 Stephan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: work-related, fantasy

En riktigt bra bok! En härlig blandning av Shakespeare och Hobb förlagt i Mossblomma!
Nå, inte egentligen, men nära nog.

Urchin är en utböling på Dimslöjornas ö. Hans ljusa päls och underliga bakgrund får honom att sticka ut från öns andra ekorrar. Att han sedan, helt oförberett får anställning som page under en av öns tre kaptener hjälper inte saken nämnvärt. Särskilt sedan hans älskade kapten snart blir anklagad för mordet på den unga prinsen och därmed tvingas i landsförvisning.
Stackars Urchin ...more

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Jun 18, 2016 Staci rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, anthropomorphic-animals

"A true heart survives the breaking."

I still remember the day I saw this series on the shelf at the library and picked this book up. I thought it would be a nice little fluff read. How wrong I was and how deeply I was touched after the read!
This book has the feel of Arthurian legend mixed with-as mentioned by others-Shakespearean themes that give it a tone of timeless appeal.
You will come to love the valiant and playful otters, the loyal and hard working hedgehogs, the determined and courageou ...more

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Apr 19, 2008 Jennifer rated it really liked it

This is a very good series to read with a child (or maybe without!). My son is 10 & he's thoroughly engaged with the characters & story. It's a typical hero's journey with Urchin in the lead role - born under circumstances spelled out in an inevitable prophecy - but there's a strong ensemble of characters who act in primary roles when the POV shifts to each one in turn. I find the writing a little trickier than most books for reading aloud, not sure why - maybe the word choice?

The good ...more

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Jan 28, 2012 Ellen rated it it was amazing

In the best tradition of fantasy, Mistmantle establishes itself in good company. Fans of Redwall, Despereaux, Ga'Hoole, and Narnia will all find something comfortable, yet refreshingly unique in this book. Urchin is an orphan squirrel in the peaceful king of Mistmantle. Somewhat of a misfit, he fears his dreams of adventure will never come to be. Peace can be fragile, and all is not what it seems for the gentle creatures of the island. Treachery and murder are afoot and heroes are about to be bo ...more

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Jul 27, 2016 Jockum rated it liked it · review of another edition

Jag har tyckt det var synd att Brian Jacques böcker inte finns att köpa på svenska längre. Men böckerna om Urchin är något i liknande genre. Så jag läste glatt igenom första boken och hittade en värld i samma anda.

Djuren (Ekorrar, uttrar, igelkottar och Mullvadar) har all sina karaktärsdrag och man ser det runt om i deras lilla värld. Små härliga beskrivningar om olika maträtter för de olika djuren är roliga och hur olika djur tar sig fram via tunnlar, vatten, eller klättring.

Vems perspektiv vi ...more

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Dec 25, 2009 Leah rated it really liked it

This book was great! When I first saw it, I thought it would be a knock-off of the Redwall series but it was really original. It had a sweet (I don't mean cool, I mean sweet) and presenting-the-facts style to it and though it was a little obvious that Lord Husk and Lady Aspen were the bad guys right from the start (this thing does a spoiler alert on its own right?) it did a terrific job of making them seem innocent at first. It was surprising too, in small ways as well as the big ones and, thoug ...more

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Mar 14, 2010 Rosemarie rated it really liked it

A few children's fantasies deserve adult attention for their own sakes, not simply as choices to give to younger relatives. The Mistmantle series definitely belongs in the category of "ageless reader appeal."
A surprisingly well-developed plot, colorfully real and recognisable characters, admireable heroes (complete with character flaws), and satisfying illustrations of necessary life lessons are typical of this first volume. Read it! You'll be glad you did!

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Sep 07, 2008 King Haddock rated it liked it

Shelves: books-i-own, fantasy, animal-fiction

This certainly was no replace of the wonders spun in Redwall, but it was a cute children's novel, nonetheless. Still, I found it highly predictable because it follows a very normal pattern of plot. In that sense, the book was already worn out from the first page. Characters were extremely flat. Still, the culling of the "defective" children was chilling, as it was meant to be, making a great start in the novel. Overall, it is a fun, short adventure story to read.

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Jul 22, 2015 Karen rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: ellie, jacob, mom

Listening to the audio in the car with the kids. Our friends the White's gave us this audio, thank you! I absolutely love the reader's voice...Andrew Sachs. He changes his voice so well from character to character!..7/22/15

Jacob would like to rate this above 5 stars. We all loved it! Looking forward to getting Book Two (perhaps for Christmas?)

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Jan 08, 2013 Gretchen Jones rated it it was amazing

Every book in this series compelled me to the next book! Minimally predictable, which is hard to accomplish in all five books in a series. Heartwarming, believable characters carry through all five books. Loved every one of them!

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Jun 14, 2007 Ninius rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasyishbooks

Premise is reminiscent of Redwall, but with a bit of grit. Plot should ring some Shakespearean bells. :)

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Mar 28, 2013 Christy rated it really liked it

I felt completely pulled into the fantasy world of talking animals. I enjoyed the charm and pull between good and evil. The imagery was great.

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May 09, 2012 Rageofanath rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

It seems as though every book with anthropomorphic animal characters claims to be an “adventure in the great tradition of Watership Down and The Wind in the Willows.” Unfortunately not all anthropomorphic animal books meet the standards set by the tradition.

There are several good things about the book: It is well-written overall, the characters are generally believable, there’s lots of political intrigue (Many of the themes in the book come from Macbeth), and the artwork both on the cover and at It seems as though every book with anthropomorphic animal characters claims to be an “adventure in the great tradition of Watership Down and The Wind in the Willows.” Unfortunately not all anthropomorphic animal books meet the standards set by the tradition.

There are several good things about the book: It is well-written overall, the characters are generally believable, there’s lots of political intrigue (Many of the themes in the book come from Macbeth), and the artwork both on the cover and at the top of each chapter is outstanding. If it were to stand alone, it is a reasonable book for its target audience of children 8-12. Mistmantle should appeal more to the younger end of that range, for children who have graduated from the Eaglesmount Trilogy (Cherith Baldry) but might not be ready for 400 pages of Redwall or the darker subject matter of Watership Down. It is a reasonable run of the mill fantasy, it keeps you turning pages but has some problems with the plot and setting.

Now, the problems. Minor spoilers below... the plot is pretty predictable anyway.
First of all, in the setting nights with lots of meteorites are particularly special, and Urchin is found on one of these nights, which is made out to be this big, powerful secret. No one is supposed to know that Brother Fir and Crispin saw him fall from the sky because... well I don’t know why, and neither do they. This fact doesn’t seem to hold any real bearing on anything. Even when other characters find out, they say “Oh now that’s interesting, what a secret” and thats it. Husk gets a little worked up about it due to a vague prophecy, but he has other, more valid reasons to want Urchin dead so “he fell from the sky” seems trivial.

Speaking of prophecies, this plot device is overused and uninteresting but pervades many fantasy books, including Mistmantle. Most of the prophecies made in the book have to do with “taking down a ruler.” Boring, cliche, and totally unnecessary given the actual plot. Husk was playing a dangerous game and probably stood a reasonable chance at succeeding if he could keep the loyalty of those doing his dirty work. But when you’re so self-serving that those around you can taste it, failure is inevitable. However it also would have been unlikely that Husk could have held onto power had he taken it. He had realistic plans, but you need a non-cliche bad guy to pull off a successful coup and maintain power. A prophecy wasn’t necessary to keep this guy out of power and didn’t really play a strong role in the battle.

Also the “evil place” in the palace was a semi-acceptable plot device to push Husk over the edge from ambitious captain to regicide, but the ultimate solution was really lame.(view spoiler)I think that between the prophecies and the “evil place”, there are too many unnecessary and cliche plot devices for a characters that could take matters into their own hands.

Now the issues with the poorly-developed setting. I can get over the healfhearted monarchy because its so common in fantasy settings that it is almost expected. I’ve read so much fantasy that as soon as I read the words “king” or “queen,” I gnash my teeth and groan forcibly (much to the discomfort of the other subway riders). But maybe an 8 year old that has only read Chronicles of Narnia will be more forgiving. What bothers me more than the obligatory, boring, monarchy is the animal stereotypes.

I have given the Redwall series some heat for maintaining stereotypes about animals, where every weasel and rat is evil, every mouse strong spirited, every badger and hare ready to leap into battle, and every mole impossible to understand. I tend to be harsh on any series that falls into this trap, and Mistmantle does. It didn’t have to. It could have written characters that were just characters on their own, but no, “hedgehogs are loyal, squirrels are spirited, moles are reliable...” and so on. And of course, every character in the book fits the predetermined mold for its species. Ugh. The only positive I can give here is that at least the bad guy was the same race as the good guys.

All these faults can be put aside as minor compared to the most absurd part of the setting--casting lots to figure out the murderer. I seriously cannot believe that these creatures really thought that pulling names out of a hat was a good way to figure out a murder. It is by far the most hare-brained plot device ever conceived. As soon as they pulled out the leaves I admit that the book lost me for a while. It was only Padra and Arran, the strongest and most interesting characters, that pulled me back and bumped the rating up to “mediocre” rather than “travesty.” It just didn’t make sense--Crispin had an alibi! He was in a room with 3-5 people around the time of the murder, and still the animals just went with it and exiled him. I don’t think that shows the influence of Husk or even the ability of intelligent beings to fit pieces together that don’t belong, but rather, it shows that the author couldn’t be bothered to come up with a better way for Husk to frame Crispin. Husk was more devious and deserved better.

That being said, there was a bit of potential in the book to be great. If Mistmantle had stuck more to its strong Macbeth themes and trusted the strength of its own characters rather than giving in to arbitrary, unnecessary plot devices, it would have been a lot stronger and more interesting.
...more

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Aug 27, 2017 PeachClover rated it liked it

Recommends it for: Light Furry Adventure

On the hard to reach island of Mistmantle, a corrupted knight tries to take over the kingdom.
This book is best described as Redwall meets McBeth. Urchin does not play the part of a big hero, just a person who believes in what he is doing. I expected a pretty generic adventure and that is about what I got. I’m glad to say that this book has a little bit more religion in it’s characters than Redwall; the people of Mistmantle have a few sayings concerning “The Heart” and that gives a little cultur ...more

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Jul 17, 2017 Akos Hochrein rated it really liked it

I thoroughly enjoyed this read. McAllister builds a beautiful medieval universe, where vermin are fighting for survival and power with intrigue, charisma, bravery and strength. The story is about the adventures of Urchin, a brave, young squirrel, who was born under a lucky star and is trying to find his place on the island of Mistmantle, where higher powers are plotting against each other.

I'd recommend this read for anyone. Might exclude younger children (ironically), because there's some pretty ...more

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Jul 08, 2018 Antonio Talamantes rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-own

Treachery, adventure, sword battles, evil, bravery, kings and queens, talking animals, what not to love about Urchin? I've been putting off this book for a long time, and when I finally picked it from my shelves, just couldn't stop reading. If you're into fantasy mixed with castle-related topics this is your book. Can't wait to read the next one.

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Sep 18, 2017 Adinda rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

Eigenlijk ben ik aan deze trilogie begonnen vanwege het prachtige omslag, maar de inhoud mag er ook zijn. Het eerste deel vertelt een sympathiek en bij vlagen wat ruig verhaal: de dierlijke personages zorgen voor leuke of zelfs schattige passages, terwijl dood en verderf bepaald niet op de achtergrond blijven. Het einde is verrassend afgerond, waardoor het boek ook op zichzelf kan worden gelezen.

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