The Bellmaker
Jacket cover of USA edition:
Joseph the Bellmaker is troubled. It has been four seasons since his warrior-mouse daughter, Mariel, and her companion, Dandin, set off from Redwall to fight evil in Mossflower. Nothing has been heard of them since. Then one night, in a dream, the legendary Martin the Warrior comes to the Bellmaker with a mysterious message. Clearly, Mariel and Dandin are in grave danger. Joseph and four Redwallers set off at once to aid them. As they push over land and sea, they cannot know the terrible threats they face: the impossible Foxwolf, Urgan Nagru, his mate Silvamord, and their vicious rat hordes. Can the impetuous sailor-otter Finbarr Galedeep help them cross the sea? What is the mystery of the Roaringburn? And most important, will the Bellmaker and his companions arrive in time to help Mariel and Dandin? Once again, master storyteller Brian Jacques blends high drama and swashbuckling adventure to create more of the Redwall magic that has enthralled readers of all ages around the world.
My rating: ********/10 stars
Main hero: Joseph the Bellmaker the mouse
Excerpt from Redwall Friend and Foe:
Visited in a dream by Martin the Warrior, Joseph is instructed to journey to Southsward where Mariel and Dandin need his help. With the royal family imprisoned and their castle overrun by the foxes Urgan Nagru and Silvamord, the creatures of Southsward are in a desperate situtation. But with his chosen friends, Joseph comes to their aid and helps the inhabitants to regain their independence.
Main villain: Urgan Nagru the fox
Excerpt from Redwall Friend and Foe:
Together with his mate, Silvamord, the fox Urgan Nagru commands a horde of savage gray rats. Driven from the northlands by the bitter cold, they come to Southsward to plunder and destroy. But the fox has not reckoned on the determination of the Southswarders who, led by Mariel, Dandin and other brave creatures, form an army to regain their freedom. Revealed as a fraud (the wolf he claims to have killed is said by Silvamord to have frozen to death), Urgan Nagru perishes in the battle against the brave sea otter, Finbarr Galedeep.
Badger hero/heroine: Muta
Excerpt from The Tribes of Redwall: Badgers
Far to the south of Mossflower, another community is under threat: Castle Floret, home of Gael Squirrelking, Queen Serena and their baby Truffen, has been occupied by Urgan Nagru the fox and his vermin horde. Muta, Truffen's faithful nurse, bears the weight of many seasons and cannot speak, but her courage is as great as any badger's, and she would give her life for her charge. Despite her fearful wounds, her berserk strength carries the day in the great Battle of Southsward, and with Truffen safe, she can rest once more.
Otter hero/heroine: Finnbarr Galedeep
Excerpt from The Tribes of Redwall: Otters
Finnbarr Galedeep lost his whole crew--including his wife and two sons--when searats captured his ship, the Pearl Queen. So the big sea otter is delight when Joseph the Bellmaker and his friends, seeking southward for Joseph's daughter Mariel, ask for his help. It is a chance to recover the Paerl Queen, and punish his enemies at the same time. His own mission accomplished, Finnbarr sails the questers to Southsward in time to join Mariel in the great battle against Urgan Nagru. Finnbarr himself slays the Foxwolf, although it costs him his life.
Pages: 336
Covers:
