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{{Book2|usimage=
<gallery>
PearlsOfLutraUS.jpg|U.S. HC
PoLPaperback.jpg|U.S. PB
PearlsOfLutraFirebird.jpg|U.S. PB
Pol10.jpg|U.S. 2010
</gallery>
|usimagecap=''Pearls of Lutra'', [[Book_Cover_Gallery#Pearls_of_Lutra|U.S. covers]]|year=[[1996]]|ill=[[Allan Curless]]|uscov=[[Troy Howell]]|ukcov=[[Chris Baker]]|pg=408|isbn=0399229469|isbn13=9780399229466|chron=11|pub=9|ukimage=
<gallery>
POLUKhardcover.jpg|UK HC
UKpolhutchpb.jpg|UK PB
UKPearlsOfLutraPB.jpg|UK PB
Polmodernuk.jpg|UK 06-07
</gallery>
|ukimagecap=''The Pearls of Lutra'', UK covers
|author=[[Brian Jacques]]
|publisher=*Philomel (U.S.)
*Hutchinson Children's Books (UK)
|prec=''[[Outcast of Redwall]]''
|fol=''[[The Long Patrol]]''
}}

'''''Pearls of Lutra''''' ('''''The Pearls of Lutra''''' in the UK) is the ninth published book in the ''Redwall'' saga by [[Brian Jacques]]. It [[Redwall Timeline|takes place]] after ''[[Mattimeo (book)|Mattimeo]]'' in terms of storyline, and serves as a sequel.

=== Book Divisions (English) ===
*'''Book 1:''' Six Tears for an Abbot
*'''Book 2:''' Westward the Warriors
*'''Book 3:''' When Tears Are Shed

=== Summary ===
When gathering herbs near the quarry in [[Mossflower Woods]], young Redwallers [[Abbess Tansy|Tansy]] and [[Abbot Arven|Arven]] come across a mysterious skeleton among the rocks. After experiencing disorientation in a rainstorm and subsequently failing to return to [[Redwall Abbey]] before the storm's breaking, the pair receive a rescue from [[Martin II]], the son of [[Mattimeo]] and current Abbey Champion. Tansy, a young, capable and intelligent hedgehog, piques Martin's curiosity. He quickly leads Redwallers back to the quarry to examine the strange bones. Along the way, they encounter two travelers, the irrepressible hare [[Cleckstarr Lepus Montisle|Clecky]] and his owl friend [[Gerul]].

Meanwhile, far across the western sea on the tropical isle of [[Sampetra]], trouble brewed via the emperor of all corsairs, [[Ublaz Mad Eyes]], a large, sinewy pine marten with a hypnotic stare. His [[Ublaz's Corsairs|elite forces]] were an army of barbaric native monitor lizards, led by [[Lask Frildur]], as well as a regiment of big searats that carried tridents as a mark of their rank, headed by [[Sagitar Sawfang]]. Ublaz directed the stoat captain [[Conva]] to obtain the [[Tears of all Oceans]], six perfectly spherical rose-pink pearls that were the valuable possessions of the otters of [[Holt Lutra]].

However, when Conva returned without them, Ublaz was quite unhappy. While Conva's crew murdered all of the holt's residents and secured the pearls, they were stolen by the weasel [[Graylunk]], who then fled into [[Mossflower Woods]]. Conva tracked him to Redwall Abbey, where Graylunk took refuge before returning to Sampetra.

The displeased Ublaz murdered Conva for his failure and sent an elite force of monitor lizards, headed by their general, Lask, and escorted by the ferret captain [[Romsca]] and her crew, to Mossflower to retrieve the pearls.

Far away on the western shores, [[Grath Longfletch]], a strong female otter and the daughter of the [[Lutra|Lutra chieftain]], was at the gates of [[Dark Forest]] before being found by a pair of bankvoles, who nursed her back to health. The otter fashioned a powerful bow and a quiver of green-fletched arrows, with which she planned on wreaking her revenge. She eliminated a longboat-crew of searats and took their boat southward into Mossflower, intent on finding the corsairs that slew her family.

Presently, Conva's brother [[Barranca]], a very popular corsair captain, docks his ship at Sampetra. When he discovers that Ublaz killed his brother, he hatches a plan to overthrow the pine marten and take the island for himself. With the fearsome Lask and a score of his lizards gone to Mossflower, Barranca decides to seize his chance. Many of the other captains back the wily stoat.

Back at Redwall, it is determined, with the help of the old bankvole recorder [[Rollo]], that the skeleton in the quarry was indeed Graylunk. He had become gravely injured in a fight with the weasel [[Flairnose]], whom he killed over the pearls before seeking safety at Redwall. There he befriended an old squirrel, [[Fermald the Ancient]], before he went off to die in Mossflower. Fermald had expertly hidden the pearls throughout the Abbey before passing away several seasons prior. Tansy and Rollo, along with the hedgehog's friends [[Craklyn]] the squirrel and [[Piknim]] the mouse, begin a search for the six exquisite pearls. The [[Dibbun]] Arven and his two partners in crime, the moles [[Diggum]] and [[Gurrbowl]], occasionally aid in the search. In Fermald's [[The Attic|attic]] the first hint is found in the form of a riddle and from there on, each pearl found comes with another riddle for finding the next one.

When [[Abbot Durral|Durral]], the mouse Abbot of Redwall, takes young [[Viola Bankvole]] for a stroll in Mossflower Woods, they are brutally captured by Lask and his troops. The evil Monitor General, along with Romsca, had successfully traversed the sea. Lask binds the pair and attempts to ransom them for the pearls at Redwall. However, the pearls had not yet been found, and Lask and his lizards take the two Redwallers back to the ship as their captives.

Martin, Clecky, Gerul, and [[Skipper (Pearls of Lutra)|Skipper]] pursue the lizards through Mossflower, slaying several but failing to rescue the Durral and Viola. Gerul and Skipper become wounded and are sent back to the Abbey, but the others chase the lizards to the western shore. There, they meet up with Grath Longfletch, who had caught sight of Romsca's ship, the ''[[Waveworm]]'', and attempted to pick off some of the vermin. She had also previously met up with the [[Guerilla Union of Shrews in Mossflower|Guosim]]. Durral helps Viola get to safety on the shore, but the ship departs before he can escape. Viola is sent back to Redwall with two shrews to guide her, and Grath, Clecky, Martin, and the [[Log-a-Log (Pearls of Lutra)|Log-a-Log]]'s two sons use discarded vermin boats to form the ''[[Freebeast]]'', a double-outrigger vessel with which they pursue Romsca, Lask and their captive Durral to Sampetra. Viola, who has sneaked aboard, also ends up coming along.

On Sampetra, the popular captain Barranca has been slain by [[Rasconza]], a clever fox corsair who takes over the rebellion against Ublaz. Sensing danger in the wily fox, Ublaz sabotages his ship, and Rasconza loses his entire crew with the sole exception of his steersrat, [[Guja]]. This treacherous act inspires Rasconza to intensify his revolt against the emperor, and Sampetra is plunged into all-out war.

During the search for the six pearls, the Redwaller friends slowly but surely find them all, though not without paying a hefty price. Piknim is slain by the cruel [[Scruvo|jackdaws]] at [[Saint Ninian's Church]] in an attempt to find a pearl there. The church is burnt down to prevent evil from using it again, and the quest resumes. All of the pearls are eventually found.

Martin, Grath, and their friends closely follow Romsca and Lask across the ocean and meet the otters of [[Holt Rudderwake]] along the way. [[Inbar Trueflight]], a skilled archer, joins the quest. When straying into the icy northern waters, they also meet with [[Hawm]], a massive grey seal, and his clan. The seals attach ropes to the ''Freebeast'' and power it forward at impressive speed.
[[Image:Ruspol2.jpg|thumb|right|[[Abbot Durral|Durral]] and [[Lask Frildur]] aboard the ''[[Waveworm]]'']]
Aboard the ''Waveworm'', Durral is underfed and mistreated, but Romsca protects him from the fierce violence and hunger of Lask's cruel monitor lizards. Lask and Romsca, who had been at odds with one another since the beginning, finally duel on the deck. Romsca slays Lask, but she's fatally injured in the process. Her crew, along with all of Lask's lizards, is completely decimated in the ensuing battle. Durral attempts to help Romsca, who had been kind to him. She confesses that she would like to have been goodhearted, and also gives the Abbot instructions on how to set the rudder to fix the ship toward Sampetra. As the last living creature on the ship, the Durral sails alone in the direction of the isle.

When Durral reaches Sampetra, Ublaz chains him up in his chamber. Meanwhile, the rebellious corsairs, led by Rasconza, attack the palace. Rasconza is eventually slain by Sagitar, who had defected from Ublaz. Rasconza mistook her for a traitor and killed her with a throwing dagger, and when Rasconza leaned over to hear what she said, she stabbed him, dying along with him.

When Martin, Clecky, Grath, Inbar, the shrews, and Viola arrive on Sampetra, battle ensues. Most of the monitor lizards and wave-vermin are killed, and Martin corners Ublaz alone in his palace. They duel, but Ublaz accidentally steps on a poisonous snake that he had hypnotized and kept as a pet. The snake bites him and he dies.

Durral is rescued and the warriors all return to Mossflower. Grath stays with Inbar at Holt Rudderwake, but the others meet Tansy and her friends at the shore. The young hedgehog has the pearls in her possession, but now that the truth of them has been realized - that they seemingly cause beasts to do evil, greedy things - Tansy casts them out into the sea to be forever lost. For her hard work, perseverance and aptitude, Tansy is made Abbess of Redwall to succeed Durral.

===Characters===
Please see [[:Category:Pearls of Lutra Characters|Characters in ''Pearls of Lutra'']].

===Audiobooks===
''Pearls of Lutra'' has been released on two different [[Redwall Audiobooks|audiobooks]].

<gallery widths="135" columns="4" captionalign="center" expand="true" navigation="true">
PearlsOfLutraAudio.jpg|Pearls of Lutra (1997)|link=Pearls of Lutra (1997 audiobook)
PearlsOfLutraAudio2.jpg|Pearls of Lutra (1997)|link=Pearls of Lutra (Putnam audiobook)
</gallery>

=== Trivia ===
*''Lutra'' is the Latin word for otter.
*''Pearls of Lutra'' was described as originally titled ''The Pearls of Woodthorp'' in a November [[1995]] ''Locus'' magazine interview with Brian Jacques.

=== Release details ===
*1996, UK, Hutchinson Children's Books Ltd., {{ISBN|0091765366}}, Pub. Date: July 1996, Hardcover
*1996, UK, Hutchinson Children's Books Ltd., {{ISBN|9780091765491}}, Pub Date: 1996, Paperback
*[[1997]], US, Philomel Books, {{ISBN|9780399229466}}, Pub. Date: January 1997, Hardcover
*1997, UK, Red Fox, {{ISBN|9780099638711}}, Pub. Date: 1997, Paperback
*[[1998]], US, Ace, {{ISBN|9780441005086}}, Pub. Date: February 1998, Paperback
*[[2004]], US, Puffin, {{ISBN|9780142401446}}, Pub. Date: May 2004, Paperback
*[[2007]], UK, Red Fox, {{ISBN|1862302464}}, Pub. Date: August 2007, Paperback
*2007, US, Red Fox, {{ISBN|1862302464}}, Pub. Date: September 2007, Paperback
*[[2010]], US, Firebird Books, {{ISBN|9780142401446}}, Pub. Date: January 2010, Paperback

9780099638711
{{books}}
[[ru:Жемчуг Лутры]]
[[Category:Books]]
[[Category:Redwall Books]]

Pearls of Lutra - Revision history

imported>LordTBT at 19:19, 31 December 2025