Waverider

Waverider is the ninth and final installation in the bestselling Amulet graphic novel series by Kazu Kibuishi. Waverider was published by Graphix, an imprint of Scholastic in 2024. The Amulet series is an all-ages fantasy adventure graphic novel series that follows protagonist Emily Hayes and her younger brother, Navin, after they discover a magical amulet that allows them to enter a magical world called Alledia to rescue their kidnapped mother. As Emily learns to use her powers as a “stonekeeper,” she must fight against the evil Elf King, liberate people from the shadows (alien creatures that can possess others), and learn her own familial connection to the world of Alledia.

The highly acclaimed Amulet series has been a New York Times bestseller and is currently in development to become a television series. In the final installation of the series, Emily must grapple with losing control of her powers and stand up to the shadows and an antagonistic program/entity called IKOL. Through her story, the novel explores themes that include The Struggle Between Darkness and Light, The Benefits of Collaborative Leadership, and The Complexity of Autonomy,

This study guide uses the 2024 Graphix eBook edition.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of death.

Plot Summary

The book opens where the prior installment left off: with Emily flying through space in an effort to find her family and return to Earth. As she does, she must contend with a mysterious entity named IKOL who managed to subdue her in Supernova. While IKOL believes control is necessary for order, Emily rejects his philosophy and uses her power to liberate shadow-corrupted beings. However, she overuses her power while transporting vehicles to safety and passes out.

Meanwhile, the rebel prince, Trellis (son of the Elf King), and his group reach Valcor, the elves’ kingdom, which Emily has given him permission to rebuild following the many conflicts that have occurred. They discover the realm is full of miserable and destitute elves. Gabilan, the temporary ruler, challenges Trellis’s claim to the throne. Instead of seizing power by force, Trellis supports Gabilan’s rule while they collectively prepare for an impending shadow invasion. Gabilan doubts Emily’s ability to bring peace due to an incident in a prior installment where she lost control of her powers.

Emily again confronts IKOL, who visits her in the form of Silas Charnon, her grandfather and a stonekeeper himself. She fights off shadows and rescues a group of soldiers, impressing a pilot who promises to tell her story. She liberates two giant monsters from shadows and reveals their true identities as Cora and Cala, two giant flying spider beasts who promise to help Emily find her family.

Vigo, a stonekeeper and Emily’s mentor, reconnects with Ronin, a powerful builder, who has been secretly training a new generation of stonekeepers to build. Her students have the ability to liberate people from the shadow curse and surf alternate realities. Ronin has taught them to lose control of their power, visit the void, and come back on the other side prepared to harness their power for good. She intends for them to be the new Guardian Council: a group of stonekeepers that formerly ruled Alledia from Cielis and was responsible for relocating the city in the clouds following conflict with the elves.

While resting during her journey with Cora and Cala, Emily confronts IKOL, realizing he is a program created by Silas Charnon. IKOL shows her unseen machine people from another reality who need her help. He tries to convince her to come back to Earth, but Emily refuses to abandon the people of Alledia. She receives a message from her future self that will lead her to her parents in the form of a golden firefly.

Meanwhile, Trellis doubts his decision to step away from the throne. The young stonekeepers begin the difficult process of liberating citizens of Cielis from shadows. They also visit the engine core and learn that Cielis is sinking without the mother stone (the stone from which all the amulets derive). The old leaders resist the idea of bringing the city down to the ground, but the young stonekeepers believe it is time. They begin working to bring the floating city down and restore it to its rightful place on the ground.

Navin and Aly, a resistance fighter and Navin’s girlfriend, hike up a snowy mountain to return a gadoba sapling to its habitat. They return to their base and learn that stonekeeper giants under the control of shadows are headed for their camp and that they will have to fight. The resistance general explains that the rest of the resistance forces have been defeated and that anyone left will have to give their lives to launch an all-out attack on the shadow base. Navin does not believe that Emily is dead, but the situation is dire: The shadows overwhelm their defenses and enter their mech. Navin hugs his mother as the shadows close in around them. Emily arrives just in time, calling on the machine from the other dimension to help her enter the mech without damaging it. She blasts the shadows away and commands Navin to get everyone to safety. 

Emily then leaps into IKOL and confronts him herself. IKOL tries to get into her head, taking the form of her father and arguing that the world is broken and that he’s the only one who can fix it. Emily sees through all of his tactics and calls him a spoiled brat. She realizes he feeds on her anger and that she must forgive him and herself for everything they have done. IKOL shrinks before her, and she blows him away. She passes back into her world and wakes up surrounded by her friends. The shadows have all disappeared and the fighting is over.

The elves offer Emily leadership of the Guardian Council, but she declines, opting instead to help Cielis return to the ground. Using their powers, she and her allies hyperjump to the city, where the young stonekeepers try to use their giant forms to guide the descent. When West nearly loses control, Trellis steps into a new leadership role on the Guardian Council. He decides that they all must work together to guide the city down rather than relying on any one source of power.

When they realize that IKOL is the one who nearly caused West to lose control, Vigo sacrifices himself to contain IKOL, vanishing into an illusion. He studies IKOL for years and finally escapes, landing 300 years in the past. He writes The Book of Light, leaving behind a guide for Emily that she finds in the narrative present. Now, she realizes her journey isn’t over—she must return to Earth to confront the source of it all.

Reflecting on her growth after returning home, Emily embraces life’s uncertainties and prepares for the next step, holding onto the light she has found within herself.