Ranger's Apprentice by John Flanagan-Book Review

Ranger’s Apprentice: The Ruins of Gorlan Review

Ranger’s Apprentice: The Ruins of Gorlan is the first book in the exciting Ranger’s Apprentice series. In the beginning of the book, Will, the orphaned main character, is given the opportunity to choose which job he wants to have. After being rejected from all of his choices, Halt, a well-renowned ranger, chooses him as his apprentice. A ranger’s job is to protect the kingdom and its citizens. Will learns a lot throughout training before he learns some unexpected and terrifying news: that Lord Morgarath is back. Morgarath was an evil leader who was beaten years before and retreated to the safety of the mountains. He has started controlling Kalkara, horrific monsters that can easily paralyze and kill humans. Will and Halt go on an epic journey to hunt down the Kalkara. Little do they know, the Kalkara are actually hunting them down. Will is given the task to go summon knights to help fight the Kalkara. During the fight, all of the knights are either paralyzed or injured. When all hope seems lost, Will ends up saving multiple people’s lives and killing the Kalkara.

I really like the message that this book shares, that bravery can come from anyone, no matter their background, age, or experience. I think this is important to remember in society today since young people are often seen as foolish and unintelligent. I also like all of the details in the book. By reading these, it helps me imagine how it would have felt to be in the situations and places throughout the book. The details also help to develop the characters throughout the book. Will constantly grows stronger, both mentally and physically, throughout his training and adventures. You can also see his mentor, Halt, growing to accept him as well. Overall, the plot and character development in the book are quite good.
The only complaint I have about The Ruins of Gorlan is that the book starts really slowly and takes a while to get interesting. While the first part of the book is somewhat boring, it contains important background information about the characters. Even though this is important, I wish it could have been done in a more interesting way. However, the book makes up for this by having notstop action later.
In my opinion, The Ruins of Gorlan is a fantastic book for anyone to read. It has excellent character development, action, and plot lines. I would especially recommend it to people interested in medieval settings, action, and science fiction. I hope you guys decide to read the book!