by John Flanagan
ages: 10-14
First sentence: “Halt and Will had been trailing the Wargals for three days.”

When we last left our determined Hero, Will, he had just killed off a couple of Big Bad Guy Morgarath’s bad beasties, and received a hero’s welcome home. But, this being War, he is not allowed to rest. While the army and Rangers — including stodgy mentor Halt — prepare for the impending battle, Halt, his apprentice friend Horace, and Ranger Gilan head for Celtica to see if the king there will come to Aruelian’s aid.

Of course things go badly wrong, and Gilan heads back to the army to warn the king, while Gilan, Horace and a stray girl they picked up, Evelyn, follow later. Except they get sidetracked, and find out what Morgarath’s really up to. And because Will is determined, and plucky and brave and resourceful, he is able to find a way — with Horace and Evelyn’s help, of course — to stop (or at least slow down) Morgarath. Unfortunately, while his resourcefulness is no match for the Wargals, he and Evelyn are captured by the Skandians (another country, this one run by sea raiders whom Morgarath paid to help him), and at the end of the book, they are hauled off.

All that said, this is a blast to read (aloud). Next in the Ranger’s Apprentice series, it didn’t have any of the problems with exposition that the first one had. It came out with a bang, and managed to keep up the pace pretty much (go Horace!) throughout the whole novel. C lost interest, but I don’t think it was the book — she’s been heading off to her room to read by herself rather than asking me to read aloud to her. I’m sad to see the end of it, but M hit that point, too, and we still get along. 🙂 I ended up finishing this one on my own, and have every intention to keep going with the series (on occasion, when I’m in the mood for a good fantasy-war-action-hero book) on my own. Maybe C will even pick them up and then we can talk about them. I’d like that.