The Ruins of Gorlan (Ranger's Apprentice, #1) in SOS: Serious Overload of Series

Jun 20, 2010 Shannon rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: childrens, favorite-books, color-blue, fantasy, epic-fantasy, middle-grade, short, made-me-cry, 2012, color-black

This book was a pleasant surprise for me; I really had no expectations going in and I didn't read anyone's reviews beforehand so I ended up being completely blindsided by this awesome story, which is definitely a good thing! I'll admit I wasn't expecting much, I figured I'd get a good time-waster and a fun story, but I never thought I'd be moved to tears by the honor, loyalty, and friendships forged within.

This is the story of Will, an orphan raised with fellow wardmates, and it tells the tale o This book was a pleasant surprise for me; I really had no expectations going in and I didn't read anyone's reviews beforehand so I ended up being completely blindsided by this awesome story, which is definitely a good thing! I'll admit I wasn't expecting much, I figured I'd get a good time-waster and a fun story, but I never thought I'd be moved to tears by the honor, loyalty, and friendships forged within.

This is the story of Will, an orphan raised with fellow wardmates, and it tells the tale of his growth into a young man and Ranger, who are the eyes and ears for the fiefdom. At a certain age the castle wards each must choose a Craftmaster to study under, such as the castle's chef, Horsemaster, or Battlemaster. Young Will is a bit scrawny but he has always dreamt of becoming a mighty knight, because although he never knew his father he believes he died the heroic death of a brave knight. Unfortunately, the Baron has other plans for Will, and even though he's crestfallen at not being able to enter Battleschool, he has a much more important fate awaiting him: the Rangers.

Will is a great character - not too smart, not too cocky, not too bratty - but full of heart. In the beginning we get to meet him when he's still living with his friends before they've all chosen their crafts and it's shown that the kids don't always get along. There's a particular boy, Horace, who bullies Will relentlessly. Will isn't exactly an angel though as he ends up mouthing off to Horace and riling him up constantly. These two are at each other's throats for the majority of the book and it's fascinating watching their relationship change and mature. Two of the scenes with these boys were the ones that made me tear up. I don't know why it got to me, but their camaraderie really turned into something special in the end.

I also really enjoyed Will's budding master-apprentice relationship with the Ranger, Halt. Halt is a prickly character who (almost) never smiles. He's brutal on Will but he does so because he sees his potential. The last scene with these two at the end was another one that filled me with emotion because I couldn't help but feel proud for the two of them myself.

Will's point of view is the main one throughout most of the book, but we do get glimpses of what's going on in other characters' heads, and up until the halfway point almost each chapter switches back and forth between Will and Horace, though that didn't bother me at all. I really enjoyed the fact that even the horses, as well as some of the monsters, had thoughts that we were privy to, and I think this added some depth to the tale without being overwhelming or difficult to follow.

There are some really great themes throughout this story that I think are great for kids to read about. There's the aforementioned bullying and teasing that eventually gets resolved, there's emphasis on hard work and discipline, and there's the stress placed on following your gut and doing what's right. There are also monsters, archery, sword fighting, learning to sneak around unseen like an assassin, and all sorts of fun stuff that boys (and some girls) enjoy reading about. I think this would be a great book for reluctant readers since it's action-packed, suspenseful, and heartwarming as well. It's the type of book you can't put down because you need to know what happens next.

I really loved this book and I had no idea the wonderful story that it contained. This is a middle grade epic fantasy that I think people of all ages can enjoy, and I highly recommend you give it a shot. ...more

89 likes · Like · see review

Jul 02, 2010 Kristen rated it liked it

This was a cute quick little read. And I was pleasantly surprised by a few things.

So we have Will and a few others who are raised as wards of the Baron since their parents died. And we have the choosing day (felt a little like the selection day from City of Ember, but oh well) where they each choose what career paths they will be on. There are a few others, but Horace is really (as of the conclusion of book one anyway) that is of any real consequence to Will. They are "enemies" as Horace is a to This was a cute quick little read. And I was pleasantly surprised by a few things.

So we have Will and a few others who are raised as wards of the Baron since their parents died. And we have the choosing day (felt a little like the selection day from City of Ember, but oh well) where they each choose what career paths they will be on. There are a few others, but Horace is really (as of the conclusion of book one anyway) that is of any real consequence to Will. They are "enemies" as Horace is a total bully to Will. Will dreams of being accepted to battleschool. And on choosing day, of course, Will isn't accepted, but instead his decision is held off while the Baron and the Ranger, unbeknownst to Will, set Will up for an offer into a Ranger apprentice.

Rangers are the protectors and scouts and spies (etc.) who blend into the background but are smart and oh so important to the running of the kingdom. Will accepts his position into Ranger Apprentice (obviously, otherwise what good is the title of the series?) and begins his training. The book is fairly short so we don't get a whole lot of detail as to his training, but enough to get the general idea. In alternating chapters we get the story of Horace's training and we learn that the bully is now being bullied. And we learn that he has some special, natural skill with the sword. After some time training, the wards all meet up and there is a confrontation between Will and Horace. I was for sure convinced that this would be the beginning of a series long feud between the 2 youths. However, I was pleasantly surprised. I won't spoil, so I will leave it at that - but it really was nice to see how that turned out.

We see some action in a wild boar hunt, the hunt for the kalakaras (not sure I spelled that right, since I am doing this from memory) and the resolution to the hunt for the kalakaras. We see Will also come to some very grown up conclusions at the end of the book - which in my opinion felt a little rushed. I don't think we got enough character development to really understand where this came from, but it wasn't totally unexpected either (again, hence the name of the series is a big hint here). And we learn a little about Halt, the Ranger, too. Not much, but just enough to feel like we are being prepared for the rest of the series more then anything.

While this is a stand alone story, almost, it really felt like just prep work for what might be coming. A few additional pages/chapters giving us some additional character development, and tension (from an overall plot perspective) would have been welcome to me. The writing is ok, the dialogue is ok, but that's really just it. It's ok. I might check a few of the next ones out from the library, but there isn't enough to them, story or plot wise, for me to feel like I want to spend the $7.95 on the next ones.

I would guess these are for the younger side of the "young adult" audience, and the boys more generally, since the 2 young girls we meet could have disappeared from the pages entirely and you wouldn't miss them.

It was an ok way to spend an afternoon with nothing else to read, but I am on to other things next, totally unrelated to this series. When my nephew turns 7 or 8 I might consider giving my copy of this to him to see if he enjoys it more. ...more

Like · see review

Sep 21, 2008 Marla rated it really liked it

Shelves: series, middle-school, made-me-laugh, back-to-back, young-adult, recommend-frankie, boys, juvenile, adventure, zz-2008

Great YA book would appeal to boys as well as girls. A story about bullying and learning to appreciate your talents. One of my favorite series. Love the characters and their loyalty and the adventures they have together.

FYI: Book 7 - Erak's Ransom is chronologically between Book 4 Battle for Skandia/Oakleaf Bearers (same book different titles) and Book 5 The Sorcerer of the North. ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jan 19, 2010 Alisha rated it really liked it

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

2 likes · Like · see review

May 12, 2011 Jenifer rated it really liked it

Shelves: children-s-books

This was recommended by my ten year old son. I took his advice, read it and really enjoyed this book. My son is in the fourth grade and the book is more than appropriate for this age, although there are a couple of scary fight scenes that might frighten sensitive readers.

Like · see review

Dec 08, 2012 The Flooze marked it as to-read · review of another edition

Shelves: tales_for_tots_to_middle_grade, fantasy, owned

NYCC freebie.

Like · see review

May 15, 2010 Samantha wickedshizuku Tolleson rated it it was amazing

Shelves: reviewed, male-lead, make-the-kids-read, books-i-own, not-manga, favorites, 2012, life-lessons, read-it-again, title-r

This was a very enjoyable book, and recommend that you go to your nearest bookstore to get it. The adventure continues in book 2 which I will be starting on sometime this week.

Like · see review