Book Review: The Ranger’s Apprentice

I first heard of this book when I submitted a short story to my critique group and someone commented on my title. I had never heard of the Ranger’s Apprentice series so I was curious after my own story’s title, “The Mountain Ranger”, was compared to it. I’m very grateful I let my curiosity win and got this book!

Here’s a short blurb about the book:

The Ranger’s Apprentice by John Flanagan follows the story of Will, a boy who was orphaned and taken in as the castle’s ward. Upon his fifteenth birthday, he must be chosen by one of the Craftmasters to become an apprentice. Will dreams of becoming a knight and warrior, but he is rejected by the battleschool’s craftmaster. Crushed, Will is completely taken by surprise when a hidden test seals his fate as a Ranger’s apprentice.

Rangers are the mystical shadows that most people are terrified of, and Will is no exception. But soon he realizes that there’s more to these mysterious figures. As his highly skilled mentor trains him, Will soon finds himself a part of a kingdom-wide network racing against time in order to save the kingdom.

Throughout the pages, Will learns the ways of the Rangers, but will it be enough when the time to face the evil monsters arrives?

What I loved

Here is a list of the main things I loved about this book:

It’s upper middle-grade

I’ve discovered that I have a deep love for upper middle-grade, which isn’t meant for such a young audience as middle-grade but also isn’t full-fledged YA (Think The Captive Kingdom by Nielsen). This book hit the sweet spot in age range for me. It is great for younger readers but it’s way more than a simple children’s book. And this is not a diss against children’s fiction, because I also absolutely love it.

It has excellent use of omniscient POV

The last book I read in omniscient POV was a disappointment. It flitted from person to person and brain to brain so fast, it was hard to keep track of what, exactly, was going on in the story. But Flanagan pulled it off brilliantly in this book. It worked really well for the plot and character development without leaving me wanting or feeling like I was missing out on the MC’s growth.

It has strong character development

For the first book in a series, Will’s arc left me feeling satisfied as a reader. The book ends with the clear understanding that the story isn’t over, and yet I wasn’t left disappointed or feeling like the story was left unfinished. The character arc felt satisfying for a first book while leaving it open for plenty of growth later on.

It was meaningful

I appreciate a story that can be meaningful without being obviously preachy. For some reason, readers can always tell when a writer wants to get a message across. But Flanagan dealt wonderfully with themes such as honesty, courage, significance, searching for meaning, and even bullying in such a way that was natural and not forced. At the end, Will came to not only accept his path in life but embrace it, realizing that there are more ways than one to be a hero.

Final Thoughts

Overall, I consider this book a five-star read.

Like Will, many of us may be uncertain of the path life is leading us on, but at the end of the day we must remember that heroes, true heroes, can be found in different places. Let us embrace our calling, work with excellence, and live a life full of honesty and courage.

I really enjoyed this story and am looking forward to reading the rest of the series at some point. If you love upper middle-grade, I guarantee you will love this story.

Until next time,
Anna

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Photo by Hannah Mattern on Unsplash