The Ruins of Gorlan
Will is small for his age, but agile and energetic. All his life, he has dreamed of becoming a great knight like the father he never knew, so he is devastated when he is rejected as an apprentice to Castle Redmont's Battleschool. Instead he is apprenticed to Halt, the mysterious Ranger whose uncanny ability to move unseen is thought to be the result of black magic. Reluctantly, Will learns to use a Ranger's secret weapons: a bow and arrow, a mottled cloak and a stubborn little pony. It may not be the sword and battle horse he longs for, but when Will and Halt set out on a desperate mission to prevent the assassination of the King, Will finds that a Ranger's weapons are not so useless after all...
Children's Book Council of Australia Notable Book 2005, Finalist for the 2004 Aurealis Award - Children's Novel, Rebecca Caudill Young Reader's Book Award Nominee 2008
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About the Ranger's Apprentice Series
Books in series order
- 1.The Ruins of Gorlan(2004)
- 2.The Burning Bridge(2005)
- 3.The Icebound Land(2005)
- 4.Oakleaf Bearers(2006)
- 5.The Sorcerer in the North(2006)
- 6.The Siege of Macindaw(2007)
- 7.Erak's Ransom(2007)
- 8.The Kings of Clonmel(2008)
- 9.Halt's Peril(2009)
- 10.The Emperor of Nihon-Ja(2010)
- 11.The Lost Stories(2011)
Reading age: 10+ years
This series should be read in order.
They move silent as shadows. They climb impossible heights. Their archery skills are unsurpassed: they are Rangers. Read the mega-bestselling series about Will and his friends from Castle Redmont.
Each Ranger is an expert archer, and highly skilled at tracking, concealment and unseen movement. Rangers ride a special breed of horse that looks nondescript, but has amazing speed and almost limitless endurance. A Ranger horse will respond only to its master, will warn of danger, and respond instinctively to the Ranger's commands. There are fifty Rangers in the Corps, one for each of the Kingdom's Fiefs. Although they work with the Barons, the Rangers answer only to the King. In time of war they work with the highest commanders of the King's army, giving tactical advice and providing intelligence on the enemy's movements. Occasionally, a young man who is judged to have the right qualities will become a Ranger.
Note: The Royal Ranger, originally book 12 in this series, is now the start of a new series featuring Maddie, Ranger's Apprentice: The Royal Ranger.