The Burning Bridge

This series so far has kept me reading well into the night when I should be sleeping!

What a great continuation of the story! I absolutely loved the character developments and the twists this book took. A classic fantasy that is fast paced!

I picked up Ranger's Apprentice: The Ruins of Gorlan with my Giftcard at Books-A-Million about a year ago, tucking the book home and quickly read it. It became one of my favorite series (right up there with Symphony of Ages by Elizabeth Haydon and The Obsidian trilogy by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory). I adored the book and placed it in with all my other treasures. Recently I got The Thief Queen's Daughter (The Lost Journals of Ven Polypheme) by Elizabeth Haydon in hardcover and read it under five hours. The book was fantastic, and I loved it! It being just as good as The Floating Island, the first novel of T.L.Js.O.V.P. I than recieved Ranger's Apprentice: The Burning Bridge by John Flanagan a few days later. I read the book under four hours. I loved it! The ending somewhat caught me off gaurd when Morgaroth dropped dead so easily, I was shocked. It astounded me that John Flanagan killed him off so easily, and it made me love the series more because this was something diffrent from all the other epic fantasy novels I've read in the past. Evil kept on fighting tooth and nail, not in this series, at least! And I actually started crying in the end when Halt waved and cried out for Will that he would come and find him after Will was taken aboard the Skanadian vessel! I can't wait for The Icebound Lake to come out in paperback! As well as the future novels: Ranger's Apprentice: The Oak Leaf Bearer, book 4. Ranger's Apprentice: The Sorcerer in the North, book 5. Ranger's Apprentice: The Siege of Macindow, book 6. Also, John Flanagan mentioned that he might write a book about Halt the Ranger, his past and training. Looking forward to see that book in the future, Flanagan!

This is the second book in the series of Ranger's Apprentice. I saw the first book and had to get it for my son. I thought it might be something he would enjoy reading. He wasn't interested so I read it myself and was very impressed. I couldn't wait for the second book to come out, which I have now read along with the entire series including book five. That is my only complaint. Why aren't the other titles out in the United States yet? Number three won't be released until June or July 2007 and Book Four won't come out until September of 2008. They already have them in Austrialla. They even have Book Five out now. This series is so capavating I couldn't wait to get the rest of the books to read. By the way my son finally read the first and second book and is now reading the third book. I had to purchase the last three books online from a bookstore in Austrialla but it was very much worth it. Especially book five: it was rivioting, I couldn't put it done. Now I am awaiting the release of book six in Austrialla so I can purchase that. I think these books are on parr with the Harry Potter Series. I find them much better than the Eragon Series, which I have also read, book two being disapointing for me and I haven't yet been able to finish it since it doesn't hold my attention. They diffenently need to make movies out of these books. My advice is to see if you can locate the remaining books and purchase them. Great Series! Five Stars!

This is the second page turner from Mr. Flanagan, following on the story of Gorlan's Ruins. I read Gorlan's Ruins and now this book to my third grader at bedtime. Even though the books are written for teens, my son picks up the book and reads it on his own because he can't wait to find out what happens next. And I have to admit, after my son fell asleep I had to read through to the end of the book to find out what happened next. I couldn't put it down. Excellent story and excellent writing, and like Harry Potter, it will be enjoyed by all ages. The only problem I have is, book #3 isn't available in the United States until September of 2007. However, my local library has "The Icebound Land" on its shelves, and I was surprised to find that if one googles "The Oak Leaf Bearers" you will find the book #4 is already available for purchase from Australian websites. I don't know why the release of the remainder of the series is delayed in the United States, but there's no reason for anyone with a credit card to wait.

With war threatening the borders of Araluen, apprentice ranger Will is sent on a diplomatic mission to Celtica. With him are Gilan, his master's first apprentice, and his friend Horace, a battle school apprentice. Expecting a routine journey, the three are unprepared for what they find. The villages of Celtica are deserted, and brigands wander the hills in search of abandoned treasure. The country is also crawling with Wargals, the fighting beasts that are under control of their enemy Morgorath. When a mysterious woman appears at their camp with the news that Morgorath has been abducting villagers, the three boys stumble across a plan that threatens their country and the lives of the people they love. Like the first book in John Flanagan's series, THE BURNING BRIDGE relies on typical fantasy tropes for its characters and setting. Araluen is clearly England, with Celtica standing in for Wales. There is a Dark Lord who controls fighting beasts, and our heroes are primarily untried boys. Readers who enjoy fantasy will find much that is familiar in this book. What makes The Ranger's Apprentice unique is the author's attention to strategy and combat techniques. Flanagan's war plans could be easily mapped to show natural obstacles and the movements of armies. The scenes involving combat are so specific, they could be acted out by readers. Even the training sequences are easy to follow and interesting to read, and unlike most fantasy adventures, the apprentices have lots of practice before being thrown into battle. Another interesting aspect of THE BURNING BRIDGE is the introduction of the Skandian mercenaries, who are clearly based on Norse raiders. The Skandians are crude and brutal, but they are not beasts like the Wargals, or without their honor. They are also one of the book's most unpredictable elements, as they are on no one's side but their own. This ambiguity makes for a much more interesting read than the usual battle between the forces of light and darkness. Ever since the success of Harry Potter, children's literature has been flooded with fantasy. The Ranger's Apprentice is more in line with Tolkien than Rowling, but its racing plot and likable characters offer fantasy fans a new series to read and love. --- Reviewed by Sarah A. Wood

I picked up the first book, because I was bored and had nothing better to do. The book just took me in and I read it in one day. Then I had to wait a whole week just get the second book. I was going crazy. I read the second book in a day. Now I am upset I did because that means I have to wait till September 1, 2007!!! I don't think I can wait that long. You know the saying a sequal ruins a book. Well truth be told I didn't want to read this book in fear it would ruin the first one, but I was sure wrong. This book just took me in. I was riding home from school and was actually laughing out loud. My friends were all staring at me. I told them about the book and more than half of them were reading it the next day. One last point to add is I HATE these kinds of books. I like to read books about the civil war and I have had a favorite book for 4 years but these just flew by that book. Anyone I see learns about what a great book this is. So if you are looking for a good read just pick up this book you will be so happy. A devoted reader, M.A