The Kings of Clonmel: Book Eight

The Kings of Clonmel (2010) is the eighth Fantasy novel in the Ranger Apprentice series, following The Siege of Macindaw. In the previous volume, the Skandians went over the wall into the castle. Horace finally met Buttle in open combat. Keren fell out of a tower window. While Alyss was in a trance, Will expressed his love for her. Then he was worried that she would reject him and she was not sure of what he said. So neither spoke of love at the time. But then Will received a letter from Alyss after returning to Seacliff fief. In this novel, Will Treaty is a full Ranger of Araluen stationed in Seacliff fief. He and Alyss have fallen in love. Alyss Mainwaring is a Courier. She was raised with Will and loves the Ranger. Halt is Will's mentor. Although Will now has his own fief, he still considers himself as Halt's apprentice. Horace is the Oakleaf Knight, a prodigal with a sword. He has known Will and Alyss since early childhood. He has also assisted Halt in several missions. In this story, Will and Gilan are going to the annual Gathering. They are among the first to arrive, but Halt is not there. Crowley tells them that Halt has another mission. After the Gathering, Crowley tells Will about plans to start a Special Task Group under Halt. Will would transfer back to Redmont Fief and become Halt's assistant. And Horace would be part of the Group. Gilan -- recently transferred to Whitby fief nearby -- would take care of both fiefs if Halt and Will went elsewhere on a mission. Naturally, Will accepts the reassignment. The chance to be near Alyss is too good to refuse. And Will has definitely enjoyed missions with Halt and Horace. Meanwhile, Halt has left Araluen to go to Selsey, a nearby fishermen's village on the sea coast. A religious organization has appeared there and Halt thinks them to be very much like the Outsiders group he has encountered in the past. They had pretended to be priests and acolytes of the god Alseiass and had solicited gold and other valuables to turn aside threats from another god. Sure enough, the religious group is from the Outsiders. Some of them are staying in the background and committing crimes against property and persons. Then their leader is offering to drive away the bandits if their god is sufficiently awarded. Hurt foils that plan and takes a prisoner back to Redmont. There he joins Will and Crowley for dinner at the inn. After dining, Halt tells them what he had learned and the first mission of the Special Task Group begins. Halt now knows that the main organization is working in Hibernia. They have already taken control of five of the six kingdoms and are working in Clonmel. It just happens that the King of Clonmel is Halt's twin brother. Halt, Will and Horace travel to Selsey and get a lift on a fishing boat to the Hibernian coast. After unloading their horses and gear, they head toward Dun Kilty, the King's castle. They pass through Craikennis and learn of a raid in near

According to my son, this book maintained the same energy and style as the first books. Book 7 had him worried that things were slowing down. He read using every available moment and consumed this book with more enthusiasm than ever. John Flanagan has my respect as he is able to write books in such a way to create enthusiastic young readers in a time when video games draw kids in. My son is now 15, but he has been reading this series throughout his younger years and goes back to the Ranger's Apprentice Books when he can't find something new to read. My 10 year old son is starting to read these as well. For any parent looking to buy a book for their kids, especially kids who love action, mixed with humor and epic story lines, John Flanagan delivers it with the Ranger's Apprentice Series!

The ranger Halt's past has always been a mystery, even to his apprentice Will. But his past is revealed in "Ranger's Apprentice: The Kings of Clonmel," the eighth fantasy novel about the skilled and elusive Rangers and the land of Araluen. John Flanagan's smooth solid writing is in top form here, and he neatly weaves together two fascinating subplots -- one about Halt's past, and the other about a toxic cult. While Will attends the Gathering, Halt is off investigating a cult that has recently popped up -- the Outsiders, a warm'n'fuzzy religion that uses psychology and hired bandits to fleece believers of all their gold. And though Halt is able to save the village in question, he finds that the Outsiders' next target is the kingdom of Hibernia, his own homeland. Unfortunately, King Ferris is a weak and cowardly king... and he's got a very special connection to Halt. It doesn't take long for Will, Horace and Halt to find the Outsiders and their charismatic leader Tennyson, who are rapidly converting the Hibernian populace to his false religion. But Tennyson doesn't realize that he's being stealthily sabotaged by the Rangers, who plan to use an ancient Hibernian legend against the con-man prophet and his false god. John Flanagan seems to be revving up the Ranger's Apprentice series for a whole new arc, this one centering on Tennyson and the insidious gold-leeching cult. "The Kings of Clonmel" is wrapped up tidily at the end, but Flanagan leaves the door open for the next book. But the big draw of this particular book is the revelation of who Halt was before he became a Ranger -- and it comes as a bit of a shock. Along the way, Flanagan weaves together a complex plot that drips with lots of tautly-written action, political manipulation, clever deceptions, and quite a bit of tongue-in-cheek humor ("You're certainly not going to shave me in tea!"). The first few chapters are a bit on the slow side, but once our heroes head to Hibernia it becomes a brilliant adventure tale... with a subtle message on how easily people are swayed into doing terrible things. Will and Horace have come a long way from the unsure, naive boys they were at the series' beginning. Will is now a confident, skilled Ranger who is teaching the younger apprentices, and Horace is equally confident and skilled as a heroic young knight. The only flaw is that Alyss is still kind of a pale, 2-D love interest. On the flipside, Flanagan has you wishing a meteor would fall and squash the devious Tennyson and paranoid, pathetic Ferris. As for Halt... well, he's been a mystery for far too long, and Flanagan finally reveals where he came from, who his family is/was, and the reason he left. And as we're often reminded, he's not as young as he once was. "The Kings of Clonmel" is a thoroughly entertaining fantasy adventure, which is all tied up in the long-hidden past of the Ranger Halt. And it leaves you eagerly waiting for the next installment.

I have been reading the Ranger books for sometime now. I must say though this is one of the best. The only thing I would suggest is that you check the local libaries if they have them, Because I brought 5-8 and they came in the libary two days after. Bad luck huh!

I eagerly awaited this as it arrived from Abbeys Book in Australia. It took less than a day to devour it. True to the rest of the series, Mr. Flanagan belts out another amazing edition to the Ranger's Apprentice. This time, Will and friends find themselves in Ireland (Hibernia) chasing after religious wackos. The dialogue between Horace, Will and Halt are hilarious. This is by far the funniest book of the series. John Flanagan covers the story well, brings out the personalities nicely, and wraps the whole story into a wonderful and enchanting end. I look forward to book 9!