Title: The Hibernian
Author: John Flanagan
Series: The Ranger’s Apprentice #0.25
In: The Lost Stories (John Flanagan)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Australian authors, Easy reading, Medieval fantasy
Pace: Medium
Format: Short Story
Publisher: Random House Australia
Year: 2011
5th sentence, 74th page: The King doesn’t know what’s going on.

In this tale, the story tells of how Halt and Crowley first came to meet. Crowley’s mentor was Pritchard who had recently been banished for a trumped-up charge of treason against the king.

In The Kings of Clonmel, we discovered Halt’s history, and, throughout the Ranger’s Apprentice series, his current place in the world is incredibly clear. But, it’s always been a little difficult to understand how Halt went from fleeing his crown to befriending Crowley and saving Araluen. Luckily, Flanagan decided to write The Hibernian to explain this fateful moment in both characters’ lives.

The Hibernian also provides a great insight into the political and social landscape of Araluen before Duncan took over as King. It supplies a greater view of Morgarath as the scheming usurper to the throne and just generally shows the insurmountable odds that both Crowley and Halt faced down. Halt’s natural integrity and veracity are what carry him through this journey as he finds an unlikely kinsman in the firey Crowley, who is honestly more of a dreamer than I imagined Halt’s closest friend would ever be.

Image source: Wikipedia