Title: Death of a Hero
Author: John Flanagan
Series: The Ranger’s Apprentice #0.5
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 entire army had heard of Halt’s feats during the battle.

Death Of A Hero is a tale in The Lost Stories, where Halt tells Will about his father Daniel’s death in greater detail, and how his mother really dies.

The cryptic message left behind with Will lead to many things throughout the series, especially The Ruins of Gorlan. Not only did it make Will believe that he should have been a knight (after all, his father was a hero), but it also shrouded him in an air of mystery that was both a blessing and a curse. Discovering the true story behind his orphanhood and his heroic father, like all tales, was better than what the character imagined.

Starting Death of a Hero with Halt’s retelling of the tale helped to add an extra layer of realism to this tale. His guilt and insecurity at relaying such a story carry forth the potence of the truth, and his willingness to take the consequences for a past that he couldn’t control show not only the integrity of his character, but also the power that the truth can carry over our lives. I loved the power that this flashback between the present (in the storyline) and past granted towards the tale.

This short story showed that although much of Will’s strength of character and integrity belong to himself, and his mentors, there is also a strong essence of his parents within him. Both died trying to save a complete stranger, and their dying concerns were for their son, their family. This willingness to sacrifice oneself in an attempt to protect others, and the overarching concern for family and friends is what carries Will through all of the adventures in this series. It’s also what tends to get him in some tight spots – he constantly gets in trouble because he tries to get others out of it.

Image source: Wikipedia