Title: The Lost Stories
Author: John Flanagan
Series: The Ranger’s Apprentice #11
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: Then he nodded, understanding the request.

Everyone knows the legends of the Rangers of Araluen. But no  one has heard the whole story – until now. Has Halt told Will the truth about how Will became an orphan? Did Gilan track down Morgarath’s lieutenant after the battle of Three Step Pass? Is tehre to be a royal wedding – or will tragedy strike first?

Inspired by questions and letters sent by his loyal readers, John Flanagan answers all your burning questions about the world of the Rangers.

If you want to know what’s gone before and what comes next for Will, Halt, Horace, Alyss, Evanlyn and Gilan – not to mention a certain stubborn little pony – The Lost Stories is an unmissable read.

I’m beginning to think that all good series need a collection of short stories to go with them. It helps to round out storylines that don’t actually have a place in the main series, but still hold a place in our hearts. The Lost Stories did exactly this. Not only did it help to answer some of the unanswered questions throughout the series – both the ones I knew to ask, and the ones I had no idea I needed answered until I read the tale.

When I originally read this novel, it was the end of The Ranger’s Apprentice series at the time – at least for the foreseeable future. Now, it isn’t, but it still helps to tie off some of the storylines that have woven throughout the rest of the series. Reading this collection will give any fan of Will Treaty and his friends a feeling of completion and contentment.

Image source: Wikipedia

Title: The Wolf
Author: John Flanagan
Series: The Ranger’s Apprentice #10.9
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: We should mention it to Bob.

Will is tasked with tracking down and killing a lone wolf who has been creating havoc in the local villages.

The relationship between the Rangers and their mounts is definitely a thing of folklore within The Ranger’s Apprentice series. Their connection is beautifully uncanny and lasts through the years of conflict and danger that each Ranger must undergo. However, I never quite thought about, or even understood (once I did think about it) how the Ranger’s could keep one mount for such a long period. After all, a human’s life span, and even the period over which they are able to work is much longer than that of a horse’s working life span.

This story is a great way to explain the reasons why Ranger’s horses last for so long. Although it starts with a rogue wolf, the explanation of Tug’s replacement and how this occurs for all Ranger’s horses is actually really clever. It is something that, although it is often fanciful, it is actually kind of plausible and makes a poetic kind of sense.

Image source: Wikipedia

Title: And About Time, Too…
Author: John Flanagan
Series: The Ranger’s Apprentice #10.8
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: ‘It meandered down a slight slope, taking the line of least resistance, to a small stream that was a tributary of the Tarbus River.

Will and Alyss’ wedding.

I’ve been looking forward to Will and Alyss’ wedding ever since The Sorcerer in the North. So, to have a very sweet, intimate short story that tells of their picturesque ceremony bought more than a tear to my eye. Where the story of Evanlyn and Horace’s wedding was filled with fanfare and drama, Will’s and Alyss’ was simple and small – something that actually seems like the most perfect wedding in my eyes.

The lack of drama and violence within this story, although unexpected, was kind of nice. It made the idea of Will and Alyss tying the note even more endearing. And, Halt’s presence and comments throughout just topped off the feeling of completion that this last story in The Lost Stories exuded.

Image source: Wikipedia

Title: The Bridal Dance
Author: John Flanagan
Series: The Ranger’s Apprentice #10.7
In: The Lost Stories (John Flanagan)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Australian authors, Easy reading, Medieval fantasy
Pace: Medium
Format: Short Story
Publisher: Random House Australia
Year: 2011
5th sentence, 74th page: ‘Shouting and blustering right from the outset, on the other hand, often served to put a person on the defensive.

The Bridal Dance is about Horace and Cassandra’s wedding.

I can’t imagine a greater hell (and more complex act) than organising a wedding. Especially one for royalty. Include in that the fact that there is the threat of assassins hanging over the festivities, and you have a great short story. Will’s love for, and dedication to those he calls family shines through this story and acts as a reminder that sometimes, even in spite of what everyone else says, we have to follow our instincts.

Following Purple Prose, Will’s preoccupation with his speech for Horace and Evanlyn’s wedding has lessened, and, his eventual words are worthy of all the work that went before. The return of the Genovesans and Will’s missing of yet another bridal dance make this a great little side story. Horace and Evanlyn’s engagement was a beautiful ending to The Emperor of Nihon-Ja, but it was still fulfilling to read about their actual wedding day.

Image source: Wikipedia

Title: Dinner for Five
Author: John Flanagan
Series: The Ranger’s Apprentice #10.6
In: The Lost Stories (John Flanagan)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Australian authors, Easy reading, Medieval fantasy
Pace: Medium
Format: Short Story
Publisher: Random House Australia
Year: 2011
5th sentence, 74th page: ‘Outside in the street, they could hear shouting and the sound of running feet.

Dinner For Five is a short story appearing in The Lost Stories about a date between Jenny and Gilan, and three thieves who disrupt their plans.

Jenny and Gilan is a relationship that I didn’t quite see coming – but, surprisingly it works. So, a short story about this out-of-the-spotlight couple was a perfect edition to the collection of short stories in The Lost Stories. And, like all Ranger’s Apprentice stories, there is an element of crime, subterfuge and justice. Dinner for Five is a great little side line that reminds us that, even when they are not necessarily trained, women (like Jenny) are able to take care of themselves and defend those that they love.

There’s something to be said for the protective instinct in people (and literary characters) – it is an amazing driver. Although it is originally Jenny herself that is in danger, it isn’t until someone that she loves becomes endangered that she truly decides to take control of the situation. It is this, and her final sobs when she realises that her dinner is ruined that makes her such a sweet and endearing character. I love that beside diplomatic Alyss and feisty Evanlyn, there is a nurturing, motherly woman.

Image source: Wikipedia

Title: Purple Prose
Author: John Flanagan
Series: The Ranger’s Apprentice #10.5
In: The Lost Stories (John Flanagan)
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Australian authors, Easy reading, Medieval fantasy
Pace: Medium
Format: Short Story
Publisher: Random House Australia
Year: 2011
5th sentence, 74th page: ‘Redmont’s Battleschool was one of the best in the country and Will’s assessments were almost always in the ‘Excellent’ range.

Moondarkers, a band of people who lure ships onto rocks so they will crash, are active in Araluen.  It is up to Halt and Will to stop them.

Trying to tell people how deeply you care about them, and what they truly mean to you is difficult under the best of circumstances. Doing so in front of hundreds of others, and in a formal setting? I can’t imagine how horrifying and intimidating that could be. Yet, Will deals with this pressure in a fairly unique way – he becomes so flamboyant with his words that even I, who loves convoluted sentences, found the terms used irritating and difficult.

Although Will spends the entirety of Purple Prose struggling to find the words to tell Horace and Evanlyn how wonderful they are, this isn’t the only tale within the story. After all, a Ranger writing a speech makes a boring tale. However, as a side story, it works quite brilliantly. While Halt and Will struggle to stop ship wreckers, he is constantly plagued by doubt and confusion. The conclusion of their battle is only outweighed by the final creation of a speech that is actually worth listening to.

Image source: Wikipedia

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

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