The Ruins of Gorlan
Ratings177
Average rating4
I remember reading this and enjoying the other books in the series. Great for early readers.
Yeah, this is a good book. It's a short, easy read that never left me feeling bored or asking “wtf?” the whole time.
I liked the sparse worldbuilding (it was enough to pique my interest, but I would've liked more details), and I liked the description of all the farmland surrounding the castle.
The monsters were cool, and I kinda wished the fight with the Kalkara at the end lasted a little longer. Same thing with earlier fight with the boars.
I liked that the relationships with his long-time friends wasn't obnoxious. I was worried when Will and Horace had their little spat (I know why it happened and the amount of stress they were under makes it make sense), I was worried it was gonna turn into some Harry-Draco-esque rivalry. It didn't and I can't wait to see how that turns out.
The girls are kind of there, but I imagine they'll be fleshed out later since they didn't really get POV sections in this book.
Grouchy Halt smiling at the end of the book was cathartic—the following scene when he developed Will's backstory and strengthenes their bond was great. If (when?) they kill this man I'm gonna riot.
All-in-all, good book, I'll definitely read the sequels.
A great YA novel about a boy discovering who he could become and making friends out of enemies along the way. Its length and tone make it great for younger readers.
Age range: 10-16
Older readers may find it a little boring, despite the characters being much more mature than in other YA books.
Overview: A good adventure and an excellent introduction to epic fantasy for a younger reader. A short cozy read for a more experienced reader
This book was given to me as a gift by some awesome young people, and I'm very grateful as it was a really good fun read. The story follows Will, an orphan boy who has been brought up as a “Castle Ward”. It is time for “The Choosing”, a ceremony in which he will be chosen by a guild for training. Poor Will is too small to be of much use to anyone, he thinks, until he he selected by the local Ranger for training. Adventures ensue...
I'm giving this 2 stars, but let me be clear, it's not because it's not a good book. I can tell that if I had read this when younger, I would have devoured it and absolutely loved the series. It's very good for a fantasy YA, but I think my personal tastes, now that I'm an adult, run in a different direction. There were too many things that felt like plot holes to me (the big bad villain has been exiled in a wasteland for 15 years, yet they talk about how he's hiring lots of mercenaries who will work for anyone who gives them lots of money - where is he getting this money?! He's exiled, alone! etc) and the story was enjoyable but very predictable, and the characters were fairly stereotypical and didn't have much depth. All that said, if you like YA fantasy, or you have younger kids/teenagers who like fantasy, I think this will be a very enjoyable read for you.
This book surprised me!
I wasn't sure exactly what to expect, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading this.
The characters are likeable, even ones I wasn't sure I would like. The humor can be subtle, yet heartwarming. The book doesn't have that “first book” feel many other new series books are having: aka not a ton of info dumping or preparation of action with no action.
This was a quick, enjoyable read and reads young, but is still fun for older readers as well.
I look forward to reading the next book!
Rated: 3.5/5
An easy to read, fun-filled adventure with likable characters. Fast paced and well written. As it is written for a younger audience, I wasn't impressed with the presentation of the character–as they seem to all be masters already at such a young age, without much effort–and I would have liked more conflict between the characters and especially in the climactic ending, I wish it would have gone on a bit longer than it did.
Brilliantly written book, with some vibrant and varying characters. A good one to take on as a singular story (I don't like the follow up, and gave up halfway through the second).
This was a surprise! I would never have picked it up on my own, but the MA TBC chose it for October, and I put off starting it for a while. This was a page turner, my attention was grabbed from the second chapter. Will is a great character. If I do not get to any other books in the series, it will only be due to lack of time.
I can't wait to see what the teens thought about it. Also, I wish I knew someone else who read this and the Assassin's Apprentice (Robin Hobb) because there are some great compare/contrast points there.
This is a fun book. I really liked it. It is directed to young adults so expect that. I liked it so much I might just buy the series. I never do that!