Ranger’s Apprentice Book 7: Erak’s Ransom by John Flanagan

Reviewed by Aashi

“He tried to shout. But the sound was inaudible even to his own ears, drowned by the triumphant shriek of the massive wind.” Have you ever been in a sandstorm as crazy as this? Because this book is like a whirlwind of excitement!

Erak’s Ransom by John Flanagan is about a boy named Will. He is an apprentice ranger to Halt, a hero in the Kingdom of Araluen. Rangers are characters of great mystique in the country. They train with a bow and arrow and are great at unseen movement. The ruler of an ally country, Skandia, is captured by the Governor of an enemy country called Arrida. So, Will, his master Halt, and his friends, Horace and Gilan, must escort the princess of Araluen, who will negotiate the ransom price, to Arrida. What starts off as an easy journey turns into an adventure when Will’s horse, Tug, runs off and Will goes on a journey across the desert to find him. Meanwhile, the small party from Araluen and the governor are captured by local bandits. Will is the only one who can save them.

The first reason I liked this book is because the characters have a lot of humor. They make a lot of funny comments, outsmarting each other with their dry wit. With the rangers, you can really see their acrabic nature, and they care for each other deeply. For example, when the party from Araluen is traveling on a skandian ship to Aridda, the captain is amused by Halt’s seasickness. After a few days once Halt gets over it, he drinks almost all of the captain’s favorite ale to get back at him.

Another reason I found this book simply amazing is the elaborate descriptions. You can really imagine the scenes happening and each of the characters. It is like watching a movie when the author describes how the rangers get captured. You can see all the effects of the different strategies both sides are using. The Arridans decide to make a shield wall to deflect the charging bandits. Horace helps fight off any bandits that manage to break through. These explanations make you feel that you are in the book itself!

I think this is a great book for people that like a story full of adventure and excitement. I would rate it a 10/10 because it is so amazing, I have read it multiple times! This novel is in a series called Ranger’s Apprentice, so make sure you read the previous books before this one. Now, go fast as an arrow to your local library and check it out!

Penguin Random Books LLC., 441 pages