Book review| The Burning Bridge by John Flanagan

July 14, 2021

Author: John Flanagan

Published on: July, 14, 2O21

Publisher: Luna Van den Borre

Genre: Fiction, Fantasy, Young Adult

Book Blurb

"Bracing for a final clash with the evil warlord Morgarath, the Rangers rally the kingdom's allies, and Will is chosen, along with his friend Horace, as special envoys to nearby Celtica. But the simple mission soon takes an unsettling turn - the Celticans have disappeared, their town abandoned. The scheming hand of Morgarath, it seems, has been far from idle. He has found a way to bring his legions over the once impassible eastern mountains and is planning to ambush the king's army in a rout. Now with help many miles away, Will and Horace are the only ones standing in the way of the dark lord's plans.They have shown great skill and courage in their training, but how will they fare in the face of true evil?

With bigger battles and higher stakes, John Flanagan's epic adventure charges ahead with this rousing follow-up to The Ruins of Gorlan." - Goodreads

My thoughts

An absorbing, thrill-seeking adventure set in the medieval times with lots of sword-fighting and arrow-shooting action. The Burning Bridge is by far one of the most popular books among twelve and thirteen year olds. Flanagan provided his readers with enough information to understand the plot throughout the series of books. The Burning Bridge is a very nice addition to the previous section, The Ruins of Gorlan and a beautiful precursor to the third part, The Icebound Land. The author explains everything more extensive than necessary, but that also makes it very pleasant for the reader. That way, the reader has more knowledge to substantiate the rest of the book.

The fact that Flanagan has chosen to mark the main characters as youngsters, means that this also provides a kind of familiar feeling to the target audience (12-13 year olds). Throughout the books we see them evolve by making mistakes and learning from their mistakes. A very nice example to show that nothing goes by itself, life goes by trial and error, with prosperity and adversity.

Whereas the first book can be seen as a bit boring due to the missing element of action throughout most of the plot line, The Burning Bridge makes 100% up for that. The second book has way more action what makes that the reader has a lot more plot to deepen themselves in. I remember the first time I read the book that I wasn't able to put it down. I stayed up till late in the evening to finish it because I couldn't wait till the next day to complete the book.

The Burning Bridge focuses apart from Will, also a little more on Horace and Gilan. These characters were introduced in the previous book, The Ruins of Gorlan, but only now we see a big character development of Horace. That Horace is a brave and heroic swordsman, we already knew, but in the battle against Morgarath he really proves his talent with the sword, leading to his legendary reputation.

Overall, I think that the Ranger's Apprentice Book Two: The Burning Bridge is an excellent book if you like a little adventure in the middle ages. It is very fast-paced with a lot of action and adventure to last you a lifetime. There is also a lot of witty humor what makes the book even better. The breathtaking battle, the humor, the action, it all adds up to the perfect formula for a winning series.

My rating: ★★★★☆

Bookshop.org / Amazon

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