The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan

Will, an orphan, has always dreamed of attending Battle School, so that he can be a knight and warrior. His dreams are crushed when he is instead chosen to be an apprentice to the Ranger Halt. There are strange stories about rangers, and common people find their company vaguely unsettling. Will, too, thinks that there’s something supernatural about them. 

He soon discovers, however, that Halt is quite human, and that rangers’ skills are something that he, too, is quite capable of mastering. As his training progresses, Will finds that he enjoys being an apprentice ranger. Later, when the Baron offers him a position among the other Battle School trainees, Will refuses – graciously – because he now wants to be a ranger more than anything.

There’s great danger ahead for Will (and his land). Morgarath (the wicked, bad, naughty, evil personage in this particular fantasy series) is once again becoming powerful and wants to take back what she sees as hers. She sends some creatures against Will and his people – the Kulkara  – which they are only just able to defeat. As this is a series, we can probably expect more of the same.But let us hope John Flanagan does not stop the page-turning plot...