Ranger's Apprentice #5 & 6 by John Flanagan

Flanagan is definitely working in two book cycles. It's a pattern. The Sorcerer of the North and The Siege of Macindaw are really all one story line split across two books. I have to wonder if this is an issue of money/profit or of reading length. The YA market seems to have some pretty rigid guidelines when it comes to length so it really could be either.

In any case, The Sorcerer of the North skips over the end of Will's apprentice ship and picks up with his first assignment to a fief as a full ranger in a sleepy little backwater. Of course, it isn't too long before something comes up to pull Will away. Alyss comes back in these two books as a poised and capable diplomat. Harold shows up in The Siege of Macindaw to help Will save the day. New characters include Malcolm the Healer, Gundar the Skirl, Trobar the Giant, and Shadow the dog.

I think Flanagan's bad guys are getting much more interesting and three dimensional. He's left behind the cardboard cutout master villains and has embraced the sympathetic villain. There's some real pathos here. I really feel bad for the guy in the end. He get's what he deserves, of course, but I kind of wish Alyss could be successful in saving him.

If I have a real criticism, it's that Flanagan skipped over a lot of time with the end of Will's training. I feel like there is a least one good story in there.