Lost Stories by John Flanagan

Wahoo! I made it. 50 books in three months. If I keep going at this rate, I'll read 200 books this year. I almost feel like my old self.

Unfortunately, Lost Stories was not, by a long shot, my favorite book in the series. It is, in fact, a series of short stories bound together by a weak frame. In theory, these stories tie up loose ends and fill in gaps. While they do answer some unresolved questions, it's clear that Flanagan is not comfortable in short formats.

A couple of the stories err on the side of maudlin and a couple rely on premises that seem out of character for the main characters. Out of the eight stories, three of them were really good. "The Roamers" is about what happens when Will's dog, Ebony, is nabbed by Roamers, a gypsy analog. "Dinner for Five" is about Gilan and Jenny who are two of the lesser used characters in the series. I really like Flanagan's vision of Jenny. He turned her from something two dimensional into a dynamic and interesting character. "The Bridal Dance" is about Horace and Evenlyn's wedding and Will's development into a full ranger. It was cute.

In a loose kind of way, several of the stories string together in a time line that runs from the end of book 10 to the wedding of Will and Alyss. So, I'm left wondering if Flanagan was caught in the middle of trying to find the next book when it was time to publish.

*shrug* anyway. Book 50, yay!