Ranger of Kings (William of Alamore Series) Paperback – February 24, 2020

Sitting on the steps outside his home, a young boy spies two others play fighting with swords and wishes he was included. They invite him to play along, and before he knows it his dad has agreed for him to go off to the castle and begin training to be a squire.His time at the castle brings out secrets about his identity and an adventure that he didn’t ask for but can’t escape.At Will’s age, there was much in my life that I was acutely aware was not within my control. I could strongly identify with his feelings, despite being a girl.Since this story is third-person and follows a boy on the cusp of becoming a teen, there wasn’t any profanity or romance (or even really awareness of girls), and there wasn’t a huge amount of emotional turmoil, I’m saying that this would fall under Middle Grade per MasterClass guidelines, though I believe this might be a longer book than typically falls under Middle Grade.I'm calling it Low Fantasy because the setting was not earth, and there didn't seem to be any magic in it. It did not seem like it was meant to be earth, but felt inspired by feudal England in the dark ages.CharactersWill is a lonely boy who longs for acceptance and isn’t finding it at home. His time at the castle makes him learn so much about his world, which I think is something many people can relate to at his age or older. There are times when we all have to come to grips with learning our world is not as simple as we thought.At his core, though, he’s very much a young adolescent struggling to figure out his place in the world, and learning to make friends. He struggles with a young, rude pony, and I felt like I was learning as much about horsemanship as he was.The Ranger reminded me so much of Aragorn from Lord of the Rings. He’s a mysterious figure that slinks in and out of the castle seeming to report only to the king, and since he’s served numerous kings over the years so he may just be serving his own conscience. He’s a bit of a gray character, but when it comes down to it, I think he’s one of the few people in the world that has enough perspective to not blindly be loyal, but to question the status quo and do what he thinks is right.Rowan is one of will’s closest friends, the class-clown. Rowan is impetuous and a little immature, but given the intended audience of this book, I found that perfect and entertaining. Rowan has some of the best one-liners.Emotional ImpactThe book took twists and turns that I didn’t expect. It didn’t feel predictable and was engaging. My heart ached for Will wishing for approval that he struggled to get at times. I was so glad that I read this book immediately before going into the next one—The Cutthroat Prince.SettingA secondary world without magic, this medieval fiction was so enjoyable. As a kid, I was not allowed to read Harry Potter for religious reasons, but this is the kind of book I would have found unputdownable.I loved the castles, the horses, and the attention to detail that was in the book.ConclusionThe title confused me a bit at first since it’s The Ranger of Kings, but is about a squire. By the end of the book, it made more sense to me, and in context with the next book—The Cutthroat Prince—it worked well.Between knights in shining armor and equestrian romps, this book kept me engaged, and in my opinion it would be very engaging for a middle grade audience, and age appropriate. I liked that it was an adventure that was relatable without trying to shove a message down the reader’s throat either. There was one series I read as a kid that I’m hesitant to read to my kids until I’ve read it again because I can’t remember what messages were in it. This one wasn’t like that. It was just a kid, being a kid with horses and knights and castles.

Ranger of Kings (William of Alamore #1), my first read from author Arya C.J.R. Isely. A good page-turning read. 418 pages of a young squire's journey. “I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review." I look forward to reading more from this author! Next up is The Cutthroat Prince (William of Alamore Series Book 2). The gifting of this book did not affect my opinion of it. (RIP Marley January 20, 2014 - July 24, 2018).

Ranger of Kings is the debut novel of C. J. R. Isely and is the first book in the "William of Alamore" series. About the BookWill, a common village boy, has always dreamed of becoming a knight. When he is suddenly, and unexpectedly, called to train as a squire in the castle of Alamore, he cannot believe it is real. He faces the challenge with the great determination to succeed, but soon finds out there is more to becoming a knight than he ever imagined.Even at the beginning level as a squire, Will is suddenly thrust into action, danger, and battles he isn't ready for but meets with determination and perseverance. He makes friends among the squires and finds that one of his friends has a knack for finding trouble.Then one night, Will discovers something disturbing about his father, and the more he learns the more danger Will faces. Not only is Will suddenly thrust into a war, but is faced with mysteries about his father, about the Ranger, and about what lies beneath the castle of Alamore.My ReviewC. J. R. Isely is a talented writer. She has woven a tale filled with mystery and intrigue, action, danger, and adventure. I was drawn into the story from the very first page and stayed up late several nights turning the pages because I just couldn't put the book down. C. J. R. Isely created delightful characters, each with his very own personality, character qualities, and unique voice. I found it to be fun to read the interactions between Will and his two closest friends. Their courage was inspiring and their banter made me laugh.It was also quite clear that C. J. R. Isely possesses a lot of horse knowledge, as horses play a major role in this story as well. Each horse was also unique, and it was clear that C. J. R. knows what it takes to properly care for horses, how to ride horses, and how to train horses.There were some small technical mistakes scattered throughout the books as far as wording is concerned, which I always find to be a distraction. However, in this book, as I was fully engaged in the action, mystery, and battles, they were more easily overlooked and less of a distraction.Another thing I really liked about the story is that C. J. R. Isely gave me a satisfying ending. Though Ranger of Kings is the first book in a series, Ms. Isely wrapped up the ending with just enough resolution and a change that gave the story the feel of an ending even though I know there is more to come.I really enjoyed Ranger of Kings by C. J. R. Isely and highly recommend it to those who enjoy action, adventure, mystery, danger, and fantasy. There are a few profane words within the story, but they are few and far between. There are also some bloody descriptions of those who were in battle, but I didn't feel that they were gory or overdone. I would recommend this book for YA and adult readers, and, possibly, some middle grade readers.I look forward to the next book in the "William of Alamore" series.I give this book 5 stars.

I enjoyed reading Ranger of Kings, which is probably considered a children's or young adult read. Good plotting and moves along at a good clip. However, every page has a grammatical error, or a sentence is missing words, often a verb, or the author has misused a word. Really began driving me a little crazy after the first few instances. It looks like a first draft that no one ever reread before publishing. And where are the women? The entire sex is missing from the story, as though the kingdom of Alamore is a male fraternity. Hopefully, the next book has been proofread. Please check bydefinitions for common words, such as legible. Every page seems to have such a misuse. Please consider explaining some of the characters' behaviors by the end of the book, such as why a prince would not be knighted or ever be referred to by his name, or why Marl hates his son, why the ranger never removes his hood, or why the king never cleans out the tunnels. Highly unrealistic to think that a 12 year old could stand up to a trained adult warrior. This book requires the suspension of disbelief to move the plot along too often. Somehow, it was still fun to read, but terribly amateurish. Hire a good editor.

Decent timepass

I enjoyed reading the adventures of William and his friends. I anticipate enjoying their future adventures as they advance in their training and become Knights.

This book was on my review list and is a MG/YA Fantasy and it is reviewed as such.Firstly, what twelve-year-old boy wouldn’t love this fantasy adventure. It has swords and squires, knights on mighty chargers, evil kings and devilish machinations.I confess I am a little older than twelve…by a lot but this book was light-hearted, fast actioned and thoroughly entertaining. It tells the tale of a young boy Will who longs to be a knight and through happy circumstances makes friends with two squires from Alamore Castle called Colin and Rowan and suddenly finds himself thrust into castle life as a newly minted squire. There he meets the king and the enigmatic Ranger of Kings, a cloaked and hooded man who for much of the story remains a mysterious figure.Will’s tale is wonderfully told and hurtles along at breakneck speed. All of the characters are uniquely portrayed and as the story deepens so do they. There is a large cast but they are introduced in such a way that it is not overwhelming.The author also knows her way around a horse because they feature quite prominently in the story and each one has its own distinct personality.This was an easy, comfortable read that took me back to my childhood days of reading Eddings and MacAffrey and the simple joy of adventuring in a fantasy world that fired my imagination and I enjoyed it more than I expected for that reason.Whilst this is a MG/YA book I think many ‘grown-ups’ would enjoy the simple pleasure of a good story well told.

Wanted to get in to an easy read series in this genre. Unfortunately this was so nonsensical (for example, boy who tries to kill the king immediately becomes a squire). The writing style also needs some work as it felt like the author was trying to put as many commas in a sentence as possible. Needs a serious rewrite. I can't remember the last time I did not finish a book and average about 8-10 books a month but I only got just over halfway through before I abandoned it and went looking elsewhere. If this was published when the author was 12 I could understand as it is written as if everyone else understands what the author is thinking. Good basic premise but just doesn't make sense

Fantastic story, great characters. Looking forward to book 2