"The Herons are home in Skandia—preparing to celebrate two of their own and working on sea trials in the newly constructed Heron. But during a short excursion, they encounter an Iberian pirate ship raiding the coast of Sonderland, so Hal and his crew take action." --Publisher.

When fifteen-year-old Will is rejected by battleschool, he becomes the reluctant apprentice to the mysterious Ranger Hale, and winds up protecting the kingdom from danger.

After Ranger's apprentice Will battles Temujai warriors to rescue Evanlyn, Will's kingdom of Skandia joins forces with rival kingdom Araluen to defeat a common enemy.

After Ranger's apprentice Will battles Temujai warriors to rescue the captured princess Evanlyn, Will's kingdom of Skandia joins forces with rival kingdom Araluen to defeat a common enemy.

In a society that values strength over intellect, Hal's ingenuity, combined with the fact that his mother was a slave, sets him apart from other boys his age. As he and his peers compete in training designed to test their strength and endurance, Hal realizes he is not the only outcast and struggles to carve out a place for himself.

Halt, Will, and Horace set out for Hibernia, where a quasi-religious group, the Outsiders, is sowing confusion and sedition, and they find that secrets from Halt's past may hold the key to restoring order before the last kingdom is undermined.

When fifteen-year-old Will is rejected by battleschool, he becomes the reluctant apprentice to the mysterious Ranger Halt, and winds up protecting the kingdom from danger.