Synopsis
Newly-trained ranger, Eraden has only just earned his greatsword when he is assigned to the tutelage of wizard Firadel. When the wizard receives a missive by messenger crow that trouble in the city of Hemavale, he assembles Eraden and an adventuring party to answer the call and follow in the footsteps of his father.
Something dark awaits them in Hemavale. Something that could bring darkness to the entire world of Eshana. Will Eraden’s first adventure also be his last?
Review
The Ranger was released in November 2024 in what is EH Bradley’s first fantasy offering. It is a blissful indie debut and a pleasure to read. Plus, titular Ranger, Eraden, knows how to get the pints in! Pour yourself a pale ale and get cosy, we’re going a-ranging.
You know what this book reads like? It’s Strider’s time as a young ranger before he takes his seat at the Prancing Pony in Bree. Bradley’s main character, Eraden, follows in his father’s merrily adventuring ways with a wizard, dwarves and his beloved Araleen in tow.
This is a wholly likeable cast of characters. They become fast friends and set a light tone for the remainder of the book, even when the events turn dark.
Cheers
One steady constant of the book is the enjoyment of a refreshing cool ale. Our heroes sink the pints along the journey. As such, this is the perfect book for a pub. Get a comfy corner, a beer and shut the world out for an hour or so. You’ve done well to get through the year and you deserve a read of this book.
As refreshing as Eshana’s ales is the descriptive writing. You can most certainly judge this book by its cover in The Ranger’s case. Bradley’s scene setting is fantastic. The Ranger could have no plot to speak of at all and I would still enjoy reading about all the towns, woodlands and landscapes Eraden travels through. There’s so much attention to detail which creates a vibrant fantasy world. It’s a little like playing Skyrim for the first time and just going for a walk.
Top Tropes
If you’re a fan of a group of good fantasy friends adventuring their way around, I’d say you’re in safe hands. I’d compare this to indie champion Jeff Speight’s archives of Evellium. Here’s a link to the review of Paladin Unbound, which could well be a member of The Ranger’s adventuring party. Hey, a ranger, a paladin, I like where this is going. D&D, anyone?
The dwarven brothers are firm favourites, providing a steady supply of comic relief throughout the story. Eraden himself is a fantasy all-rounder: skilled and honourable in equal measures. My favourite though is Firadell the wizard. As Gandalf is to the Fellowship, Firadell is the unspeakably powerful mage with an heir of intrigue. I hope his backstory is expanded on more in future books.
The fantasy tropes you come to expect are all present: orcs, vampires, werewolves, hack and slash pseudo-medieval combat. Tick, tick, tick. These are familiar tropes but they’re employed perfectly well. Sometimes I just want my orcs to be evil and my wizards to be mightier-than-thou, cryptic wise-asses. Plus we have drunkard Scottish dwarves who neck pints first, smash skulls second. Bradley isn’t afraid to lean into a trope to make this book feel familiar and this is done at no detriment to the story or enjoyment. Hell, even the notable female character turns down a knocks pints back to rival the dwarves.
Dungeons and Dragons
In many ways The Ranger feels like an earnest fantasy throwback without falling into any traps of seeming old-fashioned. I had a good time dungeon crawling with the dwarven brothers, battling ghouls, witches and werewolves, and discovering a dragon late on. All the while Bradley’s descriptive writing is spot on.
At the end of it all, the final act ultimately moved a little too quickly for my liking. Given the rest of the book is so expansive in its world building and scene setting, the last few chapters seemed a rush to the finish and there was one “A wizard never reveals his secrets!” moment too far at this point. I would have liked the climactic battle to have been longer, and to see the latter half of it happen given the increasingly high stakes of the build up.
The Ranger
Still, The Ranger ends well afterwards and with strong sequel potential. I experienced a thoroughly enjoyable trek through the world of Eshana.
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