Maddie is still training to become a full-fledged ranger, under the guidance of her mentor Will Treaty, but it's time enough she had a break, she hasn't seen her mother in a year. So she goes to the castle to spend time with her parents, her old friends, and her aging grandfather. However, all is not well in the kingdom. The Red Fox Clan, a group of assassins and mercenaries looking to restore the old law that only males can inherit the throne is looking to accomplish their aims through open rebellion. Maddie and her mother, the heir apparent, stand in their way.
Negative
No crass language or cursing, and the usual amount of violence you'd expect from a Ranger's Apprentce. Unnamed soldiers bloodlessly get shot with arrows. Some get bashed by sling stones, also bloodlessly. Some close-range combat with swords and spears. One character dies in a sword fight with an enemy. Some unnamed characters fall to their doom. One enemy says that it is "God's law" that women shouldn't be leaders. This is the only time the word "god" is ever used with a capital G that I can remember, and the reference isn't that hard to see.
Positive
Maddie is the first female ranger, and she has a lot to do to prove to her superiors that she can do the job. Most of the enemies are basically of the opinion that women should be locked up in the kitchen to have children and feed the men.
Conclusion
The Red Fox Clan was yet again a major disappointment for me. I half-liked the first Royal Ranger book, and I was hoping John Flanagan would keep up the good work. He didn't. The book has basically no character development, but plenty of opportunity for it as usual. It also ends at a seemingly random point, with the good guys almost finished. It felt very abrupt. Some of the plot is unexplained, Will and Halt just vanish after the first few chapters and don't come up again. I also found myself wondering how a group of 150 well-armed foreign soldiers could just land their ship and walk around without being seen. How could Dimon have inherited the throne when he's six times removed from the royal family? It's hard to believe that he would be considered a viable option for the throne. I did not enjoy this book at all, and felt myself wondering why I was reading it at times. 👎
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