brotherband chronicles john flanagan collection 6 books set (the outcasts, the invaders, the hunters, slaves of socorro, scorpion mountain, the ghostfaces)

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Well, that's my thoughts on those issues. In general I enjoyed the book and the action is still good, but I do have some issues with plot lines being abandoned and not keeping the characters ages/timeline straight. I'm mostly removing a half star for the slow start. The issue with The Caldera is that there aren't real stakes. By which I mean this: there are no real consequences for the characters if they lose. Obviously, there's the standard "they might die," but that in itself isn't really enough to drive a book (especially an adventure novel, which pretty much has the threat of death baked into the concept). But if the Herons failed to rescue the child emperor (or if they decided to abandon the quest), what happens? There are some consequences for Stig's father, who we've never met before and are given no real reason to care about? An empire, which we have pretty much never heard of before this book, becomes a bit more unstable?

Objectively, there's not much wrong with The Caldera. It's got most of the requirements for a good adventure novel: a dangerous enemy (or two), dangerous surroundings, and a healthy dose of highly competent characters to contend with the first two things. The writing is on par with the rest of the Brotherband Chronicles - a bit utilitarian, but competent and able to juggle numerous characters well. Later Hal, Stig, Ingvar, Ulf and Wulf test Hal's ship, the Heron, which he has been working on for weeks. They sail it around, testing out Hal's new sail plan which enables the boat to sail at a 40 degree angle into the wind, an impressive feat since a Wolfship can only sail into the wind at a 15 degree angle . Hal, wanting to show off a little, decides to steer the boat around into the port at Halasholm. He does this and it causes quite a stir as initially no one can tell what the boat is due to its unusual sail plan. Hal manages to get the boat into port, narrowly missing Erak's ship Wolfwind.Stig is one of my favourites. He’s Hal’s second in command and he is totally loyal to his skirl (that’s Skandian for skipper or ship’s captain). Stig is tall, well muscled, athletic and a superb warrior. He favours the battleaxe as his weapon and he is devastating with it. If you want trouble, just threaten Hal. You’ll find you’re dealing with Stig. They are outcasts. Hal, Stig, and the other members of the brotherband - they are the boys the others want no part of. Skandians, as any reader of Ranger's Apprentice could tell you, are known for their size and strength. Not these boys. Hal (skirl or skipper of the Heron and captain of the Heron Brotherband, skilled craftsman, shipbuilder, and inventor)

I suppose I should be happy we actually got use out of all the Herons this time around after The Caldera seemed to mostly forget half the crew, but I want more. It would have been easy to give us just a little bit, but I honestly think Flanagan doesn't care about such details. So I guess we get a full bachelor crew, however unlikely. :/ Kelvin wishes to scour the universe to make even more BrotherBands with other planets. He says until then, Geo must watch over and protect the world.For years now, the Skandians have been the guardians of the Stormwhite Sea, stopping piracy wherever they find it. But there are some who don't like the Skandians' new role. John Flanagan started a spin-off series from the RA series after he completed Will and Halt’s adventures. THE BROTHERBAND CHRONICLES were the stories of a group of Scandian (Vikings) sailors. Forged by the trials of their community’s coming-of-age rituals, the boys become a brotherband—a sailing unit. Hal, their leader, has a small, but crafty wolfship, THE HERON, and they sail it to various adventures. Seven books deep into this series, and I actually enjoy it more than I did the Ranger’s Apprentice series. But the giant assassin isn’t the only threat they will face. There is a seaside battle looming, and the Herons are called upon to help an old friend of Araluen in his fight. Trapped in an unfamiliar land, their forces split between searing hot land and treacherous seas, can the Herons complete their mission – before the killers find their royal target? King Duncan of Araluen has an urgent mission for Hal and the Heron Brotherband. One assassination attempt on Princess Cassandra was foiled. But the killers won’t be satisfied until they have fulfilled their honour-bound duty. Edvin: Edvin and Lydia are close friends and during her first meeting with the Herons, Lydia's lips were tweaked into a brief smile at Edvin's comment to Ingvar that she was "certainly a looker". During battle, Edvin and Lydia often remain behind the lines of the rest of the brotherband and work well together as a team, watching the Battle Aboard the Ishtfana from Heron and rallying the Ishtfana slaves to battle against the Tualaghi. Edvin also views Lydia as a "sister" to the brotherband, knitting her one of their watch caps before they went into battle against Raven outside Raguza and Lydia regards him in return in the way she would regard a cousin.