It took me a bit to warm up to it, but I found that this was a great read.

3.5. Thought there would be more titans and less human focused. Feels like a set up book; Nothing mind blowing but interested in book 2.

This is the second novel by JDL Rosell that I have read, and he seems to write a certain kind of character with severe trust and anger management issues. These type of characters can be a frustrating read - they tend to make obviously dumb decisions which leave you screaming at the page in annoyance. The Last Ranger definitely suffers from this, and although the reason for the character being this way is at least reasonably well developed it does get a bit tiresome after a while.

Character gripes aside, this is an interestingly realized world. There is fascinating underlying mythology which is brought through, with an intriguing array of non-standard fantasy races. There is some clever politicking and plot that drives forwards at a good pace keeping you interested throughout.

And it does appear the character development is there to hopefully move beyond the aspects that annoyed me moving into the later books in this series, so at this point I am definitely open to continuing.

Though there were elements of the plot that didn’t work for me, personally, I did love the central character. Leiyn is driven and strong. She has a plan in mind and will do everything she can to ensure that no matter what, it happens. I do feel as though there was a lot of history missing in the book that would have helped make the world Rosell has built feel a little more realistic. There were moments that were confusing if only because the story behind the animosity felt by the different races had no clear motive.

The writing is incredibly descriptive, but not at all flowery, which I appreciate in a fantasy. The character roster is very small, making it really easy to remain invested in what is happening to everyone as individuals and they have enough character-driven plot lines that I didn’t feel myself growing tired - which has happened with other fantasy novels in the past.

I would like to see where this is going, but because I feel the title itself was a tad misleading and though I loved the drive and determination of Leiyn I didn’t like her as a character, I just didn’t build a connection with her (again, personally) it's a 3.25 from me, but as Goodreads doesn't allow portions of stars it has to be a 3.

Disclaimer: I received a review copy in exchange for an honest review

I played a ranger in the last DnD campaign I was in. While preparing the backstory of my character, I fell in love with the ranger class and have had a soft spot for rangers since then. When I saw this book had fantasy rangers, I was immediately sold. And this book didn't disappoint.

The story is set in a world of three colonies surrounded by a sprawling forest called the Titan Wilds that is home to dangerous animals and spirit beings wreaking havoc on nearby towns and villages. Our protagonist Leiyn is a Baltesian ranger who protects the Baltesian borders from these creatures. Leiyn has a good heart but is hotheaded and harbours deep hatred for the Gasts- the original natives of these lands who were displaced by the colonisers. Leiyn lives a good life in the company of her fellow rangers until one day when tragedy strikes. After an act of treachery leaves her as the only survivor, Leiyn must do everything in her power to get revenge on those who killed her found family. That means using the power she had been cursed with at birth.

Leiyn was not an easy character to follow. She had deep seated hatred for the natives of the land called Gasts. Her racist thoughts and views were difficult for me to experience and although we see her grow and change throughout the book, it didn't make the beginning of the book a smoother experience. Which is meant to be like that. The book is brutal to our characters as well as to us. It's a harsh world that they live in and you are continuously reminded of that fact. Although there are other characters we follow alongwith Leiyn, this is mainly Leiyn’s book. Leiyn is brash, unapologetic, loyal, stubborn and will do anything for her friends. She's deeply flawed, prejudiced and self loathing but that changes as she experiences things she never even imagined she would.

The author doesn't hold your hand with the world building. You are dropped into this world and have to figure out how this world is set up and what do these terms mean. There's a glossary at the end of the book that explains things but I didn't use it while reading because I was scared of accidentally getting spoiled. The world in this book is vast with a rich and complex history. The political structure reminded me of the Americas and how the continents were colonised by European countries. The magic and the creatures spawned from this magic was vividly imaginative. Leiyn’s ignorance about her mahia meant that we were discovering the scope and limitations of the magic alongside her.

The only weakness I felt was the plot. At times I felt the plot floundered a bit. It was not tightly knit and went places that didn't feel satisfactory to me. It was not a strong enough character drama to get away with the weak plot. It is mainly a story about a woman coming to terms with herself but that wasn't enough to carry the story forward on its own.

This book is one of the most compulsively readable books that I've read this year. The way the book is structured, with the different parts and the flashback chapter before each part made me want to keep reading it. This book shows great promise and I can't wait to see where Leiyn goes from here. The next book promises richer world building and political intrigue in the world of Unera.