The ranger Halt's past has always been a mystery, even to his apprentice Will. But his past is revealed in "Ranger's Apprentice: The Kings of Clonmel," the eighth fantasy novel about the skilled and elusive Rangers and the land of Araluen. John Flanagan's smooth solid writing is in top form here, and he neatly weaves together two fascinating subplots -- one about Halt's past, and the other about a toxic cult. 
 While Will attends the Gathering, Halt is off investigating a cult that has recently popped up -- the Outsiders, a warm'n'fuzzy religion that uses psychology and hired bandits to fleece believers of all their gold. And though Halt is able to save the village in question, he finds that the Outsiders' next target is the kingdom of Hibernia, his own homeland. Unfortunately, King Ferris is a weak and cowardly king... and he's got a very special connection to Halt. 
 It doesn't take long for Will, Horace and Halt to find the Outsiders and their charismatic leader Tennyson, who are rapidly converting the Hibernian populace to his false religion. But Tennyson doesn't realize that he's being stealthily sabotaged by the Rangers, who plan to use an ancient Hibernian legend against the con-man prophet and his false god. 
 John Flanagan seems to be revving up the Ranger's Apprentice series for a whole new arc, this one centering on Tennyson and the insidious gold-leeching cult. "The Kings of Clonmel" is wrapped up tidily at the end, but Flanagan leaves the door open for the next book. But the big draw of this particular book is the revelation of who Halt was before he became a Ranger -- and it comes as a bit of a shock. 
 Along the way, Flanagan weaves together a complex plot that drips with lots of tautly-written action, political manipulation, clever deceptions, and quite a bit of tongue-in-cheek humor ("You're certainly not going to shave me in tea!"). The first few chapters are a bit on the slow side, but once our heroes head to Hibernia it becomes a brilliant adventure tale... with a subtle message on how easily people are swayed into doing terrible things. 
 Will and Horace have come a long way from the unsure, naive boys they were at the series' beginning. Will is now a confident, skilled Ranger who is teaching the younger apprentices, and Horace is equally confident and skilled as a heroic young knight. The only flaw is that Alyss is still kind of a pale, 2-D love interest. 
 On the flipside, Flanagan has you wishing a meteor would fall and squash the devious Tennyson and paranoid, pathetic Ferris. As for Halt... well, he's been a mystery for far too long, and Flanagan finally reveals where he came from, who his family is/was, and the reason he left. And as we're often reminded, he's not as young as he once was. 
 "The Kings of Clonmel" is a thoroughly entertaining fantasy adventure, which is all tied up in the long-hidden past of the Ranger Halt. And it leaves you eagerly waiting for the next installment.