The Ruins of Gorlan

Yeah, this is a good book. It's a short, easy read that never left me feeling bored or asking “wtf?” the whole time.

I liked the sparse worldbuilding (it was enough to pique my interest, but I would've liked more details), and I liked the description of all the farmland surrounding the castle. 

The monsters were cool, and I kinda wished the fight with the Kalkara at the end lasted a little longer. Same thing with earlier fight with the boars.

I liked that the relationships with his long-time friends wasn't obnoxious. I was worried when Will and Horace had their little spat (I know why it happened and the amount of stress they were under makes it make sense), I was worried it was gonna turn into some Harry-Draco-esque rivalry. It didn't and I can't wait to see how that turns out. 

The girls are kind of there, but I imagine they'll be fleshed out later since they didn't really get POV sections in this book.

Grouchy Halt smiling at the end of the book was cathartic—the following scene when he developed Will's backstory and strengthenes their bond was great. If (when?) they kill this man I'm gonna riot.

All-in-all, good book, I'll definitely read the sequels.