Assassin's Apprentice (The Farseer Trilogy, Book 1)
"Fantasy as it ought to be written . . . Robin Hobb's books are diamonds in a sea of zircons."--George R. R. Martin Young Fitz is the bastard son of the noble Prince Chivalry, raised in the shadow of the royal court by his father's gruff stableman. He is treated as an outcast by all the royalty except the devious King Shrewd, who has him secretly tutored in the arts of the assassin. For in Fitz's blood runs the magic Skill--and the darker knowledge of a child raised with the stable hounds and rejected by his family. As barbarous raiders ravage the coasts, Fitz is growing to manhood. Soon he will face his first dangerous, soul-shattering mission. And though some regard him as a threat to the throne, he may just be the key to the survival of the kingdom. Praise for Robin Hobb and Assassin's Apprentice "A gleaming debut in the crowded field of epic fantasies . . . a delightful take on the powers and politics behind the throne."--Publishers Weekly "This is the kind of book you fall into, and start reading slower as you get to the end, because you don't want it to be over."--Steven Brust
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Community Reviews
Assassinâs Quest by Robin Hobb
Four stars for a sweeping epic. I highly recommend this classic trilogy but be warned it takes a commitment from the reader to make it through the entire trilogy!
Spoilers.
Gone is the almost claustrophobic setting of the first two books where Fitz rarely leaves Buckkeep. This story spans a much greater distance and epic journey.
Fitz is not the sharpest knife in the drawer â that much hasnât changed from the first two books in the trilogy. This is a character trait that usually drives me mad in most books, but thatâs because authors usually try to convince the reader that main character isnât dumb as a post â usually be having the other characters fawn and praise him. Not so with Fitz, both Chade and Burrich in the first part of the book and many others as the story progresses point out the characterâs flaws.
Fitz as always is the Catalyst as the Fool (whose real name is never revealed!) often calls him and never the true driver of the action. Never the hero. He botches nearly everything he touches and in the end saves the day almost by sheer luck.
The story opens where book 2 left off. Fitz has been resurrected from the dead and must recall that he is human. It is a long task that Burrich takes on with patience of a saint.
Once he finally comes to himself, Fitz wastes his one advantage, the fact that everyone believes him dead, before charging forward with an ill-conceived and poorly executed attempt on Regalâs life. After that he is running for his life. He is captured no less than three times and Robin Hobb never spares our characters any grief or torture.
The main flaw with this book is that it is massive! Much happens from the beginning when Fitz awakens still believing himself a wolf and the end when Verity finally wins back his Kingdom and defeats the Red Ships.
Mostly, Fitz travels, meets various people who point out his flaws including his continued drug addiction (Elf Bark which in the first two books was used without a hint that it was problematic is revealed as very dangerous perhaps even disastrous in book three) . Fitz continues to trust people when he shouldnât and reveal secrets that threaten those he loves. Time and time again he fails to put the pieces of the puzzles together. At one point Verity states something offhandedly that was obvious to the reader (at least me) but completely missed by Fitz. By how easily Verity comes to realize it, I think we are meant to find Fitz a little lacking in the perception skills!
It is a long journey told in great detail. Dragons are not even mentioned until about 70% through the book â they are never foreshadowed and so their appearance is a little too abrupt. Not surprising, since a dragon appears on the cover, but still some foreshadowing would have served the story better.
It is riveting and the writing continued to draw me in, though perhaps like George RR Martin, Robin Hobb likes to torture her readers a bit.
Four stars for a sweeping epic. I highly recommend this classic trilogy but be warned it takes a commitment from the reader to make it through the entire trilogy!
Spoilers.
Gone is the almost claustrophobic setting of the first two books where Fitz rarely leaves Buckkeep. This story spans a much greater distance and epic journey.
Fitz is not the sharpest knife in the drawer â that much hasnât changed from the first two books in the trilogy. This is a character trait that usually drives me mad in most books, but thatâs because authors usually try to convince the reader that main character isnât dumb as a post â usually be having the other characters fawn and praise him. Not so with Fitz, both Chade and Burrich in the first part of the book and many others as the story progresses point out the characterâs flaws.
Fitz as always is the Catalyst as the Fool (whose real name is never revealed!) often calls him and never the true driver of the action. Never the hero. He botches nearly everything he touches and in the end saves the day almost by sheer luck.
The story opens where book 2 left off. Fitz has been resurrected from the dead and must recall that he is human. It is a long task that Burrich takes on with patience of a saint.
Once he finally comes to himself, Fitz wastes his one advantage, the fact that everyone believes him dead, before charging forward with an ill-conceived and poorly executed attempt on Regalâs life. After that he is running for his life. He is captured no less than three times and Robin Hobb never spares our characters any grief or torture.
The main flaw with this book is that it is massive! Much happens from the beginning when Fitz awakens still believing himself a wolf and the end when Verity finally wins back his Kingdom and defeats the Red Ships.
Mostly, Fitz travels, meets various people who point out his flaws including his continued drug addiction (Elf Bark which in the first two books was used without a hint that it was problematic is revealed as very dangerous perhaps even disastrous in book three) . Fitz continues to trust people when he shouldnât and reveal secrets that threaten those he loves. Time and time again he fails to put the pieces of the puzzles together. At one point Verity states something offhandedly that was obvious to the reader (at least me) but completely missed by Fitz. By how easily Verity comes to realize it, I think we are meant to find Fitz a little lacking in the perception skills!
It is a long journey told in great detail. Dragons are not even mentioned until about 70% through the book â they are never foreshadowed and so their appearance is a little too abrupt. Not surprising, since a dragon appears on the cover, but still some foreshadowing would have served the story better.
It is riveting and the writing continued to draw me in, though perhaps like George RR Martin, Robin Hobb likes to torture her readers a bit.
You know it’s good when I’m finishing it at 2:40 a.m. Starts off slowly but the pieces start falling into place and the action goes completely nuts. I recommend it and I’m starting the second book in the series ASAP.
The only slight frustration is how slow on the uptake Fitz is, but I suppose that’s somewhat understandable since he’s still a young child.
The only slight frustration is how slow on the uptake Fitz is, but I suppose that’s somewhat understandable since he’s still a young child.
This book was incredible. I don’t know how Robin Hobb can constantly go into long winded details and it stay interesting and never get boring. But it’s honestly so impressive. This book was a great first book, and I cannot wait to read the rest of the series. This book made me emotional multiple times. The world and characters are so vibrant and rich. Highly recommend!
4.5/5
This is the first book I read by Robin Hobb and it certainly will not be the last.
Her world-building is truly phenomenal as well as her writing of the characters (Not to mention the richness in her writing). This was a slower read to me (I'm not fluent in English), I found myself reading it more.
I really liked Fitz, Burrich , Verity and the fool (he is my favourite!). I found myself entertained throughout the whole book, I never got bored, even the long details thats given in the book or routines I still found myself enjoying it. Its written in a way that you never find yourself bored.
This is the first book I read by Robin Hobb and it certainly will not be the last.
Her world-building is truly phenomenal as well as her writing of the characters (Not to mention the richness in her writing). This was a slower read to me (I'm not fluent in English), I found myself reading it more.
I really liked Fitz, Burrich , Verity and the fool (he is my favourite!). I found myself entertained throughout the whole book, I never got bored, even the long details thats given in the book or routines I still found myself enjoying it. Its written in a way that you never find yourself bored.
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