Michael Barnes
Royal Assassin is an excellent second book in Robin Hobb’s FARSEER SAGA. It returns to the setting and characters without a break launching into the political intrigue. The teenager now FitzChivalry in the first book, Assassin’s Apprentice, protected from his ambitious uncle Regal by King Shrewd and Prince Verity, but Shrewd is dying and Verity is gone, leaving Fitz to fend for himself. Hobb hasn’t treated Fitz well up to this point so, even though these events are related in the first person by a future Fitz, the reader feels no assurance that Fitz is going to be okay. And, indeed, he isn’t — the ending is surprising and devastating.
Hobb’s characters are phenomenally well-crafted and the way that she’s able to arouse my heart, my tears, and also my utter hatred of certain players is masterful. A favourite for me was the interplay between Fitz and a wolf that he rescued from captivity, Nighteyes.
Although it does include stunning action, much of Royal Assassin is the quieter times, the thoughts and conversations characters share, beautifully massaging every word, statement, motive, agenda into our mind so then the action scenes hit much harder as we completely understand the consequences from all angles. An average day for Fitz would be a conversation with Burrich, with Patience, meeting the Fool, keeping Kettricken company, talking to Nighteyes, conversing with Verity, being summoned by the King, insulted by Regal, still infatuated with Molly and then meeting Chade is the assassin’s hidden abode. It doesn’t sound the most exciting when spelled out like that but I was hanging on every word and adored the entire reading experience.
Looking forward to leaping into the last in the trilogy but not the tale of FitzChivalry.
Royal Assassin is an excellent second book in Robin Hobb’s FARSEER SAGA. It returns to the setting and characters without a break launching into the political intrigue. The teenager now FitzChivalry in the first book, Assassin’s Apprentice, protected from his ambitious uncle Regal by King Shrewd and Prince Verity, but Shrewd is dying and Verity is gone, leaving Fitz to fend for himself. Hobb hasn’t treated Fitz well up to this point so, even though these events are related in the first person by a future Fitz, the reader feels no assurance that Fitz is going to be okay. And, indeed, he isn’t — the ending is surprising and devastating.
Hobb’s characters are phenomenally well-crafted and the way that she’s able to arouse my heart, my tears, and also my utter hatred of certain players is masterful. A favourite for me was the interplay between Fitz and a wolf that he rescued from captivity, Nighteyes.
Although it does include stunning action, much of Royal Assassin is the quieter times, the thoughts and conversations characters share, beautifully massaging every word, statement, motive, agenda into our mind so then the action scenes hit much harder as we completely understand the consequences from all angles. An average day for Fitz would be a conversation with Burrich, with Patience, meeting the Fool, keeping Kettricken company, talking to Nighteyes, conversing with Verity, being summoned by the King, insulted by Regal, still infatuated with Molly and then meeting Chade is the assassin’s hidden abode. It doesn’t sound the most exciting when spelled out like that but I was hanging on every word and adored the entire reading experience.
Looking forward to leaping into the last in the trilogy but not the tale of FitzChivalry.