Fitz and the Fool Trilogy (separately: Fool's Assassin, Fool's Quest and Assassin's Fate) by Robin Hobb
Fitz and the Fool Trilogy by Robin Hobb
(separately: Fool's Assassin, Fool's Quest and Assassin's Fate)
Yeah, so, years after reading my first Robin Hobb book, I finished this trilogy in tears and smiles. I stumbled on her books on some fantasy reading list a couple of years ago and made my way through the Assassin Series, the Rain Wilds, the Liveship and Tawny Man...enjoyed them all very much. I had not read any of the Fitz and the Fool series, though two of the three have been out for a couple of years. Hobb finished the trilogy in early 2017 and I picked all three books up over Christmas break. At 600+, 700+ and 888 pages, this series is not for the weak of heart nor the uncommitted...plus, oh yeah, there are four previous trilogies which set these books up. So -think about it before you venture in. That said, I say go for it. All we have is time, right?
I loved these books. I love Fitz's voice, when she (finally!!) got to speak I loved Bee, I loved how this was a capstone for the entire series. That said, in the interest of full disclosure I have to say that the first two books of the trilogy were not all that...I felt that Hobb spent WAY too much time setting things up and rehashing the past and just plain getting from here to there. [The getting places issue may have bothered me more than it otherwise might because of all the time and energy spent in the Game of Thrones ("GOT ") world debating, discussing and dissing the way the show moved its characters about this season (Season 7, the second to last). I read the GOT books (twice-they get a SUTMRS rating), watched the show and also listened to two different GOT podcasts this season...and even with my very, very willing suspension of disbelief, I had to agree that the DD's may have stretched it just a little...anyway, that aside is just to provide context in case I am overstating it...which I don't think I am.]
I also noticed a great deal of discussion of food and clothes and traveling...which, if you notice it, means you have somehow ventured outside of the book. Had this continued into Book 3 I'd probably be giving this series a relatively low rating of Good Enough. And if I had to rank the three individually-Books 1 and 2 really would be "Good Enough". I kept going because I trusted Hobb would stick the landing. I mean, [the first book] at 600+ pages, I think that perhaps half of it was good stuff the other half fluff. By Book 3 however, things really took off. Once they were set up and off on their adventures the history was less important and Hobb really hit her stride. And the real ending-oh dear. I cried like a baby. You knew it was coming - I mean, did you really think Fitz ended that other way? And then the anticlimactic world that poor Bee was forced to endure with all the formal clothes and never seeing Per or Spark? I don't think so. The climax was so, so dear. It was so-right. Perfection it may not be, but a worthy ending indeed. I could not stop crying-Fitz! Nighteyes! Fool! Bee! The kiss that Kettricken gave Fitz to put into the wolf-pure magic. Now I have to go back and read the first Fitz book again...
High Honors with a 3-Enjoyed It Very Much.
(separately: Fool's Assassin, Fool's Quest and Assassin's Fate)
Yeah, so, years after reading my first Robin Hobb book, I finished this trilogy in tears and smiles. I stumbled on her books on some fantasy reading list a couple of years ago and made my way through the Assassin Series, the Rain Wilds, the Liveship and Tawny Man...enjoyed them all very much. I had not read any of the Fitz and the Fool series, though two of the three have been out for a couple of years. Hobb finished the trilogy in early 2017 and I picked all three books up over Christmas break. At 600+, 700+ and 888 pages, this series is not for the weak of heart nor the uncommitted...plus, oh yeah, there are four previous trilogies which set these books up. So -think about it before you venture in. That said, I say go for it. All we have is time, right?
I loved these books. I love Fitz's voice, when she (finally!!) got to speak I loved Bee, I loved how this was a capstone for the entire series. That said, in the interest of full disclosure I have to say that the first two books of the trilogy were not all that...I felt that Hobb spent WAY too much time setting things up and rehashing the past and just plain getting from here to there. [The getting places issue may have bothered me more than it otherwise might because of all the time and energy spent in the Game of Thrones ("GOT ") world debating, discussing and dissing the way the show moved its characters about this season (Season 7, the second to last). I read the GOT books (twice-they get a SUTMRS rating), watched the show and also listened to two different GOT podcasts this season...and even with my very, very willing suspension of disbelief, I had to agree that the DD's may have stretched it just a little...anyway, that aside is just to provide context in case I am overstating it...which I don't think I am.]
I also noticed a great deal of discussion of food and clothes and traveling...which, if you notice it, means you have somehow ventured outside of the book. Had this continued into Book 3 I'd probably be giving this series a relatively low rating of Good Enough. And if I had to rank the three individually-Books 1 and 2 really would be "Good Enough". I kept going because I trusted Hobb would stick the landing. I mean, [the first book] at 600+ pages, I think that perhaps half of it was good stuff the other half fluff. By Book 3 however, things really took off. Once they were set up and off on their adventures the history was less important and Hobb really hit her stride. And the real ending-oh dear. I cried like a baby. You knew it was coming - I mean, did you really think Fitz ended that other way? And then the anticlimactic world that poor Bee was forced to endure with all the formal clothes and never seeing Per or Spark? I don't think so. The climax was so, so dear. It was so-right. Perfection it may not be, but a worthy ending indeed. I could not stop crying-Fitz! Nighteyes! Fool! Bee! The kiss that Kettricken gave Fitz to put into the wolf-pure magic. Now I have to go back and read the first Fitz book again...
High Honors with a 3-Enjoyed It Very Much.
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