Search - Assassin's Apprentice (The Farseer Trilogy, Bk 1)

I am really thrilled with this start to the Farseer trilogy. I read the book in one day, could NOT put it down! It is richly detailed, well written, and very touching. I can't wait to read the next two!

As a royal bastard in the household of King Shrewd, a boy called "Fitz" spends his early years in the king's stables. When the magic in his blood marks him for destiny, he begins receiving secret instruction, by order of the king, in the art of assassination, a calling that places him in the midst of a nest of intrigue and arcane maneuverings. Firmly grounded in the trappings of high fantasy, Hobb's first novel features a protagonist whose coming of age revolves around the discovery of the meaning of loyalty and trust. - Synopsis by Reed Business Information, Inc.

The usual stock fantasy characters are here, but the main one has a bit of a twist: He learns how to become an assassin for the king.

This story does get a bit gruesome in parts, so if you're particularly squeamish, this isn't for you. Portions of that didn't bother me, but what did bother me (and maybe it shouldn't have) was Fitz's dog. Yes, he has a dog who is quite loyal and protective of him. I won't get into details, but as the dog is introduced fairly early into the story, I nearly stopped reading the book after reading about the dog...

Now, I attach a lot to what happens to a dog in a story, simply because I have 2 dogs and no kids. But certain things with the dog (I won't get into detail) made me want to stop reading fairly early on in the book. But it's rare for me not to finish a book, so I continued.

It moves a pretty good pace, the character of Fitz is interesting enough, so it's not that the story itself is bad. Don't let my prejudice make you think it wasn't an interesting tale (the 1st book of the Farseer Trilogy) because it was.

Oh, and the cover art is beautiful.

This is not the type of book that I usually read, but I found myself engrossed in it and actually caring about the characters and wanting to know what happened next. It was definitely not a book I could easily put down.

I think this is the first time I've ever read a fantasy novel containing a form of magic that the people in the novel's world feared and hated. Robin Hobb's work was highly recommended to me, and it will be interesting to see where the rest of this series goes.

I am thrilled that this is a series and I get to read two more books. Hobb has made a land and formed all characters and let us become part of the books she writes. I loved the Ship stories as well and they all intertwine.

read it as a free e-book download on Stanza for my iPod Touch. Great story, definetly made me want to continue the series. Unlike other fantasy novels, it does not rely too heavily on magic to move the plot.