10-31-2010, 02:11 PM | #1 |
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Never ... ever ... ever read The Farseer Trilogy!
I welcome other opinions. I will not flame you or anything. This is just how I feel about the series:
Spoiler:
I am certainly never going to read Hobb again. Last edited by HarryT; 11-02-2010 at 01:40 PM. |
10-31-2010, 03:08 PM | #2 |
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I think a Spoiler warning should be included in the beginning of the post...
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10-31-2010, 03:37 PM | #3 |
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10-31-2010, 08:22 PM | #4 |
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I really liked the Farseer Trilogy, so I can't answer most of your complaints. It was long but yeah, I like long reads. He was a failure at being an assassin; ok, but I'm getting tired of epic bastard ninjas who fight for the royal family anyway, I liked it.
What I didn't like about the Farseer Trilogy was that Hobb seemed to have something against dogs... I swear she killed like five in that series. There was a second trilogy that followed Fitz after the events in the first series, The Tawny Man, if you're interested... which you probably aren't. I was disappointed with Fitz after The Farseer trilogy, particularly with the way it ended, but I really liked the closure The Tawny Man gave. I wouldn't give up on Hobb, either, I really loved the Dragon Keeper Series. |
10-31-2010, 08:25 PM | #5 | |
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10-31-2010, 08:29 PM | #6 | |
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I feel like his being nice was a big weakness to him because he tried not to hurt anyone and he was torn between his loyalties.... he suffers far too much for it... and in the Tawny man, once you learn about what he's been doing since the events of the last novel of The Farseer series, well.. just see if you like it, I thought the last two especially of The Tawny Man were amazing. |
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10-31-2010, 08:38 PM | #7 | |
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10-31-2010, 08:47 PM | #8 |
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Yeha, in Tawny man there is definitely more on that relationship... whether or not you'll like it is a different matter... I was.... well, It uhh....... >_> just read.
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11-01-2010, 03:39 AM | #9 | |
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There are my favorite books, period.
You say that Fitz was supposed to be a "great assassin". Where was he portrayed as such? His mentor Chade was a great assassin. Fitz never quite managed it. I think Chade even says at some point that Fitz was too good of a person who never quite got the ruthlessness he was supposed to need. He failed with the Skill because the Prince's skill master, Galen, beat him down with it during the training process and imprinted into his brain that he had failed utterly. Thus the disconnect for quite a while that he didn't have any skill at it - his memories were altered...until Prince Verity cleared the mental block. Even then, he never got consistent, good training - Verity himself says this, and says if he had months free to dedicate to training him, he could undo the training damage. Part of it is that he was abused with it, and reflexively keeps barriers up as a result (think emotionally abused kid and how they can isolate from others and lose trust). Fitz was not a, say, Drizzt Do'Urden. He was not a superhero. He was a bastard kid, trained as an assassin, but not keen on it. He did assassinate a few people (mainly mentioned in passing) during his trips abroad. Sometimes he managed better (like the Lady with the little dog) instead. If you're expecting a Legolas, a Drizzt, or some other kind of superheroic, greater-than-life character, that's not Fitz. That's the whole point. None of Hobb's characters are like that. He's just a teenager, and Chade and Burrich point that out. He was never given a chance to make his own decisions. Yeah, he acts like an idiot sometimes and you want to slap him. Just like most teenagers. Hell I'd slap myself as a teenager, looking back! Here's a quote from after he is revived from the dead / un-beastified: Quote:
This is similiar in many regards to George R.R. Martin (who recommends Hobb BTW). But he has so many characters, some of them kick ass. But a lot of them...well...things don't turn out so great. They're not always successful. Even the kick-ass characters make mistakes...sometimes fatal. Hobb's characters aren't super human. They're normal people, complete with flaws and issues, and capable of poor decision making. In the case of Fitz, it's impulsive decisions and poor judgment of consequences. He's quite a bit wiser in his 30s (in Tawny Man) although he is still stubborn and sticks to bad decisions far longer than he should. Last edited by GreenMonkey; 11-01-2010 at 03:53 AM. |
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11-01-2010, 08:35 AM | #10 |
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I read the first one of the series. Other than the seaside setting and forging, I really don't think there was anything great to it. The writing was atrocious and the characters were pretty thin. I have books 2 & 3 waiting, but I doubt I'll ever get around to them.
This book is one of the reasons I don't read very much Fantasy, despite loving the concept of it. What's more, I was assured this was a series for adults. |
11-01-2010, 04:19 PM | #11 | |
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Every other character had at least one positive trait. King Shrewd was smart, loyal, and an excellent King. Prince/King Regal (AKA Generic bad guy) was brilliant and cunning. Everybody in the first coteries was excellent with the skill. Verity was excellent with the skill, loyal, generally nice guy, brave, etc. Molly was loyal and great at her trade. Kettricken was brilliant and an excellent, loyal queen. Galen was smart and strong in the skill. Nighteyes was loyal and brave and a great fighter. Etc. Fitz didn't even pick up the loyalty that every one of these characters except Regal shared. He barely picked it up from his bond with Nighteyes or his two closest mentors: Chade and Burrich. And that's not to mention how much the books dragged. The first book was nothing but Fitz doing chores with mention in passing of the Red Ships, until the very end. The second book was all Fitz complaining about how much he was in pain. The third book the "quest" dragged worse than the seventh Harry Potter book. Fitz woke up, walked, was jealous of Kettricken with his wolf, slept, dreamed about Molly/Burrich/generic Red Ship raid, etc. |
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11-01-2010, 04:28 PM | #12 | |
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+1 !!
I absolutely LOVED the Farseer Trilogy, the Liveship Traders Trilogy and the Tawny Man Trilogy. As a matter of fact, I love everything Robin Hobb has ever written !! I like that Fitz isn't a typical hero. He's human. He's a character I can believe in. He gets hurt, fails at things, makes wrong choices, ... I cried a lot while reading these books, but I also smiled a lot. Quote:
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11-01-2010, 04:31 PM | #13 | |
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Bear in mind that it's written from Fitz's point of view. Most of us tend to put the people we love and respect on a pedestal, especially when we're children/adolescents. People DO love Fitz (and rely on him, although that becomes more apparent in the second trilogy), but he often doesn't realize it/believe it. His voice seems pretty consistent for an adolescent with abandonment/trust issues. |
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11-01-2010, 04:40 PM | #14 | |
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Yes, he was loyal. That could be considered a positive trait, but he had so many loyalties that he was divided. He threatened the kingdom by going with Molly, then left her because he was loyal to Verity and the kingdom, then retracted that loyalty again when he discovered his baby. Seems a little contradictory. I can understand that people would like these books. However, for me, a perpetually flawed character (and dragging plot) is just not interesting. I liked Frodo's character, who was not superhuman by any means. I read and loved George RR Martin, and there are no superheros at all in there. The characters are just more interesting. Wicked, likewise (though the sequels sucked). And a message to all authors out there: a dumb character (or entire cast of idiots) is not an excuse for poorly hidden plot elements. |
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11-01-2010, 04:41 PM | #15 | |
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