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Assassin's Apprentice (Farseer Trilogy #1)

by Robin Hobb (Goodreads Author)

4.14 · Rating details · 167,304 Ratings · 6,283 Reviews

In a faraway land where members of the royal family are named for the virtues they embody, one young boy will become a walking enigma.

Born on the wrong side of the sheets, Fitz, son of Chivalry Farseer, is a royal bastard, cast out into the world, friendless and lonely. Only his magical link with animals - the old art known as the Wit - gives him solace and companionship. ...more

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Mass Market Paperback, 480 pages

Published March 1996 by Voyager (first published May 1995)

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J.R.R. Tolkien 4-Book Boxed Set by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

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Nov 07, 2010 Mark Lawrence rated it it was amazing

I haven't read a lot of fantasy in the last decade, so the fact I've read 12 of Robin Hobb's books in the last 5 years says a lot about how much I enjoy reading her work. The adventures of Fitz through three trilogies account for a big chunk of that reading.

Robin Hobb can write a first person story with rare skill. She shows you a world though Fitz's eyes and makes it matter, makes it vital. Some elements of Hobb's fantasy are fairly old school, but written with a modern style and a literary ski ...more

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Jul 29, 2015 Melissa ♥ Dog Lover ♥ Martin rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: own, fantasy-all

I read this again through audio so I can continue on with the series. The narrator was Paul Boehmer and I thought he did a great job 😄

These were the lessons in my assassin's primer. And more. Sleight of hand and the art of moving stealthily. Where to strike a man to render him unconscious. Where to strike a man so that he dies without crying out. Where to stab a man so that he dies without too much blood welling out. I learned it all rapidly and well, thriving under Chade's approval of my quick
...more

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Dec 22, 2008 Anni rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Recommends it for: nerdy badasses

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jan 21, 2009 Felicia rated it it was amazing

Shelves: epic-fantasy

One of my all-time favorite series. I love it so much I have first edition hardbacks. Lovely, touching, dramatic. It has everything.

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Mar 08, 2014 Bookdragon Sean rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

I feel so sorry for Fitzchivalry because he had such a rough start to life. The boy is despised for the simple fact that he exists. He is a royal bastard, and his dishonourable conception means that his father’s name is forever sullied; that much so that he was forced to abdicate the throne; thus, half the royal Farseer court already hates Fitz because he is, supposedly, the reason why the popular Prince had to retire from court life. Poor, poor, Fitz, he was hated from the very beginning.

He w ...more

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Sep 23, 2014 Alienor ✘ French Frowner ✘ (of badger and SNAKE) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fave-ya-and-fantasy, favorite-male-leads, likeable-mc, knots-in-my-stomach, fantasy, reread, dark, all-time-favorites

07/19 : 1.99$ today on kindle! ← I never do that, but that's FITZ. Be serious.

Funny that I thought I would be able to objectively review this favorite of mine. SERIOUSLY? I was way too conceited. Because the truth is...

Why?

◘ Because I'm (way) too much involved in Fitz's story to analyze it. I mean, I could pretend, of course, but really? I found myself crying or being out of breath in anticipation so many times that I'm pretty sure my opinion is grandly biased.

Take this, for example : "And the ...more

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Jan 19, 2017 Melanie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, magic, fantasy, audible, read-in-2017

What unexpected, and much needed, joy this book brought me! I know this is a fantasy favorite among so many people I trust, but I never expected it to be as perfect as it was! Fitz and his journey was an absolute joy to read about, and I cannot wait to continue on with this world. Like, I need the next book now.

This story is a slow burn, that's for sure, but learning about the main protagonist, Fitz, and his back story made the slow pace still really enjoyable. Fitz is a bastard of the king in ...more

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Mar 05, 2017 Samir rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

Robin Hobb is an author which was on my radar for a long time and I was planning to read her books earlier but reading is a fickle and seductive mistress often taking us on an unplanned journeys and sometimes during those journeys we cross paths with people who manage to persuade us to follow their direction and just like that, I ended up in the Realms of the Elderlings, on a new adventure starting with the Assassin’s Apprentice.

This tale starts with our main character, Fitz (age 6), being brou Robin Hobb is an author which was on my radar for a long time and I was planning to read her books earlier but reading is a fickle and seductive mistress often taking us on an unplanned journeys and sometimes during those journeys we cross paths with people who manage to persuade us to follow their direction and just like that, I ended up in the Realms of the Elderlings, on a new adventure starting with the Assassin’s Apprentice.

This tale starts with our main character, Fitz (age 6), being brought to the Farseer’s army outpost by his maternal grandfather and given to a soldier, who is told that he is King-in-Waiting Chivalry's bastard son. The soldier brings him to the commander of the outpost, Prince Verity, who orders that he be given into the care of Burrich, Chivalry's stablemaster and right-hand man. Before Burrich takes him to Buckkeep, the capital of the Six Duchies, his father abdicates from his position and retires to the Withywoods with his wife Patience so he never got the chance to meet him.

Burrich is left with the task of raising him and being a stablemaster he teaches him how to take care of animals. During his time with animals he discovers he can bond telepathically with them and that is the form of magic called the Wit, an ancient magic which Burrich forbids him to practice. The Wit is very much similar to the Skill, a magic system practiced by the royal family, which gives them ability to share thoughts and strength.

We follow the rest of story through a first person POV, so we pretty much see and feel the world and characters through the eyes and mind of our main protagonist thus creating a strong bond with him and that is something really important to me when reading; I need a character I can root for and Fitz is just that kind of character, not only did I root for him, he also managed to evoke a strong emotional empathy in me and that shows a great skill Hobb has in characterization.

This is a slow paced book and I know that can be off putting for some readers who demand explosive action on every page because “nothing is happening” otherwise but in this case the pacing is suitable for the story because this is a character driven story with very strong emphasis on character development which was superbly done.

The prose feels simple yet beautiful and often reminded me of Rothfuss’s writing and if I had to guess I would say that Hobb influenced him very much.

I was completely mesmerized with the magic of this book. It is a beautiful coming-of-age tale which captivated my mind and made me realize why is it deemed a true classic and a pure fantasy gem.

With the first quest completed, I’m ready for the next one and eager to find out what fate lies ahead for Fitz in the Royal Assassin.
...more

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May 29, 2017 Samantha rated it liked it · review of another edition

Bullet points for this review because although Robin Hobb likes to ramble on.. I do not.

A Summary of this book:
-- Fitz's life sucks
-- lots of winding and turning and taking an especially long time to get to the point
-- lots of predictable plots but not knowing exactly how we'd get there

While the writing is good, the story in this one is just ok. Nevertheless, I'm going to read on as planned because I'm reading this trilogy simply to get to her other trilogies. I do feel I'll get more and mo ...more

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Jan 27, 2011 Loederkoningin rated it really liked it

Shelves: sweet-nostalgia, terrific-covers, pampers-the-emo-within, high-fantasy, sweet-anticipation, blazing-intensity, war-and-military, political-intrigues, robin-hobb, bouts-of-fangirl-craziness, buddy-read, adventure, a-tsunami-of-angst, my-goddamn-emotions, binnengehaald

With the exciting news of a brand new series about Fitz & the Fool, The Fool's Assassin, in mind, we are buddy reading this series in December and continue with the Tawny Man trilogy.

Yup, I'm all set! (for some funky reason, I'd feel weird about reading Robin Hobb on my Kindle, so I got the entire series in English paperbacks too.:p

Buddy read with:
*Kat (joins for book 2)
*Damian
*Joshua
*Em
*Lee(first timer, wooot!)
*Erika, and I'm confident we'll catch up with...
*DayDreamer ;)

---------------- ...more

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Mar 24, 2010 Kaion rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, unfinished

I find a lot of fantasy authors are in love with the internalized conceptions of their worlds. This can lead to great nuanced detail supporting imaginative storytelling... but the flipside can be a creation that fails to translate that vision to the actual page, to the audience.

Assassin's Apprentice illustrates this point fairly well. Robin Hobb has clearly lovingly created the world of the Six Duchies, and this love is echoed through the tale's device: born a bastard son to the king's heir, Fit ...more

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Jul 17, 2015 Sean Gibson rated it really liked it

It hasn’t been that long since I cracked the virtual spine on a new fantasy series, but it has been a while since I began one that felt like this.

(Um, Sean? Can you maybe, I don’t know, define what “this” is, on account of the fact that empathetic internet is, as of yet, at least still a few years away?)

“This” is fully realized, well written and conceived, and faithful to some of the most tried and true fantasy tropes while simultaneously standing one very big one on its heads (namely, and I don It hasn’t been that long since I cracked the virtual spine on a new fantasy series, but it has been a while since I began one that felt like this.

(Um, Sean? Can you maybe, I don’t know, define what “this” is, on account of the fact that empathetic internet is, as of yet, at least still a few years away?)

“This” is fully realized, well written and conceived, and faithful to some of the most tried and true fantasy tropes while simultaneously standing one very big one on its heads (namely, and I don’t think I’m spoiling anything that’s not in the title of the book here, that our main character, Fitz, is being trained to be an assassin, a line of work that is not generally considered sympatico vis-à-vis being a heroic paragon of virtue).

As much as anything, this is a coming of age story, and it’s paced accordingly. You know how, growing up, your life is marked by milestones (first sleepover, staying home alone the first time, first kiss, driver’s license, first time you manage to kill a dracolich in a game of 2nd edition AD&D (an event that likely transpired long, long before your first kiss)) that break up an otherwise monotonous cycle of school, chores, hanging out with friends, exploring the wondrous things that can happen when you spend time alone with a bottle of Jurgens contemplating the shower scene in National Lampoon’s Vacation, etc.? That’s basically what reading The Assassin’s Apprentice is like, but that’s neither a critique nor an indicator that it’s in any way boring. Monotony generally implies boringness, but I would argue that all of those repetitive activities you undertook growing up incrementally formed your character (or, at least, chafed your most sensitive parts, depending on how frequently you indulged in thoughts of an in-her-prime Beverly D’Angelo). So it is for Fitz, and watching him undergo his journey—slow and painful though it can occasionally be—is a delight.

Hobb builds her world methodically, brick by brick; she manages to deftly balance driving the story forward while highlighting the unique features of the world, and never once do you feel as though you’re on world-building data dump overload. Her writing is a delight, and she conjures a feel reminiscent of some of the fantasy luminaries I enjoyed working my way through when I really started to get into reading fantasy late in high school (the two who come foremost to mind, in terms of making a tonal comparison, are David Eddings and Raymond Feist).

Would I have liked a little bit more action here and there, a little more with the swords and the heroics and magic fireballs? Sure. But, that’s true in real life as well. Who doesn’t love fireballs? Nonetheless, I’m more than sufficiently hooked to continue on, to see if Fitz can remain a sympathetic character as he moves from apprentice assassin to the master assassin, to explore more of this intriguing world, and to go dig out my old VHS copy of Vacation.

(And, hey—how can you not love a book that starts off with a man sleeping with animals in the first 10 pages? Just sleeping, people—no funny business. Get your minds out of the gutter, you filthy perverts.) ...more

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Apr 26, 2014 Samantha rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: my-favorite-books

Even better the second time around!

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Aug 30, 2012 Evgeny rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy

Probably the most depressing fantasy trilogy I read (and this includes Thomas Covenant). Recommended for when you are too cheerful and want to lower your mood in the hurry. The bad guys are bad with no redeeming qualities (and doing bad things just because they are bad). The good guys have all the bad luck imaginable - and then some; they also love acting out of character.

This is still entertaining read which kept me until the end.

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Aug 21, 2017 Warda rated it really liked it · review of another edition

“Be your blood, boy, and ignore what anyone else thinks of you.”

I'm officially part of the Hobb fandom, hallelujah! This book was one of the most joyful slow-burners that I've read. Think 'The Name of the Wind.' It's about our precious Fitz, a bastard, who has been brought up by someone who used to work closely with his father. It is narrated by Fitz himself and we follow his life closely from childhood till his young teenage years.

The writing is quite simply, stunning. From page one I was hook ...more

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Jul 15, 2017 Bentley ★ Bookbastion.net rated it really liked it · review of another edition

See this review and more like it on www.bookbastion.net
_____________

I've had Robin Hobb on my list of authors I simply must read for a few years now, but haven't had the opportunity to get my hands on one of her books until this month. I'm actually kind of glad that I waited as long as I did, if I'm honest, because in a way I think finishing this book required a patience and maturity on my part that I probably would have lacked had I tried to accomplish reading it years ago when it first started ...more

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May 26, 2015 Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽ rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, coming-of-age

After reading maybe a few too many YA fantasies, it was a breath of fresh air to delve into the world of Fitz, the assassin's apprentice. It was complex and layered, the way I like my fantasies, and I suppose my reading generally.

Fitz, the bastard son of the crown prince with a peasant woman, is taken from his mother as a six year old boy and dropped into the royal household. This novel follows Fitz from his childhood, rejected by many and ignored by almost all others, to about age fifteen, as ...more

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Apr 04, 2014 Markus rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, 2014

Buddy read with Alexa August 19th!

Wearily I regard the faltering trail of ink it has tracked down my page. I have seen that shape before, I think, but it was not ink then. A trickle of drying blood on the deck of a Red-Ship, and mine the hand that spilled it? Or was it a tendril of smoke rising black against a blue sky as I rode too late to warn a village of a Red-Ship raid? Or poison swirling and unfurling yellowly in a simple glass of water, poison I had handed someone, smiling all the while? Buddy read with Alexa August 19th!

Wearily I regard the faltering trail of ink it has tracked down my page. I have seen that shape before, I think, but it was not ink then. A trickle of drying blood on the deck of a Red-Ship, and mine the hand that spilled it? Or was it a tendril of smoke rising black against a blue sky as I rode too late to warn a village of a Red-Ship raid? Or poison swirling and unfurling yellowly in a simple glass of water, poison I had handed someone, smiling all the while? The artless curl of a strand of woman's hair left upon my pillow? Or the trail a man's heels left in the sand as we dragged the bodies from the smoldering tower at Sealbay? The track of a tear down a mother's cheek as she clutched her Forged infant to her despite his angry cries? Like Red-Ships, the memories come without warning, without mercy.

An angry old man arrives at the gates of Buckkeep, capital of the Kingdom of the Six Duchies, dragging his six-year old grandson along. Determined not to listen to his daughter’s desperate cries from behind them, the old man delivers the child to a guardsman, and demands that his father take care of him from now on. And the child’s father, he says to the perplexed guardsman, is Prince Chivalry Farseer, king-in-waiting and heir to the throne.

The boy who comes to be known as Fitz becomes something of a liability for the Farseer royal family upon his untimely arrival at Buckkeep. Chivalry, a man whose honour is everything to him, abdicates his position in the line of succession and thus causes an uproar in the Six Duchies. And Fitz himself, doomed to the life of a bastard, must put his life in the hands of King Shrewd. And he must decide between being put to death for no other reason than being who he is, and being turned into a lethal weapon for the king to use. An assassin…

Robin Hobb’s writing is one of the strengths of this novel. It is extraordinarily simple, and yet greatly satisfying. I also really enjoyed the book’s narrative, written from the point of view of Fitz as an old man describing the events of his youth. That kind of retrospective, nostalgic writing style is deeply reminiscent of one of my all-time favourite authors, Bernard Cornwell. And even though Cornwell in my opinion does it a lot better, Robin Hobb is also quite certainly a master of this art.

The setting is not particularly complex or innovative, but one could say that it, like so many other aspects of this novel, grows more and more interesting for each single chapter. The Kingdom of the Six Duchies is, like most other medieval fantasy settings, a feudal monarchy built by farmers and soldiers. Most of the story takes place in the capital city of Buckkeep, but some of the most interesting events occur in outlying villages or even in the bordering Mountain Kingdoms. The fact that Hobb reveals remarkably little of the other locations, cultures and nations of this world, also helps to make it seem more mysterious and fascinating.

The characters are a bit more difficult to talk about. Aside from Fitz himself, almost every single character is completely generic and more or less one-dimensional. In Chivalry, Verity and Regal we have three different versions of royal princes all so often found in medieval fantasy, and their father King Shrewd is most definitely a rather typical monarch. Most of Fitz’ teachers also fit the various stereotypes of fantasy. Despite all that, I should say that I really enjoyed reading about them. Within the confines of their roles, these characters were very well developed. Robin Hobb seems to have a way to make her readers care about what happens even to minor characters, not to mention the protagonist himself. And there are obviously also a few more interesting characters, like the Fool and the Lady Patience, who were the two characters of this book whom I enjoyed the most.

Speaking of patience, that is absolutely something one needs to read this book. When it comes to the composition and the progression of the story, Robin Hobb so far reminds me a lot of Robert Jordan, in the way that both authors apparently write books where nothing at all seems to be happening, and then they bombard the reader with tons of excitement and drama in the last five to ten chapters. One needs to get almost halfway through this book before the plot finally starts moving forward. But when it finally does that, it’s hardly even possible to put it down.

In the end, Assassin’s Apprentice was an enjoyable book to read. It is not among the best fantasy books I’ve ever read, but it was great fun reading, and it piqued my curiosity enough that I certainly want to read the rest of the books set in the Realms of the Elderlings, and get to explore this wonderful world further.
...more

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Mar 31, 2009 Kat Hooper rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

I read THE FARSEER SAGA years ago and have since considered it one of my favorite fantasy epics. It’s one (along with THE LORD OF THE RINGS and MEMORY, SORROW AND THORN) that I often suggest to new fantasy readers. But after more than a decade of reading deeper and further into fantasy literature, I’ve often wondered how well this saga would now appeal to my more mature (I hope) palate. When Tantor Audio recently released THE FARSEER SAGA on audio, I was overjoyed and considered this to be my si I read THE FARSEER SAGA years ago and have since considered it one of my favorite fantasy epics. It’s one (along with THE LORD OF THE RINGS and MEMORY, SORROW AND THORN) that I often suggest to new fantasy readers. But after more than a decade of reading deeper and further into fantasy literature, I’ve often wondered how well this saga would now appeal to my more mature (I hope) palate. When Tantor Audio recently released THE FARSEER SAGA on audio, I was overjoyed and considered this to be my sign that it’s time to re-visit the six duchies.

When Assassin’s Apprentice arrived in the mail, I yanked out the CD that was currently in my computer, tossed it aside (sorry, Ray Bradbury) and stuck in the first Assassin’s Apprentice disc. My lips trembled as I mouthed the name of the narrator: Paul Boehmer… Never heard of him. Is he good enough to portray Fitz, one of my all-time favorite fantasy characters? And… my stomach twisted… will Fitz be the same boy I came to care so much for so many years ago?

Within minutes I was reabsorbed into the world of FitzChivalry Farseer, that insecure, lonely boy who has so much potential but, due to his illegitimate birth and his peculiar abilities with animals, never gets what he deserves. Fitz was just as I remembered and Paul Boehmer portrayed him (and all the other characters) beautifully. (Except that at one point he incorrectly used the word “prisoner” instead of “poisoner.”)

Robin Hobb’s prose was as nice as I remembered, too — straightforward and simple. It never calls attention to itself (and therefore away from the story). Her characters are engaging and nicely portrayed, though a couple of her villains are overdone. Her animal characters are especially notable and, though I’m not a dog lover, I can’t help but be emotionally connected to Fitz’s canine companions. My second read also gave me a greater appreciation for Hobb’s world-building as I encountered tidbits of information that are relevant to her later works (TAWNY MAN, LIVESHIP TRADERS, RAIN WILDS).
My only disappointment is that I don’t have the next book, Royal Assassin, in my hands yet. I’m not sure why I’m so eager to torture myself again with this story because I know what’s going to happen. Things don’t always go well for Fitz. His story is heart-wrenching, and I know I’ll be emotionally drained after I finish it. But I’m going to love every minute of it.

Read more Robin Hobb book reviews at Fantasy literature. ...more

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May 19, 2017 James Lafayette Tivendale rated it it was ok · review of another edition

DNF @ 30% - twice. May return to.

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Jun 29, 2017 Aristea rated it really liked it · review of another edition

The easiest rating of all times.

Here is the review of the book on my blog! Let me know your thoughts about it!
https://todaysdecameron.wordpress.com...

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Jul 25, 2017 Deborah Obida rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, adult

This is my first by Robin Hobb and definitely not my last, this book surpassed all my expectations, I’ve heard so much about this and I caved in and I don’t regret it instead I’m chiding myself for not picking this earlier. The world building is so well depicted the cloth descriptions, houses, landscapes everything is original I felt like I was watching it unfold instead of reading it. The writing is what wowed me most about this book, Its written in old English one that suit fantasy perfectly b ...more

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Dec 06, 2016 Alex Farrand rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: series, fantasy-and-scifi

Assassin's Apprentice lives up to its title. It is about a boy name Fitz who learns to become an assassin. It is also much more than just killing people. It is about this young boy coming of age and finding out who he is.

First off, I thought this book would be a little bit different. I think I took the "Assassin" part to heart, and forgot the "Apprentice". You don't just jump into your trade until you really master something. Also, it was very dense in the beginning. Robin was really building ev ...more

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Jun 19, 2017 Cait • A Page with a View rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: high-fantasy

I finally read it! So many of you have been telling me to try these books aaaaand you were right - Robin Hobb is a great author.

So really did enjoy this book in the end, but it was definitely a slow start. That was fine, though, because the world was so detailed and I loved the main character! Fitz is a truly wonderful narrator.

This seems like one of the better high fantasy worlds I've found. And even though the story was slow-moving, it was never truly boring. More like... peaceful and pretty? ...more

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Jan 04, 2017 Chloe rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: read-and-owned, series-im-reading

I will be rereading this book soon so I can continue the trilogy since it's been four years!!
~~~

This is a wonderfully constructed fantasy. Well written with fantastic character development and world-building. It is quite a skill to create a world so huge and complex and it has been done wonderfully.

The protagonist is great and his development throughout the story believable and fascinating. The use of first person is unusual for high fantasy but is very effective in this book. I will definitely ...more

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Jul 23, 2012 Penny rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favourites, fantasy, series, books-they-say-i-should-read, to-reread, scifi-and-fantasy-club-bookshelf, magic, adventure

After re-read:

I'm not great at remembering all the details of something if I've only seen it once which really works in my favour when it comes to re-reads. I loved this series the first time and will agree with my husband that Fitz is one of the best characters ever written. I'm thrilled to say that it also holds up very well on a second pass.

It was awesome revisiting these characters in their youth and seeing their interactions with the knowledge of where they end up in later books. I think R ...more

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Jun 10, 2013 Kaora rated it it was amazing

Shelves: good-fantasy-series

Holy shit.

Hopefully this review is coherent. I did just finish this amazing book and its hard to put thoughts in order when your mind has just been blown.

I great up fatherless and motherless in a court where all recognized me as a catalyst. And a catalyst I became.

Assassin's Apprentice is the story of a bastard son of the Prince, who is given up by his mother to be raised in Buckkeep. There he becomes known as Fitz, and discovers that he is able to link to animals, a talent called the Wit. It al ...more

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Jan 23, 2017 Jody rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Starting a new series by an author I have never read before always makes me a little anxious. Am I going to like it? Will I give it a fair chance? Will others opinions cloud my judgement? I will admit, Robin Hobb wasn’t on my list of top authors to read, but I found the complete Farseer trilogy at a resale book store and decided to pick them up. I hadn’t read a lot of reviews before starting this book, and the ones I did were either great or DNF. This only fueled my apprehension, but I was in be Starting a new series by an author I have never read before always makes me a little anxious. Am I going to like it? Will I give it a fair chance? Will others opinions cloud my judgement? I will admit, Robin Hobb wasn’t on my list of top authors to read, but I found the complete Farseer trilogy at a resale book store and decided to pick them up. I hadn’t read a lot of reviews before starting this book, and the ones I did were either great or DNF. This only fueled my apprehension, but I was in between book series and I had already bought them so I decided to give it a go. It didn’t take long after staring Assassins Apprentice for all of those worries to melt away. Robin Hobb has woven a tale that has all the feels of a great classic fantasy.

This is a coming of age story about our main character and story teller FitzChivalryFarseer, or as most refer to him as the bastard. Nobility in the land of the Six Duchies give their children a name that they hope befits their personality. Fitz is the bastard son one of these men. None other than the king-in-waiting Prince Chivalry. When Fitz is discovered Prince Chivalry gives up his position as king-in-waiting and moves to an estate in the country to live a life of solitude with his wife Lady Patience. Fitz is taken to Buckkeep by Chivalry’s right hand man Burrich to live in the shadow of King Shrewd and the court.

Since Fitz is a bastard he is not given a position in the court. Instead he is the keep’s stable boy and Burrich is the stable master. He is seen as an outcast and treated as such by almost all those that know who he is. Fitz’s life growing up at Buckkeep is remote and tortuous for a while. His only escape is going into Buckkeep town and playing with the kids there. They don’t know who he is, so he feels a sense of freedom among them that he can’t get back at the castle.

The story gets more and more interesting as Fitz gets older. His relationships with Chade (Assassin), Lady Patience (His father’s wife), and Galen (Skill master) were the most entertaining to me. There is also the Fool who pops up every so often to give Fitz some crazy or morbid warning. Also, Prince Verity, Chivalry’s younger brother and now king-in-waiting, becomes closer with Fitz near the end of the book. With all of these influences Fitz is constantly struggling to figure out what he wants to become and what is expected of him. This made him an easy character to empathize with, and helped me enjoy the story even more.

The last 15% of the book was probably my favorite. Events finally move away from Buckkeep and Fitz joins a royal caravan to the mountain city of Jhaampe. He has finally been given a mission by King Shrewd, but when he arrives the situation is not what he has been told. This was the most exciting sequence of events, because Fitz is finally on his own having to rely on his wit and training. There was only one thing I didn’t agree with in the conclusion, but I won’t ruin it. Hopefully, this will be taken care of in book 2.

Overall, this was a solid and enjoyable read. This is no grimdark fantasy by any stretch of the term, but it does have a dark feel to it at times. The pacing is slower than most fantasy I have read, but it does gain momentum after a while. The payoff was definitely worth the effort put in. Robin Hobb has made yet another fan. I have already started book 2.

4 stars **** ...more

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Feb 26, 2012 seak rated it really liked it

Shelves: audio, 2012

This is another one of those, how-can-you-call-yourself-a-fantasy-fan-and-not-read series. I really am sorry I waited this long because I loved it and can't wait for more...good thing there are 10 more and counting set in the Realm of the Elderlings.

That's not to say I loved it from the beginning, however. I had a bit of a hard time getting into Assassin's Apprentice, but that could also be the fact that I had a hard time with the narrator at first. By the end, I actually found it quite fitting This is another one of those, how-can-you-call-yourself-a-fantasy-fan-and-not-read series. I really am sorry I waited this long because I loved it and can't wait for more...good thing there are 10 more and counting set in the Realm of the Elderlings.

That's not to say I loved it from the beginning, however. I had a bit of a hard time getting into Assassin's Apprentice, but that could also be the fact that I had a hard time with the narrator at first. By the end, I actually found it quite fitting.

Assassin's Apprentice is the first book in the Farseer Trilogy. The Farseer's are a ruling family in the land of the Six Duchies and the book is told from the perspective of Fitz Chivalry, the bastard of Prince Chivalry Farseer.

Everyone knows he's the bastard, his name even connotes such, but he has an uncanny resemblance to his father. Also, no one really knows what to do about the bastard until King Shrewd Farseer decides to put him to good use by putting him to work as the title of the book suggests.

As an assassin for the king, Fitz learns about herbs and languages, stealth and subterfuge. He's given tasks that test his skills such as stealing certain artifacts and then putting them back without being seen.

The setup of the book works really well to build up the world without slowing down the action too much. It's told essentially as Fitz Chivalry writing his memoirs. Each chapter begins with some information about the world, the politics, the peoples of or around the Six Duchies, among other things. Following this, the story resumes as if we're right there with Fitz as he is experiencing things.

In this way, the world becomes a rich tapestry you feel yourself a part of. The world expands while we continue to see the important role (and roles) that the bastard is beginning to play.

As I talk about this book now, Assassin's Apprentice wasn't nearly as exciting as I thought it would be going into it. We learn a lot about the world, the history, the relationships and the assassin work is really just a small part.

Then again, the story is much more than I ever thought it would be. It's more than just assassins, it's a rich story with a huge history that's told impeccably. Hobb is a master at leading you to expect one thing while her real plans come out of left field...and yet are so obvious at the same time.

4 out of 5 Stars (Loved it!) ...more

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May 31, 2007 else fine rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: people tired of bad fantasy

Shelves: sfthatdoesntsuck, reread, read2010, sf-fantasy-general, genderbending

This series demonstrates what a truly gifted writer can do with the constraints and conventions of the fantasy genre. It has all the required elements - dragons, quests, magic, etc - but combined in a dark and unsettling way. Hobb's heroes, fated to attempt epic feats, falter and are left prematurely aged, scarred, and bitter; true love goes unrequited; her characters are morally and sexually ambiguous; and both dragons and magic are dirty, unglamorous, and hazardous to your health.

Though all o ...more

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About Robin Hobb

** I am shocked to find that some people think a 2 star 'I liked it' rating is a bad rating. What? I liked it. I LIKED it! That means I read the whole thing, to the last page, in spite of my life raining comets on me. It's a good book that survives the reading process with me. If a book is so-so, it ends up under the bed somewhere, or maybe under a stinky judo bag in the back of the van. So a 2 st ...more

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