Royal Assassin (Farseer Trilogy, #2) in Hobb-A-Long Read-A-Long

Jul 31, 2017 Shelby M. (Read and Find Out) rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, epic-fantasy, magic-and-sorcery

Trigger warnings: Torture

I went into this one expecting to like it more than Assassin's Apprentice, and in the first quarter of the book that seemed like it was going to be the case. But I actually really didn't like about half of the book (probably roughly chapters 9-24?). And then I thought the ending of the book was ok. It makes me extremely curious about how the end of the trilogy is going to wrap up, but not overly so.

My favorite parts of this book were the characters that I actually really ...more

10 likes · Like · see review

Mar 24, 2018 Alfred Haplo rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-mytho, 1970-to-1999, series-4-or-more

Having read the entire series *, I can hardly separate this book from the rest. Rating it would be like judging a passage in a favorite chapter, or a chapter in a favorite book. Royal Assassin is not the best bit of the saga that is the Realm of the Elderlings, yet without it, the saga is a bit less than its best.

Once, Hobb said she writes the characters first then the story follows. She appears to ask, “who is he or she really?” And goes from there. That cannot be any truer here with character Having read the entire series *, I can hardly separate this book from the rest. Rating it would be like judging a passage in a favorite chapter, or a chapter in a favorite book. Royal Assassin is not the best bit of the saga that is the Realm of the Elderlings, yet without it, the saga is a bit less than its best.

Once, Hobb said she writes the characters first then the story follows. She appears to ask, “who is he or she really?” And goes from there. That cannot be any truer here with character authenticity, and the manifestation of natural magics, but plot and world-building become secondary. In my first read years back, I was distracted by the sheer myopia towards court duplicity and how provincial the royal defense. Obviously, a second read changes nothing of the story but somehow I love it more.

Royal Assassin, like all of Hobb’s books, are character-driven. Though Fitz, in my mind, might be the only character whose actions are driven by other characters driving his story. All his life, his actions are derivatives of circumstances created by those whose needs become his cause whether he wills it or not. Much is at stake in this middle book, that makes or breaks a reader’s commitment to Fitz for the long, long haul. Well, she got me. You, I am not so sure but do not give up.

In Royal Assassin, Hobb lays meticulous emotional groundwork for the future of Fitz and other trilogies. So many scenes induced me to go “oh” with hindsight, for conversations that will repeat in different forms in the future, for boundaries or intimacies that will set a relationship for life, and for the deliberate easing into what will be a heart-pounding end to this book, and much further out, a heart-wrenching finale to this trilogy.

What results is a very long book that wears out even the stoutest of fans. But the misery is necessary, as necessary as the slow growing pains of youthful muscles when they stretch in adolescence, unrushed and purposeful. We go through this rite of passage with Fitzchivalry Farseer from boy to man, from pain to pain, in his never-ending struggle to come into his own. He is everything to everyone, royal bastard and assassin, lover and friend, but nothing is left for himself. Fitz’s heart is tugged where the strings are pulled, with each string wound around a different fist, with each fist tied to a different loyalty. When they all pull, his heart is torn asunder - and ours with it.

I had forgotten how my emotions felt when I first read this. They come back, and they come back with impact because of what I now know. Of how it all ends in the series. This is a cruel world, dealt an author’s cruel hand. Fitz and all who loves him, one by one, I am reminded of when many of these relationships really took root. It begins here in a very important middle book, in Royal Assassin.

This is not that useful a review, as I am not saying much other than loving the book more second time round. My assumption is that you will read the book anyway, this being book #2… But if a nudge is needed, go here for fine insights.

[* Realm of the Elderlings (Fitz as protagonist): Assassin trilogy, Tawny Man trilogy, Fitz & Fool trilogy. And related, in the same realm: Liveship Traders trilogy, Rain Wild Chronicles tetralogy] ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Feb 18, 2020 Nadine rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

At the end of this book, I felt like I knew all of the characters so well and they felt so well fleshed out. The story itself is, like the first book, very slow, but that's just the essence of Hobb's writing. She manages to slowly capture you in her world and let's you experience Fitz's story on a slow burn that simply great. Fitz himself can be a bit of a frustrating character now and then because he manages to make the stupidest decisions you can make in some situations, but he has also the bi ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

Aug 10, 2017 Saied Ali rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Another good installment in this series...felt that this book was more of a bridge between the first and the second by serving to flesh out characters more and the world in place of plot...

1 like · Like · see review

Aug 25, 2017 Thia Reads A Lot rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2017, reviewed-sff

Royal Assassin - Robin Hobb
Rating: ★★★½
(view spoiler) ...more

Like · see review

Jul 17, 2019 Vir - Física Lectora rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2019, favorites

4.5/5

(Review in English below)

Para no realizar spoilers de la trama, sólo diré esta novela continúa donde finaliza el primer libro de la saga de los Vatídico.
Aunque el primer libro me había gustado, no me había atrapado tanto como lo hizo esta segunda parte. Quien dice que las segundas partes no son tan buenas, se equivoca, al menos con esta saga. La escritura de la autora es muy descriptiva, lo que no implica que sea pesado de leer. Es una narración que se enfoca más en desarrollar a los perso 4.5/5

(Review in English below)

Para no realizar spoilers de la trama, sólo diré esta novela continúa donde finaliza el primer libro de la saga de los Vatídico.
Aunque el primer libro me había gustado, no me había atrapado tanto como lo hizo esta segunda parte. Quien dice que las segundas partes no son tan buenas, se equivoca, al menos con esta saga. La escritura de la autora es muy descriptiva, lo que no implica que sea pesado de leer. Es una narración que se enfoca más en desarrollar a los personajes, a quienes llegamos a conocer en profundidad y con quienes logramos generar empatía o rechazo. De todas maneras, no considero que sea un libro "lento". Por otra parte, ahora que conocemos mejor el contexto político y los sistemas de magia, entendemos mejor las intrigas y conspiraciones de Torre del Alce, y los alcances que ellas implican.
Como es un libro nexo entre el inicio y el desenlace, muchos misterios no se resuelven, es más, aparecen nuevos, pero realmente disfruté del viaje por el mundo de los Seis Ducados, aunque aún no hemos llegado al destino.
Algo en particular que me gustó mucho del primer libro y que la autora continúa haciendo, es la introducción de cada capítulo, como párrafos de la historia que estamos leyendo, pero narrados desde otra perspectiva, mirando al pasado. Esto nos permite conocer más del mundo fantástico creado por Robin Hobb.
Lo que no me gustó: algunas decisiones imprudentes de nuestro personaje principal, en las que me exasperó bastante, pero que claramente se deben a su naturaleza impulsiva.

----------------------------------

To not spoil you the plot of the first book, I will only say that here we continue where Assassin's Apprentice ends.
Although I liked the first book, it had not caught me as much as this second part did. Who says that the second parts are not so good, is wrong, at least with this saga. The writing of the author is very descriptive, which does not imply that it is heavy to read. It is a narrative that focuses more on developing the characters, who we get to know in depth and with whom we empathyze or reject. Anyway, I do not consider it a "slow" book, I think that the pacing is right. On the other hand, now that we know better the political context and the magic systems, we understand better the intrigues and conspiracies of Buckkeep, and the scope that they imply.
As it is a nexus between the beginning and the end, many mysteries are not solved, moreover, new ones appear, but I really enjoyed the journey through the world of the Six Duchies, although we have not reached our destination yet.
Something in particular that I liked very much about the first book and that the author continues to do, is the introduction of each chapter, as paragraphs of the story we are reading, but narrated from another perspective, looking at the past. This allows us to know more about the fantastic world created by Robin Hobb.
What I did not like: some imprudent decisions of our main character, in which I was quite exasperated, but which are clearly due to his impulsive nature. ...more

Like · see review

Jun 08, 2016 Sarah rated it liked it · review of another edition

3.5 * The ending was really good but if I weren't listening to it on audiobook the annoying complaining Fitz would have got on my nerve and I would have put it down. Fantasy seems to be the only genre I can stand via audiobooks because it doesn't really matter if you tune out for a few minutes, especially when Fitz is talking haha. ...more

Like · see review

May 08, 2016 Sarah rated it liked it · review of another edition

(3-3.5 stars)
Wow. That ending.
The first 100 - 200 pages of the book were probably about 2 stars, the midfle bit 4 stars and the ending a solid 5 stars.
I was a bit annoyed by the slow start of the story and how a lot of the character developement of the first book seemed to have vanished.
Almost all the characters have found their way into my heart and I am excited to see where all their stories are going. Regal is a bad guy I just love to hate. He is probably almost as bad as Geoffrey.
The only ...more

Like · see review

Feb 17, 2017 Elizabeth Meadows rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: audio-books-2017, big-books-2017

I think I enjoyed this one even more than the first one. I would have maybe wished for a little more resolution in the ending, but there is still another book, so I'll be okay. ...more

Like · see review