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Assassin's Apprentice
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AA: I like the book, but I don't really like Fitz
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I don't mind him too much. I can see a lot of potential in him. The moping and crying doesn't happen all that much. I'd say keep reading and you'll grow to like him.
Well, I read all the books of the Realms of Elderlings series but I never quite liked Fitz.I accepted it about him and I liked the books anyway.
Aw, poor Fitz. He's just a little kid in the first part of the book.If course he cries and whines.
oh i love fitz! He is just so..well...human! he feels sorry for himself, laughs and crys. I've read books one and two and i'm completely on his side. I also get annoyed at him when he starts feeling sorry for himself, get happy when he is and feel relieved if some bad happens and he comes out of it ok. I guess i'm hooked on these books :)
This is what I love about Robin Hobb - she never writes the shining perfect hero - her characters are human, and flawed like humans are. I love this series but still want to slap Fitz a lot of the time. I think his heart is in the right place but he can be such an idiot.
Kirsten wrote: "This is what I love about Robin Hobb - she never writes the shining perfect hero - her characters are human, and flawed like humans are. I love this series but still want to slap Fitz a lot of the..."if he wasn't an idiot (view spoiler)
I find Fritz to not be like the normal trope of assassin. I mean assassin usually don't have a heart, a loner, and darker. I feel like he always needs other characters to be there to help him.
I read all 3 books when I learned this was this months pick. I absolutely cannot stand pretty much any of the characters. Especially the main one, Fitz. The emo doesn't stop. It gets worse.All of the supporting characters are weak and do exactly opposite to what you would consider to be common reaction to the events that present themselves.
The author fills the gaps between major plot driving elements with fluff and complete nonsense that doesn't drive the plot, nor give me anything to care about the story line.
I wanted it to get better, thus the reason why I read all 3 books. My personal issue was that I was so disappointed that by 80% of the third book I wanted to just walk away. It was really a grind for me to get through them. And if it's any indication of her writing, I'm not going to pick up another book by this author.
Oh one thing that stuck out in my mind (and sorry if it's not included too much in the first book as they all seem to run together in my mental vomit of this series) was that what is this authors hang up with drugs and alcohol? I mean really. It was like a PSA against drinking.
/endif
/rant_off
Ted wrote: "I read all 3 books when I learned this was this months pick. I absolutely cannot stand pretty much any of the characters. Especially the main one, Fitz. The emo doesn't stop. It gets worse.All of..."
Thanks, I never thought of the book or Fritz that way. Its great food for thought. I can see your point of view.
Ted wrote: "I absolutely cannot stand pretty much any of the characters. Especially the main one, Fitz. The emo doesn't stop. It gets worse."I understand where you're coming from. I actually like Fitz, but he's still a male character written by a female author. Not every man is going to take to him.
I can envisage that I'll go on and read the rest of the series now, but I'm wondering if Hobb's perspective on Fitz will still hold my attention by the last book. Will I be as enthralled as I am now, or will the novelty wear off? It will be a quest to see if I can meld minds with the EMO within - and I will not allow you to SKILL me into failure.
Maybe I should clarify something. It's not that I'm anti-emo. I don't mind some self deprication. It makes the character more realistic. What I *don't* like is when not only does it not stop, or is tempered with fantastic achievements, but it actually gets worse. I came away from this series almost depressed myself for having read it. And that's saying something, as I actually liked Twilight. And it doesn't get much more emo than that.
Yes I just admitted to liking twilight. You have permission to pull my man-card.
Fitz is an interesting character. I mean still not that far in and there certainly are things about him that iirritating. But the kid's got something endearing about him.
Jules wrote: "I'm about 20% in and a bit torn. I love the setting, the writing and all the characters except the main one! (We call this the Sookie Stackhouse syndrom: everyone in the cast is interesting, except..."give time to the kid and you'll see he's one though bastard that chops down sailor raiders and diseased mindless people and knows how to take a real beating from his teachers
My main problem with Fitz (and many of the characters) is that most people who should be able to read other people well (be it special mind powers or a needed professional skill) are total crap at it. They just react so oddly to each other. I agree with the early comment that "All of the supporting characters are weak and do exactly opposite to what you would consider to be common reaction to the events that present themselves." I would extend that to all the characters. I just found everyone puzzling and unreal. Nobody came a live as a real person to me (particularly Fitz).
Nikki wrote: "My main problem with Fitz (and many of the characters) is that most people who should be able to read other people well (be it special mind powers or a needed professional skill) are total crap at ..."if you remember correctely Fitz's powers were suppressed
Kamil wrote: "Nikki wrote: "My main problem with Fitz (and many of the characters) is that most people who should be able to read other people well (be it special mind powers or a needed professional skill) are ..."I'm not talking about after his skill was suppressed I'm talking before that and not Skill specifically but his sense of people (best seen as no sense of the Forged people). I find all the characters very detached.
Nikki wrote: "Kamil wrote: "Nikki wrote: "My main problem with Fitz (and many of the characters) is that most people who should be able to read other people well (be it special mind powers or a needed profession..."I always thought of the sense of people as something along the lines of some supernatural ability, thus I said Fitz's power got suppressed
Fitz only "bonds" with one animal at a time(at least in book one). He has to deliberately "quest" to read people otherwise he has a general but unfocused awareness of life about him. For example he will naturally look up an instant before he can hear or see anyone coming through the door.
I finished the book and stand by what I said at the start of the thread but sometimes I really wanted to kick him. Hard.
I'm not really talking about special skills to be a good assassin or prince or anyone who works with people you should be able to read people. But in this world everyone is surprised.
In Fool's Errand, the forth book with Fitz as the protagonist, he spends the first EIGHTY pages in a hut, moping. I set the book down and the only thing that would've inspired me to pick it up again would be to smother Fitz as he slept using the assassin skills he never had the guts to put into practice.
I thought Fitz's character was pretty realistic. A lonely, ostracized teenage boy is bound to be angsty. I didn't hate him for it, though I did wish I could knock some sense into him at times.
Molly wrote: "I thought Fitz's character was pretty realistic. A lonely, ostracized teenage boy is bound to be angsty. I didn't hate him for it, though I did wish I could knock some sense into him at times."As far as the first book I agree I'll save my opinions for later on whether he's too emo later in the series.
I didn't find him all that emo, considering his actual situation in the first book. He is kind of active to be really emo, more like a Adam Dalgliesh style character. Emo in my mind requires more brooding about things than Fitz ever seems to do in this book.
My biggest complaint about Fitz is how he just doesn't seem to get what's going on around him. He seems easily fooled! I keep waiting for him to wise up, gain the upper hand, take charge of ANYthing, but (at 90% in) it hasn't seemed to happen yet. If he doesn't get smarter and more capable, I don't know if I'll want to read the rest of the series. For me, the hero has to eventually come into his own and start "winning" once in a while. I know he's young, but does anyone know if he gets any wiser or more shrewd in the later books in the series (without too much spoilers please)?
I think we need to remember that the story is being written by Fitz later in life. And that he has a little more knowledge about what is happening than he knew at that moment in life. I can see why he has the issues he does. One thing that I liked about Fitz was that he is really good at seeing everything around him but he has issues making everything connect. Which is a very human issue to have.
Personally I loved Fitz. He is noble and tries to do the right thing even if he doesn't know everything about the situation.
I liked the Fitz and can relate to some of what he is going through.I see him sitting in his room listing to his equivalent of the Smiths when he has his down time.
I don't like Fitz either. I'm currently on the third book in this series, and while I've enjoyed them so far, he is the weakest link. He isn't much of a flawed hero, but one of the stupidest protagonists out there. There are so many obvious things going on around him, but he's too dense and whiny to do anything correctly.
The entire series is a train wreck. Just stop now and spare yourself disapointment .
I don't think Fritz was mean to be likable.More of a case of showing how someone could be molded into a cold blooded killer. I don't think this tale was meant to be a warm fuzzy fantasy. It's more like Venice in the 13th Century, pure Machiavellian politics.
He seems to not understand because you are given more information than what Fitz at that age. Fitz is narrating but he is narrating from the future. so the narrator knows more than Fitz does.
Warren wrote: "I don't think Fritz was mean to be likable.More of a case of showing how someone could be molded into a cold blooded killer."
I don't think that's the reason he isn't likable. Logan from The Blade Itself is more of a cold-blooded killer than Fitz, and he was also more likable. Arya from A Song of Fire and Ice appears to be training as an assassin now, and she's my favorite character of that series. Meanwhile, Fitz is barely actually doing anything "cold-blooded" in this trilogy. He's the Inspector Clouseau of assassins.
It don't totally disagree. I guess it depends on what you call cold blooded. He knows what he's doing is wrongIn some cases even bad for the country Plus his carefully planning it it advance. He kills anyway. Thats cold.
"I was only following order." Doesn't make it any better. Alas there are a lot of people like him in the world.
Somewhere half-way through the story I got the impression that Fitz was overpowered: Skill, Wit, all those assassin skills, reading, drawing, etc. However, on closer inspection I do see he is a flawed character thanks to all the negative that was dumped on him (loneliness, feeling out of plance, absent parents). I think Hobb balances this out: he felt to me like an ordinary person trying to figure out his place in the world. He's got skills, but a lot of baggage to deal with, too. It's no surprise that not everyone likes him and that he misses out on obvious (to us) issues.
Strakul wrote: "Somewhere half-way through the story I got the impression that Fitz was overpowered: Skill, Wit, all those assassin skills, reading, drawing, etc. However, on closer inspection I do see he is a fla..."overpowered... starting the third book now, don't worry that's not a problem at all. :D
The Sword and Laser
Books mentioned in this topic
The Blade Itself (other topics)Fool's Errand (other topics)
The silent and snivelling (yet super-powered) Fitz fails to capture my sympathy.
Well, no, that's not true. He has my sympathy, I just don't find him to be very interesting. The moping, the crying, the whining, the escapism, the not taking control of his life in any way. I guess I'm kind of spoiled by ASOIAF but I kind of expect my child assassin's apprentices to be, well, kind of tough.
I fully expect him to be an agent in the story soon enough. But for now I keep wishing the imaginary camera panned the other way along with Verity and Regal instead of following dogboy ;)