The Farseer Trilogy

Ugh, this book just... punched me in the feels so hard. I'll try to ignore my sore and bleeding heart to give some objective comments first before I give way to my spoilery rants. Overall, this book was amazing. It had a tight plot with lots of twists and turns, distinct and solid characters that have you rooting for them or hating them and wishing their downfall, sets up a lot of questions to be answered in the rest of the series while still remaining a fairly satisfying standalone, and at last a main character in a fantasy series that isn't annoying without being a Gary-Stu either. This was a 4.5 star read for me.

Trigger warning: Pet and animal deaths. This aspect of the book was the hardest for me to read and the reason for my bleeding heart, but at the same time I have to acknowledge that Hobb writes them compellingly and not gratuitously or lightly, so you know that they aren't there for random shock factors. It still hurts very much though, and I'm still a tiny bit mad at Hobb for making me sit through that and not even be able to just DNF the series, because she also writes animals so beautifully and endearingly, it's clear that she also loves animals and dogs especially very much, but then she takes that knowledge and really wrenches our hearts with it, UGH WHY!!!! I absolutely cried when I got to the part where we see Nosy again, and found out that he lived a long and happy life with an affectionate master.

I've been reading so many great high fantasy series lately and this definitely counts as one of them. I love the world already, it's so different from all the others I've been reading with such a fun magic system that's engagingly written and explored. Unlike most “apprentice” books where I feel like we barely spend much time actually feeling like the main character is apprenticing because they spend more time doing other plot things than learning whatever skill or craft they're meant to do, this one hit a great balance in giving us that “apprentice” journey while also not boring us with the monotony of lessons because something new happens chapter.

Fitz is also a sympathetic and relatable main character. He's not perfect, he goes through a lot, and he deals with them in a way that isn't obnoxiously annoying and realistic for his age at the time. He sulks like a teenager, he's susceptible to flattery and trickery sometimes, he gets buoyed up by pride, but also can fall into the doldrums of low self-esteem. You just want to root for him and protect him from the politicking of the court. You eye other characters askance because you can't trust them to do right by Fitz. The fact that the book is written from a first-person perspective of an older Fitz looking back on his life also allows some narrative tension. I love the epigraphs before each chapter, which served the dual purpose of introducing some foreshadowing by hinting at events to come but also helps to set up and explain the backstory of just that segment of the world we're about to see in the upcoming chapter, without coming across as too info-dumpy.

This book isn't grimdark, but I feel like it kinda flirts at the edge of one sometimes. There are some good-hearted characters in here that you can trust, but there are a lot who aren't as trustworthy, and Hobb has shown that she isn't afraid to kill off characters, even just as you think they're being set up to be a mainstay in the whole trilogy.

In summary, a definite blanket recommendation for any and all fantasy fans, although I'd also recommend seriously checking out the trigger warning above cos that shit took a toll on me.