The Mad Ship

I don't know when exactly it happened, though it was more than likely at the beginning of this book, but the characters all suddenly clicked for me. After spending most of the first book being vaguely interested in these characters, though not particularly invested, I am now finding myself being excited for all of them (even if I don't like the character, I'll still find them interesting to read about).

What Hobb excels at is characters, and in that case a slow burn is often necessary. Who's going to care about all the exciting action going on if you have no clue who your characters are? Most of the conflict here stems from the characters themselves and their motivations, and it makes for an addicting read.

On a sidenote, I just really really really love Amber. This has nothing to do with the review, but I just wanted to mention that.