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A review by dark_reader
Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb
5.0
This was my favourite book of 2019
I learned something about myself reading this book, which may be the best type of reading experience to have, but it is highly personal; you will likely not have the same experience. Here is what I learned: fantasy coming-of-age stories really speak to me. I realized it part-way through the book; this is my kind of story. I realized that I felt the same in recent memory with [b:The Name of the Wind|186074|The Name of the Wind (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #1)|Patrick Rothfuss|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1515589515l/186074._SX50_.jpg|2502879]. There must have been others in the distant past but I can't recall any now.
Why does this specific type of storytelling speak to me? I am not entirely sure, but I think it's because I never really gave up my boyhood fantasies of personal adventure or magic, or believing that I might have extraordinary ability, like super-powers. I mean, I could be immortal, I won't know unless I die, right? I certainly don't have eternal youth though... Many people might say that I have always lived mentally in a fantasy land (family members, girlfriends, my 8th grade teacher in particular). Whatever it is, I have preserved a strong sense of wonder and fantastical imagination throughout my life, and a love of these things in media.
So that's about me, how about the book? This was first published in the mid-90's. I was hard pressed to think of this book's adult fantasy contemporaries, to put it in context. Robert Jordan was a few books into the Wheel of Time by the time this came out; Game of Thrones started; I don't know of many other enduring, high-quality series from that era. Forgotten Realms books were doing well with Drizzt; children's series including Harry Potter and His Dark Materials dropped; less impressive stuff like [b:The Magic of Recluce|185253|The Magic of Recluce (The Saga of Recluce, #1)|L.E. Modesitt Jr.|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1386922249l/185253._SY75_.jpg|1246811] which I cannot endorse... overall I sense that there was a likely hunger for more high-quality fantasy works when this came out. It is sad that, even in this setting, Megan Lindholm (already a pen name for Margaret Astrid Lindholm Ogden) and/or her publisher or agent or whomever, thought it necessary to invent a new, gender-neutral pen name, for fear that readers would be put off by a female author. The author bio in the original editions said simply, "Robin Hobb lives in Washington state" or wherever it was, to continue the charade-by-avoidance.
I note that the book cover features a blurb from G.R.R. Martin reading "Fantasy as it was meant to be written." You mean, in a completed series? Is that what you mean, George???
So, the book? It's really damn good. Of course I would think so, given the personal appeal I describe above. Not everyone will love it; you may find it very dull, because on the surface not a whole lot happens for most of the tale. Inwardly, we see a boy, bereft of true parents, growing and learning how to live and find his place in medieval Buckkeep, learning to navigate his complicated social status as a bastard son of royalty and struggling to meet multiple expectations. The book is written in first person, and the point of view is maintained very well. Worldbuilding through this view is achieved incredicably naturally; I never found information forced or extraneous to Fitz's experiences. I very much enjoyed the subtle ways that his special abilities were expressed without him being aware of it, or the hints of larger events that he is oblivious to, through his own words.
The world that Hobb made here is utterly believable and recognizable. I have seen the Six Duchies, and they are us. Unlike in so much fantasy, there is no made-up language to learn, no non-English terms to reinforce that this is an imagined world. The very few magical aspects have plain language assigned to them: the Wit, and the Skill, two different sets of rare mental abilities, neither of which are particularly powerful. There is nothing convoluted about the plot, and the cast of characters is eminently manageable. There is a skilled, seeming simplicity to the writing, which disguises the flawless construction of the world around Fitz. I found myself thoroughly immersed in this mostly-realistic world.
Even the whole "assassin's apprentice" concept is handled with great realism. Put away your notions of amoral dark-cowled, stubble-chinned figures standing on rooftops surveying their targets. In Hobb's world, the existence of an assassin is a polically complex and regrettably necessary tool. The practitioners of these skills feel the value of a life and take no personal pleasure in fulfilling their functions as servants of their wise king. I almost regret the book title because it may create certain expectations for the uninitiated reader that will go unfulfilled.
Why did I not read this sooner? It was probably the cover art and the title. The cover that my library has is the one with a young Fitz standing in a green cloak, with his dark little curls, looking just so damned twee. This image is at odds with the "Assassin" concept, and I equated it with Ranger's Apprentice without consideration. It was only after the books came up as a potential buddy read that I started hearing people say "I love Robin Hobb!" that I deigned to scan reviews and develop an interest in this book. Now, I am a devoted fan, and plan to catch up on Hobb's entire oeuvre.
I learned something about myself reading this book, which may be the best type of reading experience to have, but it is highly personal; you will likely not have the same experience. Here is what I learned: fantasy coming-of-age stories really speak to me. I realized it part-way through the book; this is my kind of story. I realized that I felt the same in recent memory with [b:The Name of the Wind|186074|The Name of the Wind (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #1)|Patrick Rothfuss|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1515589515l/186074._SX50_.jpg|2502879]. There must have been others in the distant past but I can't recall any now.
Why does this specific type of storytelling speak to me? I am not entirely sure, but I think it's because I never really gave up my boyhood fantasies of personal adventure or magic, or believing that I might have extraordinary ability, like super-powers. I mean, I could be immortal, I won't know unless I die, right? I certainly don't have eternal youth though... Many people might say that I have always lived mentally in a fantasy land (family members, girlfriends, my 8th grade teacher in particular). Whatever it is, I have preserved a strong sense of wonder and fantastical imagination throughout my life, and a love of these things in media.
So that's about me, how about the book? This was first published in the mid-90's. I was hard pressed to think of this book's adult fantasy contemporaries, to put it in context. Robert Jordan was a few books into the Wheel of Time by the time this came out; Game of Thrones started; I don't know of many other enduring, high-quality series from that era. Forgotten Realms books were doing well with Drizzt; children's series including Harry Potter and His Dark Materials dropped; less impressive stuff like [b:The Magic of Recluce|185253|The Magic of Recluce (The Saga of Recluce, #1)|L.E. Modesitt Jr.|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1386922249l/185253._SY75_.jpg|1246811] which I cannot endorse... overall I sense that there was a likely hunger for more high-quality fantasy works when this came out. It is sad that, even in this setting, Megan Lindholm (already a pen name for Margaret Astrid Lindholm Ogden) and/or her publisher or agent or whomever, thought it necessary to invent a new, gender-neutral pen name, for fear that readers would be put off by a female author. The author bio in the original editions said simply, "Robin Hobb lives in Washington state" or wherever it was, to continue the charade-by-avoidance.
I note that the book cover features a blurb from G.R.R. Martin reading "Fantasy as it was meant to be written." You mean, in a completed series? Is that what you mean, George???
So, the book? It's really damn good. Of course I would think so, given the personal appeal I describe above. Not everyone will love it; you may find it very dull, because on the surface not a whole lot happens for most of the tale. Inwardly, we see a boy, bereft of true parents, growing and learning how to live and find his place in medieval Buckkeep, learning to navigate his complicated social status as a bastard son of royalty and struggling to meet multiple expectations. The book is written in first person, and the point of view is maintained very well. Worldbuilding through this view is achieved incredicably naturally; I never found information forced or extraneous to Fitz's experiences. I very much enjoyed the subtle ways that his special abilities were expressed without him being aware of it, or the hints of larger events that he is oblivious to, through his own words.
The world that Hobb made here is utterly believable and recognizable. I have seen the Six Duchies, and they are us. Unlike in so much fantasy, there is no made-up language to learn, no non-English terms to reinforce that this is an imagined world. The very few magical aspects have plain language assigned to them: the Wit, and the Skill, two different sets of rare mental abilities, neither of which are particularly powerful. There is nothing convoluted about the plot, and the cast of characters is eminently manageable. There is a skilled, seeming simplicity to the writing, which disguises the flawless construction of the world around Fitz. I found myself thoroughly immersed in this mostly-realistic world.
Even the whole "assassin's apprentice" concept is handled with great realism. Put away your notions of amoral dark-cowled, stubble-chinned figures standing on rooftops surveying their targets. In Hobb's world, the existence of an assassin is a polically complex and regrettably necessary tool. The practitioners of these skills feel the value of a life and take no personal pleasure in fulfilling their functions as servants of their wise king. I almost regret the book title because it may create certain expectations for the uninitiated reader that will go unfulfilled.
Why did I not read this sooner? It was probably the cover art and the title. The cover that my library has is the one with a young Fitz standing in a green cloak, with his dark little curls, looking just so damned twee. This image is at odds with the "Assassin" concept, and I equated it with Ranger's Apprentice without consideration. It was only after the books came up as a potential buddy read that I started hearing people say "I love Robin Hobb!" that I deigned to scan reviews and develop an interest in this book. Now, I am a devoted fan, and plan to catch up on Hobb's entire oeuvre.