Assassin's Apprentice, by Robin Hobb

In my last post I raved about re-reading a favourite novel by my favourite fantasy author. I continued my Christmas fantasy excursion by reading an old, but new-to-me, trilogy from my other favourite fantasy author. This was Robin Hobb's Assassin trilogy. I had read the two follow-up trilogies, The Liveship Traders and The Tawny Man, but never the original series.

Robin Hobb is a brilliant fantasy writer and in Assassin's Apprentice she introduces one of her most compelling and believable characters: FitzChivalry Farseer, an illegitimate son of the royal house of the Six Duchies. Six-year-old Fitz is a nobody and a political liability when he gets dumped on the royal family's doorstep, but he quickly becomes the target for competing allegiances and loyalties that will continue to affect him throughout his life. Characterization and plot are brilliant here. My only complaint would be that the third novel of the series, Assassin's Quest, is a bit slow in places -- but by that time I was committed enough to Fitz and his story to follow him wherever he went, no matter how long it took. If you're a fantasy lover and haven't yet discovered Robin Hobb, I can't recommend her novels highly enough. Start at the beginning with Assassin's Apprentice -- it's the first of nine great novels which will keep you turning pages for weeks or months (depending on how quickly you read!)