Glhlavka World

I finally finished reading Robin Hobb’s Farseer Trilogy a couple weeks ago.  As I previously wrote, the first book, Assassin’s Apprentice was pretty enjoyable.  I was definitely looking forward to reading the second, Royal Assassin.

Royal Assassin focuses on our hero, Fitz, as he integrates himself more into the royal household.  While the book was a decent read, I was put off by a couple of things.  Fitz is a lousy assassin.  If I’m investing time into a series about an assassin, I want to read about intriguing murders pulled off with finesse, narrow escapes from being found out, and a certain amount of stealth.  Fitz is more punching bag than assassin.  He is overwhelmed with guilt about the guilt/innocence of the person he is to kill.  It would have been more appropriate if this series followed Chade.

Also, I felt like the continuity between the first book and the second was not quite right.  I thought the tone the first ended on and the opening of the second didn’t quite mesh… that I had to give up some of the notions of the characters I had from the first book in order to get into the second.

Finally, there was way too much explaining things that happened in the first book.  This is a pet peeve of mine, where the author feels compelled to explain the whole story to you again.  Harry Potter did this constantly.  A certain amount of explanation is fine, but when it drags on for pages at a time with no new information, I get frustrated.

All of that makes it sound like I did not enjoy the book, which is not true.  The world Hobb creates is fantastic, and the characters who inhabit it are richly developed.  Royal Assassin is worth reading, if only to get to the third book in the series.

Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5)