Bantam Spectra, Copyright 1995, Printed 1996, 435 pages.
ISBN: 978-0553573398
Read: July 2010 (at age 32)
Re-read. Originally read at about age 19.
The first time that I read this book, (in university, I think) I really enjoyed it, and stuck it on my shelf to lend out to friends who hadn’t read it. The other day, I picked up Fool’s Errand, the first book in the Tawny Man trilogy by Robin Hobb, and discovered that the main character was the same fellow as was the main character in the Farseer trilogy. Since it’s been a few years since I read the Farseer trilogy, I didn’t know the character anymore and I decided to give the prequel trilogy a re-read.
If you haven’t read it:
This is the first book of the Farseer trilogy, which consists of Assassin’s Apprentice, Royal Asssassin, and Assassin’s Quest. It’s essential to read this series in order of publication to properly understand who our hero is and why he becomes who he does. The series is set in a medieval-ish time and place, and not surprisingly, given the titles of the books, our hero does occasionally kill people. The story is written in first person, and is one of the better first-person book’s I’ve read.
From the back cover:
Young Fitz is the bastard son of the noble Prince Chivalry, raised in the shadow of the royal court by his father’s gruff stableman. He is treated as an outcast by all the royalty except the devious King Shrewd, who has him secretly tutored in the arts of the assassin. For in Fitz’s blood runs the magic Skill – and the darker knowledge of a child raised with the stable hounds and rejected by his family.
As barbarous raiders ravage the coasts, Fitz is growing to manhood. Soon he will face his first, soul-shattering mission. And though some regard him as a threat to the throne, he may just be the key to the survival of the kingdom.
Don’t let the odd naming scheme throw you off this book. It’s explained coherently in the story, and after the first few chapters I didn’t notice it at all. In many ways, it’s a neat trick to help keep track of the characters.
My reactions (spoilers!)
Characters:
Excellent. The main character was very sympathetic, I thought, which was very important for a first-person story. The supporting characters all felt like people, and that’s high praise.
Premise:
Excellent. Our hero gets trained to become an assassin. Hijinks ensue. The threat to the kingdom is well thought out, and scary. The idea of a teenager apprenticing to the king’s assassin is interesting and reasonable.
Setting:
Fair. The world seemed a bit small to me in this book. I do know (from my previous read of the series) that this changes a bit as the series progresses, but in this book, it seems odd that there are basically only two countries/powers in the area in which the story happens. There’s no comment about imports, trade with other kingdoms and such, and it feels odd. Especially since the story happens mostly in the kingdom’s capital, which happens to be a port city. Other than that, it was a well described, medieval-ish (with some magic) world with believable politics and well-defined, serious threats.
Plot:
Excellent. I especially liked that the book described events that, while exciting and important to the world, did not seem beyond the scope of a boy or young man, depending on where in the book they occurred.
Readability:
Excellent. The book was well-paced, and I very much enjoyed the writing style and the voice of the main character. The exposition was also well done. I didn’t notice it interfere with the flow of the story at all.
Overall:
Excellent. I have a soft spot for the coming-of-age storyline, and this is an excellent example of one. I thoroughly enjoyed, well, everything. I especially enjoyed the way “the wit”, a sort of animal-magic, was described. Our hero, who has it, simply describes what he feels, with no explanations. It simply *is* to him, and that’s an example of the way the first person perspective was used – extraordinarily well, in my mind.
Rating: 5
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