Assassin's Fate

[althea]

I am about half way through this book. I am really enjoying it. I'm trying to read it slowly and savour every word,but as usual,I'm galloping through it because I need to know what happens.
Fitz is my favourite hero of all,even though now and then I could give him a slap.
Reading this book is tinged with sadness because this is the last book of Fitz and of the Fool.
However,it's a treat to revisit characters from other books along the way.
I won't say much about the story,I don't want to spoil it for others. I can say though, that the writing is as brilliant as ever. Highly recommended.

 

[Alexa]

I tried to make it last as much as possible, but in the end the curiosity was much stronger and finished reading it in 2 days.

 

[Talos]

I've read and have all 9, Farseer Trilogy, Liveship Traders, and The Tawny Man.

 

[Alexa]

So you miss the last trilogy which makes the bridge with all of them: The Fitz and the Fool Trilogy. Assasin's fate is the last volume.

 

[Talos]

Guess I did miss them. Been quite awhile since I read the others. Looks like I'll go buy Fool's Assassin and Fool's Quest and hope the price drops a bit on Assassin's Fate. Thanks for the info.

 

[althea]

I think I have read everything Robin Hobb has written,even The Soldier Son trilogy which I didn't enjoy.
It seemed like unrelenting bad luck for Navarre all the way through.
I reread the whole lot of Fitz related books over and over. I leave a couple of years between rereading them and enjoy them all over again.

 

[Alexa]

Does this mean you have finished reading Assasin's Fate, too ?

 

[althea]

I am reading it at the moment,Alexa.It's such a joy,I can't tell you.

 

[Alexa]

I understand you so well.

Don't worry ! I will not spoil it for you.

 

[Alexa]

Still reading it, althea ?

 

[althea]

Sorry,Alexa, I should have mentioned finishing it.It took me five days to finish as I was trying to go slowly and savour every word.
I know we can't discuss it much because we don't want to spoil it for others,but it was exciting,sad,joyous,scary and beautifully written.
As it is the last book of Fitz and the Fool,I was grieving at the end. I think maybe more books could come out about the younger ones in the stories,particularly Bee Farseer. I hope so.

 

[Alexa]

Did you cry twice for Fitz's death ?

Spoiler

Robin Hobb did a good job at the end. It was a good death as finally Fitz, Nighteyes and the Fool are together forever.

I hope we could have other stories with Bee. After all she is a very special girl.

 

[ratsy]

@Alexa You may want to put a spoiler alert on the ending. I'm sure someone will stumble on this thread and be upset. That being said...I finished it yesterday thankfully!

 

[Alexa]

Done. Sorry, this is my first spoiler thingy. That button always scares me.

What do you mean by *thankfully* ? You didn't like it ?

 

[ratsy]

No, I meant thankfully I read before I saw that spoiler!

I thought it was a solid ending. The whole book felt a little slow, and the last 100 pages a little rushed, but I do love my Fitz books.

 

[althea]

I thought the ending was appropriate,and inevitable. It didn't stop me from crying though,for many reasons.
I agree that Bee is special and would make a good subject for a new story.
I think everyone realises that this is the last Fitz and Fool book,so you probably haven't spoiled it for many readers,Alexa.

 

[Koopa]

Added a spoiler tag, since small spoilers are included in what I wrote:

Spoiler: Some quick personal thoughts on the last book of the trilogy

I won't lie, whilst i absolutely loved the first 2 books, i'm lukewarm about the last installment. The ending was sort of fitting for the story. But the build up was in part a bit of a letdown. Mostly I didn't like the portrayal of Fitz. Too often he was made out as a bumbling fool. I mean it's a good thing he remained human. That he didn't become some overpowering juggernaut. But surely he could have been a bit more able. I recall how he hunted and took down those guards that tortured him when looking for Regal. And he did that whilst his mental state was probably even more at odds than it was now. When he was a young adult barely trained in the skill (though well-versed in the quiet work). Compare that to his actions now and you wonder where the assassin went... . Hobb kinda let's us now that for all Fitz thinks he still has what it takes, he might no longer be that person. But still, for a man on a mission with the tools he seemingly still possesses, this was abysmal.

Amber was written well. You can't despise her, what she has become, but you can't find it in yourlsekf to like her either. Even though you want to cause of the fool. How Fitz described how he felt about Amber rang true for me as well.

 

[Koopa]

Spoiler: Bee and Fitz

Wanted to add that I was quitely hoping for more interaction between Fitz and Bee as that were the parts I liked best in the previous 2 installments.

 

[althea]

Koopa,I find it very interesting that when a story doesn't follow the way you would like it to go,you don't like it.
Fitz is my all time favourite hero and he is human.He makes mistakes and sometimes I have felt that I'd like to give him a slap to think about what he's getting into. I didn't particularly like the way the story went in the last book,but that is how Robin Hobb wanted it to be.
I've been thinking about this a while and I'm not directing this at you personally,Koopa.
You see,I dabble in graphics and digital art and I am always amazed when people tell me my picture would have been better if ............
They all have their ideas of how my image should look. I always say that the image is exactly how I wanted to be.

 

[Koopa]

I think you misread what i said. I didn't dislike it cause the story didn't went were i want it to go. That is just added gripe (not that i disliked the book, i still enjoyed reading it). It just felt a bit flat. The other 2 books dragged me in. This one doesn't do that save for the end. It wasn't a bad book. Just compared to what i've read from her before this one doesn't reach the same heights. Like a soldier son trilogy deja vu. Much to like, interesting ideas, well-built storyline full of details which matter later on, but i wasn't as immersed as with her other work. It is still a great fantasy book. Even if I didn't like it as much as the other 2, it's still very good. I was simply expecting even more cause she truly is one of the best authors i've come across. If the other 2 are must-reads, this one is a you might also like.

Edit: i just re-read what i posted and i can see why you'd get that impression. I do make it sound like i'm lukewarm about this one because of things not found in the book. However as said above in this post, the book that we got didn't manage to truly immerse me. If it was a great book i would have felt that way (that it was great) even if i didn't get what i was hoping for. But it wasn't great to me, simply very good. And as such i'm trying to find why i didn't like it as much. And then what isn't there is only natural to come to light. Can't help that.

Take Deadhouse Gates for example. I had read Gardens of the Moon and was expecting to move further with that cast. Instead we went to an entire different continent. Vastly different that what i expected going in, but i quickly didn't care. I was just as immersed.

Honestly i can't quite explain it myself. Take Bee journey, escapes and treatment. I know it's well built, well written (evolution of bee cause of what happens to her, ...), but i wasn't as immersed as I would have liked. I don't even know why myself but somehow (and this start to sound repetitive) i was simply not as dragged in.