Sean Randall reviewed Shaman's Crossing by Robin Hobb ((Soldier Son, Bk 1))
Review of "Shaman's Crossing" on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
"He'll be shitting through his lips until the morning light!"
I'm no stranger to Hobb but things never, ever get old. Each world and character therein is painted so well that we're drawn in, right from the start. "I remember well the first time I saw the magic of the plainspeople," opens this one. And the magic is there, always, mostly deftly woven throughout the story and playing such a subtle yet vital role.
As Nevare grows up in the book, so our worldview grows also. We learn what peoples and magics populate this world. unlike the farseer books we're somewhat removed from royalty which Hobb uses to great effect to widen our perception of things and show, more than teach, us about this most unique and interesting of worlds.
The second quarter of the book takes us from Nevare's home in Widevale as he proceeds to enter the King's …
"He'll be shitting through his lips until the morning light!"
I'm no stranger to Hobb but things never, ever get old. Each world and character therein is painted so well that we're drawn in, right from the start. "I remember well the first time I saw the magic of the plainspeople," opens this one. And the magic is there, always, mostly deftly woven throughout the story and playing such a subtle yet vital role.
As Nevare grows up in the book, so our worldview grows also. We learn what peoples and magics populate this world. unlike the farseer books we're somewhat removed from royalty which Hobb uses to great effect to widen our perception of things and show, more than teach, us about this most unique and interesting of worlds.
The second quarter of the book takes us from Nevare's home in Widevale as he proceeds to enter the King's Academy to learn to soldier. Already we have a great deal of information about Nevare's family and the traditions and circumstances of the wealthy, but these are frontier folk when compared to the pomp and wealth of those living in larger cities. Now, at the academy, the political rifts between the old and new nobility surface strongly: into this morass, Nevare is plunged with the mysterious magics of a young ordeal still hanging over his head.
I held this book in such hi regard that I gave a copy as a Christmas present to my best friend who very much appreciates good fantasy. The military, the politics and the mystical all play their parts very well indeed. Cracking reading.
