From an extraordinary new voice in fantasy comes the stunning conclusion to the Farseer trilogy, as FitzChivalry confronts his destiny as the catalyst who holds the fate of the kingdom of the Six Duchies...and the world itself.King Shrewd is dead at the hands of his son Regal. As is Fitz--or so his enemies and friends believe. But with the help of his allies and his beast magic, he emerges from the grave, deeply scarred in body and soul. The kingdom also teeters toward ruin: Regal has plundered and abandoned the capital, while the rightful heir, Prince Verity, is lost to his mad quest--perhaps to death. Only Verity's return--or the heir his princess carries--can save the Six Duchies.But Fitz will not wait. Driven by loss and bitter memories, he undertakes a quest: to kill Regal. The journey casts him into deep waters, as he discovers wild currents of magic within him--currents …
From an extraordinary new voice in fantasy comes the stunning conclusion to the Farseer trilogy, as FitzChivalry confronts his destiny as the catalyst who holds the fate of the kingdom of the Six Duchies...and the world itself.King Shrewd is dead at the hands of his son Regal. As is Fitz--or so his enemies and friends believe. But with the help of his allies and his beast magic, he emerges from the grave, deeply scarred in body and soul. The kingdom also teeters toward ruin: Regal has plundered and abandoned the capital, while the rightful heir, Prince Verity, is lost to his mad quest--perhaps to death. Only Verity's return--or the heir his princess carries--can save the Six Duchies.But Fitz will not wait. Driven by loss and bitter memories, he undertakes a quest: to kill Regal. The journey casts him into deep waters, as he discovers wild currents of magic within him--currents that will either drown him or make him something more than he was....From the Paperback edition.
Content warning
mild spoilers, although not much more than can be gleaned from reading the chapter titles
Waking up from the dead, Fitz vows to kill Regal, the would-be king who had him arrested and tortured, and who has usurped the throne of the Six Duchies.
There's an overlong journey to the new capital of the Six Duchies, a visit with the Old Blood (aka others who can talk to animals like Fitz) that feels shoehorned in so that some of the later magic doesn't feel as rough around the edges, way too many heel turns by new characters, and finally many many chapters in the realm of the Elderlings where the characters have to figure out how Elderling magic works.
This book needed to be about half as long as it was.
I really don't like saying this but if this was the first book in the trilogy, I would have read a hundred pages, put it down, and then never read another word by Robin Hobb.
But the first book in the trilogy was good almost great, the second started the real downward spiral, and this third made getting ever worse into an art form. Boring fluff and endless repetition made me frustrated that I felt I needed to finish it.
You could easily skip three out of four chapters of this book, and never feel you've missed anything. I wanted to give it 2 stars but that would have been a judgment on the series as a whole, as a single book this barely deserves 1 star.
Took me a long time to finish. Didn't find it as gripping as the prequels. They had far more intrigue and suspense. This had somewhat of a Deus Ex Machina ending, with me always hoping for something better to happen.
"I take myself with me. That's all I truly need, or own."
Very Klingon sentiment, actually - but true, it seems. For this is the impression I was left with upon finishing this most epic of series at 3:15 AM in the morning. This is a cut above 2:00 AM, which you may remember was my previous deadline for actually getting some sleep.
"FitzChivalry. Hero. Just words."
Another good one. As this final story unfolds, we see just how Fitz, verity and all who are concerned with them end up. It is a sweeping, grand, mildly meloncholic finish which left me feeling empty and drained.
"Fate had made me a killer, a liar, and a thief. And the harder I tried to avoid those roles, the more firmly I was pushed into them."
The dialog here isn't as snappy as we've seen before, but the commentary, the feelings and the …
"I take myself with me. That's all I truly need, or own."
Very Klingon sentiment, actually - but true, it seems. For this is the impression I was left with upon finishing this most epic of series at 3:15 AM in the morning. This is a cut above 2:00 AM, which you may remember was my previous deadline for actually getting some sleep.
"FitzChivalry. Hero. Just words."
Another good one. As this final story unfolds, we see just how Fitz, verity and all who are concerned with them end up. It is a sweeping, grand, mildly meloncholic finish which left me feeling empty and drained.
"Fate had made me a killer, a liar, and a thief. And the harder I tried to avoid those roles, the more firmly I was pushed into them."
The dialog here isn't as snappy as we've seen before, but the commentary, the feelings and the thoughts; all these batter us with their relentlessness. Things set in motion from the previous 2 books are on paths that no-one can stop, and it just remained to see precisely who came out when, where - and in how many bits.
'But for now, let me show you something else. No, step back, please, so you can see it all. Here it comes.' I heard the slam and the latch. 'The outside of my door,' the Fool announced gladly. "I painted it myself. Do you like it?"
There are moments of amusement, even unbridled joy. but on the whole, this is a sombre, sad, torn ending to a series whics so enthralled and swept me up from its very opening pages. I've remarked before how lighthearted some stuff has been before it, yet this is unquestionably more real. More serious. more painful...
"Sometimes all the choices are poor ones, and still a man must choose."
Now that Fitz has recognised this truth, he has to resign himself to the fait in store for him. it is a hard, lonely and sorrowful road he treads, and the sacrifices he makes, the life he seems to end up leading, all of it reflects and rebounds in the mind in such a way that it's hard to decide if it's a mercy or not. Fitz was, is, and has always been a King's man. whether he will continue to be may yet reveal itself in further Hobb titles.
