[conningcris]

I have read a few series, tolkein (of course) which was good, but i like in other books the less defined good/evil/goals etc. etc., Jordan, which i found good, a bit boring but i could easily live with it, Goodkind, similar to jordan, but a bit more boring/not as good writing imo, Novik, good not the best but good, one of pratchetts (going to get more) and probably some more i cant think of right now.

I would like to know
a.) will i probably like these books?
b.) what is the first book of the series?

Thank you in advance, i am aware that this has probably been posted before and i apoligize. I have heard his name a lot on these forums and would very much like to know weather or not to buy them (or borrow them from library, whatever)

-Conningcris

[mjolnir]

Hi,

Well, to start with the simple stuff, Robin Hobb has written four trilogies to date, [though she's done quite a lot more work under her other pseudonym], and they are:

The Farseer: starts with "Assassin's Apprentice"
The Liveship Traders: starts with "Ship of Magic"
The Tawny Man: starts with "Fool's Errand"

These three are loosely connected, in the above order. Farseer comes first, followed by Liveships, which is set in another part of the world and is more or less unconnected. Tawny Man follows, and is a more direct sequel to Farseer, while also carrying on just one or two characters from Liveships. And then there's:

The Soldier's Son: starts with "Shaman's Crossing". Completely unconnected. Haven't yet read it myself, though the first novel sits on my shelf.

Based on what I've read of Hobb, she devotes a lot of time and energy to setting up her characters. I imagine some people find her approach to be lacking in the action department, though I personally love the way she writes. Her characters are beautifully rendered imo; if nothing else, when you finish a Hobb book, you will know the characters as well as its possible to know people who aren't real.

While Hobb's focus on character development encourages us readers to identify with all characters somewhat I'd say that there are definitely "bad people", at least some of the time. If true moral ambiguity is a high priority for you, the king of the field is probably George R R Martin, with his Song of Ice And Fire series. Also, if you found Jordan's series slow, Hobb could be accused of the same in places, though there is always, always character growth going on. So: If strong, very human characters are at all your thing, try Hobb. She's an, albeit popular, acquired taste, in that predicting whether or not someone will like her right off the bat can be even more hit or miss than usual, but I for one love her books.
________
Strawberry cough (http://trichomes.org/marijuana-strains/deep-chunk-x-strawberry-cough/deep-chunk-x-strawberry-cough)

[Farm Ur-Ted]

Hobb's books definitely have a lot of ambiguity (maybe not as much as Martin's, but more than a lot of books). For instance, one of the most important and most interesting characters in Liveship Traders is a pirate captain (Kennit). The guy is a world-class sleaze-ball, but he's also one of her most sympathetic characters. His story in the three books is really, really great. He is very memorable.

The Farseer Trilogy at first appears to be a good v. evil story, but in the end you find out that things aren't so cut-and-dried. Still, the motivations of the "good" characters aren't always obvious. The books are slow at times (especially the first half of Ship of Magic), but if you're willing to put in the work, I think you'll be well rewarded. I was, in spades.

[mjolnir]

Ah, there you have me: I must confess that I have not actually read Liveships yet. I fully intend to do so, but there are so many books, and so little time. You're right; there's definitely much more ambiguity in Hobb than there is in something like Tolkien, [Say one thing for Sauron: Say that he's evil.] I'm still not sure that there's as much as in Martin, where its pretty much the primary draw for lots of people, but I did not know that about Liveships. Nice to hear more good things about the series. Thanks!

Yes, putting in the effort on Hobb's books is certainly rewarding. Go forth; try them!
________
Vaporizer wiki (http://vaporizerwiki.com)

[conningcris]

Thank you for your replies...I think i will try them

[hobbs525]

You will LOVE every one of the books in all 3 of these "series". Rarely are there books that I personally deem worthy of a space on my permanent shelf, these books are truly A++. IMHO of course :)

Kat

[shadow9d9]

I have read a few series, tolkein (of course) which was good, but i like in other books the less defined good/evil/goals etc. etc., Jordan, which i found good, a bit boring but i could easily live with it, Goodkind, similar to jordan, but a bit more boring/not as good writing imo, Novik, good not the best but good, one of pratchetts (going to get more) and probably some more i cant think of right now.

I would like to know
a.) will i probably like these books?
b.) what is the first book of the series?

Thank you in advance, i am aware that this has probably been posted before and i apoligize. I have heard his name a lot on these forums and would very much like to know weather or not to buy them (or borrow them from library, whatever)

-Conningcris


For unclear good and evil, try the Prince of Nothing series ... also the Malazan series is great with that. Not typical fantasy fare and tons of grey areas.

[Revok]

I would maybe go as far as saying that the The Farseer Trilogy is my favourite trilogy of all time. As a previous poster mentioned: the main focus is character development. Now, I may be biased but I would never say that the series is in anyway slow but it is certainly subtle. Following the progress of the main characters life and the intrigues surrounding him, it builds and builds a mesmerizing crescendo. (Please note that the end of the second book is one of the bravest I've read) I guess it all falls down to personal taste but I would highly recommend the trilogy.

[conningcris]

I have read a few of the books, and yes i enjoyed them...thank you again

[catsrule1]

After all of the recommendations for Robin Hobb on this forum, I tried the first book in the Farseer Trilogy. I must admit reading fantasy for many years, but never trying her books. And, I was very pleasantly surprised for all of the reasons given in the above posts. Thanks for pointing out another great author for me to read.