Fool's Quest
Ratings139
Average rating4.5
Only 1 book of the selfish, whining and unlikable Fitz left. It is well written but i fucking hate this guy, he does everything wrong. Stop complaining ffs.
Loved Liveship and Rainwild but have a really hard time with this guy
I can't believe I only have 1 book left before theses characters' stories are done for me. I refuse to acknowledge that any further at the moment.
I'm so beyond elated that Fitz has finally been recognised and yet I'm so fucking worried about what will happen to them all because I have become undeniably and irreversibly attached to every single character in this wider series.
That is to say, I am not ready to leave Realm of the Elderlings. Simply, no other fantasy series will ever compare.
Is binge reading three Realms of the Elderlings series back to back a smart move? Probably not. But my poor, crushed heart holds no regrets.
Book 2, still good. Suffers from the same curse as other Book 2s, where it's transitional and not all that much can happen. But it's Hobb, so of course it's good. Enjoyed the read, gonna need a breather before Book 3.
3.5 out of 5 stars – see this review and others at The Speculative Shelf.
After a stellar first book, this follow-up was a bit of a let down. Fool's Assassin felt fresh, with new characters and circumstances reviving Fitz's tale. Fool's Quest feels stagnate, with very little forward plot momentum. The events at the end of the previous book led me to believe that we would see an emboldened Fitz, hellbent on seeking revenge on those who have wronged him. Instead, we see travel preparations, brooding, licking wounds, and minimal plot progression. Hobb's writing is still wonderful but this feels very “middle book-ish” with no resolution or sense of completeness. I'm still excited for the final book, though. Onward!
With The Fool near death, and no sign of his little daughter Bee, Fitz is drowning in despair. He must pull himself together and search for her. Skills long buried must be honed again, and those responsible must pay. WOW!!!! I thought the last book deserved a 5 star rating, but this was even more amazing! Robin Hobb is a genius, and I can't believe I just now started to read her books. I have been missing out!
4 stars - Metaphorosis Reviews
When the Fool returned unexpectedly and near death, Fitz rushed to save him, leaving his daughter in the care of others. Now, he's paying for that decision.
With Robin Hobb's Rain Wilds Chronicles series, I feared that she had lost her touch. The first book of this new, more adult trilogy, Fool's Assassin, proved me wrong; it was her best book in some years. This second book in the trilogy is just as strong.
Fool's Quest confirms Hobb as one of the field's very best fantasy writers. The writing is smooth, effortless, and moving. The plot is carefully and credibly constructed. We gradually accrete pieces of the answers we've been wondering about over the series' 14 (!) previous books.
It's hard to say that the length of the series is a drawback, since most of the books have been extremely enjoyable. You can certainly read this book without reading all the rest, but you'll definitely get the most out of it if you know all the background. Hobb does a good job of tieing all the pieces together and providing key reminders, but I wish I'd had the time to go back and re-read everything that came before. Maybe I'll try that before the next book, which promises some important answers.
While I loved the book for most of the time I was reading it, a few things brought it lower than I'd originally anticipated.
- Bee (Fitz' daughter) seems a bit too adult in her writing, even considering who she is.
- Fitz starts to get very ‘Recluce' toward the end, by which I mean that he returns over and over to a single character refrain - in this case, his oft-spoken determination to act alone. It's overdone for a character trait that we already know very well. Fitz' moping about it doesn't add that much to the story.
- Torture - the book has a glaring central hypocrisy that isn't well addressed. The Fool has been tortured, and that's terrible - he and Fitz need to go out immediately and kill everyone involved. Fitz tortures some other people - well, he needs information, and besides, he's angry. It's the quintessential ‘what we do is good; what they do is bad' flaw. Hobb makes a token effort to note that torture doesn't work, but Fitz, for all his introspection, mostly falls back to ‘I'm ashamed, but I had to do it.' I wish Hobb had chosen a different route; for me, this does not fall at all in the ‘awful necessity' category, and it makes Fitz a lot less likable.
Deryni
Rain Wilds Chronicles
Fool's Assassin
Fool's Quest
- Bee (Fitz' daughter) seems a bit too adult in her writing, even considering who she is.
- Fitz starts to get very ‘Recluce' toward the end, by which I mean that he returns over and over to a single character refrain - in this case, his oft-spoken determination to act alone. It's overdone for a character trait that we already know very well. Fitz' moping about it doesn't add that much to the story.
- Torture - the book has a glaring central hypocrisy that isn't well addressed. The Fool has been tortured, and that's terrible - he and Fitz need to go out immediately and kill everyone involved. Fitz tortures some other people - well, he needs information, and besides, he's angry. It's the quintessential ‘what we do is good; what they do is bad' flaw. Hobb makes a token effort to note that torture doesn't work, but Fitz, for all his introspection, mostly falls back to ‘I'm ashamed, but I had to do it.' I wish Hobb had chosen a different route; for me, this does not fall at all in the ‘awful necessity' category, and it makes Fitz a lot less likable.
Deryni
Executive Summary: I loved this book. It's everything I had hoped [b:Fool's Assassin 19288321 Fool's Assassin (The Fitz and the Fool, #1) Robin Hobb https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1393886110s/19288321.jpg 26474462] would have been. There are a things I didn't like, that will understandably be much more off putting for some than they were for me however.Audio book: Elliot Hill once again does an excellent job. He does a variety of voices and inflections that make doing this book in audio a good option.Full ReviewI absolutely loved [b:Fool's Fate 45108 Fool's Fate (Tawny Man, #3) Robin Hobb https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388181998s/45108.jpg 2960725]. I'd have been perfectly content if the series ended there. Last year's [b:Fool's Assassin 19288321 Fool's Assassin (The Fitz and the Fool, #1) Robin Hobb https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1393886110s/19288321.jpg 26474462] was enjoyable, but not as much as I'd have liked. It left me apprehensive for this book. I shouldn't have been. That isn't to say bad things don't happen to our beloved Fitz. Any fan of the Ederling books won't be surprised by that. Ms. Hobb sure loves to torment Fitz, though probably not as much as he torments himself.This book grabbed me from the start, and never let me go. I hated every time I had to stop listening. In fact once my hardcover copy arrived, I augmented my audio time by reading as well.For reasons I can't fathom, many people seem to skip the excellent Liveship Traders series and more have skipped the quite enjoyable Rainwild Chronicles. While I wouldn't call it a prerequisites for this book, I would highly recommend reading those books first. There are so many great rewards in the book for people who have. If you haven't, I doubt you'll be lost, but you won't get the same enjoyment in my opinion.It's pretty much impossible for me to get into why I loved this book more than the last one without massive spoilers. I suspect most longtime fans will share my excitement however.That said, despite getting one of my rare 5 star ratings (this is only the second book by Ms. Hobb I've given that too), there are some complaints. Or maybe not complaints so much as things I wish weren't in this book. I found them very upsetting. I'd have preferred some kind of alternative reason used to drive the plot forward. I suspect some people may be more upset than I was, and others may be more indifferent.Overall though, those were very minor things to me in an absolutely fantastic book. I will warn that if you hate cliffhangers, you may wish to avoid reading this book until we're much closer to the release of the next book. It is a pretty big one. With it being the second book of a trilogy, and how the first book ended, I can't say I'm very surprised.Much like the last one, I am both nervous and excited to read the next one and see what Ms. Hobb has in store.
I loved Fool's Assassin but I LOVED Fool's Quest and found it immensely satisfying as a long time reader of these books. It's been a long time since I enjoyed a book this much (I believe the last book I found this compelling was Karin Lowachee's Warchild, which I read nearly 2 years ago).
Full Review: http://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2015/08/mini-review-of-fools-quest-by-robin-hobb/
I received an advanced copy from Netgalley, to read and review.
Wow! what a great book. It's not a light read by any means, more along the lines of the Game of Thrones Series. Heavy on detail, but really well done.
I really enjoyed both books in this series and got totally lost in them. The cliffhanger at the end of book 2 has really left me wanting more.