Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

It’s not over until we win

Royal Assassin: Book 2 of The Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb

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The thing about second books in trilogies is that they have to do a lot of work developing conflicts and characters. Second books tend to be where the bad guys are ascendent and our heroes seem to be losing. They provide critical information and often are kind of depressing. Royal Assassin, the second volume in The Farseer Trilogy, is such a book but I am completely invested, as well as devastated, by what is happening to our main characters and the kingdom where they live. […]

Two Political Fantasy Books

The Willful Princess and the Piebald Prince by Robin Hobb

The Kingdom of Copper by S. A. Chakraborty

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cbr17bingo – Citizen (for The Kingdom of Copper, in which the shafit are second class citizens) The Willful Princess and the Piebald Prince How does Robin Hobb do it? This novella is told in a straightforward, fairy tale-type manner, with relatively little dialogue, and it was still so engaging. I will admit, though, that I had some idea of what was coming. I vaguely recalled a brief mention of what happened to the Piebald Prince in The Farseer Trilogy, so part of the reason I was engrossed […]

Fantasy with less romance but more dogs

Assassin’s Apprentice: Book One of the Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb

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I’m on a fantasy kick recently, this time without the romance but with plenty of court intrigue, magical powers and violence. Trigger warning for abuse and death (including animals). Assassin’s Apprentice is the first book in Robin Hobb’s Farseer Trilogy, which has been reviewed favorably several times on CBR. Add this one to the favorable reviews. Hobbs includes two very compelling storylines and a cast of interesting characters whose personal motivations and abilities create some thrilling and suspenseful scenes. I tore through this 400+ page […]

Such Compelling Characters

Ship of Destiny by Robin Hobb

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cbr17bingo: favorite (completes my first BINGO) I don’t think Robin Hobb can fully turn me into a wholehearted lover of multiple POV storytelling, but if anyone can, it will be her. I got frustrated each time the POV shifted because I wasn’t ready to be done with the one I was currently reading, and each time I was very quickly sucked into the new one. While I still had favorite and less preferred character POVs, each was still compelling in their own way. Robin Hobb writes […]

“They’re the ones who’ll hate you / When you think you’ve got the world all sussed out”

Assassin's Apprentice (1995) by Robin Hobb

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He goes by ‘Boy’ for his first years, then ‘Fitz’ and ‘Bastard’, then FitzChivalry Farseer, illegitimate son of Chivalry Farseer, son of the enigmatic King Shrewd. This is for the Bingo Family square; Fitz has a family, a name, a legacy–but he never knew his own father, his grandfather buys his loyalty rather than offering him affection, and one of his uncles wants him humiliated at best and dead at worst. I read Robin Hobb’s Farseer trilogy when I was a teen with the time […]

Expansion of Serpent Lore

Mad Ship by Robin Hobb

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cbr17bingo: green  This book took me on an emotional ride that was worth every moment. We continue to spend time with the same characters as the first book—the Vestrit and Haven families, Kennit, and Brashen—plus one of the Rain Wilders and a Companion of the Satrap. We also get more time with Amber and Paragon, which I loved. The characters are adjusting to the new and evolving situations in which they find themselves. Malta remained intensely frustrating for a large chunk of the book, as […]



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