The Robin Hobb Collection discussion

... and we're off! i'll start somewhere later today.

(ps: like the previous times, i think it's easiest that however is ahead, makes the next thread. i feel so silly adding half a dozen empty ones from the start :))

I'm off and started with the Audible version. It was a good choice because I'm liking Nick Taylor's audio narration. His voice just resonates with me in regard to Fitz' voice and overall tone of the book.

brilliant! does it say which chapters on audible, or are you going to be lost in the structural mess?

ch1 - i'm not sure fitz isn't overreacting here about the scrolls in his cabin. sure, if you want your identity to stay secret, it's not wise to have it written up. if not the piebalds, someone else might get into your cabin and realize how precious information that is (although i assume the majority of people might not be literate?)
but as far as the piebalds go, he only got on their track when chasing the prince, so they don't know where tom badgerlock came from.
unless it's indeed going via Hap, i sure hope his "girlfriend" isn't planted by the piebalds but that doesn't seem likely since all that happened before fitz went after dutiful as well

(ps: good to be back in robin hobb world!)

Yeas Hanne, it lets me know the chapters so I'm all good with the Audible version

I think they are onto Fitz because of the mission he undertook last book. But I agree, I don't think they know he is "the bastard" FitzChivalry. Not yet anyway :). But it looks like he'll have to become the assassin again to deal with them.

I bet the Piebalds target Hap for information though. But I'm not sure how much Hap knows about Fitz' former life. It depends if he got into any of those scrolls.

they definitely don't know he's bastard fitz (although it's weird nobody makes the connection, don't they all know the bastard was witted to a wolf? or is supposedly being dead really such a good excuse :))

what i meant is, they wouldn't know about the cottage or the town tom badgerlock came from. so they wouldn't go break in and look for scrolls.
i don't think hap knows anything about who Tom really is, but Hap could tell them where they lived before

ch2 - i'm a bit disturbed by how fast they want to "do" something about this skilling half-wit. the lad has been doing it for ages, why has he become a target so fast?

i'm curious about who chade's apprentice is. we've met him/her, but we don't know who it is? i don't even have any guesses at this point actually.

the positions in the castle have really changed haven't they? chade is now official advisor of the queen, and fitz is the bastard royal in hiding that might need a tower of his own indeed. i'm wondering whether fitz will take an apprentice of his own to make this generation shift complete.

Hanne wrote: "ch2 - i'm a bit disturbed by how fast they want to "do" something about this skilling half-wit. the lad has been doing it for ages, why has he become a target so fast?"

I think pragmatism comes with the territory as far as Assassins go - but Chade's main concern is that it might interfere with Dutiful's training - he seems very focused on that

Hanne wrote: "i'm curious about who chade's apprentice is. we've met him/her, but we don't know who it is? i don't even have any guesses at this point actually."

I'm guessing in order of my suspicions - maybe The Huntswoman? Or Starling? What about Jinna?

Fitz spying session on Elliania and Peottre was intriguing. The betrothed is not so keen on the wedding - and Peottre insinuating that it would not necessarily happen but they needed to play the game. And there appears to be some sort of mind link between the servant and someone somewhere else - and she is able to use it to reach out and hurt Elliania. A bit like skill - or maybe it's the sort of magic that created the forged ones?

re: chade's apprentice.
i like the idea of Laurel being chade's new apprentice. somehow i was thinking more of a teenager / young adult, but there is no need for that to be true. laurel is a little weird, so that talks in her favour, plus she's near the queen so could take chade's task afterwards and she was sent with the others to retrieve dutiful.

re: elliania and peottre.
i'm not surprised the betrothed isn't so keen either, which teenager would be looking forward to an arranged marriage with a stranger from a very different culture.
but this playing the game really is, as it seems 'the lady' working through that servant is really in charge. and peottre and elliana don't lik eit one bit.

ch3 - not a chapter with a lot happening but important for the bond between fitz and dutiful.

i also like how robin hobb put in a scene with the head guardsman (can't remember his name right now), and fitz doesn't know whether to be happy he isn't being recognized, or whether to be upset he wasn't more memorable. it just makes the whole situation more real.

Sorry guys, I couldn't help it and read ahead. Finished this trilogy and started Rain Wild chronicles last night. I hope she write a series about Chalced some day!!

It seems there is some tension between the father's side and mother's side of the outisland family from what I see at the party. Perhaps sending the father's family is the mother's way of subtly insulting the farseers? And someone's surely got to recognise Fitz soon - I keep thinking - there's patience, duck Fitz. Or there's Blade, go and hide.

ch4 - lots of information here. and a very weird vibe from the outislanders. this whole mother-father clan thing is massively important and there definitely is something weird to it.
seems like the father clan pledged themselves to the dix duchies with their blood ritual, but that the mother's clan smartly made sure they didn't.

it's a miracle no-one recognized Fitz indeed. just a few weeks ago i met someone i hadn't seen since we were both 11 years old, and i immediately recognized him. i know fitz gained a few very ugly scars in his face, but still, someone must recognize him soon (especially someone like patience?)

i was impressed with fitz' daughter dreaming so loudly to the shadow wolf. she missed his dreams, so before coming to buckkeep and realizing how loud he had been dreaming, she must have shared most of them.
i still wonder what burrich and molly thought when they hear that.

I wonder if that guardsman in the bath house really does recognise him?

ch5 - aha, here is kettricken! i wish he heard more of her in these books, and i totally agree with her, i see the need of keeping fitz hidden as tom badgerlock, but on the other hand, i really want him to become fitzchivalry farseer again!

interesting that dutiful missed his first lesson. he seemed so eager to get started

David Sven wrote: "I wonder if that guardsman in the bath house really does recognise him?"

not sure - there wasn't really any sign of it to my reading eyes

Hanne wrote: "i was impressed with fitz' daughter dreaming so loudly to the shadow wolf"

I wonder if Fitz will somehow end up teaching her the Skill along with Dutiful - somehow without Molly or Burrich seeing him?

i would guess so (answering the first part of your statement). whether or not that will happen with molly and burrich knowing i have no clue.

i think somewhere in this book or the next fitz will have to come clean about being alive to some of these folks, but i'm guessing robin hobb will leave us in suspense for a little while longer :)

And now I think Rosemary is Chade's apprentice. If so it would explain why he preferred that Fitz didn't know. And when he said Fitz had already met them - he didn't qualify when. And I imagine it might be the only basis on which Chade would let a half trained assassin with a history of treason anywhere near the Queen.

agreed! her age i guess would qualify her more as someone who would sit and wait for the magic door to open. although i guess he might not be teaching her in chade's tower anymore with fitz having free access to it

On recognising Fitz, or people guessing who he is: elevated to hero/demon status, THEN very publically dead, and then... what is it, 15 years without the slightest word from him? Then he turns up looking older than he should do (both physically and in behaviour), with a bunch of scars he didn't have before, under a new name, serving as a valet/bodyguard, and largely avoiding attention... there are some people who might guess who he was, but that's a big obstacle there to people even imagining it might be him! (And if they do suspect, how many people would be confident enough to say it - and when he then denies it?)

That's a good point Wastrel

that is true. i'm guess i just want someone to recognize him so badly :)

That, unfortunately, is how Hobb works. She makes you want something to happen really badly and keeps teasing you that it will so that you keep reading, but then not only does it not happen but something else happens to completely destroy the dream and rip your heart out.
Unless it does happen, and then you wish it hadn't.