The Robin Hobb Collection discussion

Here is a general discussion thread to go on, once you have finished with the main book chat

Not specifically FQ-y, but...

...I have finally given in to cravings and bought the Anniversary Edition of Assassin's Apprentice. I hear they are going to do more of them. On the one hand, I want them to do ALL the books. On the other hand... 16 novels at £25 each, i'm not sure my bank account could take the strain. So maybe it's for the best if they only do the original trilogy...

Get outta here! I'm so jealous. Is this the same blue book pix you posted a while back? If you sock away £2 a week, I'll do the same at US$3 a week (I think that's the XE rate) into a pot. So, by the end of 200 weeks... Congratulations, you will be the proud owner of all 16 books... (And I would have a tidy pile of US$600... to buy the set too if they sell the anniversary editions in the US)

Oh, are they not... oh wait, no, different publishers, aren't they?

Also, the anniversary edition is pretty (according to the pictures, mine won't be arriving for a while*), and it's illegal for a US edition of a Robin Hobb novel to not look terrifyingly awful...

*3-5 business days, Amazon said when I ordered it yesterday. 13th-23rd of May, expected delivery date now. What possible definition of business days are those people following!?!?


EDIT: apparently it also has some illustrations, and forewords by Fitz and the Fool... not sure how that works...

Alas, no they are not... Maybe it's being tested on the more genteel UK market before releasing in the US and... changing the packaging to be LOUD! GARISH!! CHEESY!!! IN-YOUR-FACE!!! We are not known for subtlety around here....

....But we are known for timely Amazon deliveries! (edit: maybe yours is in back order?)

Anyway, I am counting on you whether received in 3-5 business days or in a month, to give us a detailed description of the book (it does look so pretty), esp. the F/F forewords (how does that work?!)

To be fair, there's a good chance it'll deliver much quicker than that, on past experience. But they give themselves a ridiculous amount of insurance. It's not because they're waiting for a copy - it's already shipped, apparently. It may be because they sometimes employ private delivery companies, who often don't bother actually delivering...

Anyway, while looking for a picture of the book, I came across another picture I thought I'd share: Robin Hobb's first office. I seem to remember hearing that that's where she wrote Assassin's Apprentice, but I could be wrong, it may have been earlier than that.
If you're wondering what it is: after killing moose and ripping their skins off and cutting up the bodies, that's where she stored their frozen flesh through the winter. When summer came, they had eaten all the moose, so in the summer months she went up there to write. Presumably surrounded by the aroma of dead moose. And yes, that's her friendly macaw in the photo, who apparently kept her company and tried to eat her notebooks.

Always thought there was something unusually... authentic... about Hobb's writing...

Actually, it most likely did not smell of moose. They probably would have processed the meat elsewhere. Also, you don't rip skins off--especially if you want the hide to make things from.

I'm a dedicated animal lover, but I also used to hunt (deer, not moose) and took only what we could eat in a year. I also thanked the deer for feeding and clothing me & used every part except the eviscera. Much like our ancestors would have done. I also hunted with an English longbow (made for me by my dad), and took no shot unless I could kill the animal--no wounding for me! I also tracked the deer (no sitting in a stand until a deer happens by--that's NOT hunting).

Picked up a lot of forest skills, which serve me well to this day.

"Rip" was hyperbole. Although I guess there's also no technical definition of the word, so it's a matter of perspective.

Parker wrote: "Actually, it most likely did not smell of moose. They probably would have processed the meat elsewhere. Also, you don't rip skins off--especially if you want the hide to make things from.

I'm a d..."

Parker, come the revolution, can i be in your gang. You sound like you have useful skills. :-)

Wastrel wrote: "I came across another picture I thought I'd share: Robin Hobb's first office."

Now, that's the tree house I want when I grow up!

I can imagine her sitting in there writing as Fitz would in his rustic little cabin... perhaps while smoking some weed/elfbark and drawing inspiration from a presumably talking macaw/crow. She did also write about skinning seals in LST, so maybe she drew some parallels from the moose skinning too? Whatever the room smells of, it's au naturel for sure. Wonder what she's thinking about sitting there with legs dangling. Agree Robin's very....organic...in her writing. So, what would your hypothetical writing tree house look like? (I never had one, poor deprived city kid...)

Parker - gosh, forget Katniss Everdeen, you are the real MockingJay!

Scarletine wrote: "Parker, come the revolution, can i be in your gang. You sound like you have useful skills. :-) "

Except you might need to swim across the Atlantic first...

It's very interesting, the skills one picks up in 29 years of reenacting/Living History...

Several years ago, there was a series called "___ House" (Frontier House, Edwardian House, etc.) on PBS. My husband (also a reenactor/Living Historian) & I were cracking up about the "true confessions" part of it (the participants were allowed to vent to a camera). "I just can't take it without my mascara!" and more things of this nature. When you're trying to survive, the *last* thing you think about is your mascara!

Although it *is* difficult to read and watch historical books and movies. I can't just sit back & enjoy, no, I notice things that are wrong. (Little things, too, that most people wouldn't notice.)

Scarletine, you can join my gang anytime. ;-)

Parker wrote: "Scarletine, you can join my gang anytime. ;-)
"

Thank you! I have skills too. Carving, sculpture, woodcraft. And I make a mean carrot and coconut cake. :-p

Alfred, ever practical... I guess i need to find a witness stone.

Probably not really fair to advertise other authors here, and I've also probably mentioned this at some point, but the other book/series I get that sense of authenticity with is Mary Gentle's Ash, set in the wars of mediaeval europe (with a lot of twist and weirdnesses - not clear if it's alt history, fantasy, or sci-fi). Gentle, to the best of my knowledge, has, unlike Hobb, never trapped wolves in the wilds of Alaska... but she has several degrees in history, a masters in war studies (which she got as research for the book), and she's an expert sword-fighter (iirc she founded a sword-fighting school) and a historical re-enactor... and as a result, her version of that knights-and-sieges world feels much more vivid and realistic, imo.

Scarletine wrote: "And I make a mean carrot and coconut cake"

Well, the proof of the pudding cake is in the eating... When you do find a skill pillar (is that what you mean with the witness stone?), do teleport it over for a taste test...

Parker: what period is your re-enactment? I've only been to Colonial Williamsburg VA & Lancaster PA (if you count the Amish as Living History). And the pseudo-medieval Renaissance Fair, where the the ladies seem to favor the wench garb. Strangely.

Wastrel: Been meaning to read Ash. It seems like one of those books where more people should be reading but aren't. The 1000+ pages is quite daunting, admittedly, especially with the supposedly heavy duty history stuff; is what I've gathered from some reviews. Waiting for the right mood to dive in.

Probably needless to worry about touting another author's book... Someone, somewhere out there, in a Gentle discussion forum, could be making the same connection on authenticity, and is recommending Gentle fans to read Hobb... It nets out!

Amazon (hey, this is beginning to feel like an advertisement for everyone's and their neighbor's favorite online retailer...) has a free e-book preview for first couple chapters... http://www.amazon.com/Ash-Secret-Hist...

Alfred wrote: "Scarletine wrote: "And I make a mean carrot and coconut cake"

Well, the proof of the pudding cake is in the eating... When you do find a skill pillar (is that what you mean with the witness stone?..."

It's not history-dense in the sense of being lectured about geopolitics - it's actually really fun. IMO, at least. And most of it is pretty fast-moving and unpredictable, though it does bog down a bit later on.

Previews of the beginnings of books don't usually tell you much, but to be fair, "Ash" is pretty up-front... an introduction that's a dry exchange of letters between a historian and a publisher, and then the first page of the first chapter... well, the first sentence is "It was her scars that made her beautiful", and the sixth sentence is "When Ash was eight years old, two of the mercenaries raped her."... fair to say that if you think Hobb goes too far, you won't like Gentle. [though thankfully I think that's actually the most horrible thing that happens in the book, and by-and-large Ash's troubles probably feel rather less depressing for people who are used to reading about Fitz...]

I just need to go through the mental process of A (buy book) ---> B (think about reading) ---> C (convinced to read) --->D (actually read). The "it's actually really fun" moved it closer to D... The rape actually does not faze me much, not especially if it's anything like Hobb's, which conveys the horror without being graphically explicit.

Scarletine: crummy, where's the cake? I was hoping to see something yummy in the mailbox.

Alfred wrote: Scarletine: crummy, where's the cake? I was hoping to see something yummy in the mailbox.

I knoweth not thy addresseth, so how can i sendeth thee cake!
if 't be true thee ev'r cometh to England, i shalt baketh. :-)

>

what type of cake is that!?

The type we wolf down and leave only the crumbs for others!
(...burp)

Wastrel , its Carrot and Coconut cake.

Alfred, you are naughty! :-p

Alfred, I'll re-enact any period from Stone Age to about 1820 (when women's clothing got waay too restrictive. I'm a History Geek, I'll admit it. For the past 20 years, we (both husband & me) have immersed ourselves in Slavery history, Revolutionary War history & Age of Sail history.

I know what you mean about Renaissance Faires. They're fun, but in no way authentic. My first love is British History (could you guess?) and my first RenFaire was an eye-opener. I was surprised at the lack of authenticity. Oh, well. It was fun anyway (and I bought a really cool pair of shoes).

Scarletine, that cake does look scrumptious (I think I gained weight just looking at it).

Parker wrote: "Alfred, I'll re-enact any period from Stone Age to about 1820 (when women's clothing got waay too restrictive. I'm a History Geek, I'll admit it. For the past 20 years, we (both husband & me) have ..."

Parker, I have authentic British history virtually on my doorstep. I don't live too far away from Warwick and Kenilworth Castles. Although, if i has my wish i'd love to do a tour of German castles.

Parker wrote: "Alfred, I'll re-enact any period from Stone Age to about 1820 (when women's clothing got waay too restrictive. I'm a History Geek, I'll admit it. For the past 20 years, we (both husband & me) have ..."

NOT addressed to me, I know, but I had to ask: We're not hard core reenacters, but my dear son just got into HEMA (western martial arts) and he wants to go to some Ren Faires, in accurate Italian or landsknecht clothes. I warned him these places are far from historically accurate, but he doesn't care.

I'm trying to figure out what to do about the hose--in both costumes, the hose is the thing, and I've no clue how to cut it right. Happily, he doesn't want the slashed pluderhosen, as he doesn't want to die of heat stroke. Have you ever made one of these? Would you happen to know of a good website or resource for cutting this beast? Sorry!

Ash09! I know this was NOT addressed to me either. Just wanted to say Hello. Passing back to the History People....

Gettysburg Civil War reenactment is on my visit list. So's UK, and Europe. Until then, I'll live vicariously through you folks.

Ash, have you tried The Pillaged Village? It's a really cool website & it has patterns for just the clothes your son wants.

Ah, someday I'll get to Europe....hope it's before I'm too old to enjoy it.

Alfred, hubby & I used to do Civil War. I could probably still go through Hardee's Tactics & McClellan's bayonet drill. Was never on the field as a soldier, but learned the manuevers (sp?) so I could do my education thing for visitors. We got out because it just wasn't fun anymore--our unit (the 7th Mississippi) was filled with folks who just couldn't understand why we would ever want to talk about slavery.

Alfred, hello!!!!

Parker, thank you so much, what a cool website! I love the warning on the patterns. I was thinking of this one http://pillagedvillage.com/index.php?... as what he wants is III but with removable, Germanic slashed sleeves. After reading the review, idk lol. Maybe I should fit a mock-up fabric on the bias to his legs and go on from there. The codpiece made him laugh hysterically, but if he wants to do German, he'll have to deal with it. If he'd wanted Italian, it'd be more tasteful :))) Pre-18th century males were more elaborately dressed than the women. He likes it.

EDIT: I've always envied people who can to 19th century reenactment, as the clothing for men, especially suits, are difficult to recreate. I wouldn't even dare try.

I know this site has pre made garments and in French (just put it through google translate) but the clothing is amazing. I want to win the lottery and buy all the things! :-)

https://armstreetfrance.com/boutique/...

Scarletine wrote: "I know this site has pre made garments and in French (just put it through google translate) but the clothing is amazing. I want to win the lottery and buy all the things! :-)

https://armstreetfran..."
Woolen chausses are cool! If I were rich, I'd get three, cut two up to particolor them on one leg and the flap, keep it solid on the other leg, which is what son wants. That would cost $550 before shipping. Oh gosh.

(Wipes the drool from the laptop). Thanks, Scarletine, that's one wonderful site. Makes me want to buy a horse & joust. Some of the women's armour, ugh.

Ash, my husband, who is actually the better tailor (I weave the fabric, I don't sew it), *always* makes a mock-up of clothes. We've both found that standard sizes don't really fit if you're other than standard. He's 5-2, I'm 5-3. He has short legs (even at 73 they're still dancer's legs, darn him!), I've got long, stocky legs (tree trunks, from all the weaving & walking I do). So most patterns have to be altered.

Our first wedding was 1860s & my mum made all the clothing. (The entire wedding, except for the catering, cost $50.00) Our second--actually a renewal of vows for our 25th--was 18th century. (It was even less.)

Parker wrote: "(Wipes the drool from the laptop). Thanks, Scarletine, that's one wonderful site. Makes me want to buy a horse & joust. Some of the women's armour, ugh.

Ash, my husband, who is actually the bette..."

omg those weddings sound gorgeous. And inexpensive!!! And you guys sound perfect for one another <3

Like your husband, I do mockups for everything, modern or not, as no one is the "standard size." It's just that I've never made anything like these hosen, and this is the first time my son wants something, so I want it to be a happy experience for him. They fit almost like modern tights (some wrinkling is ok, going by paintings, but they can't look like pants) and the crotch can't put pressure on sensitive bits...yet still has to fit, and I'll have to fit it on my dearest son. He'll be traumatized. Rest of it should be fun :)

Ash09 wrote: "and this is the first time my son wants something, so I want it to be a happy experience for him."

Ash09: Is next Sunday "Happy Son's Day"? All these stuff you're researching and tailoring (or buying) for him... what a lucky boy he is! You're a good mum. Hope he does something equally sweet for you this coming Mother's Day.

(Edit: I should mention that my maternal grandmother was a seamstress, so I appreciate how much work goes into making a customized outfit. My mother, as a kid, was a direct beneficiary of that skill, as she always had new dresses for special occasions, so I hear anyway. As the youngest of 8 siblings, she could have been wearing hand-me-downs instead...).

This medieval fashionista stuff is way over my head. I haven't seen this level of energy and enthusiasm here since... Lord Golden dressing Badgerlock.

Parker: Yesterday I almost made it to http://www.mountvernon.org/plan-your-... (have you ever participated?) but my inner geek re-directed me here http://www.robotfest.com/ and the foodie further brought me to Timbuktu just 6 miles away... No authentic history at my doorstep, but these crab cakes have firmly established their place in food history as The Best in US. If you are ever in my neck of the woods, these are to die for... http://www.timbukturestaurant.com/ima... (Edit: Like Fitz & Fool, it's something I can't stop thinking about...)

He'd better be thankful! I didn't even realize it was Mother's Day so soon. Hm. Time to guilt trip my kids :D

...shame Lord Golden didn't choose to make Badgerlock's clothing himself. Ah, the fitting sessions they would have had.

Alfred, I've never even been to Mount Vernon. Shameful, I know. We didn't do vacations when I was a kid much. Dad & I would work on the farm, helping my Grandfather. Usually, Mum & I would be able to go to the horse races for a few days. I'm a Kentuckian, so racing's in my blood (pretty much).

Those crab cakes look yummy! Where is this place???

My mum was a seamstress as well, so I grew up having designer clothes. I'm still super-picky when it comes to seams & hems & such. If it's not to my satisfaction, I will not buy it.


Ash, yes, son should be extremely grateful. How old is he? I should think a nice set of Robin Hobb books (the UK set that was mentioned) would be a lovely gift.

Ah, yes. (Fans herself thinking about those fitting sessions) Particularly the hose.

Parker: obscure place in Hanover MD, with décor circa 1970's, and aptly named Timbuktu. MD is known for blue crabs, which also means very good blue crab cakes, size of fists, no fillers...

Junie wrote: "Golly! I am way behind here catching up !! Scrumptious cake Scarletine you can bake, do woodwork, write what can you not do?? And yes Ash09 you deserve those special books!!! Oh my Parker I never k..."

LOL, Junie. There is plenty i cannot do... earn a living wage, heal the sick. Don't even talk to me about relationships... :-p I am sure you have many talents... please share.

Meant to come back to this and many things, but got distracted. Scarletine, you have talents that most people don't. Relationships are over-rated until the right one comes along.

Ask Parker - I distinctly remember mention of a soul mate, in Gaelic no less, one who has sprightly dancer's legs, good with hands (for tailoring) and common interest (history). Worth holding out for the right one. (Fitz and Fool aren't the best role models for real life stuff, you know!)

Alfred wrote: "Meant to come back to this and many things, but got distracted. Scarletine, you have talents that most people don't. Relationships are over-rated until the right one comes along.

Ask Parker - I d..."

I agree Alfred! Relationships are over rated... and so I use my talents wisely...writing about them! Its all good :-)

So, my Anniversary Edition of AA arrived. In case anyone else is interested, some impressions:

Slipcase
As you've seen in pictures, it's blue with silver designs: the two large faces are covered in the same 'wallpaper' design in silver, which consistes of roundels and simple florets. The roundels are complex, with three concentric rings: one containing deer, one containing birds, and one containing leaves. It's a pretty design, but I'm surprised/disappointed that alongside the deer (obviously thematically important - farseer bucks) there aren't any dogs/wolves or horses, the other two most important types of animal in the book. [Although the deer's antlers are arranged like snapping jaws, or maybe crab claws...] Still, it looks attractively neogothic and conveys an appropriate woodlandy impression. The spine of the case is unfortunately much simpler in design, with some florets (which are fine in the wallpaper but too simplistic by themselves) and a simplified stag crest. I guess the idea is that this side is hidden most of the time anyway.

The slipcase is made of cardboard. And unfortunately this is very obvious, because where they've made the semicircular cuts (so that you can pull the book out) (is there a technical word for those, anybody know? I'm tempted to say 'lunette', but I don't think that's official) they haven't bothered 'sealing' the cardboard with blue paper, so it's just exposed dark grey cardboard. On the other hand, it is, unlike with some slipcases, very thick cardboard - I don't imagine it will damage easily (although since it's paper over cardboard, scuffing might be a problem if you're careless with it).

Cover
The cover is completely covered in cloth (not like many elaborate hardbacks where only the spine is cloth). The cloth feels modern and mass-produced (though i've not held enough cloth-bound books to be any judge of that!), but it also feels robust, and it's not an unpleasant texture. Certainly more special than a normal hardback cover. Front and back bear the same roundel design as the case, but this time single, large roundels. Perhaps they could have been more elaborate in this larger form, or different on front and back, or at least there may have been a title or something. this silver design is done properly, cut into the cloth and, as it were, inlaid (though it's not actually silver gilt or anything) (unlike the silver on the slipcase, which is just painted on).

The spine is if anything a little busy: with author, publisher, and the anniversary label, as well that stag crest. Little disappointed it's not a charging buck. There is also, of course, the title, which is done in a pseudo-mediaeval calligraphic style, as on the UK covers of the latest edition. It's a little busy (and trying-too-hard) for my liking, but it's pretty enough.

Front and end matter
The book begins and ends with the same double-page 'pencil' illustration, of what I assume is meant to be buckkeep. This is... artistically pretty, but I don't love it. It feels very generic-fantasy (it reminds me a lot of a certain Kidby illustration in a Pratchett book), and didn't feel strongly like Buckkeep to me. And there are some architectural features that gave me pause - it's amachicolated keep tower, but then there are balconies, and a wide-eved tiled roof, rather than crenolations, and the tiles are those stereotypically mediterranean things... as though the artist were torn between drawing a castle and drawing an italian villa. I know this is probably just me, and may partly be my own lack of architectural/historical knowledge - but I think of buckkeep, particular of AA era, in the vein of "windswept dark age saxon fortress", and the illustration to me suggests more comfy townhouse in the south of france (with a dash of fantasy)". I guess it's just that it feels like what you'd get if you asked someone "draw a guy leaning out of a castle tower overlooking a town, it's for a fantasy novel", rather than feeling specifically buckkeep-y. It also might have been nice if front and back illustrations were different (buckkeep, and then the palace in jhaampe, perhaps? or Chade's bedroom?)

I guess also my standards may just be very high - both John Howe and Jackie Morris have provided us with some really beautiful artwork that seems to be perfectly matched to the books, and if they were going to pay for double-page illustrations I'd have liked something a little more iconic... but, it's pleasant enough.

(these illos, btw, are on thick, glossy paper).

There's a half-title and a full title page. The half-title is just the title by itself: disappointingly, it's in the fauxdiaeval font (traditionally half-titles just have the title in plain capital letters), but I guess most people won't care; the verso of the half-title is the list of other works (up to Fool's Quest; oddly, the Hobb books are done chronologically, so the Soldier Son books aren't set aside from the Elderlings novels0. The full title is also in fauxdiaeval, against a light grey version of the slipcase 'wallpaper' design. This is sort of pretty but having the words - in calligraphy - over a design sort of makes it feel a bit busy. The verson of the title page is the colophon. There is no frontispiece.

The dedication is the same as before, but in a prettier font, and with a little leaf-and-flower design thrown in to make it nicer.

Then there are the introductions. In total, two pages. the first is by "Robin Hobb", and signed as such (computer-signed, that is!)> it's the typical stuff, wow it's been so long, love the characters, have conversations with them, etc.* The second page is three little remarks by The Fool, Fitz, and Nighteyes. These are overwhelmingly cheesy... but it's hard not to smile at them, because even in the medium of "metafictional preface to a novel", she completely nails the three characters. The Fool writes something narcissistic and taunting, and signs with what looks like an early modern quil pen - it's not quite elegant copperplate yet, but it's heading in that direction. The Fitz writes something brooding, narcissistic, and self-critical, and signs in an elegantly simple, unadorned mediaeval hand. Nighteyes writes something extremely brief, narcissistic, philosophical, and pragmatic, and signs with a pawprint (Fitz also signs his name for him). It's a weird idea, and, as I say, very cheesy, but as a single-page amuse bouche and reward for longtime fans I think she pulls it off.

There is also a map. This looks to be essentially the same as in the original edition, but I think a little fancier. It reinforces one of the greatest absurdities of the novels, in the the whole of the Chalced States are clearly shown as being about half the size of any one of the Six Duchies... but we can't blame that on the edition!

The text
I haven't read it... but it appears to be exactly the same as in the previous UK editions - same fonts, same title layout at the beginning of chapters, etc. This makes sense, of course, but it would have been nice if they had been able to spruce it up or make it a little different somehow for the special edition - a little design at the beginning or end of chapters, for instance.

What would have been really nice would have been illustrations, at least at the beginning or end of each chapter. Unfortunately but I guess inevitably, the front and end plates are the only illustrations - I guess they don't add to the value much but add a lot to the price...

Overall feeling
Didn't live up to my hopes, really, but probably good value for money, in realistic terms. That is, comparing the book and its price to a normal hardcover and its price, I think the minor improvements - attractive cloth binding, slipcase, full-page (pretty if uninspiring) artwork - are worth the slight premium. It's not an all-out collector's special edition - but then, it's not priced like one either...

I'm certainly not disappointed to have bought it, and I'll certainly consider buying the anniversary editions of the following books. [I do wonder, however how they're going to cope with later books, given that AA is by far the shortest of the books...]




*The only really new and specific line in the introduction is where Hobb, a litle surprisingly, exposes herself to potential ungoodthought criticism by referrencing not one but two personae non gratae: Kipling, she says, once told Haggard that it wasn't Haggard who wrote She, but rather that "something" had written the novel "through" Haggard. For an author who usually seems to stay out of political imbroglios in genre fandom, it seemed a surprisingly personal remark (it's common for authors to express similar sentiments, but rare for them to provide hostages in the form of specific literary references). I suppose, however, and hopefully, that most people fannish enough to be buying the anniversary edition of her novel won't be willing to go after her for it. I suspect, though, that if she were an unknown author presenting a first novel for the first time, to the modern genre audience, her editor wouldn't have let her expose herself in that way...

Thank you very much! For a highly descriptive and, might I add, loving but critical eye on a package delivered within Amazon’s schedule. My imagination is running riot here since mental visualization is my only avenue to see this book in detail. On Hobb’s incongruous comment about Haggard and Kipling, my response was first a “huh?”, then a “what was the context?”.

Let me lap this up, ruminate and salivate some more. Will return to pepper you with questions later.

There isn't really any context. Hobb's just saying how the characters seem real to her, the book writes itself, etc, the same as most authors say. She just uses Kipling's comment to Haggard as an example of someone saying it in a pithy manner: that the book is written through the author rather than by her.

Hi everyone,

Fools Quest has been nominated for a Fantasy Award.

Please share and vote by clicking on this link :

http://www.gemmellawards.com/award-vo...

Thanks for the link, Scarletine. Just voted--fingers (& toes) crossed she wins it.

Parker wrote: "Thanks for the link, Scarletine. Just voted--fingers (& toes) crossed she wins it."

I forgot to mention, the third vote on the list is for Jackie Morris's cover. I voted for that too! :-)

As did I.

Scarletine wrote: "Please share and vote by clicking on this link :
"

Thanks! I have been inundated with real life stuff and hasn't done much on GR. But nothing stops me on my tracks as much as a call to vote for Hobb. She deserves it. Voted!

Thanks again for reviewing the physical book in detail. Wastrel, imagine this... 16 pretty blue books in a row on your bookshelf. I hope you do end up buying the whole series if they become available. Forgive me for feeling covetous! It’s analogous to admiring those medieval costumes described in earlier. Instead of “pluderhosen” and “Germanic slashed sleeves”, it’s florets, roundels and silver on Buck blue. Hobb’s revamped website has a picture of her in a blouse of the same lovely blue shade, I think.

Interesting choice of animals. Hmm… maybe it’s symbolic? As in Wit is all around from land-based to aerial-based animals? Or, perhaps it’s because only the bird (crow?) and the deer appeared in AA, with the wolf and horse to be featured in later book covers? In the earliest chapters of AA, Fitz’s grandfather threw snow at a crow shortly after Fitz thought he heard his mother’s voice (but person unseen) begging the father not to give Fitz away. I long have a hypothesis that Fitz’s mother is Witted and bonded with a bird, likely a crow. Not Motley, but related somehow. Wrote at length about this in one of the other threads.

Was studying a google image of the roundels. Agree they look very woodland-y. And the antlers, I didn’t think crab claws initially but now that you’ve mention it…! In fact, they look like the hand-held metal device with the teeth that’s used to break hard crab claws! I suppose sprung out antlers occupy too much space, which means fewer roundels and less pretty, on the surface. I wonder if the roundels are meant to signify the Wheel (with four spokes) that changes its route because of the Changer. The four leaves/floret in the middle; could those be modified nettle leaves? Or maybe they are flowers, loved by Fool. This might be reading too much into the design.

Can you feel texture (because of the embossing) on the slipcover? For that matter, can you on the cloth cover too? I have never held a book entirely bound in cloth before, either! Which is interesting in and of itself, and quite unexpected. Couldn’t tell that the cover is cloth from the google image. I suppose the stag crest was used to represent the general Farseer family. But yeah, a charging buck would be a nice homage to Fitz. You know, I was really curious about the weight of the book. Is it relatively heavier or lighter than a regular hardcover (I only have the AA paperback so no basis to compare. And the recent Hobb books are heavy, but also approx. 2.5X more pages). And the smell?! New paper, glue and cardboard? Sorry to be so strange but it's just one of those sensory pleasures of having a brand new physical book.

I’m trying to imagine the pencilled illustration. The reference to “Mediterranean” and “Italian villa” brings forth images of Dorne or King’s Landing with a gorgeous sunset as back drop. I much agree with your image of "windswept dark age saxon fortress" as well. In my mind, I imagine Buck to be more grim and practical, like a fortress built for defense not for diplomacy. Maybe like Greyjoy’s Pyke castle on the iron island? Ooh, who would be “this guy” leaning out the castle tower? Very mysterious. Chade, perhaps? Agree Howe and Morris did beautiful illustrations, those were my favorites. We’ve been down the road before on cheesy US covers. One more thing we do badly over here. But yeah, illustrations before/end of chapters would be really nice… Sort of reminds me of the Enid Blyton hardcovers (*trying really hard to squeeze out primary school memories of those) with illustrations before the chapters.

Speaking of cheesy, someone posted a picture of the foreword. Which I read, of course! But it would be inappropriate to post here for copyright reasons, I think. Agree narcissistic aptly to describes all three. The gist of which is, Fool - “You. Serve me”. Fitz - “Me. Poor Me”. Nighteyes - “Go. Serve yourself”. The foreword does really capture the essence of each character with little references to things we associate with them, Fool and apricot brandy, Nighteyes with the paw print, Fitz and trusting boy. It made me smile too. Especially Nighteye’s dry humor. I do miss Nighteyes. I feel a little worried about Hobb’s introduction and her calling Fitz and Fool “my best friends” for more than 20 years, something along those lines. Does it sound little goodbye-y to you? (Side note: she calls Fool, “the Fool”. Has it always been thus?).

I considered what you said about the construction and look of the book. Perhaps it is so to make it economically accessible to a wider market but still make it special enough to make it a collector’s item. And it is very special. I feel the F/F story will endure generations and hopefully decades from now, it’ll still be moving people emotionally. Anyway, I’m rambling now but thanks again! Hope your book will be the first anniversary edition of many.

Yes, I think the idea is something in the gap between a mass-market hardcover and a serious-collector's-only work of art. And I do think it's worth it - wish more books were at this quality. It's £25, instead of £15 for the normal hardback. That's quite a markup for fundamentally the same book with a snazzier binding and a cardboard case. But on the other hand: given the expense of hardbacks, I'm only going to be buying them either when I'm desparate for the story and can't wait a year (in which case I'll pay the £10 extra), or when I want something nice for the shelves (in which case I'll want the higher quality). So to me the format makes sense. I suspect higher-quality hardbacks may be the future - given the availability of e-books for the text, it makes sense to make the physical item itself more appealing.


Anyway: you can only slightly feel the pattern on the slipcase (I suspect the whole pattern is ironed on in one piece - the edges of it are more noticeable than the lines inside). On the book itself, however, the pattern is very noticeable - it's both painted and cut in slightly. The cloth is soft to the touch, quite fine - I really like it. It's finer and softer than I remember the last clothbound edition of this book being*.

It does seem pretty heavy. It's about 2/3rds the thickness of my hardback Fool's Assassin, but I think it's actually heavier. Lighter than Fool's Quest, though - but less than you'd think by looking at it. I guess that's mostly a heavier cover. Emphasises, though, that they can't do the later books like this - maybe the rest of the trilogy, but if they're going to do books like Fool's Quest or Fool's Fate, they're surely going to have to split them into multiple volumes.

[Yes, I'd like a shelf of 20 or so hardbacks like this. Why can't we poor folk living in the 21st century have a proper hardback library of tomes and grimoires, damnit? I like paperbacks, and normal hardbacks in their covers, but they don't really have that Victorian gravitas! And yet as it's become cheaper to make physically impressive books, we've done it less and less and less...]

The pages are thicker than in some hardbacks, certainly - just compared it to my omnibus Pratchett witches trilogy, which is physically a similar size but has a much, much higher page count. But comparing it to the FA and FQ paperbacks, it doesn't seem like paper thickness is likely to be that different.

Oh, and the pages are silver-edged. But it's very thin silver - it marks, and if you fan the pages even slightly it becomes invisible. So I'm not sure it adds that much weight. But it's a nice visual touch. There's also an integrated silver-cloth bookmark, incidentally. It's not a very fine cloth, though. There's also, I see, a fringe of cloth at either end of the spine, giving the impression that the pages are bound to cloth. They're not, if you look closely, it's just a paper spine of some kind, but the little hint of cloth showing at the ends makes it look a bit more up-market.

And I've just discovered why dust covers were invented. Made the mistake of touching it with dusty fingers. Spent several minutes trying to remove the marks that left on the cloth. NB: brushing with hands does nothing, just beds it in; but brushing with clean fine cloth seems to work perfectly. Still, might suggest why people don't use this binding for books that will encounter rough and tumble conditions...

It smells nice. Smells a bit different from my FQ, and I don't think it's just the extra months of age. It's a... sharper... quality. And it's stronger. But it doesn't smell sharp and thin like a new textbook or the like, it's a more traditional smell than that. It reminds me of some book I've smelled in the past, but I can't think what it might have been. Oh, wait! I think it reminds me of the smell of my Absolute edition of Sandman? Would make sense in one way, in that they're both special editions... but sandman is glossy paper with leather cover, so i'm not sure what the thing in common would be. Maybe it's a different type of glue or something? Probably should stop sniffing it before the solvents become a health hazard... The cloth cover itself has its own smell, btw, but it's fairly mild.

You can find images of the illustration online.

You know, it's only £25, and apparently you can get free shipping to the US...



*ironically, although there has never been a US hardback addition of Assassin's Apprentice, there have been four UK hardback editions: the original hardback, a 2010 15th anniversary edition (which has a modified version of the first Morris cover), a 2013 clothbound hardback edition with a stylised howling wolf cut into the cover, and now this one. [but the original hardback was a very small run, and consequently is now much more expensive than this anniversary edition is...] Meanwhile, there's only ever been one hardback of Royal Assassin...

Wastrel wrote: "You know, it's only £25, and apparently you can get free shipping to the US..."

No, no, don't plant thoughts in my mind, not the kind I can't afford! It's not just£25... it's £25 x 3, at minimum. Buy one means commitment for three. One book would look so forlorn sitting all by its lonesome self on the shelf...

Ok, so, for the sake of being hypothetical, and I entertain the thought of at least checking it out on Amazon. Hang on. BRB. (About 8 mins later) What the f-ing rip-off! Amazon US listed book for US $131.91, new! I'm a fan, but that's serious-collector's-only price tag. Meanwhile, Amazon UK listed book for a more reasonable £25 + £7 S/H fee = still a whopping US $46. For now, I think I'll still just covet from afar but also keep a very, very open mind...

"Why can't we poor folk living in the 21st century have a proper hardback library of tomes and grimoires, damnit? "

Damnit! I'll second that. On the one hand, it does seem counter-intuitive that not more hardcovers in better designs are available since production costs become cheaper as you've mentioned. On the other hand, demand for hard-copies, let alone hard covers, are also diminishing, I think. I have no data to support that statement other than anecdotal observation.

Damn the go-go-go society we live in! Why lug around heavy books and worry about dust on pretty covers and admire pretty books and smell the different smells and feel the different textures when one can efficiently squeeze hundreds of books into a tiny 64 GB thumb drive the size of one's pinky. I'm afraid you and I are dying breed. It won't happen in this generation or the next or the next, but no assurances beyond that. In the meantime, more cheery thoughts needed!

Ooh. I found the illustrations. Pleasant, but generic, yes. And ooh, silver-edged pages! Nice touch. Ooh. You have keen olfaction. I was expecting a smell or two, but this is a buffet! And final ooh, there are 4 UK hardcovers available?! How deprived Americans are with pretty book things... *looks longingly at pretty blue book* and... *looks contemplatively at my 2nd paragraph re Amazon UK...*

You can reduce it to $37.39 at Book Depository - free shipping worldwide. [the earlier howling wolf edition is $21.40 - it's nicer than a normal hardback iirc, but has no dust jacket or slipcase]
[and then it's only $77 dollars for the UK first edition hardback (used)...]

On weight, btw: apparently my original UK paperback weighs 260g, the original UK hardback weighed 698.53g, the wolf cover weighs 710g, and my special edition weighs 1,230g. However, I assume that includes the slipcase. By my weighing-by-hand, the book itself is between 960g (Fool's Asssassin) and 1,100g (Fool's Quest).