Robin Hobb

[Thor85]

I heard a lot of praise for this author, but are her books as good as people make them out to be? I'm weary of more traditional, epic fantasy (LOTR and its many clones) so I hesitate diving into any recent fantasy series, fearing that their worlds just wouldnt be as deep as that of ASOIF. As ASOIF fan I love character-driven fantasy and heard that Hobb is particularly good at that.

So I'm looking for any thoughts, criticisms or suggestions like which of her books I should try first.

[poeticfantasy]

The writing is beautiful and the characterization is ace. From what you mention you like, I believe you will enjoy it. The world is not as deep as Martins, but very few, if any, are. I'd try it it I were you.

[sio]

Hobb is good, particularly the original Assassin books. Not as epic as Song, but well-written, well-characterized.

[MattD]

The place most people start is the first Fitz trilogy, beginning with Assassin's Apprentice. I read these when they were published and liked them well enough then. The trilogy is a coming of age story that's reasonably well done...Fitz himself isn't greatly distinguished from the many other dutiful young lads of bildungsroman fantasy, and the first-person POV makes those around him tend towards flatness, but there a splashes of humanity here and there that remind us that Fitz isn't seeing everything. Fitz is rather a whiner and Hobb seems to delight in torturing him for no reason other than to make the books longer, but I did (and still do) think the third volume offered one of the more moving solutions and resolutions in recent epic fantasy.

If you're after a more ASoIaF-like reading experience, you could also start with the Liveship Trader trilogy (first is Ship of Magic), which are third-person and multi-POV. These are less epic and less driven by personal D&D-like magic powers, more focused on the commercial struggles of a family that, a la the Starks, has its patriarchs and matriarchs, its spoiled children and its strivers. I didn't especially like any of Hobb's characters in these books (which N.B. doesn't make them bad characters), and again a lot of the situations seemed cooked up just to let Hobb talk about how slavery is bad and write angsty filler (so I skimmed a lot), but the conceptual arc of the books is interesting, the focus on a merchant family and commerce is somewhat refreshing, and they are certainly ASoIaF-like in their depiction of a mesh of alliances, dealings, struggles, etc.

Those two series take place in the same world; she has a another setting for her Soldier Son trilogy, which I haven't read.

Bottom line is that I find her writing a bit too obviously manipulative and what I'll call "trilogy oriented" for my tastes, but she is doing enough unique and interesting things in her books that they're worth taking a look at to see what you think.

[Lichen]

I like her writing quite a lot, but the biggest problem, for me, is that her books tend to be waaaaay too long. This is especially tedious because usually there isn´t that much happening. It hasn´t completely ruined any book that I´ve read, mainly because she´s good at writing interesting stuff out of the most mundane things, but it is definitely (IMO) a downside at her writing.

I´d start with Assasins Apprentice. It isn´t bloated and you`ll likely find out whether you like her books/writing or not. I myself am just starting the final volume on her latest series (which has been ok but not as good as her previous books) and am not too excited about it, considering the fact that it is, based on the reviews I´ve read, again slow moving juggernaut.

[Crow's Eye]

... the biggest problem, for me, is that her books tend to be waaaaay too long. This is especially tedious because usually there isn´t that much happening.

Precisely. The Fitz trilogies were entertaining, but the six books could have been condensed quite a bit. The story was a bit cliche in many ways, and the endings very anticlimatic. Plus I absolutely hated the Fool. But still better than 95% of the fantasy stuff out there.

[Humble Asskicker]

Whether you like the books or not really depends on your taste in literature. If you have good taste, you'll like them, if you have very poor taste you won't. So consider these books an opportunity to measure yourself as a reader.

I hope that helped.

[polishgenius]

The Farseer and Tawny Man trilogies are good, but if you're weary of traditional fantasy, I'd give her a miss till you're not, take some remedial therapy with Mieville or something- her characterisation is indeed good but the world is sometimes tepid and it may put you off.

[Shryke]

To echo some sentiments:

Assasin's Trilogy is good, but Fitz is emo. The ending is also a bit ... abrupt and a touch too Deus-Ex Machina (this is sort of a thing with her)

Liveship Trader's is excellent too, some really interesting characters, but again same problems with the ending.

Tawny Man starts good, but quickly goes downhill. Little happens and it feels like it started off as one story, but she fell so in love with 2 of her characters the whole story changes in the second volume to become a pointless ode to these 2 and it completely ruins the (much much better) end of the first Fitz trilogy.

Soldier Son is ... interesting. It takes a novel setting (based off the westward expansion of America really) and does some neat stuff with cultures being unable to understand one another, but suffers even more from whiny-emo-bitch protagonist and, most of all, from LOOOONG books for no reason. The 3rd book, for instance, could have been wrapped up in like 5 or 6 chapters, but she drags it out to 400-500 pages of emo-boredom.

[Jacen]

I haven't read them in awhile (the Fritz books is all I've read) and I've forgotten most of it, so I'm saying right off the bat don't expect me to be able to defend my opinion :P.

I can respect the series but I do not love it, or think it's in the top 5 best fantasy series out there.

The good part is Hobb is really good at characterization, dialogue, and personal interaction. She is a good prose writer.

Fritz is pretty emo but then again he has a reason to be. An interesting character to read about.

I like world building. Her books seem to totally lack that. I really hate the names of the people and places. The world doesn't seem like it could exist and function. Some of the mechanics of the dragon's irritated me.

SPOILER: Slight Spoiler

And I'm still disapointed in the title of the first three Fritz books/his supposed occupation. There's very little assassination going on and a whole lot of bitching and worrying about his lost love

I would never rip on someone for liking the series but it just doesn't have that spark that I'm looking for. I doubt I would re-read them.

[awesome possum]

I really enjoyed most of the Hobb books. Sure they have their faults, but all books do. If you enjoy ASOIAF, you'll likely enjoy Hobb's series'.

[Kallichore]

It's enjoyable. Holiday reading. Her writing is really good, but as someone said, Fitz is too emo. I would have counted it in my top 10 reads were it not for the fact that her central character wasn't that interesting. Which is saying something. Virtually everyone else in that trilogy was great, I don't know why Fitz wasn't. And there was an element of cliche about it that made me wish I'd read it much earlier, I might actually have been surprised.

Liveship Traders was, imo, better. But I do think you need to read the Assassins trilogy first.

Yet to read the third clutch of books but that's more because I keep finding other things to read. Her work entertains me enough to keep at them, she's got a good style, but it's almost too slow-paced for me. It lacks a something. I read to find out how it ends, not because I'm caught up in the story.

In fact, I'm pretty much repeating Jacen with different words, so never mind :D

[BookWyrm]

This board gives a lot of praise to Hobb, and I don't really get it. I read and liked the Assasin Trilogy, but I hated everything else of hers I've read. Even the Assasin Trilogy was only above average to me.

Try her out, but know: there is much better reading material out there, even within the realms of fantasy.

[shortstark]

It's enjoyable. Holiday reading. Her writing is really good, but as someone said, Fitz is too emo. I would have counted it in my top 10 reads were it not for the fact that her central character wasn't that interesting. Which is saying something. Virtually everyone else in that trilogy was great, I don't know why Fitz wasn't. And there was an element of cliche about it that made me wish I'd read it much earlier, I might actually have been surprised.

Liveship Traders was, imo, better. But I do think you need to read the Assassins trilogy first.

Yet to read the third clutch of books but that's more because I keep finding other things to read. Her work entertains me enough to keep at them, she's got a good style, but it's almost too slow-paced for me. It lacks a something. I read to find out how it ends, not because I'm caught up in the story.

In fact, I'm pretty much repeating Jacen with different words, so never mind :D

There lies the main difference between Fitz lovers and haters, The Fitz lovers read for the journey not the destination, if you can bond with Fitz and the Fool there is few better tale.

One of my top 5 with my top 2 fictional characters...

[Guest thebadlady]

Whether you like the books or not really depends on your taste in literature. If you have good taste, you'll like them, if you have very poor taste you won't. So consider these books an opportunity to measure yourself as a reader.

I hope that helped.

Her books are tedious and whiney. She is even more overrated than Bakker. Her characters are either annoying or underdeveloped. AND they are in first person, which makes the tedious, whiney character even more annoying.

[Myshkin]

Are they as good as people make them out to be? In a word, no. They tend to be extremely overwritten, and emotionally manipulative (by which I mean Hobb does things not in furtherance of the story, but for no other reason than to elicit an emotional response from the reader). That said, they're not bad. Although I found that her two non-Fitz series, Liveship Traders and Soldier Son, were far superior to her two Fitz series, Farseer and Tawny Man.

[Daeric]

Jacen

Most of that happens off screen, mostly because the way its mostly done isn't very indusive to good reading.

[Myshkin]

I like world building. Her books seem to totally lack that. I really hate the names of the people and places. The world doesn't seem like it could exist and function. Some of the mechanics of the dragon's irritated me.

I think this is probably why I liked the Soldier Son trilogy better than any of her other trilogies; the world was more fleshed out and believable, and wasn't quite so generic.

[irriadin]

Hobb's emotional resonance is on par with GRRM, imo. Characters are quite good, but the world isn't exceptional. GRRM, Jordan, and Erikson are all leagues better at worldbuilding.

[sio]

I hated Soldier Son, and didn't read beyond the first book. It was so... flat. It felt like I was reading Holly Lisle without any of the things that make me like her works.