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Robin Hobb, that easy, catchy, bestsellerish name, is a pseudonym for Megan Lindholm, that more unusual, quirky, and difficult name, which is itself apparently not the author's real, or at least original, name.
The difference in names is the difference in authors: Lindholm's books are unusual, quirky, and sold badly; Hobb's are bestselling fat fantasy with all the fat fantasy tropes and many of the common fat fantasy flaws... and yet are also a little unusual, a little more rewarding, a little... diffferent.
THE ASSASSIN TRILOGY
ASSASSIN'S APPRENTICE
Fitz, a young boy of mysterious heritage and unusual gifts is trained as an assassin, despite growing evidence that he's poorly suited for the job. As he weaves in and out of the lives of the numerous and well-drawn inhabitants of the castle and nearby village, an weird and creepy invasion is underway by rampaging pirates with the baffling ability to steal their victims' souls, leaving them mindless psychopaths.
All sorts of fascinating mysteries are set up here, and the pace is swift, with some surprises to rank with the ones George R. R. Martin regularly pulls off. (For instance, that marvelously shocking scene involving Kettricken's brother.) The worldbuilding is solid and intriguing, the writing is of the "good transparent" school, and the characterization is exceptional. An excellent example of fat fantasy, and Hobb's best book as Hobb.
ROYAL ASSASSIN
The continuing adventures of Fitz, as his life goes from bad to horrible. His faithful wolf companion provides some much-needed playfulness, but overall the tone is dark. Maybe too dark. This is where it starts becoming apparent that Fitz is a total incompetent as an assassin, an almost-total incompetent at relating to human beings, and prefers to spend his time in self-pity and drug use rather than effective action. Still a page-turner, though.
ASSASSIN'S QUEST
Uh-oh. Fitz's life goes from horrible to unbelievably horrible, and the book goes off the rails. New, incredibly annoying, and ultimately pointless characters are introduced, from the know-it-all Kettle to the misconceived TV journalist, I mean singer, Starling. Interesting characters like Burrich, Patience, and Chade move offpage, or, like Verity and Kettricken, mutate into monomaniacal and therefore uninteresting characters.
Mysteries set up as huge big fascinating conundrums-- who was Fitz's mother? what was the White Ship? How exactly is Forging accomplished? Who was Kebal Rawbread? Why did the Red Ship Raiders start raiding _now_-- are left unsolved. The mysteries that _are_ solved, primarily, why are the Red Ship Raiders attacking at all, have dumb solutions. It concludes in a resounding whimper.
THE LIVESHIP TRILOGY
SHIP OF MAGIC
And this one begins with a bang. It has all the virtues of ASSASSIN'S APPRENTICE, but is more sprawling and lighthearted. Magic talking ships ply the seas, a beach where bizarre trinkets wash ashore is guarded by weird beings who will answer one question truthfully, an acid river washes the shores of a land where those who dare to live on it can touch great magic but will be hideously mutated, sea serpents search for their true heritage and ancient wisdom... you get the picture. It's great stuff. Again, fascinating mysteries are set up.
MAD SHIP
Why wasn't this called SHIP OF MADNESS? Oh, well. More of the same and thoroughly enjoyable as such, and, surprisingly, by the end most of the major mysteries and plotlines reach satisfying resolutions. What will Hobb do in the third book, I wondered.
SHIP OF DESTINY
Vamp for four hundred pages, throw in a gratuitous and unmotivated rape, and spend about thirty pages on a terrific plotline involving the destiny of Malta, a spoiled brat who learns something. Another vastly disappointing third book. Is there a pattern forming here? It also becomes clear in this one that the most intriguing
character from the ASSASSIN series appears here under a different and less interesting identity.
THE TAWNY MAN TRILOGY
FOOL'S ERRAND
More vamping. We meet up with Fitz again, living a pathetic hermitlike existence. If he had a livejournal, he'd post more than I do, and at least half his pots would go into great and dull detail about his physical problems. People ask him to come to the city and help the prince with a problem. He says no. Repeat for the first two hundred pages.
Then he goes the city, and things start getting interesting. Quite readable and enjoyable after that point, but not as inventive as SHIP OF MAGIC or intense as ASSASSIN'S APPRENTICE. And I don't have high hopes for the third book, which I predict will be a wet squib with a very long fuse.
GOLDEN FOOL
This one was pretty interesting. Chade is back! The Fool is back! Fitz gets off his ass and starts considering a life based on something other than mopiness! There are plenty of delicious details about Hobb's two intriguing telepathy systems, the Skill and the Wit. It is suggested that all the loose ends from the previous trilogies will be tied up and the remaining mysteries solved, and so the book concludes with the sort of rousingly promising conclusion Hobb does so well, and has yet to deliver on as Hobb. Oh, the frustration.
FOOL'S FATE
I haven't read it yet. It's on reserve at the library. But like I said, my expectations are not high.
The difference in names is the difference in authors: Lindholm's books are unusual, quirky, and sold badly; Hobb's are bestselling fat fantasy with all the fat fantasy tropes and many of the common fat fantasy flaws... and yet are also a little unusual, a little more rewarding, a little... diffferent.
THE ASSASSIN TRILOGY
ASSASSIN'S APPRENTICE
Fitz, a young boy of mysterious heritage and unusual gifts is trained as an assassin, despite growing evidence that he's poorly suited for the job. As he weaves in and out of the lives of the numerous and well-drawn inhabitants of the castle and nearby village, an weird and creepy invasion is underway by rampaging pirates with the baffling ability to steal their victims' souls, leaving them mindless psychopaths.
All sorts of fascinating mysteries are set up here, and the pace is swift, with some surprises to rank with the ones George R. R. Martin regularly pulls off. (For instance, that marvelously shocking scene involving Kettricken's brother.) The worldbuilding is solid and intriguing, the writing is of the "good transparent" school, and the characterization is exceptional. An excellent example of fat fantasy, and Hobb's best book as Hobb.
ROYAL ASSASSIN
The continuing adventures of Fitz, as his life goes from bad to horrible. His faithful wolf companion provides some much-needed playfulness, but overall the tone is dark. Maybe too dark. This is where it starts becoming apparent that Fitz is a total incompetent as an assassin, an almost-total incompetent at relating to human beings, and prefers to spend his time in self-pity and drug use rather than effective action. Still a page-turner, though.
ASSASSIN'S QUEST
Uh-oh. Fitz's life goes from horrible to unbelievably horrible, and the book goes off the rails. New, incredibly annoying, and ultimately pointless characters are introduced, from the know-it-all Kettle to the misconceived TV journalist, I mean singer, Starling. Interesting characters like Burrich, Patience, and Chade move offpage, or, like Verity and Kettricken, mutate into monomaniacal and therefore uninteresting characters.
Mysteries set up as huge big fascinating conundrums-- who was Fitz's mother? what was the White Ship? How exactly is Forging accomplished? Who was Kebal Rawbread? Why did the Red Ship Raiders start raiding _now_-- are left unsolved. The mysteries that _are_ solved, primarily, why are the Red Ship Raiders attacking at all, have dumb solutions. It concludes in a resounding whimper.
THE LIVESHIP TRILOGY
SHIP OF MAGIC
And this one begins with a bang. It has all the virtues of ASSASSIN'S APPRENTICE, but is more sprawling and lighthearted. Magic talking ships ply the seas, a beach where bizarre trinkets wash ashore is guarded by weird beings who will answer one question truthfully, an acid river washes the shores of a land where those who dare to live on it can touch great magic but will be hideously mutated, sea serpents search for their true heritage and ancient wisdom... you get the picture. It's great stuff. Again, fascinating mysteries are set up.
MAD SHIP
Why wasn't this called SHIP OF MADNESS? Oh, well. More of the same and thoroughly enjoyable as such, and, surprisingly, by the end most of the major mysteries and plotlines reach satisfying resolutions. What will Hobb do in the third book, I wondered.
SHIP OF DESTINY
Vamp for four hundred pages, throw in a gratuitous and unmotivated rape, and spend about thirty pages on a terrific plotline involving the destiny of Malta, a spoiled brat who learns something. Another vastly disappointing third book. Is there a pattern forming here? It also becomes clear in this one that the most intriguing
character from the ASSASSIN series appears here under a different and less interesting identity.
THE TAWNY MAN TRILOGY
FOOL'S ERRAND
More vamping. We meet up with Fitz again, living a pathetic hermitlike existence. If he had a livejournal, he'd post more than I do, and at least half his pots would go into great and dull detail about his physical problems. People ask him to come to the city and help the prince with a problem. He says no. Repeat for the first two hundred pages.
Then he goes the city, and things start getting interesting. Quite readable and enjoyable after that point, but not as inventive as SHIP OF MAGIC or intense as ASSASSIN'S APPRENTICE. And I don't have high hopes for the third book, which I predict will be a wet squib with a very long fuse.
GOLDEN FOOL
This one was pretty interesting. Chade is back! The Fool is back! Fitz gets off his ass and starts considering a life based on something other than mopiness! There are plenty of delicious details about Hobb's two intriguing telepathy systems, the Skill and the Wit. It is suggested that all the loose ends from the previous trilogies will be tied up and the remaining mysteries solved, and so the book concludes with the sort of rousingly promising conclusion Hobb does so well, and has yet to deliver on as Hobb. Oh, the frustration.
FOOL'S FATE
I haven't read it yet. It's on reserve at the library. But like I said, my expectations are not high.
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