First published in 1995

435 pages

Fiction, Fantasy, Adventure

Assassin's apprentice is the first book of "The Farseer Trilogy"; all three would have made it on the five-star list but then it would have gotten out of hand. Hobbs unfolds this world with such skill you don't even realize while it's happening. The pacing is perfect and there are solidly grounded rules of engagement. This is a classic fantasy world where there is magic and rulers, where a young orphan must find his way in the world through complicated court interconnections. There are royal conspiracies and assassinations (hence the title of book one "Assassins Apprentice"). Young Fitz, our protagonist, has strong royal blood in his veins, giving him a special magical ability that only those of the Farseer bloodline possess. He also has an additional ability that is socially shunned, earning him more enemies than friends. Even though this world is based in magic and fantasy, it is deeply grounded with a sense of reality. Hobb makes the unbelievable, believable. 

There are fascinating rules associated with this world's magic, and cultural understandings associated with them. Hobbs enfolds the reader masterfully throughout this trilogy, there was not a single moment that I wasn't engaged and ready to continue reading. I am enthusiastic about tackling all 14 books of "The Realm of The Elderlings".