Headed over to Manchester this evening to meet Robin Hobb, the author of undoubtably my favourite series of books I have ever had the pleasure of reading.
Everything began a couple of years ago when my friend Yvonne told me about a series of books called The Farseer Trilogy. All she told me was that she’d been recommended them and had loved them and that I would love then too. So I bought the first book, Assassin’s Apprentice, and was thrust into the world of Fitzchivalry Farseer and The Fool…a love was born. A set of characters that reached out and could be adored by all, accompanied by some evil characters too who looked to thwart Fitz’s rise. The books are amazing. Fitz is a royal bastard who possesses an ancient magic called The Wit which allows him to communicate with animals through an ancestral bond. The Wit is much revered and Fitz has to try to keep it to himself, whilst also juggling the responsibility of being taken in and trained up to be an assassin for his his grandfather, the King.
Through the Farseer Trilogy, and moving south to the Liveship Traders Trilogy, before returning to Fitz & The Fool with The Tawny Man trilogy and finally back to the Rain Wild Chronicles, the world which Robin has built is breathtaking and wondrous.
And tonight, we met her.
It was a talk at Waterstones in Manchester. She had done a signing earlier in Leeds, but we were at work so had to travel over to Manchester to see her tonight. She read the first part of “The Wilful Princess & The Piebald Prince” before taking questions. I asked a few because there were things I liked to know. I asked whether she knew where the books were going to go when she started out, I also asked whether there were any characters she didn’t necessarily like and wanted to kill off but couldn’t because they were fan favourites. I also asked whether the names of characters outside the Farseer books had come naturally or whether they meant anything.
It was a thoroughly entertaining talk and chat and something I am extremely glad I was able to attend and I would like to thank Robin for taking the time to do such a thing. I know a lot of it is publicity for the new book, but I also think that being able to meet with someone who has given you so much joy through words is a fantastic thing to be able to be part of.
Robin was lovely and sincere and it was lovely to hear her thoughts on her own writing process and her history which had shaped the way she writes today.
So…I urge you all to go out and read these books! You won’t be disappointed.
This book is a prequel to all the previous series and gives more insight into the ancient wit magic.
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