This book was significantly better than the first because the characters actually became compelling, but it still had a number of shortcomings. Perhaps my main problem with this series is that it is painfully realistic to the point of being a very frustrating read. A main character with almost no power to do anything gets frustrating, and all of the choices he makes seem different from how I would act so I was constantly disconnected from him. I'm reading the final book now, so I guess we'll see if these first two were "worth it", but I fear that what I don't like is Hobb's writing style and not something that will change (and I'm sure many people like it). ( )

Had to rate this at 3 stars, one fewer than volume 1, because it was rather a repeat in the sense that a lot of text is expended on minutiae until the last 50 or so pages when we get a tour de force of angst, suffering and hopelessness, just as at the end of volume 1.

As in the first volume, there is a frustrating amount of discussion among Fitz and his friends about Regal's evil but how no one can do anything to stop it due to lack of proof. King Shrewd eventually acknowledges Regal's perfidy, but far too late to prevent him triumphing. It does also strain the suspension of disbelief that everyone, apart from a handful of people, can't see what Regal is up to and how dangerous. Even when the Coastal Dukes realise they are being abandoned to the raiders, they are unbelievably restrained

The series is well written but very downbeat and I just wonder what Fitz is going to be put through in volume 3, given the impossible position he and the Six Duchies are left in.
( )

A second strong book in the Farseer triology. A medieval setting with additional mental powers for specially gifted such as communication a long distances, eavesdropping on or influencing other's thoughts, and even becoming one with animals, which is controversial and much frowned on in the book's setting. Our hero is a bastard son of royalty and so should have little say in the fate of the kingdom, but ends up playing a pivotal role in the struggle between his lord, the rightful heir to the throne, and the heir's scheming evil brother. ( )

While I am still really enjoying this series, I really didn't enjoy how doom and gloom this entire book is. Book one included many stories from Fitz's youth and thus the reader was able to feel some hope and kinship. This book is a downward spiral. Nothing goes right. Nothing progresses. Fitz is self-tortured and miserable from the beginning to the end.

Sticking with the series, because I've gone too far now to turn back - but hoping for more balance in the trilogy's conclusion! ( )

My enjoyment of fantasy novels definitely has its limits and this book really was hitting a number of them. Drawn-out romantic drama, the world of the protagonist becoming increasingly cluttered with side characters and his often tedious relationships with them, Hobb's hard hammering at tired tropes about binary gender roles, social status based on "bloodlines" and the literal fantasy that people with real power would actually remain beholden to their "duty" in a noble fashion while those who exploit it are the nasty minority, all while the major plot developments drown in the middle of the mess. The first novel of this series built a very complex world, which was impressive, but this novel largely just makes that world overly crowded and suffocating. Still, Hobb is a very good storyteller and that makes this book readable and to an extent enjoyable, even if this book could have been easily 150-200 pages shorter. ( )