And Renegade's Magic - Shaman's Crossing

I admit, I'm a Robin Hobb fanboy. I've read all of her series and love anything to do with Fitz and his entire world. This series was completely, 100% different. There have been many negative and not-so-good reviews and I can understand why...it's because this is different. I described this series to my wife as a "cerebral" group of books.

Typical Robin Hobb, the characters are fully developed and the setting luxuriantly described. The main character, Nevarre, is not a heroic hero through much of the series. He's often down and depressed but that is certainly part of the plot. His magic use costs him - a lot and because of his magic, he's grossly obese - again part of the plot. The books are not at all fast moving and for me have caused me to think a lot more about what Hobb is saying through her characters. I read every night and this series took me about two weeks to complete. When I finished, I was saddened that it ended

For readers who want a rich, thoughtful and thought-provoking book or series of books to read, this certainly should be given a try. Buying it in this format, a trilogy all in one volume, has repetition that is inevitable. Each book repeats a lot of information to bring a new reader "up to speed" or to give series readers a refresher of what happened. This is the problem when reading books separated by months or years when originally published and presented in a back-to-back format. I didn't find it the issue other reviewers have.

I'm in the process of reading this book. I absolutely love the way Robin creates an entire environment that I can actually imagine. It's like you are there when you are reading but it's not overdone or tedious in any way. Grabs you from the start and just keeps going and evolving - a great read as usual

This is possibly the best trilogy of have ever read!! I originally bought it just to read something for a long plane flight but I couldn't stop reading it once I started and made it through all three books.

It take you away to a different world!

Robin Hobb has a real knack of writing very compelling material. I highly recommend any of her work, either as Robin Hobb, or as Megan Lindholm. The stories are well fleshed and quite intriguing. I've been reading her written work for about 10 years and it's easily the best fantasy work in the business.

First of all, I've read The Liveship Traders, Tawny Man and RainWild chronicles, and I loved all of them. This, I like the story when it does surface, but it's buried under layer upon layer of ponderings, thoughts and opinions about everything and anything. There's just too many words and not enough story!

I have read most of Robin Hobbs books. Usually I enjoy them. I don't know what she was on when she wrote this trilogy but it was the longest, most boring, repetitive crap that I have ever tried to read. Had she condensed it to ONE book instead of three it might have been a decent story.

I have read all of Robin Hobb's other series and thoroughly enjoyed them. This one was the worst. It was extraordinarily slow moving, the "hero" was a whiner and much of the information that could have made the story line understandable was not revealed until the last book. Definitely did NOT like this series.

I have read all of Robin Hobb's other series and thoroughly enjoyed them. This one was the worst. It was extraordinarily slow moving, the "hero" was a whiner and much of the information that could have made the story line understandable was not revealed until the last book. Definitely did NOT like this series.

As usual Robin Hobbs puts it all together. I have read the Farseers trilogy(3times) theFools trilogy(3times) the Rains Wild trilogy(2times) and as always waiting for her next one. It doesn't get any better.

I can't believe I actually paid money for this. Hobb falls into the sin that female writers often do, which is to endlessly belabor a point with irrelevant details, mean while grinding on the reader for pages and pages of despair, hopelessness and depression. The books could be cut down by 75% and nothing would be lost! Sadly disappointing, the last I will buy

My first thought after reading SHAMANS CROSSING was “what was this author thinking!” I felt disappointed and it seemed that the book mislead the reader into assuming certain things were going to happen that never did. To be honest quite upset about the entire book. But, then over the next few days it slowly began to sink in that it was in fact a very good book. It is beautifully and powerfully written. By the time book two came out, yes its many years ago that I read it, my curiosity was tweaked enough that I bought it simply out of a desire to see what happened to the main character and his friends. Once again Hobbs wove her magical spell taking me places that no author I have ever read before has taken me and while I felt growing frustration in the direction things were going the book held my attention like a train wreck in slow motion. All the books in this series are beautifully written and have ideas and plots that were exceeding fresh and it takes a while for your mind to adjust too. Book 2 left me little better off than the first with how I felt about the way things were going, but the world Robin had woven now had me snared and I could not wait for the third book. Book three I went into with different expectations… that is to say I had given up on trying to predict where Hobb’s was taking things and I simply read. I was engrossed by the magic of her writing, devastated by the brutal way in which her main characters experienced things and suddenly realized that this series was a intended to be a tragedy but if you looked deeper had its saving graces. The ending left me in awe of Hobbs and sealed her in my mind as one of the greatest authors of our era. I suspect that in the future this series will rise to be recognized as being her best even though now it isn’t. This is a book and series that needs to be digested, and needs to be approached with an open mind and no expectations. If you can do that you will find yourself being transported into a wonderful world beautifully written by a true creative genius.

The Soldier Son trilogy might be a shock to fans of her Fitz/Fool series. Unlike those splendid novels, this trilogy is unrelentingly gloomy, perhaps reflecting the author's own fears for our planet. The subjects are serious ones; the rape of our planet for resources, racial hatred, xenophobia, misogyny, the divisions created by a class-based society, poverty and so on, laying bear a fictional society that bears no small resemblance to our own past. Robin Hobb tortures her hero in these books as a way of making him experience the gamut of this world, from noble to a life as a homeless wanderer. It's admittedly a hard read, and the first time I read it I found it too gloomy. My second read, ten years later, revealed a rich and satisfying story with a hero who end up succeeding in spite of everything. And of course, it's beautifully written.

I love horror and paranormal when I'm just reading for mindless relaxation and pleasure. But I decided to give fantasy a try when I saw Robin Hobb's Assasin's Apprentice, Book 1 in the
"Farseer Trilogy."

Never was I so immediately and so completely drawn into another place and time. Hobb created a world and characters that I felt I'd known my entire life and never wanted to leave. And not just the human ones!

The "Tawny Man Trilogy" carried on where the "Farseer Trilogy" left off, just seen through the eyes of a different, but still beloved, character. I devoured all six books in these series as fast as I could read and impatiently searched the store for more.

I was ecstatic to find that the world of Robin Hobb continued, maybe not with exactly the same characters, but the same world and time period. And the new characters sometimes knew of the old and familiar ones. "The Live Ship Traders Trilogy" are neighbors to "The Rain Wilds" world and I suspect it is the Tawny Man who puts in a cross-dressing appearance several times.

The four books in "The Rain Wilds Chronicles" were merely a different part of the same place and people I had come to love and never want to leave. I loved The Rain Wilds and Live Ship characters just as much.

"The Soldier Son Trilogy" was a completely different set of characters and but the world was a completion to the original one Hobb created throughout each series, though on the other side of the world. It was just as magical and captivating.

I've tried hard not to spoil anyone's reading experience with details. Only stating here how excellent the quality of writing is, as well as plotting, characterization and world-making. I am a writer and lifetime reader and none have captured me like Robin Hobb's writing.

And now I can't wait to delve into Hobb's coming home again at last in the 2-book series "Fitz and the Fool." Anyone who has read Hobb's novels have never forgotten Fitz who wandered their worlds in the first six books with his beloved Fool. Now that I know I can return to them I will leave off reviewing and pick up those books!

I read the first book in two days, it was absolutely wonderful. Such a rich fantasy world, filled with pain, anger, hope, and boyish excitement. Nevare was always trying to prove to his father that he was a great soldiers son. Thr first son was the heir, second son was a soldier, third son a priest, fourth son musical..Daughters were simply currency to make good alliances. When Nevare was 15, his soldier's training took him on a path that changed his world, and will eventually change the whold world. I didn't realize until the end of book 2 (The Forest Mage) that unlike most fantasy novels, and more like real life, there is no good or evil side. Never must grow up and take responsiblity for himself and the magic that started taking root when he was 15. The journey of his life has taken him on a very strange and long path, very different and unexpected from what he imagined and what was expected of him. Full of love, betrayal, and newfound insight, The Forest Mage ends with a bang.

Mr. Hobb has created a main character on whom you can pour all those feelings that you've kept "in check".
Hate him, pity him, ache for him. He'll give you reason to feel it all. He'll cause you to reconsider your belief
that if you always do what is right, you can't go wrong.
By the end of this saga, I was just plain glad that I wasn't HIM. Was he courageous? Cowardly? Compassionate?
Maybe your decision will come easier than mine.

I've read and enjoyed Robin Hobb's other trilogies. However this one was not worth the time. While the story line showed promise, you become sure she is paid by the word. For example Great Ones need to consume lots of food. But the author drowns you with detailed descriptions of not one or two such meals but too many to count. It does not add anything but boredom to the story. Also the main character's conflicts with family etc are the proverbial dead horse. After the first few conflicts you get the picture. But they repeat and kill the momentum. Over all way too much repetitious detail killing the action.

I got this book series from my public library. For those not looking for a long review, here it is: "Barely good enough to read."

I read all three books, though I somewhat regret doing so. They're probably the worst books I'd actually be willing to read. The protagonist, through all three books, does nothing. If he does, it is entirely ineffectual. Most of the second book is the guy moping around being as passive as possible. Almost of the entirety of the third book he is in a position where he can literally do nothing but think (the literally is not hyperbole. It is actually his situation.)

Meanwhile, all of the other characters are great. His cousin is proactive and energetic. His friends are flavorful and combative. His enemies are clever and well-rounded. All of the characters, including the protagonist, are very human. Basically, I was left with the impression that each and every character besides the protagonist would have made an excellent protagonist. One of the antagonists in the book says something like, "I should have chosen Epiny as a vessel, not you" to the main character, and I couldn't agree more. Then maybe the books would have been good.

So if you want to read a passive, moping, depressed man get yanked around by unseen forces, read this series.

The only upside is that the setting is incredible, and highly realistic. I have high praise for how the cultures work and how they interact. They all make perfect sense. It was the setting more than anything else that kept me reading. It is a true shame we had to see it through the eyes of Nevare.

I have enjoyed other Hobb trilogies, but this one was painful. Finally about 70% of the way through the second book I just put it down and walked away from it. I found the story very slow moving, the characters hard to cheer for, and that she beat the reader over the head with the wilderness vs. civilization/destruction angle.

I also really wanted to like this book, as the civilization vs. nature struggle is much more unique than the typical good vs. evil one in most fantasy books...but this just failed to deliver a good story.

I do not recommend this series unless you want dark adolescent angst for hundreds of pages. I've read a good bit of Robin Hobb's fantasy. I started with liveship traders series and it was great stuff. I didn't enjoy the Assassin books as much, particularly the Fool's Assassin because of the main character's lengthy inner turmoil and indecisiveness. And that's what we have for the three books of the Soldier Son Trilogy. Great setting, interesting characters, clashing cultures, intergenerational conflict, and much more! But the main character rolls on dolorously for hundreds of pages with personal disaster after personal disaster, never rising above so much as muddling through while taking serious mental and emotional damage over and again while wondering "What do I do? I have no hope!" If you want to spend hours in deep discussion of young adult pain with little resolution, few high points, and every event clouded over with multiple levels of threatened disaster, this is for you. The problem with Nevare, the main character, is that he is overburdened with care, without much excitement or joy. I see this in lots of fantasy these days. Maybe the heaviness is a realistic characteristic of young people, but if authors are going for super-realism, young people are ALSO bright, eager to prove themselves, excitedly engaged with life - sometimes foolishly so, even in the face of depression, danger, horrible family situations, etc. Perhaps that full spectrum of emotion and feeling is difficult to portray, but I'm just confused by this trend in fantasy to portray young people who appear to be suffering severe clinical depression, who have little or no hope or faith that the future holds promise for them. The whole "great man/woman" native culture clashing with a "modern society" fitness culture was so very interesting- in my experience a unique creation examining "fat vs fit," and the sort of thing I go for in fantasy. But even with this and all the other troubles and levels of doom hovering over him, Nevare could still dream- just a little- of impressing his girl, his dad, his friends, his king, like people do, instead of grimly soldiering on with only the vague hint of success somewhere out there beyond his power.

After reading the brilliance that was The Complete Farseer Trilogy: Assassin's Apprentice, Royal Assassin, Assassin's Quest,The Complete Liveship Traders Trilogy: Ship of Magic, The Mad Ship, Ship of Destiny and The Complete Tawny Man Trilogy: Fool's Errand, The Golden Fool, Fool's Fate, I turned to The Soldier Son Trilogy and was utterly disappointed.
It had its interesting moments, but I think I completed the three books more because it was written by Robin Hobb and I wanted to know the ending, rather than for any specific interest I had in the story itself. If this had been the first Robin Hobb book I had read, I would never have picked up another of her books again.

I read the Farseer trilogy, and had high hopes for this series, but boy was I disappointed. I kept waiting for something to happen, and instead was bored by the main character's moping and failures.

If you liked Fitzchivalry I suspect you'll be disappointed in this series.

I hesitated reading this series after so many so-so reviews. I have read almost all of her other trilogies and have loved them all. I went ahead and got the first book in this series and ended up absolutely loving it as well. I enjoyed the journey of the character(s) and the storyline. I looked forward to picking up where I left off every time I sat down to read. If you have read her other works then I don't think you will be disappointed. I know I haven't been.

Settle in for very slow character development across the three books, and then a quick ending that ties up the loose ends and leaves you wishing just a little more time had been spent on winding down. Other than that, the detail in each character is rich, as are the descriptions of place and the emotional turmoil each character experiences. Worth a read for sure, but I'm a much bigger fan of the other series this same author has written.

This series is the worst that Hobb has written to date (AFAIK anyway - haven't read her books under her other pen names, only Hobb) plot moves very slowly, weird characters that you don't really like, overall seems just strange for the sake of being strange

BUT - even the worst of Hobb is still a reasonably good read. And at $12.74 for the 3 books in Kindle format, it is still a good deal - so I say go for it!

This trilogy is a masterpiece. It requires a flexible mind, and faith in the author, to get through some horrible times, but that makes the ending ( a long, multi-layered, ending) all the more satisfying.

Depressing internal monologues by flat characters stuck in the endless quagmire of this frankly boring plot will leave you wishing you had bought something else. Try Inda by Sherwood Smith instead (Inda)

Two of the biggest flaws.

The plot: Little happens, slowly.
Detached events clutter the plot; each pointless footnote strangles any sense that the main character is getting anywhere. When he does make progress, you're tricked into thinking: good, now the book can start. But it never does. Ever. Each new scene quickly fades into the background as characters' endless, introspective griping comes to the fore. Speaking of characters...

The characters: overly flawed, utterly unlikeable. Die please.
Every character is ripe for loathing. It's like the author was so focused on creating flawed people that she forgot to highlight anything positive or redeemable in their natures. Instead of protagonists overcoming their flaws through action or adversity, their weaknesses feed upon each other until hate for their existence overcomes pity for their circumstances.
They don't do anything either. They lack any capacity for individual action, leaving the plot and author's whim to drive them to-and-fro across a forgettable landscape.

Irremediable characters and criminally slow pacing yields 1.5 stars. Not being able to finish because of utter disgust with the book = -1 star for a total of .5 stars. If this is any indication of her other books, you should quarantine Robin Hobb from your bookshelf. You won't miss anything.

I love Robin Hobb's books, she is an incredible writer. This trilogy completely different from the Farseer Trilogy, Fitz and the Fool, Rain Wilds etc. But...very entertaining and as usual, very difficult to put down.

This is one of my favorite series. It's not often that an author comes up with a truly unique story but this is completely new. The world building is as comprehensive as you expect from Hobb and I found the story compelling.

I read this series after reading Hobb's excellent Farseer and Tawny Man trilogies. This one is really, really different. The plot drags.... and drags... you wouldn't believe how little actually happens over the course of these three books. It's difficult to identify with, or like, any of the characters in the story. It's all so dreary and slow. Halfway through the third book I wondered why I was still slogging through it - I just stopped reading. It was boring and a total downer.

I purchased this book for my Kindle as a threesome and it was terrific! What a different and absorbing storyline. I convinced my husband to read and he couldn't put it down. Having the three together was great as the story went on and on and wrapped you up in it. Once it was done, I checked to see what Robin Hobb has for other books as she is a great writer. She is evocative and fully fleshes her characters out so that they are truly genuine and alive. She keeps the pace going in her writing with no missteps. I highly recommend this trilogy. Just be prepared to let everything else go around you as you read and read and read.