I've always been a big fantasy fan, and I've recently been working through some of the genre's most acclaimed series. The Farseer Trilogy was high on my list because of its reputation and influence, but after finishing the second book, I have to admit I expected a lot more.

What surprised me the most is how simple it all feels. The political side of the story seems pretty shallow to me, and I find the world itself fairly uninteresting overall. I'm only judging what's been presented so far, of course, it may get expanded in the third book or later series, but that's a separate issue. Each book should be able to stand on its own. It feels like Hobb only does the bare minimum needed to establish the setting. There's nothing particularly memorable about the worldbuilding, and every culture feels very basic. It's a very, very basic medieval world

When you compare her to authors who were influenced by her, like George R. R. Martin, the contrast feels even stronger. In my opinion, Martin completely outclasses her in pretty much every aspect of writing

Beyond that, even the tragic elements she tries to create didn't really land for me. They often came across as a bit silly rather than genuinely moving. These books feel far less mature than I expected them to be. Maybe my expectations hurt the experience, because I did have fun reading them, but I honestly can't imagine putting these first two books on any list of essential fantasy reads. Maybe it's best suited for someone who's reading fantasy for the first time, since the simplicity might actually make it more approachable. But reading it after any of the genre's major authors feels more likely to hurt the experience than enhance it.  


  


Robin Hobb’s Farseer Trilogy has been a pretty big disappointment for me...