Review: Fool's Errand

Fool's Errand by Robin Hobb
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is my first Robin Hobb, and I realize it's an odd place to start. There are the two trilogies the precede this one, and then there are the brand new ones.

That said, I'm pretty impressed. She writes with a clarity and command that go beyond what you usually see in the genre. There are some passages here where she describe "the wit" at work in really beautiful ways.

And her conventions are intriguing. The bonding to animals is thoughtful and imaginative; it's fantasy that amplifies the experience of our world without quite inventing something new.

I give this volume four starts because it starts pretty slowly. I think I understand where Hobb is coming from -- she has to get across 15 years of Fitz's life between this and the last book to feature him -- but it went on a bit long for me. (It's hard to say whether it would be more appealing if I'd read the earlier books first.)

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