What do you think?
Rate this book
Soldier Son #1-3
The Complete Soldier Son Trilogy: Shaman's Crossing, Forest Mage, Renegade's Magic
When the two-hundred year war between the kingdoms of Vania and Landsing ended the Landsingers were left in triumphant possession of Vania's rich coal and coast territories.
When young King Troven assumed the throne of Vania thirty years later, he was determined to restore her greatness, not through waging another assault upon their traditional enemies, but by looking in the opposite direction and colonising the wild plains and steppes to their east.
Over the next twenty years, cavalry forces manage to subdue the rolling plains formerly wasted on nomadic herders and tribesmen.Troven's campaign restores the pride of the Varnian military and to reward them, Troven creates a new nobility that is extremely loyal to their monarch.
Nevare Gerar is the second son of one of King Troven's new lords. Following in his father's footsteps, a commission as a cavalry officer at the frontier and an advantageous marriage await him, once he has completed his training at the King's Cavalry Academy.
Enter the extraordinary world of Robin Hobb’s fantastic Soldier Son Trilogy.
When young King Troven assumed the throne of Vania thirty years later, he was determined to restore her greatness, not through waging another assault upon their traditional enemies, but by looking in the opposite direction and colonising the wild plains and steppes to their east.
Over the next twenty years, cavalry forces manage to subdue the rolling plains formerly wasted on nomadic herders and tribesmen.Troven's campaign restores the pride of the Varnian military and to reward them, Troven creates a new nobility that is extremely loyal to their monarch.
Nevare Gerar is the second son of one of King Troven's new lords. Following in his father's footsteps, a commission as a cavalry officer at the frontier and an advantageous marriage await him, once he has completed his training at the King's Cavalry Academy.
Enter the extraordinary world of Robin Hobb’s fantastic Soldier Son Trilogy.
2243 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 12, 2013
911 people are currently reading
979 people want to read
About the author
Robin Hobb
318 books112k followers** I am shocked to find that some people think a 2 star 'I liked it' rating is a bad rating. What? I liked it. I LIKED it! That means I read the whole thing, to the last page, in spite of my life raining comets on me. It's a good book that survives the reading process with me. If a book is so-so, it ends up under the bed somewhere, or maybe under a stinky judo bag in the back of the van. So a 2 star from me means,yes, I liked the book, and I'd loan it to a friend and it went everywhere in my jacket pocket or purse until I finished it. A 3 star means that I've ignored friends to finish it and my sink is full of dirty dishes. A 4 star means I'm probably in trouble with my editor for missing a deadline because I was reading this book. But I want you to know . . . I don't finish books I don't like. There's too many good ones out there waiting to be found.
Robin Hobb is the author of three well-received fantasy trilogies: The Farseer Trilogy (Assassin’s Apprentice, Royal Assassin, and Assassin’s Quest), The Liveship Traders Trilogy (Ship of Magic, Mad Ship and Ship of Destiny) and the Tawny Man Trilogy (Fool’s Errand, Golden Fool, and Fool’s Fate) Her current work in progress is entitled Shaman’s Crossing. Robin Hobb lives and works in Tacoma, Washington, and has been a professional writer for over 30 years.
In addition to writing, her interests include gardening, mushrooming, and beachcombing. She and her husband Fred have three grown children and one teenager, and three grand-children.
She also writes as Megan Lindholm, and works under that name have been finalists for the Hugo award, the Nebula Award, and the Endeavor award. She has twice won an Isaac Asimov’s Science Fiction Readers’ Award.
Robin Hobb is the author of three well-received fantasy trilogies: The Farseer Trilogy (Assassin’s Apprentice, Royal Assassin, and Assassin’s Quest), The Liveship Traders Trilogy (Ship of Magic, Mad Ship and Ship of Destiny) and the Tawny Man Trilogy (Fool’s Errand, Golden Fool, and Fool’s Fate) Her current work in progress is entitled Shaman’s Crossing. Robin Hobb lives and works in Tacoma, Washington, and has been a professional writer for over 30 years.
In addition to writing, her interests include gardening, mushrooming, and beachcombing. She and her husband Fred have three grown children and one teenager, and three grand-children.
She also writes as Megan Lindholm, and works under that name have been finalists for the Hugo award, the Nebula Award, and the Endeavor award. She has twice won an Isaac Asimov’s Science Fiction Readers’ Award.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 105 reviews
January 8, 2013
I usually don't bother writing reviews but I figured this series, from a usually solid writer, was disappointing enough that it warranted a little warning to future readers. The story as it unfolds isn't very well constructed and since I read them all at once in the collection, I'm honestly surprised at how each book ended. The books themselves cannot be read individually as there isn't a complete or satisfying narrative to be found in any individual volume; the "action" picks up almost directly where the reader was left at the end of the last, which becomes quite annoying since Hobb then spends 10-15 pages doing exposition on the last book. This is tedious for the reader going through the whole series in one go, and read individually is a bit too much of an info dump all at once, really stopping any amount of flow.
The setting is decent; it's a bit of a direct lift from the American tribes wars/settlement of the West with the geography reversed (the Gernians are expanding East instead of West in search of a path to the ocean), but it's a picturesque backdrop. More time could have been spent demonstrating more of what Plainsmen magic is like, what the Plans cultures are like, and how the Gernian expansion has affected them, but it's a minor point. Any American reader will immediately have a mental reference for this story. Non-Americans might not have the same historical antecedents to fill in the gaps, but it's not essential.
More disappointing is the plot and main character. I've noticed in Hobb's previous writings that she has a tendency to use that High Fantasy trope of Fate or Destiny a bit too much, and often uses some assumedly benign driving force to move her characters along. In the case of Nevarre Burvelle, main character and horribly uninteresting person, that power is the Magic. The Magic, through what really seems like an accident of spiritual proportions, chooses Nevarre to perform an incredibly convoluted service to the world by stopping the expansion of the Gernian nation/road to the East, where a tribe of indigenous people live. The Magic never even drops a single hint as to how this is to be accomplished, and the main character, who would really like to be an officer in the King's army, isn't even aware that he is supposed to do anything until halfway through the 2nd book. It is made rather obvious by the author that Nevarre has a destiny with a capital D, but the character has been made purposefully dense to the point that he can actually perform magic and then actively pretend to himself that it didn't happen. Watching this as a reader is horribly frustrating because I become very bored waiting for a character to catch up to the plot, and Hobb manages to do this for the entire 3 book series. Nevarre never really takes hold of his decisions and character arc, and the few times he does, the deus ex machina of The Magic makes sure that whatever he does creates horrible and sometimes obvious consequences for every person around him. He has no agency, and since the story is told through his and only his perspective the reader is left with a feeling of being constantly lead to a destination that is easily seen on the horizon.
I would point out as well that the main reason for conflict between the Gernian expansion and the Specks (the mountain tribe that does not want the road built), is boilerplate and unoriginal. The Specks do not want their ancestor trees cut down, which are special trees that house the spirits of dead wisemen/magic users, plus all their collective knowledge. It's a dead on copy of the Piggy dilemma from Card's Ender series, and handled no better than he did. The reader is never really clued in on why this is such a bad thing; killing these trees is obviously bad to the Speck, but for all their claims that they need the spirits of these ancestors to live, the characters rarely if ever shown to be useful to the tribe. You only hear them talk when they're about to be cut down. The lone exception, Lisana, is actually one of the reasons Nevarre is a weak protagonist; she splits his soul in half and spends a year teaching the other half to do magic and have lots of sex. Due to this strange bit of nonsense, nearly 3/4 of the third book, Nevarre the main character gets trapped inside his own mind, barely able to act while his other self controls his body. This goes on and on, and the reader is never allowed to forget it. It becomes a constant reminder that Nevarre is just a pawn with no power. He literally becomes a voyeur to his own life. A more apparent metaphor for the reader being at the whims of the author I could not name.
Finally, Nevarre understanding that The Magic wants him to do something, asks what it is it would like him to do, everyone tells him "You know what you have to do." Nevarre has no clue, and no one else does. Even when the solution comes, it's highly illogical and depends entirely on the events of the story having already happened, proving again that god is practically living in the machine of this narrative and no action by the characters has any meaning.
I should point out that Hobb also spends far too much time chewing scenery, especially in the 3rd book when Nevarre spends most of his time doing nothing but walking in the woods and eating. Eating is the mechanism that allows certain tribesman to gain magical powers, so Nevarre spends a lot of time looking for food, waiting for others to get him food, to cook him food, and eating food. The way Hobb describes eating borders on the fetishistic, and her descriptions of obesity-as-power are very detailed, yet I somehow get this repulsed feeling from the text, as if Hobb is equating weight with odd or vile sorcery (we only see one character really use their magic powers in a positive way and all the rest are using their power to manipulate or harm others). It's also not very exciting, hearing someone describe for the 100th time how delicious a corncake is.
Perhaps my greatest annoyance with this title is that it leaves the reader with this strange, helpless feeling. The story is vastly negative in its treatment of Nevarre (he's hated and discriminated against from day one, either for his birth or weight, thinks himself a coward mostly without cause, is punished every time he does something he thinks is helpful, etc.) and since he has no control over himself and is merely the tool of the Magic,we're left with a story about a character who can't make choices, mostly just suffers, and kind of gets a happy ending. It's pretty much the Book of Job, spread out far too long.
The setting is decent; it's a bit of a direct lift from the American tribes wars/settlement of the West with the geography reversed (the Gernians are expanding East instead of West in search of a path to the ocean), but it's a picturesque backdrop. More time could have been spent demonstrating more of what Plainsmen magic is like, what the Plans cultures are like, and how the Gernian expansion has affected them, but it's a minor point. Any American reader will immediately have a mental reference for this story. Non-Americans might not have the same historical antecedents to fill in the gaps, but it's not essential.
More disappointing is the plot and main character. I've noticed in Hobb's previous writings that she has a tendency to use that High Fantasy trope of Fate or Destiny a bit too much, and often uses some assumedly benign driving force to move her characters along. In the case of Nevarre Burvelle, main character and horribly uninteresting person, that power is the Magic. The Magic, through what really seems like an accident of spiritual proportions, chooses Nevarre to perform an incredibly convoluted service to the world by stopping the expansion of the Gernian nation/road to the East, where a tribe of indigenous people live. The Magic never even drops a single hint as to how this is to be accomplished, and the main character, who would really like to be an officer in the King's army, isn't even aware that he is supposed to do anything until halfway through the 2nd book. It is made rather obvious by the author that Nevarre has a destiny with a capital D, but the character has been made purposefully dense to the point that he can actually perform magic and then actively pretend to himself that it didn't happen. Watching this as a reader is horribly frustrating because I become very bored waiting for a character to catch up to the plot, and Hobb manages to do this for the entire 3 book series. Nevarre never really takes hold of his decisions and character arc, and the few times he does, the deus ex machina of The Magic makes sure that whatever he does creates horrible and sometimes obvious consequences for every person around him. He has no agency, and since the story is told through his and only his perspective the reader is left with a feeling of being constantly lead to a destination that is easily seen on the horizon.
I would point out as well that the main reason for conflict between the Gernian expansion and the Specks (the mountain tribe that does not want the road built), is boilerplate and unoriginal. The Specks do not want their ancestor trees cut down, which are special trees that house the spirits of dead wisemen/magic users, plus all their collective knowledge. It's a dead on copy of the Piggy dilemma from Card's Ender series, and handled no better than he did. The reader is never really clued in on why this is such a bad thing; killing these trees is obviously bad to the Speck, but for all their claims that they need the spirits of these ancestors to live, the characters rarely if ever shown to be useful to the tribe. You only hear them talk when they're about to be cut down. The lone exception, Lisana, is actually one of the reasons Nevarre is a weak protagonist; she splits his soul in half and spends a year teaching the other half to do magic and have lots of sex. Due to this strange bit of nonsense, nearly 3/4 of the third book, Nevarre the main character gets trapped inside his own mind, barely able to act while his other self controls his body. This goes on and on, and the reader is never allowed to forget it. It becomes a constant reminder that Nevarre is just a pawn with no power. He literally becomes a voyeur to his own life. A more apparent metaphor for the reader being at the whims of the author I could not name.
Finally, Nevarre understanding that The Magic wants him to do something, asks what it is it would like him to do, everyone tells him "You know what you have to do." Nevarre has no clue, and no one else does. Even when the solution comes, it's highly illogical and depends entirely on the events of the story having already happened, proving again that god is practically living in the machine of this narrative and no action by the characters has any meaning.
I should point out that Hobb also spends far too much time chewing scenery, especially in the 3rd book when Nevarre spends most of his time doing nothing but walking in the woods and eating. Eating is the mechanism that allows certain tribesman to gain magical powers, so Nevarre spends a lot of time looking for food, waiting for others to get him food, to cook him food, and eating food. The way Hobb describes eating borders on the fetishistic, and her descriptions of obesity-as-power are very detailed, yet I somehow get this repulsed feeling from the text, as if Hobb is equating weight with odd or vile sorcery (we only see one character really use their magic powers in a positive way and all the rest are using their power to manipulate or harm others). It's also not very exciting, hearing someone describe for the 100th time how delicious a corncake is.
Perhaps my greatest annoyance with this title is that it leaves the reader with this strange, helpless feeling. The story is vastly negative in its treatment of Nevarre (he's hated and discriminated against from day one, either for his birth or weight, thinks himself a coward mostly without cause, is punished every time he does something he thinks is helpful, etc.) and since he has no control over himself and is merely the tool of the Magic,we're left with a story about a character who can't make choices, mostly just suffers, and kind of gets a happy ending. It's pretty much the Book of Job, spread out far too long.
July 23, 2015
I edged towards four stars for this series because it confounded my expectations of the fantasy genre at almost every turn. Not so much in its setting but in the author's treatment of the protagonist and his relationship to the magic. He certainly does not fit the traditional mould of a hero, in some regards he is neither likeable nor admirable, but is all the better for it. He blunders through the world trying to be the person he thinks he ought to be, trying to do the right thing, and being constantly surprised at the lack of reward for his efforts. I have read that this series is not representative of the body of Robin Hobb's work, but for me that ought to be seen as a good thing. There is nothing wrong with authors challenging themselves and challenging their readers.
June 2, 2017
I almost never write review on Goodreads, but I was so pissed after reading the 2nd book I couldn't help myself. I don't know if I've disliked a series more. In a sense, this is a greek tragedy because everything goes wrong. But it's worse. Because the main character struggles with the exact same thing literally the entire book. Without any change or development of his character. His struggle at page 100 is the same as his struggle at the end. He is such a passive player, and he is to blame for all the bad things that come of all his friends/ties, and he should know it because it HAPPENS THE ENTIRE NOVEL. Ugh. #rantover.
December 10, 2018
What a frustrating series from a good writer. These three books could be pared down into one very good story. Instead 75% of the series is rehashing the same thoughts and actions by the protagonist: "I should definitely do this. I did it! Oh no, I chose poorly or my actions were misinterpreted! Now I feel guilty."
wash, rinse, repeat.
I really like Robin Hobb, and I think she's a skilled writer (enough to get me attached to characters that forced me to read through this frustrating saga). I hope she continues this story, but cuts the fat significantly and gives the protagonist some backbone.
wash, rinse, repeat.
I really like Robin Hobb, and I think she's a skilled writer (enough to get me attached to characters that forced me to read through this frustrating saga). I hope she continues this story, but cuts the fat significantly and gives the protagonist some backbone.
September 18, 2014
Robin Hobb is fantastic. This was the last trilogy of hers that I have read, and I had delayed reading it because of its relatively poorer reviews. Also, a friend had dinged it because she did not like the parallels to the "old west" and the subjugation of native peoples by a stronger, technology-driven culture. But the books are clever and inventive, as Robin Hobb always is. There was not as much action, and the protagonist acted too dense for too long (since he was given to us as a very intelligent and hard-working person,) but the books held my attention, and I enjoyed them. I had to accept the duality of Nevare/Soldier's Boy, and that it is possible to hate a portion of your own self. It made more sense to think of them as identical twins separated in childhood and raised by warring cultures.
I am now moving on to the first book of the new Fitz and the Fool trilogy, and very much looking forward to it.
I am now moving on to the first book of the new Fitz and the Fool trilogy, and very much looking forward to it.
August 20, 2016
Not anywhere near the standard of the Fitz books, but Hobb's skill with narrative and imagery means even her weaker books are rare gems
April 27, 2020
Robin Hobb is an immensely satisfying author. She writes with depth, philosophy, and metaphor. There are no two dimensional characters in her stories. If you love a character driven book that pulls at the heart and cuts deeply following your own life charting then you will love this trilogy. I know it is not everyone's cup of tea much of this book plots thru the reader's own mind which can be off putting to some readers. Although why anyone would read Robin Hobb and not expect a monster of a character driven book is beyond me.
Still, if you love to make a book your own, if you love to internalize and look thru a book as a mirror into yourself then give anything that Robin Hobb writes a try.
So more philosophy and less Die Hard (Nothing Lasts Forever)....more character and less plot. Choose to read it if you love character driven books; books that center around the reader thinking and evaluating their own life. As always Robin Hobb is the queen of a character driven book. Enjoy anything she writes. I certainly do!
Still, if you love to make a book your own, if you love to internalize and look thru a book as a mirror into yourself then give anything that Robin Hobb writes a try.
So more philosophy and less Die Hard (Nothing Lasts Forever)....more character and less plot. Choose to read it if you love character driven books; books that center around the reader thinking and evaluating their own life. As always Robin Hobb is the queen of a character driven book. Enjoy anything she writes. I certainly do!
deals
March 2, 20201 March 2020: $1.99 on Kindle
January 7, 2021
A very interesting set of novels. Hobb is a great storyteller. This trilogy is the darkest she has produced. It follows some of the questions about fate and choice that she has written about in other books, but here we see the ramifications of the choices, good decisions and bad decisions.
October 17, 2018
I have truly become a Robin Hobb 'junky' .. or should that be 'Groupie' .. It's hard to tell as once you plunge yourself into one of her sagas it is easy to lose yourself in the complex and interesting worlds she paints.
Having only recently left the world of the Farseer's where I was held in rapture for at least a couple of months, I wasn't sure what to expect from the Soldier Son Trilogy. I need not have worried the new world of the Soldier Son Trilogy opened up to me and had me hooked easily within a handful of chapters. A very different world to that of the Elderlings and I must admit that at times vague shadows of 'Avatar' and 'How the West was Won' did cross my mind, although very slightly.
While I gave the Farseer Books a solid 5 stars, for the Soldier Son Trilogy I have reluctantly only given Four. At times my frustration with the protagonist was almost too much to bear and like other reviews I have read, I found much could have been condensed saving the reader from wistfully wanting to put the protagonist out of his own misery at regular intervals througout the story. Living vicariously the life of the protagonist, I also could not help but feel that I was being sold some insight into the condition of schizophrenia and there was more than one occasion where I had cause to compare the story's theme to that of 'Avatar,' though thankfully, none of Robin's characters was blue.
Ovall, I don't begrudge the time I spent reading this trilogy. I find the prose well written and easy to read, the ending of the story was given its due attention. I felt well satisfied at its conclusion and while sad to be leaving this new world, was impressed enough by it to write my first ever review on Goodreads. (I'll have to re-read the books that make up the Elderlings world and am kicking myself I didn't write reviews on those at the time I finished them)
Don't be dissuaded from reading this trilogy based on my review. I'm really only quibbling over that which prevented me from giving 5 stars instead of 4. I found this trilogy worth the read and look forward to the Windsingers Series which is next on my reading list.
Having only recently left the world of the Farseer's where I was held in rapture for at least a couple of months, I wasn't sure what to expect from the Soldier Son Trilogy. I need not have worried the new world of the Soldier Son Trilogy opened up to me and had me hooked easily within a handful of chapters. A very different world to that of the Elderlings and I must admit that at times vague shadows of 'Avatar' and 'How the West was Won' did cross my mind, although very slightly.
While I gave the Farseer Books a solid 5 stars, for the Soldier Son Trilogy I have reluctantly only given Four. At times my frustration with the protagonist was almost too much to bear and like other reviews I have read, I found much could have been condensed saving the reader from wistfully wanting to put the protagonist out of his own misery at regular intervals througout the story. Living vicariously the life of the protagonist, I also could not help but feel that I was being sold some insight into the condition of schizophrenia and there was more than one occasion where I had cause to compare the story's theme to that of 'Avatar,' though thankfully, none of Robin's characters was blue.
Ovall, I don't begrudge the time I spent reading this trilogy. I find the prose well written and easy to read, the ending of the story was given its due attention. I felt well satisfied at its conclusion and while sad to be leaving this new world, was impressed enough by it to write my first ever review on Goodreads. (I'll have to re-read the books that make up the Elderlings world and am kicking myself I didn't write reviews on those at the time I finished them)
Don't be dissuaded from reading this trilogy based on my review. I'm really only quibbling over that which prevented me from giving 5 stars instead of 4. I found this trilogy worth the read and look forward to the Windsingers Series which is next on my reading list.
July 6, 2016
The first few chapters of the first book are a bit of a push to read through and I wonder if thats why these books get so many bad reviews because other than that I can't understand why. These first few chapters are absolutely necessary to set up the story that follows after, though.
The books are incredible in so many ways. Simply put though; they will take you away to a fantasy setting thats breathtaking in detail and horrifying in its grittiness. The characters are lovable and I have found that the stories have touched me in a profound way. I couldn't put these down and am sorry that I have finished them. I hope that others will give them a read, as by giving these a wide berth you are truly missing out on one of the most touching and beautifully written stories out there.
The books are incredible in so many ways. Simply put though; they will take you away to a fantasy setting thats breathtaking in detail and horrifying in its grittiness. The characters are lovable and I have found that the stories have touched me in a profound way. I couldn't put these down and am sorry that I have finished them. I hope that others will give them a read, as by giving these a wide berth you are truly missing out on one of the most touching and beautifully written stories out there.
February 11, 2025
All three books together in The Soldier Son trilogy. It is a tale that you don't want to miss. I was unsure where Robin was taking us for a lot of this but it all came together towards the ending. I must say that the third book is my favourite of the three books. With Magic and action and adventure what a journey these characters have had to traverse.
March 18, 2017
Total disaster!
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
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
July 11, 2017
This trilogy was so disappointing I couldn't even finish the third book. The first was fine, the second was a struggle, and then I got to third- and realized that there are so many good books out there and I didn't need to waste my time. I'll stick with Fitz and the Fool and the Realm of Elderlings, Robin Hobb mostly shines with those.
August 1, 2017
Such a great series, I was skeptical at first, there is not a series that has kept me more on-edge the entire time. I can't explain how frustrating and powerless you feel as the reader, but how entertaining and interesting the story is!
August 7, 2021
I'm very glad I pushed through and finished this series. As I was reading the first book, I was uncertain that I would. I love Robin Hobb, but parts of this series (especially in the beginning) dragged for me in a way Fitz's story never did. Partially, I think it was that Navare's attitude blended in with that of the nobility he belonged to, and he could be quite shallow at times, as well as sexist. **Major Spoilers ahead**
Still, even when I found myself disliking Navare, I was interested in and impressed with how Hobb attempted to turn a lot of clichés on their heads.
1. At the beginning, the main character's personality actually fit with his noble background, instead of him being a rebel or a black sheep or "ahead of his time" (as is the case with so many novels). He believes as the adults in his life believes: women need to be protected, but really aren't people in the way that men are, with wants, passions and personality (at one point, he's shocked to learn that they do, in fact, have desires and hobbies and don't just think about tending to their homes and families... He admits to himself that he'd seen them somewhat like pets). He also believes he is 'above' the savage Specks and Plainspeople (though he does have some sympathy and respect for them, it is still framed by his very Gernian way of thinking... i.e. bringing "civilization" to the natives is helping them). There are many instances where his thoughts are judgmental, prudish, or narrowminded and he tends to go along with orders (except in extreme cases) and looks down upon people who don't adhere to societal norms. He's hypocritical and tends to ignore or shrug off things that he has done/have happened to him that don't adhere to his worldview.
2. Instead of magic being a force that the wielder uses to bring about his desires, magic uses the wielder to bring about its own desires. It also has a very visible and physical cost: it is housed by fat. This story is also unique in that, during most of it, the main character is obese. It's interesting to see how a character who puts so much importance on being accepted by others reacts to suddenly becoming something most people won't accept. He is ridiculed an snubbed, told it's his own fault, and at one point is starved almost to death by his father. By the way, I wouldn't really recommend this book if you have an eating disorder... it covers both ends of the spectrum (the Specks worship "Great Men" and feed the magic quite literally) and it could really cause a person to spin out or have anxiety.
3. Things very rarely go well for this character, and when they do, you know they're about to get much worse. It's like an endless spiral of him kicking himself in the head. He isn't allowed to be happy for very long once the magic has him. He's VERY stubborn, and constantly denies, deflects, and tries to ignore the magic and what it wants from him. I'd say this is one of the few traits/views he does not become flexible with until almost the end of the series.
4. Most of the main character's growth is mental. Yeah, he gains skills and powers, but the story hinges on his ability to adapt as a person rather than him being "powerful". This is a nice change from a lot of story-lines that mainly focus on the "student" mastering his mysterious abilities and kicking the "bad guy's" butt.
5. There really isn't a villain per-se. It's more like real life, where there's a duality to everything. There's a focus on the bigger picture and on the effect of one peoples' advancement on another peoples' way of life.
6. Relationships are more realistic than in other representations. Spink and Epiny are a great example of how two people's idealized vision of love can melt into reality without becoming completely bitter and ruined. Also, the main character's love interest is not the usual kind... quite rough around the edges, worn out, has three children already, and comes to love him despite not being attracted to him.
7. The main character has very little agency and often shrugs off the responsibility of making decisions. When he does make choices, he's punished harshly (where another character in another book would mainly be rewarded with some success).
I'm sure there's more, but I have to end this at some point and what better time than midnight (I'm very tired or I would've droned on but probably with better points). I'd be remiss if I didn't also mention how intriguing it is to watch a man struggle against himself so literally. The split personalities aspect was both fascinating and frustrating.
Overall, a good read, indeed. I quite liked Navare by the end, and I liked the fact that I could like him after disliking him so much in the beginning. Also, shoutout to Epiny for being a badass and Spink for being so pure of heart and deed (these two would very likely have been the main characters in another version of this book).
Still, even when I found myself disliking Navare, I was interested in and impressed with how Hobb attempted to turn a lot of clichés on their heads.
1. At the beginning, the main character's personality actually fit with his noble background, instead of him being a rebel or a black sheep or "ahead of his time" (as is the case with so many novels). He believes as the adults in his life believes: women need to be protected, but really aren't people in the way that men are, with wants, passions and personality (at one point, he's shocked to learn that they do, in fact, have desires and hobbies and don't just think about tending to their homes and families... He admits to himself that he'd seen them somewhat like pets). He also believes he is 'above' the savage Specks and Plainspeople (though he does have some sympathy and respect for them, it is still framed by his very Gernian way of thinking... i.e. bringing "civilization" to the natives is helping them). There are many instances where his thoughts are judgmental, prudish, or narrowminded and he tends to go along with orders (except in extreme cases) and looks down upon people who don't adhere to societal norms. He's hypocritical and tends to ignore or shrug off things that he has done/have happened to him that don't adhere to his worldview.
2. Instead of magic being a force that the wielder uses to bring about his desires, magic uses the wielder to bring about its own desires. It also has a very visible and physical cost: it is housed by fat. This story is also unique in that, during most of it, the main character is obese. It's interesting to see how a character who puts so much importance on being accepted by others reacts to suddenly becoming something most people won't accept. He is ridiculed an snubbed, told it's his own fault, and at one point is starved almost to death by his father. By the way, I wouldn't really recommend this book if you have an eating disorder... it covers both ends of the spectrum (the Specks worship "Great Men" and feed the magic quite literally) and it could really cause a person to spin out or have anxiety.
3. Things very rarely go well for this character, and when they do, you know they're about to get much worse. It's like an endless spiral of him kicking himself in the head. He isn't allowed to be happy for very long once the magic has him. He's VERY stubborn, and constantly denies, deflects, and tries to ignore the magic and what it wants from him. I'd say this is one of the few traits/views he does not become flexible with until almost the end of the series.
4. Most of the main character's growth is mental. Yeah, he gains skills and powers, but the story hinges on his ability to adapt as a person rather than him being "powerful". This is a nice change from a lot of story-lines that mainly focus on the "student" mastering his mysterious abilities and kicking the "bad guy's" butt.
5. There really isn't a villain per-se. It's more like real life, where there's a duality to everything. There's a focus on the bigger picture and on the effect of one peoples' advancement on another peoples' way of life.
6. Relationships are more realistic than in other representations. Spink and Epiny are a great example of how two people's idealized vision of love can melt into reality without becoming completely bitter and ruined. Also, the main character's love interest is not the usual kind... quite rough around the edges, worn out, has three children already, and comes to love him despite not being attracted to him.
7. The main character has very little agency and often shrugs off the responsibility of making decisions. When he does make choices, he's punished harshly (where another character in another book would mainly be rewarded with some success).
I'm sure there's more, but I have to end this at some point and what better time than midnight (I'm very tired or I would've droned on but probably with better points). I'd be remiss if I didn't also mention how intriguing it is to watch a man struggle against himself so literally. The split personalities aspect was both fascinating and frustrating.
Overall, a good read, indeed. I quite liked Navare by the end, and I liked the fact that I could like him after disliking him so much in the beginning. Also, shoutout to Epiny for being a badass and Spink for being so pure of heart and deed (these two would very likely have been the main characters in another version of this book).
August 1, 2022
I thought of Robin Hobb as my all time favourite fantasy author. I picked up this trilogy after reading lots of subpar fantasy, expecting a home run. I had such a bad time with it that I'm honestly scared to read other Robin Hobb books. I loved farseer, liveship, the windsinger series, and the rainwilds, I loved so much of her writing but this... Far out.
I come to fantasy to escape into a world where amazing things happen and to get the sense of vicarious relief from surviving hardships, victory from getting to see the character win against all odds, or even in George RR. Martins case, have my heart wrenched out of my chest because characters I believed in get their sh** ruined. I'll sit with a good long struggle to see the outcome, I even like a slow building story.
This series was just all struggle. Start to finish struggle town, and I felt kind of exhausted and despondent while reading it. And I get enough of that from my actual life thank you.
AND CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE FATPHOBIA!
(Spoilers, CW: fatphobia)
**********
This book series should have a content warning because the way nevarre is treated once his body changes is actually upsetting. The way he and everyone else talks to him and about him, is so hostile towards fat bodies that it makes him sound like a Cronenbergian nightmare. He doesn't have 8 legs. He is fat. I feel like Hobb was making a comment about fatphobia but sometimes the line between "commentary" and just "writing horrible sh**" is very blurry. If you've ever struggled with ED or body dysmorphia, be careful. This kicks up a lot of horrible sh** from his family starving him and disowning him because he is "disgusting". People assume he is a pervert and a murderer because they are so offput by his body. It's actually so horrible that describing it makes me dislike the book even more. When I started writing this I gave it 2 stars but nah, 1 star.
I come to fantasy to escape into a world where amazing things happen and to get the sense of vicarious relief from surviving hardships, victory from getting to see the character win against all odds, or even in George RR. Martins case, have my heart wrenched out of my chest because characters I believed in get their sh** ruined. I'll sit with a good long struggle to see the outcome, I even like a slow building story.
This series was just all struggle. Start to finish struggle town, and I felt kind of exhausted and despondent while reading it. And I get enough of that from my actual life thank you.
AND CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE FATPHOBIA!
(Spoilers, CW: fatphobia)
**********
This book series should have a content warning because the way nevarre is treated once his body changes is actually upsetting. The way he and everyone else talks to him and about him, is so hostile towards fat bodies that it makes him sound like a Cronenbergian nightmare. He doesn't have 8 legs. He is fat. I feel like Hobb was making a comment about fatphobia but sometimes the line between "commentary" and just "writing horrible sh**" is very blurry. If you've ever struggled with ED or body dysmorphia, be careful. This kicks up a lot of horrible sh** from his family starving him and disowning him because he is "disgusting". People assume he is a pervert and a murderer because they are so offput by his body. It's actually so horrible that describing it makes me dislike the book even more. When I started writing this I gave it 2 stars but nah, 1 star.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 14, 2016
I was a bit unsure what I would think of this trilogy. I adore Robin Hobb's writing, but had heard that this series wasn't so good as the Farseer and Liveship stories so I put off reading it for a while. In fact, I really enjoyed it. I love the way Hobb writes such interesting, believable characters. Her writing is not really plot driven, although what does happen is more inventive than the majority of fantasy stories. There were so many interesting themes in this trilogy, like equality, environmentalism, tradition, religion, colonialism, judging by appearances, the attitude to life, the way to resolve conflicts...I love that she is such a shrewd judge of people. I highlighted so many passages where she made a point about how people react in certain situations, because they were just spot on. The politics between the Old and New nobility, the pressures on the Speck people, the misjudgement of each other. It was very interesting, intricate and well thought out. And yet, the one thing that frustrated me about the whole series was that I felt the ultimate solution was quite obvious. It did happen in the end, but I tutted and rolled my eyes at Nevare and Epiny failing to see what they needed to do for the length of two books.
October 11, 2025
As others echo, if you are into Robin Hobbs other work like Farseer etc. this kind of is and isn’t it.
At times you feel like ah this is just Fitz, but now a soldier on the other side of the continent, although that doesn’t actually play out.
The writing as always is solid, Hobb (yeh alias) is a master of creating worlds like very few authors, I am been slightly harsh scoring here, but only as her other work is just so good.
As a laugh I would try and explain the overall plot to my wife as I was working my way through it, which continually made her laugh. Even after the 3rd book she was like, I can’t take anymore it’s too weird.
Book one kind of solid
Boom Two really depressing
Book Three what is happening
Is the formula
It plays with aspects of magic, reality and an interesting society. I particularly liked the first book in grounding the world, looking at aspects of conquest of peoples, colonialism which many nations share a history in, the bad the good, brilliant to fit that into a fantasy narrative, I am glad I read these years after her other work as it gave me some context.
The ending was corny, I would be up for reading an additional trilogy in this setting, but any lose ends are tied up and with the author knocking on now it’s unlikely.
January 12, 2018
I really like Robin Hobb's writing but I liked her other FitzChivalry series better. I did like this trilogy, although it was an odd mix. Starting with Nevare Burrell joining the Cavalla academy and the political difficulties between the old nobles and the new ones, almost dying from the Speck plague but recovering only to become obese, learning about magic, and being caught up with the Speck tribe where his fat is an indication of magical greatness, this trilogy was far-ranging in ideas and perspective. The seeds of the two races are planted in Nevare as a young man when his soul has been split by magic and his body houses two sides of himself with affinities and passions for these two opposing forces. Supposedly, Nevare is fated to wield the magic that will somehow allow these two races to disengage, which means he’ll either be a traitor to one side of himself or to the other. The looser, more hedonistic, environmental society of the Specks sometimes made me uncomfortable and I felt more attuned to the mores of the Old World society. And yet there was much to admire and much to dislike about both approaches to life.
December 10, 2018
I was really between three and four stars on this series. I really liked the concept (even if it's not a totally novel one). Yes there have been other books about a technology driven culture driving out native peoples who they perceive to be less civilized but that doesn't mean that nobody should ever write a book like that again; there are allowed to be multiple books on the same topic and there are allowed to be similar characters across different series by the same author. I was frustrated mostly because every time you think that Nevare is growing has a person he seems to dig in his heels and revert to the same immature stubborn patriot that he was at the beginning of the series. After so much internal conflict I felt that the resolution was too quick and a bit forced.
Hobb is a wonderful world builder and usually an amazing character writer. In fact I really enjoyed most of the characters in the book except Nevare. Epiny in particular seemed to grow as the story progressed and I'd have loved to read a series from her perspective.
Hobb is a wonderful world builder and usually an amazing character writer. In fact I really enjoyed most of the characters in the book except Nevare. Epiny in particular seemed to grow as the story progressed and I'd have loved to read a series from her perspective.
May 23, 2023
Robin Hobb is a very good writer, but this trilogy was not for me. Maybe because all three books are packed into one kindle edition, but it was interminable and no matter how much I read, the end was never in sight. I guess I was expecting some fairly routine type of fantasy story and this certainly wasn't that, especially "Forest Mage." I'm still not sure exactly what that one was about and it should have a trigger warning that spending too much time reading it can result in angst; it was an extended bout of whining. When it finally ended and after a well-deserved break from the hopelessness, I eventually forced myself to pick up and read the final book. I would have preferred if "Renegade's Magic" had ended sooner (actually I wish they all had ended sooner) and left things unresolved. I had previously read the Farseer Trilogy and enjoyed it, but after this one, I won't be picking up any of her other fantasies any time soon.
November 25, 2023
This series was the first I read of, Hobbs masterful works.
She utterly entranced me and I was engrossed reading the series rather quickly then restarting it almost right away as to better absorb all of the details and world.
I can still picture it very clearly, some of the scenes so vivid in my mind still, the dappled forests… I adore her writing and will enjoy reading them all over again.
I hadn’t intended to read this trilogy first as I knew nothing about the order; (a friend many years ago, who was a big fan and told me I’d enjoy. This proved to be an understatement, I was enraptured and obsessed with the story.) but after the first chapter I was hooked and soon brought be other two books in the series.
All of her work has the same integrity and skill of writing that makes it seem like reading history, as much as it is fantastic.
This is , in my opinion the best series to start with.
It only gets better.
She utterly entranced me and I was engrossed reading the series rather quickly then restarting it almost right away as to better absorb all of the details and world.
I can still picture it very clearly, some of the scenes so vivid in my mind still, the dappled forests… I adore her writing and will enjoy reading them all over again.
I hadn’t intended to read this trilogy first as I knew nothing about the order; (a friend many years ago, who was a big fan and told me I’d enjoy. This proved to be an understatement, I was enraptured and obsessed with the story.) but after the first chapter I was hooked and soon brought be other two books in the series.
All of her work has the same integrity and skill of writing that makes it seem like reading history, as much as it is fantastic.
This is , in my opinion the best series to start with.
It only gets better.
May 4, 2025
Let me say I am a Robin Hobb fan. I love her writing. I like how she describes her settings, characters and relationships to characters and their environments. At times, she annoys me with the humanness of her characters for she'd endlessly great and showing then we're all human.
This boxset kept me reading but it's not for the faint of heart. The main character's endless denial and dichotomy can be trying as the reader. I was tugged along in an endless hope that he would reach a great epiphany. The ending was okay in that, all's well that end's well. I certainly was taken along on an adventure.
I like her because she captures so well the idea that we often look outside ourselves for validation. She captures the very human challenge to find out who we are and what we're made of when that validation is withheld from those outside of us.
I read all 3 books within a week. This boxset may be for a true Hobb fan but I personally liked it.
This boxset kept me reading but it's not for the faint of heart. The main character's endless denial and dichotomy can be trying as the reader. I was tugged along in an endless hope that he would reach a great epiphany. The ending was okay in that, all's well that end's well. I certainly was taken along on an adventure.
I like her because she captures so well the idea that we often look outside ourselves for validation. She captures the very human challenge to find out who we are and what we're made of when that validation is withheld from those outside of us.
I read all 3 books within a week. This boxset may be for a true Hobb fan but I personally liked it.
November 7, 2017
This series is wildly Robin Hobb - if you are a true fan, you will understand. The story in The Soldier Son Trilogy is a deeply troubling one - one that pulls at you as it walks into darkness. The world is believable, and the characters are so very real you will find yourself actually hurting for them, and holding your breath at times.
These stories do contain some action, though it's a truly dramatic story that bears reading - more than once. The tone is quite a bit different from that in the Fitz and Fool series, but just as engrossing.
I highly recommend anything written by Robin Hobb - and you can certainly start with this.
These stories do contain some action, though it's a truly dramatic story that bears reading - more than once. The tone is quite a bit different from that in the Fitz and Fool series, but just as engrossing.
I highly recommend anything written by Robin Hobb - and you can certainly start with this.
May 29, 2023
soldier son trilogy - don't bother
The main character isn't interesting enough to carry 3 books. There are interesting secondary characters. There is an awful lot of descriptions of food... It feels like the original premise became untenable so new ideas were tacked on... too much happens in a year to be believable even with quick walking....i wanted to quick read. Happy ever after ending was cop out. should have left him in the tree.. He was wooden enough. Can't see new noble family accepting sex worker and her kids into their hand maiden tale world view.... Also found trilogy about live ships reverting to dragons unappealing. but did like the other series which is why i persisted with is trilogy but didn't finish the live ships into dragons one.
The main character isn't interesting enough to carry 3 books. There are interesting secondary characters. There is an awful lot of descriptions of food... It feels like the original premise became untenable so new ideas were tacked on... too much happens in a year to be believable even with quick walking....i wanted to quick read. Happy ever after ending was cop out. should have left him in the tree.. He was wooden enough. Can't see new noble family accepting sex worker and her kids into their hand maiden tale world view.... Also found trilogy about live ships reverting to dragons unappealing. but did like the other series which is why i persisted with is trilogy but didn't finish the live ships into dragons one.
Read
May 3, 2020DNF. I couldn't get into this book. The characters weren't very engaging. Nothing really happened. I've read Hobb before and really enjoyed some of the previous books but they tend to be slowly paced. They are also largely character driven and while the majority of this story takes place with the protagonist as a man, I couldn't get past the laborious, pointless, slogging beginning about his childhood.
To me, this is a reputation book. If you like the writer enough to trust completely in where it's going, you'll probably get much further than I did. If you don't... I just couldn't keep going.
To me, this is a reputation book. If you like the writer enough to trust completely in where it's going, you'll probably get much further than I did. If you don't... I just couldn't keep going.
August 8, 2020
Long. And worth it.
While this is categorized as fantasy, and it certainly is that, it reads more like historical fiction. I kept picturing early 19th century, maybe British Isles or Australia. The characters are well drawn, the plot intricate, and the narrative carries it along at a good pace. Which for a trilogy of over an estimated thousand pages is greatly appreciated.
Don't let the length out you off, though. I read all three without a break, but you could also read the first, take a break, and come back to volume two and three at your leisure. However, I was so caught up in the story that I just wanted to keep going.
I'll be reading more Robin Hobb.
While this is categorized as fantasy, and it certainly is that, it reads more like historical fiction. I kept picturing early 19th century, maybe British Isles or Australia. The characters are well drawn, the plot intricate, and the narrative carries it along at a good pace. Which for a trilogy of over an estimated thousand pages is greatly appreciated.
Don't let the length out you off, though. I read all three without a break, but you could also read the first, take a break, and come back to volume two and three at your leisure. However, I was so caught up in the story that I just wanted to keep going.
I'll be reading more Robin Hobb.
October 8, 2022
A re-read of the series. I read this quite some time ago, and really all I remembered was it was okay but I didn't love it. Which was basically true on a re-read. Bad things happen to lots of characters, especially our main pov character. In the end it works out well enough for a lot of the world. As would be expected of a series by this author, the world building was certainly one of the stronger points. And the magic system was intricate and involved. But also the series felt long, like the pacing was off. And yet bits of the ending still felt abrupt. Not bad, but I would have preferred a bit different. 3.5 of 5.
November 18, 2025
I finished this trilogy only because I was committed and didn’t want to quit. After reading and loving the entire Fitz and the Fool series, i was disappointed in this one. It’s way too long, the plot wanders, the characters have dubious motives and the ending felt like something made up just as a way to get out of the story. All the wanderings and plot discrepancies are written off as having been done by the magic. The third book was very painful, and I couldn’t wait to be done with this series. I would not recommend it.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 105 reviews