Assassin's Apprentice, Volume 2

Assassin's Apprentice (Dark Horse Comics)

by Robin Hobb, Jody Houser, Ryan Kelly (illustrator)

In the second installment of Assassin’s Apprentice, Fitz is given a mission to infiltrate a nobleman’s estate for signs of treason, the kingdom is plagued by Red-Ship Raiders, and the fate of the realm hinges on Fitz’s choices.

Tensions rise, and a determined stranger’s arrival adds to the uncertainty. When King Shrewd decides that Fitz must learn The Skill, the harsh training of the Skillmaster Galen will bring Fritz to a breaking point. Fitz’s journey of resilience and self-doubt takes an emotional toll, while Burrich and Molly offer support.

Dark Horse Comics is proud to present part 2 of Robin Hobb’s Assassin’s Apprentice!

Collects Assassin’s Apprentice II #1–6.

Genres: Fantasy, Graphic Novels, Comics, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics

144 pages, Hardcover

Published November 5, 2024

About the author

** 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.

Reviews

[Suki J · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars.

This second volume is even better than the first, successfully pulling from me the same emotions that the book managed.
The art works brilliantly, especially with how the Skill and the Wit are portrayed, and the depictions of our beloved and hated characters are also excellent.

[Anna Quilter · Rating 4 out of 5]

The action may be slow in coming but the Adaptation of the Robin Hobb novels are well worth a look.
The characters have time to be carefully layed out and built for what's hopefully to come.

[Ronie · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good and well done. The art is great and evokes the right emotion, and the text is so well-mapped out that the story is not lacking but rather very enthralling. Thoroughly enjoyable!

[Alexis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love being back in the Farseer world. My next reread is Tawny Man, but the pull to go back to the first trilogy is pretty strong after this.

This volume has a lot going for it. The voice is still great, and it is still capturing all of the events and moments I would expect it to. I'm still not ADORING the art style, but I don't mind it, and I genuinely like the designs for the Fool, Patience, and Galen. I'm appreciative of how the Wit is portrayed - it works really, really well.

For my own enjoyment, this is a great Burrich volume. The Burrich and Galen scene is adapted beautifully, which I was definitely looking forward to. In general, Galen's scenes have great art. The brutality is captured even more so than I pictured it while reading.

I hope that this adaptation continues.

[pastiesandpages - Gavin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Assassin's Apprentice has been split into three volumes for the comic book adaptation.
If you liked volume 1 then you'll enjoy this. Don't start here as it's the middle part of a novel so you'll be lost.
The high quality of this adaptation makes it a must for Robin Hobb fans and fantasy readers in general.
This is where the story gets dark! King Shrewd declares that Fitz is to be taught the Skill. Skillmaster Galen is the character that everyone loves to hate. He's determined to break Fitz.
And the Red-Ship Raiders are destroying lives and communities.
Everything is set up for volume III coming soon.

[Online Eccentric Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

More reviews (and no fluff) on the blog http://surrealtalvi.wordpress.com/

This graphic novel is the second part in the adaptation of the novel of the same name. It covers the middle part of the first novel and sees Fitz go on his first mission, meet Lady Patience and start his training in the Skill.

Just like with part one, I really like the adaptation done here. It's been nearly 30 years since I read the original novels so the details of the plot are a bit hazy but the adaptation feels nice and cohesive. In the actual novel, I remember feeling that some parts were overly long and there was way too much wallowing in misery in the bullying. Here those aspects are still in but just to the level needed to provide the required impact. And while the adaptation is of course a lot shorter, it still has the feel of 'slow burn' for which most Hobb novels are known. Special mention to how the Wit appears in comic format - arguably much better shown here than with just text.

I'm a big fan of the art in this comic book. It feels understated, with whole pages covered in large speech bubbles or captions but neither overwhelming the other.

Highly recommended, whether you have read these before or are just picking this up for the first time. I feel this second part is even better than the first one. I will definitely be picking up the third one when it comes and starting to hope we get similar adaptations from other Hobb novels. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Woof, this is a rough period of the book to see adapted into this medium. Galen's Skill training is such a painful time for Fitz, and the part where Verity discovers the extent of what Galen did isn't covered in this volume, so I guess I'll be waiting a year for that! The panels depicting Burrich kicking the shit out of Galen were quite satisfying, though.
I liked Ryan Kelly's art more in this second volume, although the depiction of Patience definitely didn't match what I had in my head. I loved how the joyful times and Fitz's bond with Smithy came across in the art, and having more scenes with Fitz and the Fool was really good too. The Fool is so pretty, and I love how ruggedly handsome Burrich is! Anna Steinbauer's covers are all gorgeous.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review is for all three volumes, read consecutively.

I went in blind off the title, only then to realize that it is based on the first book in a series, and it reads like one. So many characters are named but once, or have implied relationships or backstories which are unchronicled here that the reader always feels a bit lost. Perhaps a different experience awaits those already familiar with the work. The only other really off-putting part is the constant use of illustrations and portraits that present our titular assassin as exceedingly feminine, completely different than the consistent art used in the volumes themselves.

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good adaptation of the Robin Hobb novel. My only complaint is how long it takes for these to come out. Good art. Interesting story of the bastard son of a noble learning his place in the keep while secretly training to be an assassin.

[Nadine K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seeing the “You should have been mine!” scene with Patience illustrated near broke me.

[KayLee · Rating 2 out of 5]

These just don't really work for me. :/

[tysephine · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty faithful adaptation of Robin Hobb's Assassin's Apprentice. The art style is nice, though I wish the characters were drawn closer to the fanon interpretation of the people of the Six Duchies.