divine529's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
November 2022 reread:
For those of you who know me, you know Robin Hobb is everything to me. I love everything I've read by her (in varying degrees) and this book is no different.
This is a novella in Hobb's Realm of the Elderlings series and while I know there are some out there who disagree with me, I'd say this is required reading in addition to the main series. It has so much important information in this, even some you don't realize is important until later, or on reread. Hobb's world is just chock full of so many layers and incredible storytelling.
This book is split into two parts, the story of The Willful Princess and the story of The Piebald Prince. They are linked and yet separate at the same time, but you can't have one without the other. It's told from a perspective many people might not expect, but that's part of the brilliance of it. Our narrator is Felicity, a servant whose life is intertwined with that of the Farseers. This explains some important aspects of how certain things came to be in the Six Duchies with regards to certain magics as well as the politics.
Technically you can read this at anytime after Farseer, but I'd highly recommend reading it after Liveship and before Tawny Man.
An absolutely fantastic novella and one that I will of course revisit whenever I reread the series.
For those of you who know me, you know Robin Hobb is everything to me. I love everything I've read by her (in varying degrees) and this book is no different.
This is a novella in Hobb's Realm of the Elderlings series and while I know there are some out there who disagree with me, I'd say this is required reading in addition to the main series. It has so much important information in this, even some you don't realize is important until later, or on reread. Hobb's world is just chock full of so many layers and incredible storytelling.
This book is split into two parts, the story of The Willful Princess and the story of The Piebald Prince. They are linked and yet separate at the same time, but you can't have one without the other. It's told from a perspective many people might not expect, but that's part of the brilliance of it. Our narrator is Felicity, a servant whose life is intertwined with that of the Farseers. This explains some important aspects of how certain things came to be in the Six Duchies with regards to certain magics as well as the politics.
Technically you can read this at anytime after Farseer, but I'd highly recommend reading it after Liveship and before Tawny Man.
An absolutely fantastic novella and one that I will of course revisit whenever I reread the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Death of parent, Child death, Genocide, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Animal death, Murder, Pregnancy, Violence, Sexism, and Gore
Minor: Sexual content and Infidelity
mariebrunelm's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Are you sometimes frustrated not to know more about a fictional world you enjoy? Robin Hobb has the solution for you. In the Tawny Man Trilogy, without spoiling you, characters often refer to the legendary figure of the Piebald Prince, without his story being told in full. Ten years after the publication of the last tome, Fool's Fate, the author released this two-fold novella, The Wilful Princess and the Piebald Prince, exploring the history behind the folk tale. And while the Prince is the one most alluded to in Tawny Man, his story begins with a wilful princess whose fate is told in the first half of this little book adorned with beautiful illustrations in black and white by Jackie Morris.
You won't be surprised to know I love this addition to Hobb's worldbuilding. She tells these two stories in an oral tone quite different from what she has accustomed her readers, with the rhythm of a minstrel and sprinkled warnings by the narrator. Thanks to this little-known volume, we get to know more about the story of the Six Duchies and its people, and although you can very well enjoy Tawny Man without knowing about The Wilful Princess and the Piebald Prince, I highly recommend you pick this one up either before or after the trilogy to make the pleasure last that little bit longer.
Rep : lesbian MC, character with a disfigurement.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Hate crime, and Animal death
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