Reviews

★★★★

In this short (184) page book, Robin Hobb masterfully tells a dark, emotionally engaging story of love, lies, betrayal, and loss which establishes the reason why Wit magic was hated. It's just brilliant. If this is a glimpse of the author's storytelling style, then I am sold for the entire Realms of the Elderlings series and her other books.

roxyc's review against another edition

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adventurous sad medium-paced

4.5

astareads's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

lauraeydmann82's review

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5.0

Set in the Farseer world, with Wit magic (the ability to speak to and bond with animals) this book follows the story of Princess Caution (the Wilful Princess) and Prince Charger (the Piebald Prince). Told by the companion of the Princess, Felicity, we see the story of the Witted prince overthrown from the throne, through jealousy, prejudice and pride. A story of how being witted has become such a bad thing in the Farseer world, this is a brilliant little piece of 'history' which not only helps to add colour and depth to the world she has created but also is a beautiful little story in it's own right. I have always wondered why Wit was so looked down upon in the Farseer world, and this elaborated on the story and made the prejudices in the books make more sense.

I love Robin Hobb's books anyway, and have read the Farseer Trilogy, the Tawny Man trilogy and the Liveship traders trilogy, as well as the Soldier Son trilogy, and I love the worlds she has created. This book is a bit of a departure as it's a novella compared to the 500 page novels I am used to by Hobb, but I loved it nonetheless. It was beautifully written, in the voice of Felicity, and kept me intrigued and interested throughout. The illustration in the book were stunning and not only enhanced the story but have made the whole book a lovely experience. I have re-awoken my love for these books, and I have decided to re-read the Liveship Trader trilogy before moving on to the new Rain Wilds Chronicles.

lizziestudieshistory's review against another edition

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3.0

The Wilful Princess and the Piebald Prince is a short novella that takes place long before the events in Hobb's Farseer Trilogy (and the rest if the RotE). It is the story of how the Witted became hated and feared in the Six Duchies and provides an interesting background for the events of the Tawny Man Trilogy. It's not a necessary read for the main series by any means, but does add to the richness of the world and justifies why Fitz's Wit magic is so hated by most people in the main series.

The story itself is quite eventful, especially for such a small book! However, it's far from Hobb's best work - particularly as I'm still recovering, emotionally, from the Tawny Man trilogy... It's still well worth the read and gives a wonderful snippet from the history of the Six Duchies which has such a huge presence in the series.

ecdereus's review against another edition

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3.0

Leuk dun boekje voor tussendoor, zeker als je al bekend bent met de reeksen 'De boeken van de Zieners' en 'De boeken van de Nar'.
3½ ster

gregbengel's review against another edition

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adventurous dark relaxing sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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