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A review by llmacrae
The Mad Ship by Robin Hobb
5.0
One of the best books I’ve read this year. I don’t know how Hobb does it.
I’ve never hated and loved characters so deeply. I love the world, the dragons, the serpents, the rain wilds, the magic, the memories, all of it. Wintrow has grown in my estimation, as has Kennit. I just don’t know whether to hate him or agree with him. Malta was a character I despised and now she is growing into one of my favourites.
Paragon, Althea, Amber, Brashin, Etta. Even Reyn was intriguing!
None of the characters really are whoever I think they are/will be on first meeting. Even side characters have more depth than most main characters, and they are all hugely part of this world and their own stories.
The only part of this I liked less was the sub plot with Sirilla and the Saytrap and his companions. Rape is not a thing I want to read about in books, and often put books down when I encounter it (especially if it is explicit) - thankfully that is not the case with Mad Ship, but definitely made me want to skip those parts when some of the awfulness was happening.
I adore this series so much. It is on another league to the Assassin’s Apprentice books, in terms of characters, world building, intrigue, plot, magic, mystery, even pacing. It trundles along at a consistent speed and I found I wasn’t even aware of everything building up until it was too late and we were thrust head first into the climax.
There is so much to enjoy about this book. Loyalty. Betrayal. Hope. Fear. Mistrust. Love.
I can’t really put my thoughts into a cohesive order. It’s just. I adored the first book and I don’t know how but this one is even better. It's too much to process. It's beyond epic. Hobb really is a queen!
I’ve never hated and loved characters so deeply. I love the world, the dragons, the serpents, the rain wilds, the magic, the memories, all of it. Wintrow has grown in my estimation, as has Kennit. I just don’t know whether to hate him or agree with him. Malta was a character I despised and now she is growing into one of my favourites.
Paragon, Althea, Amber, Brashin, Etta. Even Reyn was intriguing!
None of the characters really are whoever I think they are/will be on first meeting. Even side characters have more depth than most main characters, and they are all hugely part of this world and their own stories.
The only part of this I liked less was the sub plot with Sirilla and the Saytrap and his companions. Rape is not a thing I want to read about in books, and often put books down when I encounter it (especially if it is explicit) - thankfully that is not the case with Mad Ship, but definitely made me want to skip those parts when some of the awfulness was happening.
I adore this series so much. It is on another league to the Assassin’s Apprentice books, in terms of characters, world building, intrigue, plot, magic, mystery, even pacing. It trundles along at a consistent speed and I found I wasn’t even aware of everything building up until it was too late and we were thrust head first into the climax.
There is so much to enjoy about this book. Loyalty. Betrayal. Hope. Fear. Mistrust. Love.
I can’t really put my thoughts into a cohesive order. It’s just. I adored the first book and I don’t know how but this one is even better. It's too much to process. It's beyond epic. Hobb really is a queen!