All posts tagged: Robin Hobb

10 great maps of fantasy worlds!

Published by

In no other genre, is a map at the start of the novel as important as fantasy.  I put a map at the start of my own historical novel Roman Mask, but as that map is essentially of Europe with Roman names, I realise is doesn’t really hold the same importance to a reader as a fantasy novel’s would.  A fantasy novel’s map is more than just a piece of cartography, it is a depiction of the world the writer has created in their mind, and a glimpse into a new world.  The rivers, valleys, forests, and mountains can sweep across continents and seas, creating the perfect avenue of escapism that makes the fantasy genre so appealing.  As my cousin used to say to me when we were eleven and first discovering fantasy books, ‘you can always tell it’s going to be a good one by its map, I always judge a fantasy novel by its map!,’ A bit harsh maybe, but that’s eleven year old’s for you, and it shows how important this aspect …

Who will take Tolkien’s place?

Published by

Over the past week and a half, I have posted several articles on the Lord of the Rings.  I don’t think anyone can deny the importance of Tolkien’s work to the fantasy genre, but maybe it is time to start looking beyond Middle Earth, to find the next great classic fantasy novel.  There have been several pretenders to the throne, various novels or series of books that for a time have come close to the popularity of Tolkien’s work, but so far, none have lasted the test of time.  I can’t possibly list them all as there are far too many but I will go through a few of the past, present, and future claimants to the throne… The Dragonlance series by Weis & Hickman – Back in the 1980’s, before computer video games hit their prominence, the game fantasy enthusiasts played was Dungeons and Dragons: a role-playing game played with character sheets, dice, and active imaginations.  The popularity of this game was in part fuelled by the massive popularity of the Dragonlance fantasy series …

The Liveship Trilogy by Robin Hobb. A master author at the top of her game.

Published by

The Liveship traders of Bingtown operate to the south of Six Duchies – the land we visited with Hobb for her Farseer novels.  However, don’t expect the same characters to pop-up or a continuation of the raids from the Red Ships.  This is a very different story, and although the lands and novels are intrinsically linked, you need no knowledge of the Farseer novels before you embark on this series.   We meet a new cast of well-crafted characters and a set of books that possibly represent Hobb’s most accomplished work. The story revolves around the Bingtown traders, a group of families who prosper on the Cursed Shore – a land where life is made difficult by the acidic waters of the Rain Wild River that runs from far inland into the sea near their town.  The secret of their prosperity is their Liveships.  They are crafted from Wizardwood that comes from a secret source far up the Rain Wild River and give their ships a great advantage over their competitors, not least because only ships …

Not an ordinary fantasy trilogy – Robin Hobb, The Soldier Son Series

Published by

I mentioned this series when I wrote my post on Wednesday, and since then I’ve been thinking about it quite a lot.  The Soldier son trilogy isn’t for everyone, and I know some people who were never keen on it as it was a big departure from Robin Hobb’s other books set in the Three-Kingdoms, or those on the Live Ships and Dragons of Bingtown.  The Soldier Son novels, despite being works of fantasy, are set in a relatively modern world with rifles and guns, and Hobb develops an unorthodox main character from that which you’d normally expect from a fantasy series.  However, these novels strengths are that they cover a lot of issues that we would recognise from our own world, and really make you think about our own perceptions to those same issues. I don’t want to give too much away, but the conflicting issues in these novels are between the progress and development of the modern world on the one-side, and the traditions and magical beliefs of a land that is coming …

Great Borderlands and frontiers in novels – Part 1 : Fantasy

Published by

For the past week and a half I’ve been staying in a small cottage up in the wild hills of Northumberland, one of England’s two counties that lie on the border with Scotland.  Evidence of previous animosity between the two countries are all around, not just with Hadrian’s Wall that runs through the borderlands, but in the number of castles and fortified buildings that lie festooned over the countryside.  My own cottage that I am staying in still has arrow slits in the outbuildings, a relic from its past when the inhabitants needed to defend themselves from the periodic raiding parties from the Scottish North. This has made me think about borderlands in literature, and what a great location they are to set any novel.  Obviously history is full of hostile frontiers, and next week I will go through a few of those and show some examples.  But equally this works well for fantasy novels, and here are just a few great examples of fantasy novelists that have used this topic so well. Mordor, Middle …

10 Types of Magic

Published by

What is it that separates fantasy novels from other genres? Most fantasy novels are set on mythical worlds straight from the author’s imagination, some inhabited by outlandish beasts, or strange and mysterious semi-human dwellers. But what really defines and holds these worlds together is the existence of magic.

Robin Hobb – The Tawny Man series

Published by

Robin Hobb’s writing is characterised by its depth and incredibly detailed description, added to this is a deep insight into her characters inner thoughts and emotions.  It is far removed from some of the faster paced novels so characteristic of the fantasy genre, but that is why her novels achieve something that many other can’t, and that is to bring the reader into complete immersion into the worlds she creates.  The time she spends describing the emotional journey of her characters is what I would identify as the key to her novels.  When somebody dies in her novels, you really feel it, because you have learnt what that character means to others, and by the same token, yourself.  It is important because lives are important, and Robin Hobb never loses sight of that. I have chosen the ‘Tawny Man series’ as my favourite, because it was with this series that I really identified with the main character, a moody, roughhewn man, whose life is characterised by the close bond he holds with his wolf – …