Bringing Assassins, Pirates, and Dragons Together: Robin Hobb

The author, whose real name is Margaret Astrid Lindholm Ogden, also has a pseudonym called Megan Lindholm. She started her writing career by penning children's books. Her first novel, "Harpy's Flight," was published in 1983, introducing the beloved characters Ki and Vandien in the Windsinger series. Following that, she released works in various genres, including urban fantasy with "Wizard of the Pigeons," science fiction with "Alien Earth," historical fiction with "Reindeer People," and adult fantasy with "Cloven Hooves."
The author's tendency to explore different genres with each new book made it challenging to build a dedicated readership. Evaluations of Megan Lindholm as an average-level author by American standards were made. Despite this, her short stories, specifically "A Touch of Lavender," nominated for Hugo and Nebula Awards, and "Silver Lady and the Fortyish Man," nominated for Nebula Awards, gained recognition.

In 1995, when the year is 1995, the author's first epic fantasy novel, "Assassin's Apprentice," is published. This trilogy, called Farseer, features FitzChivalry as the main character, the illegitimate son of Prince Chivalry. Raised in the shadow of the royal palace by the late father's right-hand man, the stablemaster Burrich, Fitz is shunned by all members of the royal family except King Shrewd. King Shrewd secretly arranges for Fitz to be trained in the art of assassination. Thus, while Fitz may never become king, he becomes the king's assassin, striving to protect the Six Duchies against the Red Ship Raiders, barbarian invaders. In this realm, magic exists but is mostly hidden, either forgotten or feared. Fitz possesses a special power inherited from his prince father, called the Skill.


Hobb explains how she came up with this special power, the Skill, saying, "I remember that moment very clearly because I was working on something else, and you know the best ideas always come at those times. What if magic were addictive and destructive, and knowing it ruined your mind and health, but you still wanted to continue doing magic, knowing it was destroying you? That was the Skill." She continues, "But I didn't have anything else to develop that idea further at the time, so I wrote it on a scrap of paper, tore it from an envelope, and put it in the drawer of my writing desk. It stayed there for many years, and small ideas started to weave around it."

This series was published by Ithaki Publications in 2005 but did not receive enough attention.
The Farseer trilogy is different from the author's previous works, as it falls into the epic fantasy genre. Due to the challenges of creating a loyal readership with genre transitions, the author and her publisher decided to change her name for this series. When choosing the name Robin Hobb, the author mentioned that she had fun with it. She visited many bookstores and observed which shelves were at eye level. Eventually, she settled on the letter "H" and thought it would be distinctive among notable authors like Heinlein, Herbert, and Hambly. She wanted a surname starting with the letter "H" that would fit nicely on the cover. Additionally, she specifically chose a unisex name because she believed many readers expected a story narrated by a male first-person perspective to be written by a male. Thus, the name Robin Hobb was born.

The world in which Hobb's Farseer series is set is called the Realm of Elderling. The Liveship Traders trilogy takes place in a different region of this world. The focus of the novels is on trading ships and, of course, pirates. However, what makes this series special is the Liveships. These ships are made from a special wood called wizardwood. If three individuals from the same family die on the ship across three generations, the ship gains consciousness with all the memories of those individuals. The first novel in this trilogy begins with Althea Vestrit, who expects to inherit the ship named "Vivacia" after her father's death but faces unexpected challenges.


Hobb continues Fitz's story in "The Tawny Man" series. Later, she satisfies dragon enthusiasts with "The Rain Wild Chronicles." In this series set in the Elderling world, we witness the journeys of young people chosen as dragon keepers and their relationships with dragons. Unlike the other series, "Liveship Traders" and "The Rain Wild Chronicles" can be read independently of the other books.


After an 11-year hiatus, Hobb returns to Fitz's story and publishes a final trilogy that ties together all the stories in this world. Thus, the Realm of Elderling is completed with four trilogies and one quartet.

The Soldier Son trilogy takes place in a different world than the Elderling Realm. Hobb describes this series as gunpowder fantasy. We follow the life of Nevare Burvelle, the second son of a lord, in this world. In this society, noble children choose their professions based on their birth order. Nevare, being the second male, becomes a soldier. This trilogy has divided Hobb's fans into those who find it dull and unsatisfying and those who claim that, despite the slow pace, it becomes strikingly captivating in the last book.

While writing these series, Robin Hobb, under the name Megan Lindholm, also didn't remain idle. Her story "Cut" was nominated for the Nebula Awards.

Hobb believes that a good fantasy work is about lowering the reader's threshold of doubt. "So the reader can step easily into the book and not feel blocked by something that seems impossible or foolish at first glance. And I think foolishness is more dangerous than the impossible."


Hopefully, Robin Hobb's other works will be translated into our language and receive the recognition they deserve.


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