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The goal is formal peace between Fitz's Six Duchies and the Outislander Raiders, ending a cycle of war fought with weapons that kill the soul, whose horror dominated that first trilogy. A royal marriage is arranged, with the puzzling condition that the Duchies' heir must bring a bride-price of the head of the last male dragon--who's alive but entombed in a glacier. Why?
Fitz's old friend the Fool, a once-albino who believes himself the White Prophet of this age but has mysteriously darkened into the Tawny Man, opposes this dragon-killing. It seems necessary to deceive and betray the Fool for his own good, if only to prevent his self-prophesied death.
Another betrayal: a halfwit master of the psychic "Skill" is needed for this mad quest, and must be lured by Fitz on to ship after ship despite his horror of the sea. Old deceptions return to haunt Fitz, such as the Skilled girl who doesn't know she's his daughter, and others long kept in the dark for what seemed excellent reasons.
Grim surprises, confrontations, a hidden enemy and the old horror of soul-draining ("Forging") all await on the island of the glacier and the dragon. Fitz has more than once been traumatically hauled back from death: now the risks are worse than ever, with an impasse that surely can't be resolved.
Do Fitz and his closest friends win through? That would be telling, but whatever happens, there are high prices to be paid. It's a measure of Robin Hobb's skill with characters and relationships that the final compromises and realistic settlements are so satisfying. Smoothly readable despite great length, laden with charm and terror, Fool's Fate is a fine ending to what is a family as well as a fantasy saga. --David Langford
Praise for Robin Hobb:
The Golden Fool
‘Complexity and complex world-building are effortlessly dashed off’
PUBLISHING NEWS
Fool’s Errand
‘In today’s crowded fantasy market Robin Hobb’s books are like diamonds in a sea of zircons’
GEORGE R R MARTIN
Assassin’s Apprentice:
‘A wonderful book, written by a writer at the height of her abilities’
J V JONES
Assassin’s Quest:
‘An enthralling conclusion to this superb trilogy, displaying an exceptional combination of originality, magic, adventure, character, and drama’
KIRKUS REVIEWS
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Book Description Condition: new. Stephen Youll; John Howe (illustrator). Seller Inventory # FrontCover0553801546
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Book Description Hardcover. Condition: New. Stephen Youll; John Howe (illustrator). A heralded writer of epic fantasy, Robin Hobb has given readers worlds within worlds in her heroic Farseer and Liveship Traders trilogies. Now she takes the final step in the breathtaking trilogy of the Tawny Man, as the tale of FitzChivalry Farseer comes to an epic end. Rife with boundless adventure and unforgettable characters, Fools Fate is destined to become a classic of the genre.Assassin, spy, and Skillmaster, FitzChivalry Farseer, now known only as man-at-arms Tom Badgerlock, has become firmly ensconced in the queens court at Buckkeep. Only a few are aware of his fabled, tangled past-and the sacrifices he made to survive it. And fewer know of his possession of the Skill magic. With PrinceDutiful, his assassin-mentor Chade, and the simpleminded yet strongly Skilled Thick, FitzChivalry strives to aid the prince on a quest that could ultimately secure peace between the Six Duchies and the Outislands-and win Dutiful the hand of the Narcheska Elliania.For the Narcheska has set the prince on an unfathomable task: to behead a dragon trapped in ice-the legendary Icefyre, on the island of Aslevjal. Yet not all the clans of the Outislands support the princes effort to behead theirlegendary defender. Are there darker forces at work behind the Narcheskas imperious demand? As the prince and his coterie set sail, FitzChivalry works behind the scenes, playing nursemaid to the ailing Thick, while striving to strengthen their Skill-ultimately bringing his unacknowledged daughter into the web of the Skill magic, where the truth must finally unfold.The quest emerges amid riddles that must be unraveled, a clash of cultures, and the ultimate betrayal. For knowing that the Fool has foretold he will die on the island of ice, FitzChivalry has plotted with Chade to leave his dearest friend behind. But fate cannot so easily be defied. Seller Inventory # DADAX0553801546
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Book Description Hardcover. Condition: new. Stephen Youll; John Howe (illustrator). New. Seller Inventory # Wizard0553801546
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