Started: December 1, 2018
Finished: The Same
Why I Read This Book
So, I was in Chiang Mai airport (flying back from the DELTA) and the only - books I had with me were heavy reads. I usually get a headache on planes, so I wanted a light little read that wouldn't be too demanding for the journey.
The selection of English books at Chiang Mai airport was limited. There were a couple history books that caught my eye, but the price was a bit intimidating (1000 Baht. Roughly 30 dollars!) I decided to look for something cheaper.
There were several fantasy books. I've always had a soft spot for fantasy books, but one of the reasons I read so little of them is that it's almost impossible to pick up a fantasy book in bookstore that's not in the middle of an ongoing series. Sure enough, all the fantasy books I picked up and flipped through looked like they were part of a larger series.
...Except for this one, which as far as I could tell (by flipping through it in the bookstore) was a standalone book. I've never read anything by Robin Hobb before (although I vaguely recognized the name as an author I've seen on bookstore shelves before). There were references on the back cover to the Farseer Trilogy (which I've never read), but it seemed like an independent story.
(After having read the whole thing, I can confirm it does stand as an independent story. Although, after having done my Internet research--see Goodreads-- it appears that the Piebald Prince was first mentioned as a legend in one of Robin Hobbs early books. So this apparently is fleshing out a bit of backstory in the mythos of her fantasy world. But it can totally be read by someone like me who has no knowledge of any of her other books.)
The Review
So... this is a short little book. Only 159 pages. More of a novella really. I finished it before I arrived home.
There's not a lot to say about a short book like this, so I'll just make a few brief comments, and then call it a day.
This is a fantasy story, but that doesn't quite describe it, because fantasy stories can vary widely in tone from each other. I'd describe this one as "fairy-tale-esque". The basic beats of the plot, if you stripped it down, is actually very similar to something that would pop up in the Brothers Grimm. Robin Hobb isn't quite as bare-bones in her storytelling as the Brothers Grimm. Hobb's write more like a modern day novelist than a 19th century folklorist. And yet, there is an element of minimalism to her narration. Events are recounted from the perspective of a narrator remembering the distant past, not from the perspective of an omniscient author. So you don't feel like you're actually in the scene with the characters (as you do with most novels) you feel like you're listening to an old tale, and that helps gives it a fairy tale-esque quality.
It's probably best read without any spoilers, so you can enjoy the twists and turns of the story as they unfold. So probably best to stop reading here if you think you might read this book someday. I'd give it a mild recommendation. I wouldn't recommend anyone go out of their way to track down this book, but if it falls into your lap, it's an easy and pleasant enough story.
**** SPOILER ALERT ****
The book starts out with a romance between a strong-willed princess, and a shy stable boy. I'll admit to being a bit bored with the whole romance thing. It seemed sappy, and cliched. (This was the plot of The Princess Bride as well, wasn't it? Falling in love with the stable boy?)
But, the part with the princess and the stable boy only lasts for half the book. The rest of the book is what happens to their offspring, the Piebald prince. And I found this story interesting.
Other notes:
* There are some echoes of real history in here. The whole part about the Queen-in-Waiting refusing to marry, and the politics around this, reminded me of Elizabeth I. In fact, I suspect the echos are deliberate.
* There's some interesting elements of ambiguity in the narration. The narrator admits she doesn't know things. Some parts are speculation. Some parts are left up to the reader's imagination.
It never gets to the point where it is frustrating. (I dislike authors who don't provide emotional closure to the readers. But this isn't one of them. All the major plot points pay-off. There's just some mystery around the edge of it.)
* I like the way the conflict between King Charger and Lord Canny was set up. Robin Hobb did a good job of showing that neither one was responsible for the fighting between their men, but that the conflict just naturally escalated as one event just cascaded into another, and got out of their control. I think a lot of events in real history can be like that as well.
* None of the characters really get fleshed out in this book. Which is both a positive and a negative. I felt like I would have liked to know some of them better. But then, that's kind of the point. The book has a minimalist narration style. And it's really short and sweet. It's over before you know it.
Video Review
Video review HERE and embedded below:
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